New technology can collect CO2 from a truck's exhaust pipe

Mitulkumar Suthar, Lead Engineering, Ed Green, CTO et Masoud Talebi Amiri, Co-founder and CEO of Qaptis, in front of the prototype installed at Tolochenaz © 2023 Alain Herzog EPFL spin-off Qaptis has developed a system that can cut freight trucks' carbon emissions by up to 90%. The company just installed a prototype of its technology at a freight carrier based in Tolochenaz in order to conduct pilot tests locally. Every year, trucks shipping goods across Switzerland emit over a million tons of CO₂, according to figures from the Swiss Federal Statistical Office. The share of electric trucks is growing but the exact percentage has not been made public. In the EU, just 600 electric trucks weighing at least 16 metric tons were registered in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 86,455 combustion-engine ones. Qaptis aims to reduce the carbon footprint of these conventional freight trucks with its new decarbonization system, which traps the CO₂ coming out of the exhaust pipe and stores it in a liquid state. With a prototype now installed at a local freight carrier, with which Qaptis has entered into a strategic partnership, the startup is poised to run pilot tests under real-world conditions.