Bridging Capture Chemistry to Low-Energy Bio-Integrated CO2-to-Methane

Bridging Capture Chemistry to Low-Energy Bio-Integrated CO2-to-Methane | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Physical Sciences - Article Bridging Capture Chemistry to Low-Energy Bio-Integrated CO2-to-Methane Michael Kofoed, Mads Sieborg, Kristian Ax, Therese Jensen, Pegah Nazari, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8989407/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Anthropogenic CO2 emissions from flue gases pose a gigaton-scale challenge, which incremental improvements to conventional CO2 capture technologies alone cannot address. Bio-integrated carbon capture and utilization (BICCU) rethinks classical absorption-based CO2 capture by directly coupling chemical CO2 capture with bio-mediated conversion, eliminating the energy-intensive thermal desorption of conventional CO2 capture. However, the success of coupling capture agents with archaeal biocatalysts is constrained by incompatibility, as most capture agents exhibit antimicrobial properties. Herein, a design framework was developed to integrate capture chemistry with CO2-based biotechnology by combining abiotic CO2 loading, biotic assays, and kinetic modeling to correlate these processes with the physicochemical properties of a broad library of agents. Octanol-water partitioning, topological polar surface area, and hydrophilic groups were identified as key parameters for tuning capture agents toward biocompatibility, as these molecular traits influence hydrophobicity and membrane permeability. Guided by these discoveries, new capture agents can be discovered, as demonstrated by the synthesis of (diethanolamine)3triazine with a standardized biocompatibility of 1078 mMCO2, which is a 6.4-fold increase compared to conventional agents such as melamine of merely 168 mMCO2. These principles establish a blueprint for designing next-generation agents, unlocking bio-mediated CO2 valorization for scalable, low-energy methane production from diluted CO2 sources. Biological sciences/Biotechnology/Industrial microbiology Physical sciences/Chemistry/Energy Physical sciences/Energy science and technology/Renewable energy Physical sciences/Chemistry/Organic chemistry Physical sciences/Engineering/Chemical engineering Full Text Additional Declarations Yes there is potential Competing Interest. M.U.S. and M.V.W.K. have a patent, PCT/EP2023/069435, to Aarhus University. The patent presents a bio-integrated carbon capture and utilization technology for capturing CO2 from diluted CO2 sources using a CO2 capture agent, while utilizing a methanogenic biocatalyst to integrate and convert the captured CO2 directly to CH4. Supplementary Files SupplementarymaterialsBiocompatiblecaptureagents27022026.docx Bridging Capture Chemistry to Low-Energy Bio-Integrated CO2-to-Methane Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8989407","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Physical Sciences - Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":599979120,"identity":"c1a5d24c-75a6-4610-ad64-5456f7c2be45","order_by":0,"name":"Michael Kofoed","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAAoUlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYFACNsbHMKZkA5FamI1J1sImTZoW3RlpadUFNTYM/DMSGG/OIEaL2Y20Y7dnHEtjkLiRwGy5gSgtZ4633eZtOMzAcCOBTfIBsVqKeRv+M8gTr+V42zFm3oYDDAYgLcQ57HhbsvSMY8k8hmceNlsS5/3DbIafC2rs5OSOJx+82UOMFhjgYWBgbCBFwygYBaNgFIwCfAAAtXMxZj0AKbkAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0235-3569","institution":"Aarhus University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Michael","middleName":"","lastName":"Kofoed","suffix":""},{"id":599979121,"identity":"750ba0bd-7c59-46b0-ad97-a7001ee73bea","order_by":1,"name":"Mads Sieborg","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7938-2029","institution":"Aarhus University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Mads","middleName":"","lastName":"Sieborg","suffix":""},{"id":599979122,"identity":"70a3111a-a20c-41e0-bc7d-9397d15a70b9","order_by":2,"name":"Kristian Ax","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Aarhus University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Kristian","middleName":"","lastName":"Ax","suffix":""},{"id":599979123,"identity":"73c53504-9f12-4a5f-9f47-eacae73a192f","order_by":3,"name":"Therese Jensen","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Aarhus University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Therese","middleName":"","lastName":"Jensen","suffix":""},{"id":599979124,"identity":"ea9e2898-dff8-4f23-b67c-10d108fc5303","order_by":4,"name":"Pegah Nazari","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9723-1643","institution":"Aarhus University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Pegah","middleName":"","lastName":"Nazari","suffix":""},{"id":599979125,"identity":"ad75731d-305a-463b-8444-d2a5586a2a3a","order_by":5,"name":"Madhuni Wijesooriya","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Aarhus University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Madhuni","middleName":"","lastName":"Wijesooriya","suffix":""},{"id":599979126,"identity":"d0c7badf-afee-4f4e-8464-40a4e1d025cd","order_by":6,"name":"Mads Jensen","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Aarhus University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Mads","middleName":"","lastName":"Jensen","suffix":""},{"id":599979127,"identity":"2e4c98f7-dd1b-4b94-87f7-6c0fac5e86be","order_by":7,"name":"Kim Daasbjerg","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0212-8190","institution":"Aarhus University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Kim","middleName":"","lastName":"Daasbjerg","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-02-27 14:56:35","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8989407/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8989407/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":105734416,"identity":"f09db33a-0b6d-49f3-a827-f2b1e18880fe","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-30 11:45:23","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":2044393,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"ManuscriptBiocompatiblecaptureagents27022026.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8989407/v1_covered_f0623e87-0a10-4d29-a139-5bba1027583a.pdf"},{"id":105733828,"identity":"cabf1589-b26e-4b13-8fa0-e839afe6caff","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-30 11:41:43","extension":"docx","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":458291,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Bridging Capture Chemistry to Low-Energy Bio-Integrated CO2-to-Methane","description":"","filename":"SupplementarymaterialsBiocompatiblecaptureagents27022026.docx","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8989407/v1/81d8d6860afd986fc5b41536.docx"}],"financialInterests":"\u003cb\u003eYes\u003c/b\u003e there is potential Competing Interest.\nM.U.S. and M.V.W.K. have a patent, PCT/EP2023/069435, to Aarhus University. 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