Bill Gates, recently posted a video of himself repairing a pothole using Modern Asphalt, a road repair material developed by a Seattle-based company called Modern Hydrogen.
This innovative asphalt is made by extracting carbon from natural gas, a process that also helps in producing clean hydrogen.
Gates, who was an early investor in Modern Hydrogen since its founding in 2015, demonstrated the use of this eco-friendly asphalt by filling a pothole. The material’s production involves decarbonizing natural gas to create clean hydrogen, which is then used in making the asphalt.
“I filled a pothole—and reduced greenhouse gas emissions—during my incredible visit to Modern Hydrogen,” he wrote on LinkedIn.
“With an innovative process that removes carbon from natural gas to get emissions-free hydrogen, Modern Hydrogen is decarbonizing the energy market.”
“And by sequestering that carbon in asphalt used to build roads (and repair potholes), the company is decarbonizing the building materials market, too,” he added.
Gates also posted the video on his YouTube channel, which you can watch below:
The goal of Modern Hydrogen is to create a more sustainable and efficient method for producing hydrogen, a clean energy source that can be used in various applications such as fuel cells, transportation, and industrial processes.
The company also aims to address the challenges associated with traditional hydrogen production methods, which often rely on fossil fuels and produce carbon emissions. Their approach involves using advanced technologies to extract hydrogen from renewable sources like water or biomass, without emitting harmful greenhouse gases.
One of their key innovations is the development of a process to produce clean hydrogen from natural gas while simultaneously capturing and storing the carbon emissions. This process, known as decarbonization, enables the production of hydrogen without contributing to climate change.
As per co-founder and CEO of Modern Hydrogen, Tony Pan, he explained the company’s strategy this way:
“There are 3 million miles of natural gas pipelines in the USA alone. And the delivered price of natural gas is much cheaper than that of delivered electricity—typically by a factor of 3 to 5 times.”
“By stripping out the offending carbon atom from gas at the end of the pipe, before it has a chance to become CO2, Modern’s technology can deliver decarbonized gas—aka clean hydrogen—on location. Thus, Modern can deliver this hydrogen to the end consumer, without the decades and billions of dollars it would take to build out clean hydrogen infrastructure,” he added.
“Sidestepping the need for new pipes and transmission permits will be invaluable in achieving speed and scale in realizing the clean hydrogen economy.”
Max Mankin, also co-founder and CTO of the company details their process as a “negative emissions technology,” something the world urgently needs to achieve its goals for climate change.
“We can generate net negative emissions by applying our pyrolysis technology on carbon-neutral gases such as biogas. The solid carbon we pull out from the gas is directly weighed, so every ton of solid carbon we put into products and building materials are verifiable emissions captured, avoided, and utilized,” says Mankin.
Gates, being the optimist that he is, says he “can’t wait to see what’s next.”
Modern Hydrogen’s approach to road repair not only addresses infrastructure issues but also contributes to reducing carbon emissions by utilizing cleaner energy sources. Gates’ support for this technology showcases his commitment to investing in sustainable solutions for both environmental and infrastructure challenges.
The company’s technology has the potential to revolutionize the hydrogen industry by making it more sustainable and cost-effective. Their solutions align with the global push towards decarbonization and the transition to cleaner energy sources.
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