UAE-based greentech startup comes out on top in Sharjah’s global accelerator: UAE-based greentech startup Solumar has won this year’s Sharjah Advanced Industry Accelerator for developing a cost-efficient system for capturing and utilizing black carbon and CO2 from various emitting sources, Wam reports. The accelerator program — organized by the Sharjah Research Technology and Innovation Park — focuses on a number of green and clean energy industries including renewables, waste-to-energy, biofuels, green building, smart grids, agritech, amongst others.

About Solumar’s tech: The startup developsexhaust gas filtering technology that significantly reduces emissions (including particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, and greenhouse gasses) by 92-99%. The filter is compact and adaptable, allowing it to fit a diverse range of emitting sources regardless of size, type, and airflow, according to its website. The tech turns the collected pollutants into reusable carbon powder that can be sold at USD 3k per ton, introducing a new revenue stream for companies who implement the new tech, a press release stated.

Solumar is the first to collect black carbon and CO2 at the same time: The hardware embedded into the product — which is the first of its kind to be able to simultaneously collect black carbon and CO2 — is based on a unique combination of consecutive air, water, and energy vortexes, and a molecule cage with nano-material coating, to capture both the gasses and chemical molecules.

Another UAE startup made it to the final stage of the accelerator: UAE-based startup Sukoon Agricultural Services was another finalist in the Sharjah accelerator. The firm seeks to equip local farmers with modern tech and provide knowledge sharing platforms that can help farmers improve their productivity and sustainable practices, according to their website. Sukoon’s products take into account the challenges posed by the region’s arid conditions and the impact of climate change by combining AI-driven insights and an e-commerce platform with sustainable hydroponic systems.

Solumar beat out eight international finalists from across the world: Eight international startups from India, Brazil, France, China, and Italy made it to the final of the accelerator, collectively raising over AED 100 mn (c. USD 27.2 mn), according to the press release. The startups selected were Landprint, a Brazilian platform offering advanced tech for regenerative land use in the agriculture sector; EyeROV, an Indian marine robotics company; Namla, a French provider of a Cloud Edge infrastructure management platform; RIS3D, a Brazilian company that offers industry 4.0 tech solutions; To Move, an Italian company that provides last-mile mobility solutions for eco-friendly urban transportation; AAKRI, an Indian waste management company; Go Additive, an Italian startup that provides AI optimization tools and digital manufacturing solutions; and Phabuilder Biotechnology, a Chinese synthetic biotech company.

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