CARBON CLEAN SOLUTIONS LIMITED

Their core work

Carbon Clean Solutions is a UK-based private company (SME) specializing in CO2 capture technology for industrial emitters, with a focus on making post-combustion carbon capture economically viable at scale. Their H2020 track shows two distinct but complementary roles: they led a feasibility study on intensified CO2 capture processes (CapCO2), and later joined a long-running MSCA-RISE project (OPTIMAL) as an industry partner bringing real-world process knowledge to AI-driven olefin production. This dual involvement suggests they operate as both a technology developer and an industrial validation partner for research consortia. Their expertise spans the full arc from the chemistry of CO2 removal to the digital tools used to optimize large-scale chemical plants.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Their earliest H2020 activity (CapCO2, 2018–2019) was focused narrowly on process intensification for CO2 capture — the company's commercial core — with no recorded digital or AI keywords. By 2021, their participation in OPTIMAL marks a clear expansion: the project's keyword set is dominated by process systems engineering, AI, machine learning, and smart manufacturing, applied to ethylene and olefin production. The trend is a deliberate move from hardware-level capture technology toward intelligent, software-assisted industrial decarbonization — positioning them at the intersection of clean chemistry and Industry 4.0.

Carbon Clean Solutions is moving toward offering digitally optimized decarbonization solutions for energy-intensive industries, making them a relevant partner for any consortium combining industrial process engineering with AI or sustainability mandates.

How they like to work

They have played both roles in EU projects: leading a small feasibility study as coordinator (CapCO2 under SME Instrument Phase 1) and contributing as an industry participant in a large, long-running MSCA-RISE project (OPTIMAL). The SME Instrument Phase 1 coordinator role reflects entrepreneurial initiative, while the OPTIMAL partnership suggests they are valued as real-world industrial validators in academic-led consortia. With 12 partners across 4 countries, their network is modest but international, consistent with a focused SME rather than a large research hub.

Carbon Clean Solutions has collaborated with 12 unique partners across 4 countries, reflecting a small but internationally distributed network typical of a specialist SME that joins targeted consortia rather than building broad alliances. Their geographic spread is European, with the UK as their home base.

What sets them apart

Carbon Clean Solutions occupies a rare niche as a private-sector SME that brings commercial carbon capture product experience into EU research projects — most carbon capture participants are universities or large industrials. Their blend of proprietary process technology and growing digital/AI capability makes them attractive both as a technology end-user and as a validation partner who can bridge lab-scale results to commercial deployment. For consortium builders targeting industrial decarbonization, they offer credibility that purely academic partners cannot provide.

Highlights from their portfolio

• CapCO2
  This SME Instrument Phase 1 grant shows Carbon Clean Solutions proactively seeking EU funding to validate their own CO2 capture technology, taking the coordinator role rather than waiting to be invited as a partner.
• OPTIMAL
  A long-duration (2021–2026) MSCA-RISE project focused on AI-driven CO2-neutral olefin production, where Carbon Clean Solutions serves as the industry anchor bringing carbon capture expertise to a research-heavy consortium.