Tech Zero

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An Australian scientist reckons he can break green hydrogen's addiction to renewable energy and the world's biggest hydrogen bull has got onboard. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Meet the scientists working to secure a place for coal in a net zero world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A weekly podcast from The Australian Financial Review that examines the biggest stories in business, markets and politics, and why they matter, explained by the best financial journalists in the country. Search The Fin and follow us wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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.

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: The 47-year obsession behind Australia’s super strength solar cell The concentrated solar thermal project that Lasich’s company Raygen has built on the outskirts of Mildura has its origins in the backyard experiments Lasich conducted in the 1970s. 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.

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. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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 concept of "unknown unknowns". The phrase was in fact brought to popular attention by former US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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 for privacy information.