”Biomineralization used in a carbon removal technology like ours could allow to eliminate 250 million metric tonnes CO2/ year” - Caroline Thaler, Bloomineral

‍Caroline Thaler is the CEO and founder of Bloomineral, a French climate-tech company using biomineralization to convert CO2 into solid materials that provide a scalable, low-carbon alternative to mined minerals across multiple sectors. She has spent over a decade studying how living organisms turn CO₂ into stone. With a PhD in biomineralization, she developed deep expertise in carbonate chemistry and climate cycles, publishing widely on the subject. Caroline also co-founded AFEN, helping put carbon dioxide removal on the policy agenda in France, and is recognized by WomenTechEU and the Bezos Earth Fund for her climate solution.

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While in her 4th postdoctoral research position, Caroline was working on biomineralisation. She remembers how all her papers were about ““biomineralization, a mechanism know to participate to the carbon pump and climate regulation” - and that’s how the idea for Bloomineral was born.

She explains the concept and how biomineralisation differs from other carbon capture technologies: 

“In nature, CO2 reacts with rainwater and dissolves alcaline rocks. It realeases calcium and converts CO2 into HCO3- (bicarbonate) this is the capture step. 

Then thanks to rivers, calcium and bicarbonates flow to the ocean. In the ocean, biomineralizing organisms like calcifying algae (but also mussels, corals etc…) combine Calcium and bicarbonate into solid minerals of CaCO3 (calcium carbonates) that accumulate and form sediments. This is the terrestrial carbon pump.

Bloomineral reproduces that, replacing alkaline rocks by alkaline wastes from the chemical or construction industry.

The main difference between Bloomineral and other carbon removal companies, is that, in one process, we both capture CO2 and convert it into minerals that are particularly functional as ingredient in materials. We can thus use our minerals in high value application, as a substitute for polluting or toxic minerals like titanium oxides.”

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Applications are possible across domains such as construction, coatings, and personal care. Paint presents a great opportunity, she explains “because there is a great issue: More white paint will be required to cool down our cities and adapt them to climate change, but in the meantime white paints have a higher carbon footprint, which increases total CO2 emissions.

A carbon negative and white functional mineral, that can replace cement and toxic minerals in paint is a compelling lever for cities adaptation and transition to net zero.”

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Since launching Bloomineral in 2024, Caroline and her team have reached the TRL4, submitted 3 patents, signed an LOI with a paint company and are now moving to their pilot. Companies they’ve talked to “were surprised by the technicity of our minerals. In means they can be drop in replacement, and the cost efficiency of the solution.”

In 5 years from now, she says that they “should be building our most optimized culture module reaching production cost low enough to be at price parity in the paint application.”

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Biomineralisation can have an impressiove potential impact, at scale:

“We estimate that Biomineralization used in a carbon removal technology like ours could allow to eliminate 250mtCO2/ year, contribute to building sufficiency and lead to energy saving, and substitute poluting minerals, which could altogether lead to a total 500mt avoided emission of CO2 . This gives a total climate impact of the order of France’s total emissions.”

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On the other hand, Caroline highlights some of the most important challenges in scaling biomineralization technology from the lab to industrial production:

“The challenges are twofold, there are around engineering, like any deep tech solutions. Things as simple as optimizing water flow, obtaining low lights etc, and around biology, because we are domesticating a specie for the first time.”

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Finally, we wanted to learn from her what she thinks deeptech impact startups need more of in order to grow and thrive:

“They definitely need more funding, but once we say that we say nothing… 

The reason why funding is not arriving to us is because it is diverted to other applications, or concentrated on very few hypervalorized companies. 

There is simply a money scarcity. 

We need to start rationalizing if we really want to see many innovations emerge. And that rationalization must take impact into account in addition to the financial impact.”

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Thank you, Caroline Thaler!