Quantum for Climate Tech

Quantum for Climate tech

Quantum technology can be applied in various verticals, here we focus on how it can tackle climate change. Therefore, we began our research looking for quantum companies whose solutions comprised terms such as green, renewable, climate, or carbon.

The research led us to three main finds:

1. Developing the first functional quantum computer is the aimed goal of a relevant number of companies, which are mainly located in North America and Europe;

2.  Material science will play a crucial role in tackling climate change by improving the efficiency of clean energy production;

3. The most developed example regards quantum application in solar panels, allowing these to transform ultraviolet and infrared light into energy, which solutions in the market cannot address.

We will begin deep diving into why efficiency in clean energy creation is crucial for the 2050 goals to be achieved; later, we will present how quantum is applied to improve solar panels efficiency. We wrap the conversation by introducing some companies working to enhance material through applied quantum.

Clean Energy

While we look for decarbonize portfolios until 2050, much will have to be done in the energy industry regarding technology. According to Bill Gates[1]:

Completely decarbonizing America's power grid by 2050 will require adding around 75 gigawatts of capacity every year for the next 30 years. Is that a lot? Over the past decade, we've added an average of 22 gigawatts a year. Now, we need to install more than three times that much each year and keep up the pace for the next three decades. (…) every path to zero in the United States will require us to install as much wind and solar power as we can build and find room for.

Solar energy suffers from current limitations such as:

●             Space: physical space is required for panels installation; solar energy generates 5 to 20 watts per square meter, while nuclear power, for example, generates 500 to 1000;

●             Efficiency: solar panels available on the market now have two critical deficiency points. One of them is that the best solar panels today convert less than a quarter of the sunlight that hits them into electricity, and the theoretical limit for the most common type of commercially available panels is about 33 percent” 2

Efficiency helps to lower product prices in the mid-term while reducing space needs. Therefore, given the need for solar energy improvement, we deep dive into solutions that integrate quantum technology to solve the raised issues.

Quantum solutions

Today, primarily solar cells inefficiency lies in two aspects:

●             The material they are made of: high-purity silicon takes significant energy to produce;

●             Ability to capture and transform light into energy: current solutions can only harvest a limited amount of the sun’s total radiation while being unable to generate power from the ultraviolet spectrum and infrared[2]

A team at the University of Toronto[1] led by professor Edward Sargent[2] is working on developing a solution called inverted perovskite solar cell:

We use two highly complementary nanomaterials combined in a tandem cell architecture. Perovskites are used to absorb high-energy photons from the ultraviolet and visible parts of the spectrum, and quantum dots are used to absorb photons from the near-infrared and infrared portions of the spectrum. This combination allows QD Solar to deliver highly efficient power-dense solar sheets.

The main issue regarding this new material is knowing how stable it is. Both Toronto University and QD Solar are improving their strength so they can begin to have real-life applications. Besides solutions focused on solar energy panels, other materials are also being developed using quantum technologies, such as carbon removal, batteries, and bio-degradable plastics. We present below some of these solutions which are already in the markets:

Development of Materials

Materials Nexus

●  A deep-tech start-up that originated at Cambridge University and within the Carbon13 Venture Builder. Our ground-breaking AI-enabled Materials Discovery Platform transforms the way that new materials are designed using a rapid automated process and advanced quantum calculations that give high accuracy at larger scales. We work with partners to accelerate development of their next-generation materials to reduce global CO2e emissions.

Molecular Quantum Solutions (MQS)

● Molecular Quantum Solutions (MQS) provides computational tools to accelerate research & development efforts by the pharma, biotech and chemical industry. Our tools make use of super- and quantum-computers with computational models and algorithms to calculate the properties of materials and chemicals in a fast and efficient way. Users are able to screen for example new materials for batteries, green solvents, new drugs and bio-degradable plastics instead of conducting costly experiments in the laboratory.

Nanome

● Nanome is a software company that is changing the way humanity understands and interacts with science. Using Virtual Reality our technology accelerates innovation and understanding in an intuitive manner.

Investors

The top investors by number of deals made into the ‘Green Quantum’ industry had invested in three deals each. They are:

● KAUST Innovation Fund – Seed fund from Saudi Arabia

● Playground Global – Venture Capital firm based in Palo Alto, California

● Founders Fund – Venture Capital firm based in San Francisco, California

They are followed by the investors below, each having invested in two companies:

● Redpoint Ventures

● Sustainable Development Technology UK

● Innovate YK


[1]https://news.engineering.utoronto.ca/quantum-innovation-advances-low-cost-alternative-solar-technology/

[2] An expert in renewable energy and catalysis, Sargent is the Canada Research Chair in Nanotechnology at the University of Toronto, where he leads research into advanced materials, such as quantum dots, perovskite crystals, and multi-metal crystals. His research group has set world records for using quantum dots to harvest solar energy. Sargent co-founded four startup companies, including CERT Technologies, which won the Breakthrough Energy Solutions Canada competition in 2020.


[1] How to Avoid a Climate Disaster. Bill Gates. 2020.

[2] http://qdsolarinc.com/technology/