CO2 Rail equips standard rail cars with a regenerative‑braking system that converts wasted braking energy into electricity to power on‑board Direct Air Capture modules and a Locomotive Exhaust Transfer Array, capturing up to 70% of diesel exhaust and ambient CO₂. The captured carbon is liquefied and stored in a 15‑ton cryogenic tank for off‑loading at crew changes, enabling freight and passenger rail operators to add large‑scale carbon removal and emissions mitigation without major infrastructure changes.
Funding
Funding not disclosed
Founders
Product
Problem
Rail transport generates large amounts of kinetic energy that is dissipated as waste heat during braking, and diesel locomotives emit significant CO₂ through exhaust. This results in missed opportunities to capture energy and reduce greenhouse‑gas emissions within an existing, extensive transportation network.
Solution
Co2rail equips standard rail cars with a regenerative braking system that converts the otherwise wasted braking energy into electrical power stored in a high‑capacity battery array. The harvested electricity drives on‑board Direct Air Capture (DAC) modules that pull CO₂ from ambient air, as well as a Locomotive Exhaust Transfer Array (LETA) that captures up to 70 % of diesel exhaust emissions. Captured CO₂ is liquefied and stored in a 15‑ton cryogenic tank, then off‑loaded at crew changes for transport to sequestration sites or utilization facilities. The modular, sorbent‑agnostic design allows upgrades to emerging capture technologies, while requiring only minor adjustments to existing rail operations, enabling rapid deployment at scale.
Target Audience
Primary customers are freight and passenger rail operators, as well as logistics companies and carbon‑offset providers seeking to integrate large‑scale CO₂ removal and diesel‑exhaust mitigation into existing rail fleets.
Features
- Regenerative braking system generating 1,600‑2,400 kWh per car, equivalent to the energy of 16‑24 Tesla batteries
- Slipstream‑driven airflow moving up to 15,000 m³ of ambient air per minute through the DAC unit, eliminating the need for mechanical fans
- LETA (Locomotive Emissions Transfer Array) mounted on diesel locomotives to capture up to 70 % of exhaust without creating back‑pressure
- Sorbent‑agnostic carbon collection unit capable of handling solid or liquid sorbents and adaptable to future capture chemistries
- On‑board 15‑ton cryogenic storage tank for liquefied CO₂, with daily off‑load capability at crew changes or fueling stops
- Modular rail‑car architecture allowing quick swapping between DAC and CCS configurations or relocation between locomotives
- Utilizes existing global rail infrastructure, providing a carbon‑negative solution with virtually no fixed land footprint