Custom automation, process development, and experimental testing systems accelerating next-generation direct air carbon capture technologies
As organizations seek scalable solutions to remove carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere, one of the largest challenges is moving promising laboratory research into practical, repeatable, and scalable industrial processes.
Heirloom Carbon had developed a proprietary carbon capture process that utilized naturally occurring powdered materials capable of absorbing atmospheric CO₂ through simple oxidation reactions. By introducing controlled amounts of moisture to these materials, carbon dioxide could be captured and stored through naturally occurring chemical processes.
While initial research had demonstrated the viability of the concept, testing was largely confined to small-scale university laboratory environments. Experimental procedures were highly manual, throughput was limited, and the process lacked the automation and repeatability needed to rapidly evaluate multiple variables and accelerate development.
The organization needed a testing platform that could increase experimental throughput, improve consistency, automate data collection, and provide a pathway toward future production-scale implementation. At the same time, capital expenditures needed to remain low while the technology continued to mature and key process parameters were still being defined.
Re:Build DAPR worked closely with the Heirloom team to understand the carbon capture process, identify critical testing variables, and develop a scalable experimental platform capable of supporting accelerated process development.
The project focused on creating an automated testing environment that would allow multiple process configurations to be evaluated simultaneously while reducing manual intervention and improving data consistency. The team evaluated commercially available sensors, monitoring equipment, and environmental measurement technologies to identify cost-effective solutions capable of supporting the evolving research effort.
Research included evaluating moisture sensors, carbon dioxide sensors, carbon monoxide sensors, relative humidity instrumentation, and specialized analytical equipment used to quantify carbon content and process performance. The team also assessed methods for automating powder wetting, environmental control, gas exchange measurement, and data collection.
Recognizing the client’s need to minimize upfront investment, the initial system incorporated lower-cost commercial components where appropriate while maintaining the flexibility to evolve toward more industrialized solutions as the technology matured.
Re:Build DAPR developed an automated carbon capture testing platform designed to increase testing frequency, improve repeatability, and accelerate process development efforts.
At the core of the solution was a custom-designed gas exchange enclosure that allowed carbon capture testing to occur in a controlled environment. The enclosure integrated with specialized monitoring equipment while maintaining communication with external instrumentation. Pneumatic actuation enabled the enclosure to seal securely over powder-filled testing trays during evaluation cycles.
To automate the oxidation process, a custom misting system was developed that traveled across the powder trays using a pneumatic slide mechanism. This system delivered controlled moisture application while minimizing airflow disturbances that could disrupt the lightweight powder materials.
A Raspberry Pi-based control system was selected to minimize capital costs while providing automation functionality, internet connectivity, VPN access, and onboard I/O capabilities. Although this approach introduced reliability challenges associated with non-industrial hardware, it enabled rapid deployment and process development during the early stages of technology maturation.
Custom Matlab scripts and Excel-based analytical tools were developed to process large datasets generated during testing, allowing researchers to quickly identify trends, compare results, and evaluate process performance across multiple test configurations.
The project successfully transformed a highly manual laboratory process into an automated testing platform capable of supporting significantly higher testing frequency and process development velocity.
The automated system enabled multiple process parameters to be evaluated simultaneously, with complete testing, data collection, and analysis cycles occurring approximately every two days. Individual test campaigns were able to evaluate eight separate test configurations concurrently, dramatically increasing the amount of actionable process data available to the development team.
Key outcomes included:
Testing efforts ultimately identified alternative powder materials that delivered improved carbon capture performance while also simplifying post-test handling, disposal, cleaning, and sample preparation activities.
The platform provided Heirloom with a critical bridge between laboratory-scale research and future commercial-scale deployment, allowing the team to rapidly iterate, validate concepts, and identify technologies necessary for larger-scale carbon capture systems.
The carbon capture testing platform includes:
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