Tech Zero

Tech Zero

How will we get to net zero? Meet the entrepreneurs leading the charge into the new industrial revolution. Empires will crumble. Fortunes will be made.

Episodes

June 23, 2024 31 mins

In an exclusive interview, Shell chairman Sir Andrew Mackenzie says the world’s carbon challenge is harder than he realised while running BHP, and it’s time for a global focus on a few winning solutions.

This podcast is sponsored by Rio Tinto.

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On this week’s episode of Tech Zero, we’ll explain why big oil is laying bets on a new type of geothermal energy.

This podcast is sponsored by Rio Tinto.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Microwave ovens are great at heating up last night’s leftovers, but can they become the low carbon source of industrial heat for big industries like steel?

This podcast is sponsored by Rio Tinto.

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May 12, 2024 32 mins

It might sound like science fiction, but a mix of scientists and venture capitalists are working on plans to block the sun to slow global warming.

This podcast is sponsored by Rio Tinto.

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April 28, 2024 29 mins

Come foraging on the forest floor as we go looking for the secret ingredient that will make trees grow faster and stronger and more able to suck down carbon.

This podcast is sponsored by Rio Tinto.

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Melting of Arctic sea ice shapes as a critical tipping point in the battle against climate change. That’s why a new start-up is fighting back by making ice.

This podcast is sponsored by Rio Tinto.

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A new breed of builders are tackling the carbon footprint of high-rise buildings from every angle.

Guests include: Joe Karten (Built), Victor Rosenberg (ClearVue Technologies) and Tony Dragicevich (Capral Aluminium)

This podcast is sponsored by Rio Tinto.

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March 17, 2024 27 mins

Pat Symonds wrote the rules that will compel Formula 1 cars to run on carbon-neutral fuel from 2026. Big oil companies are now racing to find solutions.

 

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An Australian scientist reckons he can break green hydrogen's addiction to renewable energy and the world's biggest hydrogen bull has got onboard.

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November 6, 2022 32 mins

Meet the scientists working to secure a place for coal in a net zero world.

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October 30, 2022 33 mins

Electric motors and biofuels are competing for primacy as the aviation sector tries to decarbonise. We talk to those on the front line of both camps.

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Brick Lane's head brewer Jon Seltin reckons climate change is already changing the taste of beer, and amid a craft brewing boom he’s determined not to add to the problem.

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Centuries after colonial powers sailed the seven seas on nothing but wind, big corporates like BHP are pushing a wind renaissance through the shipping industry.

For more on the episode, visit the Tech Zero site on afr.com. AFR subscribers can also sign up for the weekly Carbon Challenge newsletter. 

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When Vince Allen decided to quit his PhD into a disruptive type of solar cell, it might have been the best business decision he ever made. Now his solar startup, Sundrive boasts rich-listers like Mike Cannon-Brookes onto its share register.

For more on the episode, visit the Tech Zero site on afr.com. AFR subscribers can also sign up for the weekly Carbon Challenge newsletter. 

 

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Meet the team at University of Sydney’s chemistry school, whose revolutionary powder sucks carbon straight out of the air.

For more on the episode, visit the Tech Zero site on afr.com. AFR subscribers can also sign up for the weekly Carbon Challenge newsletter. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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September 25, 2022 24 mins

Multinational energy companies are pumping money into Raygen, John Lasich’s company, which uses thousands of mirrors, satellite grade solar panels and big dams full of water to make the Mildura sunshine available after dark.

Read more:

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September 18, 2022 1 min

From Monday September 26, the Tech Zero podcast is back with eight new episodes profiling the big green ideas that could get us to net zero, and the people who are risking everything to make them work.

This season's program includes direct air capture, concentrated solar, carbon free beer, electric plane travel and more. 

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Meet the 73-year-old Australian scientist who's developed a special kiln that he reckons will solve Australia's iron ore emissions problems and deliver green iron.

For more on the episode, visit the Tech Zero site on afr.com. AFR subscribers can also sign up for the weekly Carbon Challenge newsletter. 

Correction: This episode credited former US Secretary of State Colin Powell with popularising the ...

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A tsunami of lithium ion batteries will need to be recycled in the decades ahead to ensure the world has enough critical minerals for the energy transition. And big electric vehicle manufacturers like Mercedes-Benz are turning to an Australian to show them the way.

For more on the episode, visit the Tech Zero site on afr.com. AFR subscribers can also sign up for the weekly Carbon Challenge newsletter. 

See omnystudio.com/listener fo...

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The world's first power station that runs on waste oat husks will get you thinking about the untapped potential in your household food scraps.

Background reading:

  • Porridge power is the latest innovation to burnish South Australia’s reputation for being at the cutting edge of the global energy transition.

For more on the episode, visit the Tech Zero site on afr.com. AFR subscribers can also sign up for the weekly Carbon C...

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