Manchester Researchers Discover Hot Spring Microbiomes Can Convert Industrial CO2 Waste into Valuable Products

Researchers at The University of Manchester have shown that microbial communities from terrestrial hot springs could be harnessed to convert industrial CO₂ emissions into useful products, offering new routes towards a circular, low-carbon economy.

Industrial processes such as steel and cement production generate large volumes of CO₂-rich waste gases. While these emissions are a major environmental challenge, the new study – published in Environmental Microbiome – suggests they could represent an untapped resource.

The team found that microbiomes inhabiting terrestrial hot springs are naturally adapted to conditions that closely resemble industrial waste streams: high temperatures, elevated concentrations of CO₂, and chemically challenging environments.

Hot spring microorganisms are highly efficient at transforming inorganic carbon, including CO₂, into organic compounds such as biomass and other valuable products. The researchers suggest that these communities could form the foundation of new biotechnologies designed to operate under industrial conditions without the need for light or energy-intensive cooling processes.

Such approaches could enable the production of value-added compounds, including biopolymers and vitamins, directly from CO₂-rich waste streams, helping to reduce emissions while generating economic value. 

While geological carbon storage remains a critical component of Net Zero strategies, it can be energy-intensive and costly to implement at scale. The researchers suggest that biotechnological approaches could offer a complementary route by converting emissions into useful products rather than storing them underground.

The study is based on a global analysis of hot spring microbiomes spanning multiple continents, revealing consistent metabolic potential for carbon transformation across diverse environments.

Corresponding author, Professor Sophie Nixon, states:

“This study highlights that nature has already evolved solutions for converting CO₂ under extreme conditions, and that these natural solutions are there for us to harness.

Our work sits alongside geological storage within a broader portfolio of CO₂ management strategies. The key difference is that here, we’re going beyond just storing carbon, and transforming it into something useful.

This is a proof of concept, and we are now actively working with these communities in the laboratory to develop scalable, cost-effective systems that can contribute to Net Zero.”

This paper was published in the journal: Environmental Microbiome

Full title: Exploring the biotechnological potential of terrestrial hot spring microbiomes for CO₂ utilisation