COLMARE

The project COLMARE (CO₂ Lowering through Marine microAlgae Resilience and Exploitation) aim to valorize the capacity of calcifying marine microalgae, the coccolithophores, of capturing and fixating the carbon dioxide (CO₂) through photosynthesis. These organisms also permanently store carbon in their shells, composed by micrometric plates of calcium carbonate (CaCO₃), called coccoliths. The coccolithophore ability to bio-fixating carbon through these two different processes, makes them very interesting for the permanent sequestration of CO₂.

The project also aims, beside the valorization of anthropogenic CO₂, exploring innovative usage of the produced biomass, within a context of a circular economy.

The project COLMARE is a collaboration between OGS, the Department of Industrial Engineer of the University of Padova, and the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences of the University of Pavia. All the activities and the experimental phases are funded by A2A S.p.A., the largest multiutility company, whose goal for 2035 is to reduce its direct greenhouse gas emissions by 65% by investing in Carbon Capture Usage and Storage (CCUS) technologies and research, including the exploitation of microalgae.

Project partners: Università degli Studi di Padova e Università degli Studi di Pavia