In an era when sustainability is becoming a core concern for businesses, Singapore-based materials innovation startup Xinterra has unveiled its groundbreaking carbon dioxide (CO₂)—capturing textile treatment, COzTERRA.
The innovative material, which enables fabrics to remove and sequester CO₂ from the air, is making its commercial debut through a partnership with sustainable fashion brand Kemunna.
Founded in 2021, Xinterra is on a mission to accelerate materials research and development using its proprietary AI-driven and high-throughput experimentation-powered platform, XDF (Xinterra Design Factory). The company focuses on developing novel materials at an unprecedented pace, addressing pressing global challenges such as climate change.
“We wanted to use the power of our XDF platform to solve some of the most pressing issues humanity faces, such as climate change,” says Patrick Teyssonneyre, CEO and Co-Founder of Xinterra. “Instead of focusing on industrial applications like direct air capture, we wanted to activate dormant surfaces of products that are part of our daily lives to capture CO₂, empowering individuals to become CO₂ capture agents.”
The science behind COzTERRA
COzTERRA’s technology enables textiles to absorb and sequester CO₂ through a specially developed liquid treatment applied during the fabric processing stage. Once absorbed, the CO₂ undergoes a chemical reaction with regular laundry detergents, transforming into sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), a stable and harmless mineral that is washed away.
This process not only removes CO₂ from the air but also allows the fabric to be recharged for continuous CO₂ capture.
According to Xinterra, each COzTERRA-treated T-shirt can remove between 16 and 41 grams of CO₂ over its lifespan. Collectively, 20 such T-shirts worn at the same time could capture as much CO₂ as a mature tree in a day, highlighting the innovation’s significant environmental potential.
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A fashionable approach
Xinterra has chosen the fashion industry as the launchpad for its CO₂-capturing material. Collaborating with Kemunna, a Singapore-based sustainable fashion brand founded by Brazilian entrepreneurs, the company is bringing the technology to market through a limited-edition collection of COzTERRA-treated t-shirts.
“At Kemunna, innovation and sustainability are the foundation of everything we do. For our launch, we wanted a product that seamlessly embodies these values,” says Ricardo Costa, Co-founder of Kemunna. “Partnering with Xinterra and their groundbreaking CO₂-capturing technology was a natural fit.”
The COzTERRA-powered t-shirts were unveiled at the Singapore Fashion Council’s 2024 “Be the Change” Summit and are available exclusively online at Kemunna.com. The initial collection is limited to 200 shirts, giving early adopters a chance to engage in climate-conscious fashion.
Bringing COzTERRA to commercial reality required rigorous research and testing. Xinterra developed a high-output environmental chamber to evaluate CO₂ absorption performance across various materials. Using AI-powered analytics, the startup identified optimal raw material combinations, enabling rapid development cycles that outpaced traditional R&D processes by three to four years.
“We built high-output environmental chambers in-house to measure the CO₂ absorption performance of several commercial raw materials. These data points trained our AI, which then recommended new combinations for our lab. We ran multiple cycles of AI-driven experimentation until we achieved the best balance of technical performance and cost competitiveness,” explains Teyssonneyre.
Beyond research, Xinterra has taken an active approach in marketing COzTERRA to textile mills and brands, demonstrating how the technology can enhance their sustainability credentials and increase customer engagement.
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“We have been approaching both textile mills and brands to explain how they can empower consumers to fight climate change, potentially increasing market share and customer loyalty,” adds Teyssonneyre.
While COzTERRA’s first application is in fashion, Xinterra envisions expanding the technology beyond textiles. The startup aims to adapt the material for other commonly used surfaces, transforming everyday objects into carbon capture tools.
“The vision for COzTERRA is to convert dormant surfaces into CO₂ capture surfaces,” says Teyssonneyre. “Next in our pipeline are residential paints and filters for air conditioners and vacuum cleaners.”
This broader vision aligns with Xinterra’s long-term goal of making carbon removal an integrated part of daily life, moving beyond industrial carbon capture to consumer-driven climate solutions.
Strategy for impact
As a newly launched sustainable fashion brand, Kemunna is leveraging a direct-to-consumer (D2C) model to promote its CO₂-capturing apparel. The company is focusing on digital marketing, strategic partnerships, and sustainability events to reach climate-conscious consumers.
“Kemunna is launching as a D2C brand, and our strategy focuses on engaging climate-curious and climate-conscious customers through digital channels like social media, content marketing, and online campaigns,” explains Costa. “We’re also exploring B2B collaborations with organisations interested in sustainable corporate gifts and apparel.”
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Beyond the initial launch, Kemunna has ambitious plans to expand across Southeast Asia, positioning itself as a leader in sustainable fashion. The company aims to establish partnerships with corporations and sustainability-focused events while also exploring additional high-impact technologies to integrate into future collections.
“Through this partnership with Xinterra, we aim to introduce COzTERRA’s innovative technology to the consumer market, raise awareness about sustainable fashion solutions, and drive adoption of this impactful innovation,” Costa notes. “Ultimately, we aspire to establish Kemunna as a trusted partner for bringing groundbreaking consumer technologies to market.”
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Image Credit: Kemunna, Xinterra
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