In early 2021, SSEB launched DAC RECO₂UP, and the project met or exceeded all metrics and successfully concluded on July 31, 2024.

The DAC RECO₂UP project was the first direct air capture (DAC) system installed at the National Carbon Capture Center in Wilsonville, Alabama. The NCCC provided a commercially relevant environment in which to assess the DAC solid-amine CO₂ adsorption-desorption contactor technology.

Five testing campaigns were completed with an experimental period of over 3,300 hours, allowing the project team to obtain a sizable and varied database. The in-field operational data was used to develop a pre-screening techno-economic analysis, a life cycle analysis, and assess risk. A DAC unit based on the lessons learned from the DAC RECO₂UP project is being designed internationally for commercial installation in the United Arab Emirates.

The DAC RECO₂UP project was successful in decreasing the cost of CO₂ capture through the testing of existing DAC materials in integrated field units and producing a concentrated CO₂ stream of 99 percent purity exceeding the initial goals set for the project.

Recoverable energy is readily available from many commercial locations where DAC can be deployed; therefore, advancing the fidelity of energy recovery to directly reduce the cost of DAC was a key project objective. In addition, many commercial facilities have low-concentration CO₂ vents that are uneconomical to treat alone but could provide more efficient mass and thermal transport to DAC systems with integrated energy recovery and flexible CO₂ treatment capabilities.

Results of the project addressed critical technical barriers and demonstrated improved capital and operating costs of DAC technology while validating commercial relevance of cost and product quality and desirability.