At the 2025 Young Inventors Prize ceremony held by the European Patent Office (EPO) in Munich, Germany, Chinese innovator Wen Roujia and her partner Alisa Fredriksson were named among the Top 10 Global Young Innovators for their breakthrough in maritime carbon capture technology.

Open to innovators under 30 worldwide, the prize recognizes youth-led contributions toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This year's winners tackled challenges ranging from e-waste and rare element recycling to AI, food security, and carbon capture. Wen and Fredriksson's system stood out from over 450 entries.

Addressing one of shipping's biggest challenges—high carbon emissions from existing fleets—the team developed a modular carbon capture system that retrofits onto cargo ships. It captures CO₂ from exhaust gases and converts it into solid limestone, which can be transported in standard containers, bypassing the need for complex port infrastructure.

According to the EPO, the system simplifies storage and transportation, and avoids costly ship replacements. Initial tests on a commercial vessel captured 78% of carbon and 90% of sulfur emissions, drawing attention from several international shipping firms.

Wen Roujia, 29, has a background in applied mathematics and artificial intelligence. She said the captured limestone can be used in the construction industry or sent to processing plants for CO₂ recovery and reuse in synthetic fuel production, creating a closed carbon cycle.

“This technology is about long-term sustainability—for both our generation and those to come,” said Wen. “Innovation can drive real change.”

She emphasized the value of China-Europe cooperation: “This award represents a successful partnership. China's manufacturing strength and Europe's mature innovation ecosystem are highly complementary. Together, we can address global challenges more effectively.”

Source: People's Daily, VOC