# Biological carbon capture & utilization (bio-CCU: gas fermentation, CO2-to-protein, e-fuels)

Turning captured CO2 into fuels, proteins, polymers and methanol via microbial gas fermentation, engineered microbes and algae — a carbon-utilization value chain from industrial emissions to circular carbon products.

Source: https://en.bioecon.ru/technology/biological-carbon-capture-utilization/
Updated: 2026-08-18



## Overview and value chain

Markers: [EC: EU Carbon Removals Certification (CRCF) + CBAM | OECD: Carbon management, Circular bioeconomy | Regulator: EPA (USA), ADEME (France), NEA (China)]

Biological carbon capture and utilization (bio-CCU) converts captured carbon dioxide —
from industrial point sources, biogenic emissions or the atmosphere — into fuels, chemicals,
proteins and materials using microbial gas fermentation, engineered microbes or microalgae.
It reframes a waste gas as a feedstock, displacing fossil carbon while generating revenue that
can help finance abatement. LanzaTech's gas-fermentation platform alone reported 55.8 million
dollars of revenue in 2025, Newlight's AirCarbon polyhydroxyalkanoate is certified
carbon-negative, and Deep Branch's Proton single-cell protein reaches about 70% protein content
at roughly 90% lower carbon footprint than alternative proteins. On the catalytic-utilization
flank, Carbon Recycling International's Vulcanol renewable methanol embeds about 1.4 tonnes of
CO2 per tonne of methanol, and its planned Iceland e-fuel plant targets up to 70,000 tonnes per
year of sustainable aviation fuel. Policy now pulls demand: the US 45Q tax credit pays up to 85
dollars per tonne for captured and utilized CO2, the EU's Carbon Removals Certification
Framework is in force, and China's green finance catalogue lists CCUS as item 1.5.1.

The key directions of biological carbon capture & utilization are:
1. **Gas fermentation to fuels and chemicals (LanzaTech):** autotrophic microbes ferment
   CO/CO2-rich syngas into ethanol and onward into SAF and marine fuel; LanzaTech's
   municipal-solid-waste-to-ethanol pilot in Kuji City, Japan runs at about 400 t/yr at
   one-tenth commercial scale with guaranteed performance.
2. **Microbial CO2-to-biopolymers (Newlight AirCarbon):** an ocean-microbe-inspired process
   fixes CO2 and methane into polyhydroxyalkanoate — a carbon-negative, ocean-biodegradable
   polymer already in straws, utensils and eyewear.
3. **CO2-to-protein and nutrition (Deep Branch, Cemvita):** gas fermentation converts CO2 and
   hydrogen into single-cell protein (Proton, about 70% protein) and renewable oils (Cemvita
   FermOil, demonstrated at 75,000 litres).
4. **CO2-utilization to e-fuels and methanol (CRI, Cemvita e-kerosene):** catalytic and
   bio-catalytic hydrogenation of CO2 with green hydrogen yields renewable methanol (Vulcanol)
   and onward e-SAF, with CRI studying a 70,000 t/yr facility with Honeywell UOP.

### Sectoral value chain

```
[CO2 source: industrial / biogenic / atmospheric] ──> [Capture & conditioning] ──> [Bio-conversion: fermentation / engineered microbes / microalgae]
                                                                                          │
                                                                              (product recovery and purification)
                                                                                          │
                                                                                          ▼
[End-use: fuels · feed protein · polymers · methanol] <─── [Circular carbon products]
```

### Value chain levels

| Level | Description | Key inputs/outputs |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **CO2 source (Emissions)** | Point-source industrial emissions (steel, cement, refining), biogenic sources and direct air capture. | **In:** flue gas, biogas, air.<br>**Out:** raw CO2-rich gas. |
| **Capture & conditioning (Capture)** | Chemical absorption, adsorption or membrane separation, then compression and purification. | **In:** raw gas, energy, solvent.<br>**Out:** concentrated CO2. |
| **Bio-conversion (Conversion)** | Microbial gas fermentation, engineered-microbe fermentation or microalgal fixation into target molecules. | **In:** CO2, hydrogen, nutrients.<br>**Out:** ethanol, PHA, protein, methanol. |
| **Product recovery (Recovery)** | Distillation, cell harvesting, dewatering and purification of the biologically formed product. | **In:** fermentation broth.<br>**Out:** crude product stream. |
| **Formulation (Formulation)** | Blending, compounding and certification (ISCC PLUS, food/feed clearance) into merchant grades. | **In:** crude product.<br>**Out:** certified fuels, feed, resins. |
| **End-use & accounting (Markets)** | Sale into fuel, feed, polymer and chemical markets with carbon accounting under 45Q, CRCF or ISCC. | **In:** certified product.<br>**Out:** revenue, carbon credits. |

Cross-cutting technologies of the sector:
- **Green hydrogen integration:** CO2-plus-hydrogen routes (Deep Branch protein, CRI methanol) tie bio-CCU economics to the cost of renewable hydrogen and electrolyser scale-up.
- **Synthetic biology and strain engineering:** Cemvita and Newlight re-engineer microbial carbon flux to channel CO2 toward target products (oils, PHA, kerosene precursors) at higher titres.
- **Carbon accounting and certification:** ISCC PLUS, the EU CRCF and the US 45Q credit convert tonnes of utilized CO2 into bankable value, the linchpin of project finance.

