Converting CO2 to Jet Fuel, Ithaca Area Economic Development Invests in Green Tech Startup
Dimensional Energy's solar-to-fuels reactor in Gillette, Wyoming (Dimensional Energy)
ITHACA, NY -- Ithaca Area Economic Development, or IAED, is investing in the startup company, Dimensional Energy. They aim to convert atmospheric carbon dioxide into jet fuel through what’s known as “artificial photosynthesis.”
Artificial photosynthesis aims to do what plants and bacteria have been doing for millennia: use sunlight to break down carbon dioxide, and reform it. The artificial process that Dimensional Energy has been developing reforms carbon dioxide into the hydrocarbons that fuels are made of.
Dimensional Energy developed their proprietary technique at Cornell’s McGovern Center, an incubator for startups at the University. They are still based in Ithaca, but their artificial photosynthesis reactor is in Wyoming.
IAED has approved a $50,000 convertible debt investment in Dimensional Energy. That means the investment IAED is making will turn into equity in Dimensional Energy a couple years down the road, if the company is successful. IAED’s investment was a part of a $1.5 million fund raising effort for Dimensional Energy led by the South Korean venture fund, Yellowdog.
The company was a finalist in the $20 Million CarbonXPrize Competition. The competition aims to drive green innovation to create valuable and usable products out of carbon dioxide.
Dimensional Energy wasn’t crowned a winner, but the company of 8 says they’re on a fast track to growth. They expect to create 57 new jobs over the next 4 years.