NGK Corporation has deployed and started operating its honeycomb structure ceramics for Direct Air Capture (DAC) at Project Brighton, Avnos' HDAC™ facility in Bridgewater, New Jersey. The deployment moves NGK's ceramic honeycomb systems from development-stage validation into operation under real-world conditions.

The Japanese industrial ceramics producer integrated the honeycomb structure ceramics into Project Brighton's solid-sorbent DAC process. The installation will evaluate performance and durability under continuous operating conditions, generating data for future product development and deployment.

How large is the facility?

Avnos officially launched Project Brighton last month. The company describes it as the largest operating Hybrid Direct Air Capture (HDAC™) facility.

The site, located at Avnos' Technology Development Center in Bridgewater, is expected to capture up to 450 tons of atmospheric CO2 annually. It also produces roughly 475,000 gallons of clean water per year. Avnos is evaluating the use of the captured CO2 in sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production.

Where does the technology come from?

NGK drew on ceramic honeycomb systems originally developed for automotive emissions-control applications, including HONEYCERAM™, to build the DAC product.

The design offers a large contact area between air and sorbent materials while maintaining a compact form factor. That combination enables efficient processing of large volumes of air.

When integrated into DAC systems, the straight-channel honeycomb design allows air to flow with significantly lower pressure drop than conventional pellet-based options. Lower pressure drop helps reduce blower power requirements, a recurring cost driver in solid-sorbent capture.

What happens next?

NGK and Avnos initiated a joint development program after discussing the potential application of NGK's ceramic honeycomb technology to solid-sorbent DAC systems. The two companies worked closely to optimize NGK's technology for the specific needs of Avnos' DAC systems.

NGK will continue refining the performance of its honeycomb structure ceramics for DAC using experience gained at Project Brighton. The company aims to advance solutions compatible with a broad range of applications and deployment models.

Manufacturing capacity supports that plan. NGK produces honeycomb structure ceramics through a global production network spanning eight countries. That network lays the foundation for future deployments as the DAC market grows.

NGK also operates a DAC demonstration project with Aircapture in Japan.

The next milestone is the durability record itself. Continuous-operation data from Bridgewater will determine whether NGK's substrate earns a place in commercial-scale solid-sorbent DAC builds.