The world needs a multitude of solutions to combat the climate crisis. Until recently, Direct Air Capture (DAC) of CO₂ was mainly a visionary concept, but now it’s becoming a reality.
Mission Zero Technologies is a startup pioneering high-efficiency DAC technology that can remove CO₂ from the atmosphere anywhere and at any scale. Their modular technology fits inside a shipping container and it recovers CO₂ from the air using renewable energy and water. Most importantly, it requires only a fraction of the energy and costs of other DAC solutions.
We were thrilled when Mission Zero asked us to help design the look of UK’s first DAC plant. It sits inside a 20-foot shipping container, designed for easy mobility and scaling. Together with Mission Zero, we started exploring how the outside of the container could reflect the innovative technology inside.
A team effort
The plant was bought by the University of Sheffield’s Translational Energy Research Centre (TERC) for a first-of-a-kind UK project validating sustainable aviation fuel.
As one of only two commercially-financed DAC systems in the world, several organisations were involved in making it happen. This meant we needed to accommodate the logotypes of all partners. We found the perfect place on the container doors, since this is where the tech inside the plant is accessed. We also gave the doors a turquoise accent colour to draw even more attention.
A Bird’s Eye View
Reducing the atmosphere’s CO₂ levels is a big and ambitious goal. Mission Zero envisions a near future where their versatile DAC solution quickly integrates into any process, in any location, at any scale to drive permanent carbon removal and circular carbon utilisation. We wanted something in the design to reflect this bigger picture and remind onlookers of the potential of a global DAC rollout.
Inspired by how drone and satellite images help humans see things from a bird’s eye view, we decided to add a big Mission Zero logotype that can only be seen from above. This way, Mission Zero’s containers will become visible on satellite maps of every site that deploys their elegant, modular DAC solution.
Concept visualisation of a site with three DAC plants