Energy & Decarbonization

Thursday 1 May 2025 - Direct Air Capture Developments: Technology Innovations, Supply Chains, and Electrochemical Methods; Status of direct air capture and leading players; Key strategies for reducing capture costs for direct air capture; Contextualizing direct air capture within voluntary carbon credit markets and the wider carbon dioxide removal space

Although there have been several unsuccessful attempts to commercialize MOFs historically, the design flexibility and structural versatility of MOFs have attracted widespread interest in numerous applications in recent years, many of which are nearing commercialization. With a projected 30-fold market growth by 2035, this article offers an in-depth look at how MOFs are reshaping the future of carbon capture, water harvesting, chemical and gas separations, and beyond.

Ion exchange membranes are crucial materials used as solid electrolytes in green hydrogen and energy storage technologies. Rising demand and material manufacturing innovations are set to define the ion exchange membrane market over the next decade, which IDTechEx predicts will exceed US$2.9B in value by 2035.

Fuel cells are on the rise as sustainability and decarbonization efforts become more widespread globally due to their ability to help contribute to economies on their way to meeting net zero targets.

Steel decarbonization technologies have been under development for many years; however, the advancement of new hydrogen-based and electric technologies has recently accelerated, paving the way for green steel production. This article presents some highlights from IDTechEx's latest Green Steel research, discussing policies and regulations driving the market, technologies for decarbonizing existing steel mills, hydrogen-DRI and new ironmaking technologies for green steel, and key sectors procuring green steel.

Perovskite PV has garnered significant industry interest due to its high efficiency, scalable manufacturing, and relatively low material costs. However, durability challenges have long stalled its commercialization. Now, several pilot and small commercial scale perovskite solar projects are underway, with many companies achieving panel lifetimes over 10 years and steadily bridging the gap to the 25-year target.

With record-breaking carbon credit sales in 2024 and increasing overlap of voluntary and compliance carbon markets, the business case for carbon dioxide removal is growing stronger. IDTechEx forecasts the carbon credit market revenue from durable, engineered carbon dioxide removal technologies will exceed US$14 billion in 2035.

The renewable energy landscape is evolving rapidly, with solar power leading the way. In 2023, global investments in solar energy reportedly surpassed all other power generation sources—including oil—for the first time. This article details the major growth factors for the thin film photovoltaics market, including the emerging technologies and application areas.

Photovoltaic technologies are gaining momentum as a result of solar power being one of the fastest-growing renewable energy sources across the world. In 2021, solar installations were seen to overtake wind generation, and in 2023, approximately 450GW of new solar capacity was recorded.

Automotive and battery OEMs are responsible for collecting retired batteries, which is where the second-life battery value chain begins. Recycling processes may see critical raw materials such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel reclaimed by OEMs. However, the already somewhat established relationship between recyclers and manufacturers may prove tricky for repurposing companies to interrupt.