Why CO₂ to Formate is the Right First Step
Formate requires only 2 electrons per molecule, making it the most electron-efficient CO₂ reduction product. Here's why that matters for scalability.
Read more →Carbon Capture → Food Production
The first modular system that turns CO₂ into food — no farmland required.
Eden Engine is developing electrochemical technology to convert captured carbon dioxide into sugar molecules, laying the foundation for resilient, post-agricultural food production.
3-Step
Conversion Process
24 e⁻
Per Glucose Molecule
$40/kg
Near-term Target
C
O
O
CO₂
+ e⁻ + H₂O
H
C
O
O⁻
Formate
Enzymes
C₆
H₁₂
O₆
Glucose
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Eden Engine in 60 Seconds
The Problem
Agriculture uses 50% of habitable land and produces 26% of emissions. As population grows and climate shifts, we need alternatives that don't depend on farmland, weather, or seasons.
Our Approach
We use electrochemistry to convert CO₂ into formate, then enzymatic pathways to build that into glucose — the universal energy molecule of life. All in a modular reactor.
Why Now
Advances in CO₂ electrolysis, enzyme engineering, and renewable energy have made this pathway technically feasible. The economics are approaching viability at scale.
The Process
How It Works
A three-step conversion pipeline that transforms waste CO₂ into the foundational molecule of food.
01
Capture
CO₂ is sourced from industrial emissions or direct air capture. The gas is dissolved into an electrolyte solution, preparing it for electrochemical reduction.
- Compatible with existing carbon capture infrastructure
- Works with both concentrated and dilute CO₂ streams
- Electrolyte solution optimized for downstream conversion
02
Convert
In an electrochemical cell, CO₂ is reduced to formate (HCOO⁻) using renewable electricity. Each formate molecule requires just 2 electrons — making this one of the most electron-efficient CO₂ conversion pathways.
- Faradaic efficiency targets: 71% baseline, 90%+ aspirational
- Powered by renewable electricity (solar, wind)
- Continuous flow reactor design for scalability
03
Build
Engineered enzymes assemble 12 formate molecules into one glucose molecule (C₆H₁₂O₆). This biomimetic step mirrors how nature builds sugars — but in a controlled, accelerated environment.
- 12 formate → 1 glucose (24 electrons total)
- Enzymatic pathway operates at ambient temperature and pressure
- Glucose is the universal feedstock for food, fermentation, and materials
12 CO₂ + 24 e⁻ + 12 H₂O → C₆H₁₂O₆ + 6 O₂ + 6 H₂O
The complete stoichiometry: 24 electrons transform 12 CO₂ into one glucose molecule.
Engineering
System Architecture
A modular reactor design integrating electrochemistry and enzymatic conversion in a single deployable unit.
System Diagram Placeholder
Place system-diagram.png in /assets/images/
Food as Infrastructure.
When calories become manufactured, civilization decouples from land.
Impact
Why This Matters
A new paradigm for food production that addresses climate, land use, and food security simultaneously.
Decouples Food from Land
No soil, no seasons, no weather dependency. Produce calories anywhere — deserts, cities, underground, or in orbit.
Turns Waste into Feedstock
CO₂ is the input, not the output. Every kilogram of sugar produced sequesters carbon that would otherwise warm the planet.
Modular and Scalable
Reactor modules can be deployed individually or stacked. Scale from lab bench to industrial production without redesigning the core process.
Powered by Renewables
The electrochemical process runs on electricity. As renewable energy costs drop, so does the cost of sugar production.
Food Security
Produce essential calories independent of supply chains, geopolitics, or agricultural disruption. Critical for remote and vulnerable communities.
Space-Ready
Ideal for closed-loop life support. Convert exhaled CO₂ into food calories during long-duration space missions and extraterrestrial habitation.
Development Phases
Roadmap
A phased approach from proof-of-concept to deployable production modules.
Phase 1 — Current
Foundation: CO₂ to Formate
Demonstrate reliable electrochemical reduction of CO₂ to formate with measurable Faradaic efficiency in a bench-scale reactor.
Faradaic Efficiency
≥ 70%
Current Density
100 mA/cm²
Production Rate
~33 g/day
Key Deliverables
- Working bench-scale electrolyzer
- Validated digital twin model (Eden Engine v2)
- Baseline performance characterization
- Target mapping for cost reduction pathways
Phase 2
Biology: Formate to Glucose
Integrate enzymatic conversion to build glucose from formate. Develop the bioreactor module with controlled enzyme environment.
