The Mission

Ætheria's mission is to mitigate climate change and protect public health by revolutionizing the way harmful gases are captured and managed at the end of a product’s life. Our core innovation, MonoFoam™, is the first compact, on-site solution designed to extract and contain fluorinated gases (CFCs, HCFCs) and hazardous flame retardants (HBCDs) embedded in insulation foams used in construction, appliances, and transport. These substances, despite being banned, continue to leak into the atmosphere during demolition and waste processing, contributing significantly to ozone depletion and global warming—with global warming potentials up to 12,500 times that of CO₂. Current solutions are centralized, expensive, and inaccessible to most industry players. Our mission is to bridge this gap by providing an affordable, mobile, and scalable technology that helps companies comply with environmental regulations, reduce emissions, and transition toward a circular, climate-resilient economy. By transforming toxic waste into economic value through carbon credit generation and resource recovery, Ætheria is enabling a new era of responsible, future-proof infrastructure.

The Challenge

Fluorinated gases (CFCs, HCFCs) and hazardous flame retardants (HBCDs) used in insulation foams—found in buildings, refrigeration, and transportation—are major contributors to climate change and ozone depletion. CFC-11, for example, has a global warming potential (GWP) of 6,230, making it thousands of times more potent than CO₂. Despite bans, these substances persist in aging infrastructure, releasing harmful emissions during demolition and waste processing. Globally, millions of tons of foam remain in circulation. In Western Europe alone, an estimated 55 million kg of CFC-11 and 10 million kg of CFC-12 are still embedded in insulation, equivalent to 275 million kg and 62.3 million kg of CO₂ emissions, respectively. Since 1990, emissions of these substances have risen 260%, largely due to the lack of effective recovery solutions. The environmental and human health impacts are severe: rising temperatures, extreme weather events, ozone depletion, and increased UV-B exposure—all contributing to higher rates of skin cancer and hundreds of thousands of additional cataract cases by 2050. Starting in 2026, new EU regulations will require the capture and responsible disposal of these gases. However, no scalable, cost-effective solution currently exists—posing a critical challenge for both industry and regulators.

The solution

Ætheria’s core innovation, MonoFoam™, is the first compact, mobile machine designed to extract and contain harmful gases—such as CFCs, HCFCs, and HBCDs—from insulation foams used in buildings, appliances, and transport. Using vacuum shredding and membrane filtration, it separates gases at the molecular level and stores them in pressurized tanks for on-site destruction or safe recycling. Paired with Ætheria’s FNITS plasma unit, the system enables complete, decentralized degassing—eliminating costly transport and supporting compliance with EU regulations (2026) and the Dutch Circular Materials Plan (2025). Unlike centralized facilities, MonoFoam™ is affordable, energy-efficient, and accessible to companies of all sizes. Each unit prevents over 20.7 million kg of CO₂-equivalent emissions annually, enabling carbon credit generation and reducing climate and ozone harm. It also recovers polyurethane powder for chemical recycling, advancing the circular economy. Ætheria offers a scalable, market-ready solution to one of the waste sector’s most urgent challenges.