Can This Carbon-Negative Chemical Replace Oil?

What if the same CO₂ that’s warming the planet could actually become the stuff we use every day? Jacob and Julie sit down with Aaron Fitzgerald from Mars Materials to break down how their tech flips captured CO₂ into carbon-negative chemicals like acrylonitrile, the backbone of everything from carbon fiber to water treatment to, yes, diapers. Aaron walks us through how this process slashes emissions, opens the door to making fresh water from thin air, and why the future of materials might look a lot cleaner than the past. We even ran a live flocculant experiment that somehow landed somewhere between science class and stand-up comedy. It’s a fun, surprisingly hopeful look at turning a problem molecule into a superpower.

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Click here to view the episode transcript.

00:00 - Intro
01:13 - What is Mars Materials
02:08 - What is Acrylonitrile
06:40 - Memory Techniques for Complex Information
09:44 - Testing Carbon Fiber Strength
10:55 - Understanding the Business Model
13:18 - What Does Carbon Negative Mean?
19:07 - Acrylonitrile Overview
24:34 - Fresh Water Production from Acrylonitrile
32:05 - Acrylonitrile Compared to Flour
36:30 - The Classic Clip
38:05 - Addressing Big Oil Concerns
41:20 - Why Houston for Business?
45:15 - Why Mars Materials?
47:00 - Outro

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