Houston team unveils low-cost carbon capture with 90% efficiency

A research team at the University of Houston, led by Professor Mim Rahimi, has developed two significant innovations aimed at making carbon capture more efficient and affordable. The first breakthrough replaces costly ion-exchange membranes in amine-based CO₂ capture systems with engineered gas diffusion electrodes, achieving over 90% carbon removal efficiency—nearly 50% higher than traditional electrochemically mediated amine regeneration (EMAR) methods. This membraneless system also reduces energy consumption and lowers capture costs to about $70 per metric ton, comparable to leading amine scrubbing technologies, potentially enabling easier retrofitting of existing industrial exhaust systems. The second innovation integrates carbon capture with renewable energy storage through a vanadium redox flow battery developed by Ph.D. student Mohsen Afshari. This system captures CO₂ during battery charging and releases it upon discharge, while maintaining cycle stability and strong capture capacity. By combining carbon removal with grid stabilization, this dual-function device could help power plants and heavy emitters reduce