Graphitic Energy starts up turquoise H₂ pilot

The methane pyrolysis start-up Graphitic Energy has commissioned a pilot plant in San Antonio, Texas, that can convert natural gas into 1 metric ton (t) of solid carbon and several hundred kilograms of low-carbon hydrogen per day. Graphitic is paying for the trial with $15 million it recently raised as an extension of its series A funding round. The pilot is taking place at the Southwest Research Institute, a nonprofit with an emphasis on energy and chemicals, and will run through the end of 2025. The move puts Graphitic in the company of BASF and Huntsman, which are piloting methane pyrolysis in Germany and Texas, respectively. Monolith Materials has a head start with a plant in Nebraska that produces about 38 t of solid carbon per day in the form of the tire ingredient carbon black. Graphitic’s carbon is in the form of graphite. CEO Zach Jones says the technology