Enzyme Efficiency
≥ 85%
Cost Target
$40/kg glucose
Key Deliverables
- Integrated electrolyzer + bioreactor prototype
- End-to-end CO₂ → glucose demonstration
- Enzyme lifetime and cost optimization
Phase 3
Applications: Glucose to Food
Use produced glucose as feedstock for food applications — fermentation, cellular agriculture, direct nutritional products, and specialty chemicals.
Cost Target
< $20/kg
Scale
Pilot production
Key Deliverables
- Deployable modular production unit
- Demonstrated food-grade glucose output
- Partnership integrations with food producers
Interested in the detailed engineering roadmap and cost models?
Request Research PacketEngineering Tool
The Digital Twin
Eden Engine v2 is an open-source physics-based simulation that models the entire CO₂ → glucose pathway. It enforces physical coupling so you cannot set unrealistic parameter combinations.
- Physically Coupled Parameters — Faradaic efficiency depends on current density, pH, temperature, CO₂ concentration, and electrolyte type. No cheating.
- CO₂ Hard Gate — Production is automatically limited by available CO₂ supply. The model reflects reality.
- Target Mapper — Ask "What do I need to hit $X/kg?" and get an actionable engineering roadmap with feasibility assessment.
- Dual Validation — Two independent calculation methods must agree within 5% to ensure correctness.
target_mapper.py
# "What do I need to hit $40/kg?"
from target_mapper import TargetMapper
mapper = TargetMapper()
result = mapper.map_target(
target_cost=40.0, # $/kg glucose
mode="BASELINE"
)
print(result.required_fe) # 82%
print(result.feasibility) # HIGH
print(result.roadmap) # Engineering steps
8/8
Tests Passing
2,400+
Lines of Code
6
Physical Gates
Common Questions
FAQ
Is this actually possible? Can you really make food from CO₂?
Yes. The individual steps are well-established chemistry. Electrochemical reduction of CO₂ to formate has been demonstrated at laboratory scale with Faradaic efficiencies above 90%. Enzymatic conversion of C1 compounds to sugars is a known biological pathway. The innovation is in integrating these steps into a practical, cost-effective system.
How much energy does it require?
Our baseline model calculates approximately 39.9 kWh per kilogram of glucose. This is significant, but when powered by increasingly cheap solar and wind electricity, the energy cost becomes economically tractable. For context, conventional agriculture also has enormous embedded energy costs when you account for fertilizer, transport, refrigeration, and land conversion.
What about the cost? Is it competitive with farming?
Not yet at current performance levels (~$307/kg baseline). However, our target mapping tool shows that at 82% Faradaic efficiency, costs drop to $40/kg, and at 92%, below $20/kg. These efficiency targets are within reach of current research trajectories. The goal is not to replace all agriculture, but to provide a resilient supplement for specific high-value applications.
Is the sugar produced safe to eat?
The end product is glucose (C₆H₁₂O₆) — the exact same molecule produced by photosynthesis. It is chemically identical to the glucose in fruit, honey, and every living cell. Food safety validation will be part of later development phases, but the molecule itself is not novel.
What applications does this enable?
Glucose is the universal feedstock. It can be used directly as a sweetener/calorie source, fermented into proteins, fats, or specialty chemicals, used as feedstock for cellular agriculture (lab-grown meat), or incorporated into nutritional products. It's also ideal for closed-loop life support in space habitats.
How is this different from artificial photosynthesis?
Artificial photosynthesis typically tries to replicate the full biological process. Eden Engine takes a modular approach: we use electrochemistry (which is highly controllable and scalable) for the CO₂ reduction step, and targeted enzymes for the sugar assembly step. This separation allows each stage to be optimized independently.
Updates
Journal
Research notes, progress updates, and technical deep-dives.
Is This Food Safe? Addressing the Key Question
The glucose produced is chemically identical to natural glucose. We break down the safety considerations and regulatory pathway.
Read more →Building the Digital Twin: 6 Critical Fixes
How we caught and corrected stoichiometry errors, missing CO₂ gates, and decoupled parameters in our simulation model.
Read more →About
The Team
Eden Engine is founded by Jack Lawson, combining expertise in electrochemistry, systems engineering, and synthetic biology to tackle one of humanity's most fundamental challenges: how we produce food.
We're actively seeking collaborators across electrochemistry, enzyme engineering, bioprocess design, and climate technology. If this resonates with your work, we'd like to hear from you.
Get in TouchGet Involved
Collaborate
Whether you're a researcher, investor, engineer, or just curious — we'd like to connect.