Eion's Ana Pavlovic Hans: “Rocks that clean up the planet”
Mar 15, 2024
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Ana Pavlovic Hans talks about using rocks to cut carbon, improving the 'recipe' for rock weathering, partnership with Stripe, raising $12 million, and shares critter stories from Australia. They discuss making rock weathering 'sexy,' the breakthrough in measurement, and bringing down costs for a sustainable future.
Enhanced rock weathering accelerates natural carbon removal process using pulverized rocks like olivine.
Adjusting rock surface area and application methods boost carbon removal efficiency and scalability.
Quantifying carbon removal through trace elements in rocks is vital for cost-effective scaling and technology advancement.
Deep dives
Enhanced Rock Weathering and Carbon Removal
Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW) accelerates the natural process where certain rocks naturally remove carbon from the atmosphere. By adjusting the surface area of rocks like olivine, carbon removal is expedited from thousands to just a few years. This process enhances the ability to combat climate change effectively and efficiently by storing carbon on land and in oceans over time.
Rock Pulverization for Enhanced Carbon Removal
Enhanced rock weathering involves pulverizing rocks like olivine to increase their surface area, allowing for more efficient carbon removal. Application techniques vary based on land use, with adjustments in rock composition to target specific deployment needs. By pulverizing rocks and adjusting their application methods, carbon removal can be effectively boosted.
Challenges in Carbon Quantification and Scaling
Quantifying carbon removal from enhanced rock weathering powers the scalability of the technology. Tracing trace elements in rocks helps monitor the carbon removal process, linking them to carbon storage and deposition over time. While the technology is scientifically proven, building trust and generating operational scalability data are essential to drive down costs and scale up effectively.
Opportunities and Financing in Climate Tech
Companies like Stripe are investing in carbon removal technologies to advance research and drive down costs for scalability. Through carbon purchase agreements, Stripe supports early-stage technologies like enhanced rock weathering, providing financial assistance for cost-effective carbon removal. This financing approach catalyzes the growth of climate tech companies towards achieving significant carbon removal targets.
Scaling Enhanced Rock Weathering for Global Impact
Enhanced rock weathering relies on abundant silicate minerals globally to scale carbon removal. With hundreds of millions of tons of rocks available worldwide, the challenge lies in optimizing rock selection and application for minimal emissions and cost efficiency. Future advancements in technology will focus on leveraging specific rock types for tailored land use applications in agriculture and forestry.
Company Growth and Future Funding
Ion raised a $12 million Series A funding round in January 2023 and plans a Series B round by late 2024. The company is based in Detroit, with a remote work culture to support a distributed team across various expertise hubs worldwide. Ion's focus on operational scalability and data generation underscores its commitment to advancing enhanced rock weathering technology for substantial carbon removal impacts.
The Sunday Times’ tech correspondent Danny Fortson brings on Ana Pavlovic Hans to talk about using rocks to cut carbon (3:00), coming up with the best “recipe” (8:00), the measurement breakthrough (11:00), bringing the cost down (20:00), making rock weathering “sexy’ (25:45), being raised in mining country in America and Australia (27:00), the partnership with Stripe (37:40), raising $12 million (41:30), and critter stories from Australia (42:40).
