UK's Lomar Shipping to test Seabound’s carbon capture tech on its vessels

The first Lomar Shipping vessel will be retrofitted with Seabound's carbon capture unit in May and June for pilot trials through the summer.

PHOTO: An illustration of a vessel with Seabound's carbon capture tech. Seabound

London-based climate technology start-up Seabound has developed a carbon capture system that can be retrofitted on existing ships to trap and store carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions onboard a vessel.

Seabound has collaborated with British firm Lomar Shipping's technology arm lomarLabs to install the system on Lomar Shipping's vessels and conduct trials. LomarLabs will advise on engineering and design during the process.

Seabound claims that its carbon capture device can trap up to 95% of CO2 emissions from a ship's fuel exhaust.

The technology uses quicklime pebbles that react chemically with the captured CO2, converting it into limestone pebbles.

lomarlabs explains that these limestone pebbles can be stored on a ship until it returns to port without requiring "energy-intensive CO2 separation, compression, or liquefaction." Once offloaded, the pebbles are sold in pure form, or converted back into quicklime and CO2. Quicklime can be used on another vessel while CO2 is sold, according to lomarlabs.

Quicklime pebbles are “safe, inert and non-toxic” and widely available at low prices, it adds.

Seabound chief executive Alisha Fredriksson says the technology can be a promising solution for reducing the industry's carbon footprint, helping global shipping decarbonise now rather than waiting for five or ten years to do so.

By Konica Bhatt

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