Capturing and storing CO₂ from the air is one strategy to reduce greenhouse gases. In its search for innovative solutions to mitigate the climate crisis, Sorigué is involved in the development of a technology to fix CO₂ on surfaces using sunlight. To this end, it is lending its facilities to test LightNet technology.
 
LightNet has been devised and patented by researchers at the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2). This solution is based on a chemical process occurring naturally in limestone and other minerals by which atmospheric CO₂ is fixed in the form of calcium carbonate. LightNet powers this process using sunlight to result in an efficient and clean technology.
 
Another aspect that adds value to this solution is that the lime-based material required for its production can be sourced locally and at low cost. For the full-scale tests, ICN2 and the company Cales de Pachs have developed a product with two different forms that will be tested at Sorigué. The first is very similar to plaster and can be applied on different surfaces. The second is small spheres that may be contained in open-air metal structures. Both options are designed to be easily integrated into urban environments.
 
Considering all these aspects, light-powered CO₂ capture is proposed as an innovative and promising avenue to explore in the fight against the climate crisis.

In order to validate this new material, Sorigué is lending its facilities at the industrial complex in La Plana del Corb (Lleida) to test different applications and validate the most efficient ones. In a first phase, the material has been applied in “plaster” format in different formulations on a concrete slab to evaluate its performance under different conditions. In a second phase, the application on other surfaces and street furniture will be assessed.
 
The industrial complex of La Plana del Corb is part of the PLANTA project, a space by Sorigué and its foundation that brings together contemporary art, architecture, knowledge and landscape, and which aims to be a place for the development of creativity and talent.
 
LightNet is one of more than 15 research projects in which Sorigué is currently involved in coordination with different public and private organisations at a national and international level. Studies are aimed, above all, at the development of the circular economy, decarbonising the environment and the sustainability of wastewater treatment.