How LanzaTech turns greenhouse gases into ethanol, bottles and dresses
Source: https://www.premiumbeautynews.com/en/how-lanzatech-turns-greenhouse,21226
At LanzaTech’s lab in the Chicago suburbs, a beige liquid bubbles away in dozens of glass vats. The concoction includes billions of hungry bacteria, specialized to feed on polluted air - the first step in a recycling system that converts greenhouse gases into usable products. Thanks to licensing agreements, LanzaTech’s novel microorganisms are already being put to commercial use by three Chinese factories, converting waste emissions into ethanol. LanzaTech is among 15 finalists for theEarthshot Prize, an award for contributions to environmentalism launched by Britain’s Prince William and broadcaster David Attenborough. Five winners will be announced Friday. To date, the company says it has kept 200,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, while producing 50 million gallons (190 million liters) of ethanol. LanzaTech, which employs about 200 people, compares its carbon recycling technology to a brewery - but instead of taking sugar and yeast to make beer, it uses carbon pollution and bacteria to make ethanol.