Laboratory Investigation of Chlorine-Mediated Methane Removal Pathways to Advance Model Development

Background

Spark Climate Solutions is issuing a Request for Proposals for laboratory chamber studies, directly informed by the needs of the modeling community, to quantify key parameters relevant to chlorine-mediated methane removal pathways. This effort will build from a foundation of earlier scientific work to answer key open questions on the scientific viability of these approaches.

Methane is responsible for roughly 30% of today’s warming. Even with aggressive emissions reductions, concentrations are expected to continue rising due to hard-to-abate sources and warming-induced emissions from wetlands, thawing permafrost, and other natural sources.

Atmospheric methane removal may provide potential options to reduce climate risks, but foundational research is needed to rigorously assess which–if any–pathways are viable.

This solicitation will support research to explore whether enhancing the breakdown of methane in the atmosphere through chlorine-related pathways could meaningfully reduce the atmospheric lifetime of methane—and help determine whether this pathway warrants deeper exploration.

The research will be conducted in multiple phases, beginning with a short scoping effort (up to $80,000), followed by multi-year, multi-institution laboratory chamber studies (up to $2 million), and potentially a third phase focused on global modeling.

‍RFP Issue Date: February 9, 2026

Proposal Submission Deadline (Phase I): March 9, 2026

Expected Determination Notification Date: Mid to late April

Anticipated Award Amounts:

• Phase I: up to $80,000
• Phase II: up to $2,000,000
• Phase III: TBD

How to Apply

For solicitation details and application instructions see the Request for Proposal document.

All proposals must be submitted via the online submissions platform by March 9, 2026 at midnight PDT.