#132: Turning Rust into Renewable Energy with RIFT

Oct 21, 2025

Ask episode

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

In this episode of Earthlings 2.0, we speak with Mark Verhagen, CEO and co-founder of Renewable Iron Fuel Technologies (RIFT), a company turning rust into a clean heat source for heavy industry. You see, industrial heat, from cement kilns to steel plants, accounts for roughly 20% of global emissions, yet most facilities can’t electrify or switch to hydrogen because of grid and infrastructure limits. RIFT’s answer? Burn iron powder instead of fossil fuels, then recycle the “ash” (iron oxide) back into reusable fuel. We unpack how this closed-loop system works, the company’s 1 MW demo plant in the Netherlands, lessons learned as they scale, and why a grid-independent fuel could be the missing piece for decarbonizing the world’s hardest-to-abate sectors.

Key Points:

Industrial heat’s blind spot – Roughly 80% of industrial sites can’t electrify or adopt hydrogen today due to grid and infrastructure constraints.
Iron fuel explained – Iron powder burns like coal dust, generating up to 2,000 °C heat with zero CO₂ and ultra-low NOₓ/SOₓ emissions.
Circular chemistry – The by-product iron oxide is reduced back into metallic iron using hydrogen, creating a closed, recyclable fuel loop.

Mark Verhagen, CEO and co-founder of RIFT
LinkedIn
YouTube
Luis de Leon, Earthlings 2.0 Guest Host, Sr. Public Relations Account Executive at Technica Communications

🚀 Calling all Earthlings…

Visit our website for more episodes!

We want to learn more about you! It’ll take just a few moments to complete our survey. Thank you for helping us make your listening experience the best it can be!

Are you new to Earthlings 2.0 and don’t know where to get started? Check out our Life at 3C episode on our website

Thanks for tuning in! If you like what we’re doing over at Earthlings 2.0, you can support us by heading over to our Patreon Page.

Let’s stay connected! Follow Earthlings 2.0 Socials for the latest updates and news:

Thanks to Resource Labs for having us on the network!

Mentioned in this episode:

Q3 End Credits

Greenlane, Ampion, Tigo, USBI, 247 Solar