Keep bui|Cut the carbon.
Litherm replaces fossil-fired kilns with electric fluidized-bed calcination, eliminating flue gas and making process CO2 available as a concentrated stream for CCU or CCS.
The Mission
Taking on the emissions behind essential materials.
Lime and cement rarely get much attention. Yet they are built into almost everything modern life depends on - clean water, steel, roads, bridges, factories, homes, and concrete infrastructure.
They are also part of one of the world's largest industrial climate challenges. Their production requires intense heat, and the raw material itself releases CO₂ during the process.
Litherm is developing a new path for these materials, one that removes fossil combustion from calcination and makes process CO₂ available as a concentrated stream.
The challenge
The hidden emissions inside the materials modern life depends on.
Conventional calcination has a double emissions problem. First, fossil fuels are burned to reach the high temperatures required for lime and cement production. Second, most of the CO2 is chemically bound in the limestone itself, released regardless of the heat source.
That is why switching fuels alone is not enough.
Around 8 percent of global CO₂ emissions come from cement and lime production, among the largest industrial sources worldwide.
Most emissions in lime production come from the limestone itself, released during calcination regardless of the heat source.
The combustion of fossil fuels produces NOx, SOx and HC. This dilutes the CO₂ in the gas stream, making downstream CO₂ capture complex and expensive.
Lime has no simple substitute. The task is to produce it differently, not to replace it.
The solution
Electrify the heat.
Separate the CO₂ at the source.
Before
Conventional
rotary kiln
- Fossil fuel combustion for process heat
- Flue gas emissions (NOx, N₂, hydrocarbons)
- Diluted, contaminated CO₂ stream
- Complex and costly downstream capture
Litherm
Electric
calcination
- Electrically heated fluidized-bed reactor
- Superheated steam as fluidization medium
- No fossil combustion, no flue gas
- Concentrated CO₂ after steam condensation
Litherm removes fossil fuel combustion from calcination. What remains is the unavoidable CO2 from limestone, directly compatible with CCU or CCS pathways.
Technology
Our patented process
for electric calcination.
Fine-grained raw material
Limestone is prepared as fine particles optimized for the fluidized-bed process.
Electric calcination
Particles are heated in an electrically powered reactor using superheated steam.
Steam condensation
Steam is condensed, enabling efficient heat and water recovery from the process.
Low-emission lime + CO₂
High-quality lime is produced. Process CO₂ is captured for CCU and CCS.
Pilot plant at Fels-Werke GmbH
Containerized electric calcination unit · Active industrial environment
Impact
Designed for industry's biggest decarbonization challenge.
fossil combustion emissions in the Litherm process*
of global CO₂ emissions come from the lime and cement industry
of CO₂ emissions in the lime sector originate from the limestone itself
Process CO₂ as by-product stream
* When powered by climate-neutral electricity. Process CO₂ from limestone calcination is unavoidable but captured and made available for downstream use.
As a global producer of calcium-based solutions, we see significant potential in Litherm's technology to help us lead the way in innovative and sustainable products [...]. The combination of fully electric production and directly usable CO₂ as a by-product is unique.
David Chamberlain
Vice President, Graymont
Team
The people behind
our mission.
Litherm was founded in 2019 by Felix Nelles, Dr. Thomas Stumpf, and Prof. Dr. Markus Goldbrunner to industrialize a new route for lime calcination.
Today, our team brings together process engineering, electrothermal systems, plant construction, and commercial scale-up. From reactor design and electric heating to pilot operation and industrial partnerships, we are building the process needed to produce lime and cement without fossil combustion.
Our expertise for the journey from reactor to industrial plant
Process & plant engineering
Our team develops and integrates thermal process design through to industrial reactor systems.
Electrothermal systems
We integrate an electric heating system into the steam-fluidized bed - scalable for industrial applications.
Industrialization
Together, we bring lab insights to continuous pilot plant operation and real production environments.
Commercialization
Together with lime and cement producers, we prepare the market entry of our technology at industrial scale.
Roadmap
From lab to industry, one electric reactor at a time.
Founded
Litherm Technologies GmbH established to develop CO₂-emission-free calcination for lime and cement.
Process development
Development and refinement of the Litherm electric fluidized-bed calcination process.
Patent & lab validation
European patent granted. Successful lab-scale testing. Engineering of the pilot plant commenced.
Pilot plant construction
Construction of pilot plant at Fels-Werke GmbH, a fully operational industrial limestone site.
Trial operation
Start of trial operation under real industrial conditions. Continuous performance evaluation.
Current phaseIndustrial scale-up
Development of industrial-scale demonstration plant following successful trial operation.
ComingCareers
Help scale a technology with real industrial climate impact.
Join our experienced team and help us bring our first-of-a-kind (FOAK) technology to industrial maturity. Together, let us drive the decarbonization of the lime and cement industry.
Interested? Then apply now!
Contact
Let's decarbonize lime and cement together.
Whether you are an industrial partner, investor, applicant, or member of the press, we would love to hear from you.
Litherm Technologies GmbH
Wernigerode, Germany
Funded by
The development of Litherm’s technology is co-financed by the European Union and the State of Saxony-Anhalt.
We use cookies to improve your experience.
Some cookies are required for this website to function. Others help us personalize your experience and show you relevant content. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.