---

## US

The United States leads bio-CCU commercialization through LanzaTech's gas fermentation and
Newlight's carbon-negative polymers, with the 45Q tax credit (expanded under the Inflation
Reduction Act to about 85 dollars per tonne for utilized CO2) anchoring project economics.

### Gas fermentation, carbon-negative polymers, e-kerosene
- **LanzaTech Global (LNZA):** its gas-fermentation platform converts industrial emissions and
  gasified waste into recycled-carbon ethanol; 2025 revenue reached 55.8 million dollars, its
  Kuji City (Japan) municipal-solid-waste pilot produces about 400 t/yr at one-tenth commercial
  scale, and LanzaTech's stake in LanzaJet rose to 53% by December 2025.
- **Newlight Technologies:** AirCarbon polyhydroxyalkanoate, made by methane-oxidizing ocean
  microbes from greenhouse gases, is a carbon-negative, ocean-biodegradable polymer shipping in
  straws, cutlery, eyewear and leather alternatives, with patented engineered strains improving
  carbon flux to PHA.
- **Cemvita Factory:** engineered microbes convert crude glycerin and CO2 into FermOil renewable
  natural oil, demonstrated at a 75,000-litre industrial scale (a 2,500-fold scale-up) at Bio
  Base Europe, and into bio-catalytic e-kerosene for aviation under the 45Q regime.

---

## CN

China's carbon management is anchored by its energy majors running CCUS at industrial scale
alongside microalgal CO2-utilization research, and CCUS now sits inside the national green
finance catalogue as a bankable category.

### CCUS scale, microalgal bio-conversion, green-finance inclusion
- **Sinopec (600028):** the integrated energy major runs point-source CCUS across refining,
  petrochemicals and enhanced oil recovery, and leads microalgal CO2-utilization research —
  comparing algal strains and culture conditions to turn captured CO2 into high-value
  bioproducts.
- **CCUS as a green-finance category:** China's green finance catalogue now lists carbon
  capture, utilization and storage as item 1.5.1, covering the full capture-transport-utilize-
  store chain for power, steel, cement, chemicals and oil extraction.
- **Institutional build-out:** Sinopec helped found the International CCUS Innovation
  Cooperation Organization, framing bio-CCU and CCUS as a coordinated national priority under
  the dual-carbon goals.

---

## EU

Europe pairs bio-CCU start-ups with the world's strictest carbon framework: the Carbon
Removals Certification Framework, the Emissions Trading System and the Carbon Border Adjustment
Mechanism, which together create demand for verified utilized carbon.

### Single-cell protein, renewable methanol, certification pull
- **Deep Branch (UK/NL):** its Proton single-cell protein is made by gas-fermenting industrial
  CO2 with hydrogen into an ingredient holding about 70% protein — roughly double soy — at
  around 90% lower carbon footprint, for aquaculture and livestock feed, backed by EU H2020
  funding.
- **Carbon Recycling International (Iceland):** its Emissions-to-Liquids process makes Vulcanol
  renewable methanol (ISCC PLUS certified, about 1.4 t CO2 per tonne of methanol) and is
  studying a 300 MW, up-to-70,000 t/yr e-SAF plant with Honeywell UOP and IdunnH2.
- **Regulatory pull:** the EU CRCF defines certified carbon removals and utilization, while the
  CBAM prices embedded carbon at the border, giving bio-CCU products a measurable premium in
  chemicals, fuels and feed.

