Technical rigor in 30 minutes
Upload a pitch deck or describe the startup's approach.
Sparlo breaks down the problem and the startup's tech from first principles — the physics, cost drivers, scaling constraints.
Sparlo generates a full solution map — every approach to this problem, where the company sits, what they're betting against, who could win instead.
Receive a detailed report with a synthesis of the bet you're making, what could break, questions to ask the founders.
"What are they claiming?"
- $100/ton CO₂ by 2030
- $1/kg hydrogen co-production
- "Same electrons produce both products"
Proprietary electrode approach for calcium solutions
None
"What assumptions are buried in $100/ton?"
| Driver | Current | Target | Achievable? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity | $30 | $15 | YES Texas solar PPAs already at $0.025/kWh |
| Electrodes | $80 | $25 | NO — REQUIRES INNOVATION Unproven electrode durability in calcium solutions |
| Capital | $80 | $40 | PARTIAL Scale helps, but electrode life affects plant sizing |
| Operations | $30 | $20 | YES Standard learning curve at scale |
| Total | $220 | $100 | GAP: $120 |
Achievable without innovation
$55 of $120 gap
Requires unproven innovation
$65 of $120 gap
The investment thesis depends on a single technical bet: electrode durability in calcium solutions. Everything else is achievable with known approaches.
"Why is this hard — and what would solve it?"
Electrode durability in carbonate-rich calcium solutions
This is the single technical challenge that determines whether the startup succeeds or fails. 54% of their cost reduction depends on solving it.
Calcium carbonate precipitates on electrode surfaces when local pH rises near the cathode. The precipitate is insulating — it blocks active sites and degrades performance over time.
The world's largest electrochemical industry avoids this problem entirely by specifying extremely low calcium content. This startup's process requires operating in the environment chlor-alkali actively prevents.
Three possible pathways to solving electrode durability:
Prevent crystals from forming on the electrode surface
Maintain performance despite deposit accumulation
cf. electrodialysis reversal in desalination — polarity switching dissolves scale
Not forbidden by physics, but requires a novel approach to a problem that industry has avoided rather than solved.
| Problem | Solution | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel cell catalyst degradation | Novel supports + alloys | 15 years |
| Battery dendrite prevention | Solid electrolytes | 10+ years, ongoing |
| PEM electrolyzer durability | Membrane + catalyst advances | 12 years to commercial |
Solvable, but likely a 5–10 year problem if starting from scratch. The startup claims to have an approach — but no data has been provided.
"What are you actually betting on?"
Their electrode approach survives calcium solutions at industrial scale before Heirloom proves thermal DAC is "good enough" or Heimdal solves ocean permitting.
Unproven innovation
Already operational
Permitting unclear
>1000 hours at 3 kA/m² in carbonate-rich solution
Understand if this is a technology company or policy arbitrage
Validate feasibility of their claimed approach
Electrode durability data showing >1000 hours at 3 kA/m² with <10% efficiency degradation.
Third-party validation preferred.
Data showing >30% degradation in <500 hours.
Or expert consensus that calcium fouling is fundamentally unsolvable at their operating conditions.
Proceed contingent on electrode durability validation.
The mechanism is thermodynamically sound and the market is real. But 54% of the cost reduction depends on solving a problem that the chlor-alkali industry avoids entirely.
This is the make-or-break technical question. Get the data before committing capital.
20-page technical due diligence · Generated in 28 minutes