Meet Uwe Zoellig
With a background in chemical laboratory technology and process engineering, Uwe Zoellig has spent over three decades shaping the future of vacuum solutions. His engagement with carbon capture started a few years back when this technology was identified as a promising market opportunity. Since then, he and his global team have been exploring and optimizing vacuum technologies for carbon capture.
Job: Global Market Sector Manager
Specialist Subject: Industrial vacuum technology
I have often worked with ’green’ technologies in the past, but carbon capture is the most straight-forward one ever. To capture CO2, you can use vacuum pumps for regeneration processes or to provide the required low pressures to separate the gases. Vacuum technology makes most processes more efficient.
Leveraging existing technology
At the moment, the team is focused on how to best use the company’s existing vacuum solutions as these are already available on the market.
“With our existing portfolio we can already support the technologies that can separate CO2 from factory emissions, or absorb CO2 already released into the atmosphere,” says Uwe.
The team is also innovating to develop vacuum solutions specifically designed for carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS). In collaboration with customers, research institutes and their in-house R&D colleagues, they are identifying “dream product descriptions” combined with viable business models.
A carbon capture vision for the future
But the journey is not without its challenges. Uwe notes that there is no “perfect fit” solution yet, especially when scaling up to industrial levels. The CCUS process parameters are still not clearly defined and they are still being fine-tuned, and very diverse vacuum solutions can be required in the end. This makes the optimization process complex.
However, Uwe envisions vacuum products that are optimized for CCUS and that not only enhance carbon capture efficiency but also support energy savings in various industries, such as steel and power.
The technologies we offer and develop can prevent, or at least reduce, global warming, which is highly motivating. You feel really proud to be part of this innovation challenge.
Listen to Uwe on TechTalks
Uwe Zoellig was a guest on the second episode of the TechTalks podcast, where we discussed if carbon capture can be a solution to the climate challenge.