---

## Leading companies and research institutes

| Company / Institute | Country | Key products / platforms | Tech features | Status 2026 |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **LanzaTech** | 🇺🇸 USA | *Recycled-carbon ethanol, gas fermentation* | LNZA; LanzaJet 53%; ~400 t/yr Japan MSW pilot | Growth |
| **Newlight Technologies** | 🇺🇸 USA | *AirCarbon PHA biopolymer* | Carbon-negative, ocean-biodegradable; ocean-microbe process | Commercial |
| **Cemvita Factory** | 🇺🇸 USA | *FermOil renewable oil, e-kerosene* | 75,000 L demo; engineered-microbe CO2 utilization | Pilot |
| **Deep Branch** | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | *Proton single-cell protein* | Gas fermentation; ~70% protein, ~90% lower carbon | Pilot |
| **CRI** | 🇮🇸 Iceland | *Vulcanol renewable methanol* | CO2-to-methanol (~1.4 t CO2/t); 70 kt/yr e-SAF study | Commercial |
| **Sinopec** | 🇨🇳 China | *CCUS, microalgal CO2 utilization* | Point-source CCUS; microalgae strain R&D | Commercial |

---

## Tech stack and innovations

The bio-CCU technology stack rests on four pillars: gas-fermentation biology, microbial
polymer synthesis, single-cell protein production, and CO2 hydrogenation to methanol and
e-fuels — together turning point-source carbon into merchant products.

1. **Gas-fermentation biology:**
   - Autotrophic acetogens (LanzaTech) and hydrogen-oxidizing microbes (Deep Branch) fix CO/CO2
     into ethanol and protein; LanzaTech's 55.8 million dollar 2025 revenue shows the route
     reaching commercial tonnage from waste gases.
   - Strain tolerance to syngas impurities (tar, sulfur) and gas-liquid mass transfer set the
     ceiling on reactor productivity and feedstock flexibility.
2. **Microbial polymer synthesis:**
   - Newlight's AirCarbon uses methane-oxidizing ocean microbes to channel CO2 and methane into
     polyhydroxyalkanoate granules, yielding a polymer that is carbon-negative and ocean
     biodegradable.
   - Patented engineered strains tune carbon flux toward PHA, raising titre and lowering the
     energy cost of cell harvest and polymer extraction.
3. **Single-cell protein production:**
   - Deep Branch's Proton ferments CO2 with hydrogen and oxygen into a single-cell protein of
     about 70% content, replacing soy and fishmeal in aquafeed at roughly 90% lower carbon
     footprint.
   - The bottleneck is gas-fermentation scale-up and feed-grade safety clearance rather than
     biology, making partners and offtake decisive.
4. **CO2 hydrogenation to methanol and e-fuels:**
   - CRI's Emissions-to-Liquids process catalytically hydrogenates CO2 into Vulcanol methanol
     (about 1.4 t CO2 per tonne), which Honeywell UOP's eFining can upgrade into e-SAF.
   - Economics hinge on cheap green hydrogen and electrolyser capacity, tying bio-CCU to the
     broader power-to-liquids build-out.

---

## Value chains and production pipelines

### Industrial pipeline of recycled-carbon ethanol via gas fermentation (ISCC PLUS)

```
┌───────────────────────────┐      ┌───────────────────────────┐
│ 1. CO2-rich syngas supply  │ ───> │ 2. Gas-fermentation        │
└───────────────────────────┘      │    (acetogens)            │
                                    └───────────────────────────┘
                                                  │
                                                  ▼
┌───────────────────────────┐      ┌───────────────────────────┐
│ 4. Ethanol purification   │ <─── │ 3. Broth recovery         │
└───────────────────────────┘      └───────────────────────────┘
              │
              ▼
┌───────────────────────────┐      ┌───────────────────────────┐
│ 5. Derivatization (SAF)   │ ───> │ 6. Certification & offtake │
└───────────────────────────┘      └───────────────────────────┘
```

#### Stage 1: CO2-rich syngas supply
Industrial emissions (steel, refining) or gasified municipal solid waste provide a CO/CO2-rich
syngas; LanzaTech's Kuji City plant gasifies MSW to feed its roughly 400 t/yr ethanol pilot at
one-tenth commercial scale.

#### Stage 2: Gas fermentation
Autotrophic acetogens in the bioreactor ferment the syngas to ethanol, with gas-liquid mass
transfer and strain tolerance to impurities setting reactor productivity; this is the core
biology LanzaTech and Deep Branch share.

#### Stage 3: Broth recovery
Cells and spent media are separated from the ethanol-laden broth by centrifugation and
filtration, with cell mass returned or valorized and the beer advanced to distillation.

#### Stage 4: Ethanol purification
Distillation and molecular-sieve dehydration lift the broth to fuel-grade recycled-carbon
ethanol, the merchant intermediate that anchors LanzaTech's 55.8 million dollar 2025 revenue.

#### Stage 5: Derivatization to SAF
The ethanol is converted to sustainable aviation fuel (via alcohol-to-jet) or marine fuel,
routing through LanzaJet — in which LanzaTech's stake reached 53% by December 2025.

#### Stage 6: Certification and offtake
The finished fuel is certified under ISCC PLUS and the EU CRCF, with CO2 utilization documented
for the US 45Q credit, enabling airline and maritime offtake that closes the carbon-utilization
loop.