Image: National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) ( Public domain )
What it is
Avnos’s Hybrid Direct Air Capture (HDAC) is meant to pull CO₂ from air and produce clean water without an external heat source. Project Brighton in Bridgewater, New Jersey, is the company’s largest operating unit. Avnos said on 1 September 2026 that Brighton had entered operations, designed for up to 450 tonnes of atmospheric CO₂ a year and about 475,000 gallons of clean water a year, with U.S. Office of Naval Research funding, to support work on DAC-sourced sustainable aviation fuel. Those capacities are design figures, not a year of metered tonnes.
Problem it targets
Conventional DAC is thirsty for heat and sometimes for water. A process that also makes water would matter in dry or constrained sites: if the energy bill and the net carbon still add up.
How it works
Avnos describes standardized HDAC modules that condense moisture while capturing CO₂. Brighton sits beside the firm’s Technology Development Center so operators can collect real-world data before larger modules (Project Cedar is the named next step, not yet this card).
Status and players
Avnos; U.S. Office of Naval Research (contract N00014-23-C-1011 on the IWVC subsidiary). The Navy interest is feedstock for fuels research, not a municipal water utility.
Risks and limits
Four hundred and fifty tonnes is a demonstration. “No external heat” still needs electricity. Water output is a company figure. Do not treat a Bridgewater pad as a national removal wedge.
Sources
Avnos site and 1 Sep 2026 operations note (450 t / 475,000 gal design). Design capacity is not a year of metered tonnes.