pHathom is unlocking coastal carbon capture with low-cost CO₂ capture and storage where traditional approaches don’t work.
Location: Nova Scotia
How we met: We knew the founders prior to formation
Propeller theme: Ocean Carbon
Propeller investment stage: Seed
pHathom captures CO₂ from combustion using limestone, enabling durable storage in coastal regions without access to geologic sequestration. This opens up entirely new geographies for carbon capture—without reliance on scarce subsurface infrastructure.
- Why we love the founders – Dr. Kimberly Gilbert brings deep expertise in carbon chemistry and geochemistry, having previously led Carbon to Sea, a $50M initiative advancing ocean-based carbon removal. She’s complemented by Andrew Ray, a former spacecraft engineer and venture investor with a track record of scaling deep tech companies, and Leslie Rittenberg, who brings 30+ years of leadership across power, oil & gas, and industrial technology. This is a team that understands both the science and the path to deployment.
- What’s novel about pHathom’s tech – pHathom captures CO₂ from coastal power plants and mineralizes it with limestone solution, enabling long-term storage without traditional geologic sequestration. By leveraging abundant materials and coastal deployment, they expand where carbon capture can happen—while maintaining a pathway to low cost at scale.
- Why we’re excited about this market – pHathom’s solution could decarbonize some of the heaviest emitters and leverage the ocean’s superpower – its capacity for bicarbonate storage – to reduce CO₂ transport costs.
- How impactful pHathom could be – Applied to biomass combustion, pHathom has the potential to scale into a GT/year carbon removal platform, generating high-quality CDR credits. By enabling carbon capture in new geographies, they could materially expand the supply of durable carbon removal and support emitters in meeting 2030 and long-term net-zero commitments.
Learn more about pHathom at https://phathom.tech/