Spanish company Ingelia has developed an industrial process called hydrothermal carbonisation to produce a biocarbon called "biochar", which can be made using sewage. The resulting product works and burns like coal but has a zero CO2 emission rate, as well as a considerably lower production of harmful wastes such as nitrogen, sulfur, and chlorine. By turning organic waste into a biocarbon that doesn’t emit CO2 or other pollutants, Ingelia may have just found an alternative energy source to traditional coal. The European Commision has pledged that the EU will cut greenhouse gas emissions to 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. Realistically, everyone will need to get stuck in to actually hit that target but at the moment, the prospects don’t look fantastic: to halt climate change, the UN has said "unprecedented change" will be required, both on a social and on a global level . However, Spanish company Ingelia may have the key to at least part of the solution: after developing an industrial process to produce a biocarbon called "biochar" which can be used as a much cleaner energy source to traditional coal. A report prepared by the UN body for climate change has called for ‘rapid, far-reaching […]
Reading Time: < 1 minute
