COMET Global Innovation and the University of Lleida (UdL) have been granted a European patent for an innovative solar spectrum-splitting technology developed in connection with the SolDAC project, marking an important milestone in the exploitation and future deployment of the project’s technological results.
The European Patent Office (EPO) granted European Patent EP4585864, entitled “A Spectral Splitting Device for a Solar Concentrator System”, on 5 August 2026. The University of Lleida and COMET Global Innovation jointly own the patent. The official EPO certificate identifies both organisations as patent proprietors.
Protecting a key innovation behind the SolDAC concept
The patented technology is closely linked to one of SolDAC’s core technological pillars: the Full Spectrum Solar (FSS) collector.
SolDAC was conceived to demonstrate a new route towards climate-neutral chemical production by combining solar energy with direct air capture and CO₂ conversion. The process integrates three main technological units: a Photo-Electrochemical Conversion (PEC) unit, a Full Spectrum Solar (FSS) collector, and a Direct Air Capture (DAC) unit.
At the heart of the FSS concept is the ability to split the solar spectrum so that different portions of sunlight can be used more effectively for different purposes. Within SolDAC, bandwidth-selected light can be directed towards the photoelectrochemical process, while solar energy is also harnessed for electricity and heat generation. The heat produced can subsequently support the low-temperature direct air capture process.
This approach aims to maximise the value obtained from incoming solar radiation and represents an important step toward more efficient and integrated solar-powered industrial processes.
From European research to protected intellectual property
The granting of EP4585864 demonstrates how collaborative European R&I projects can generate not only scientific and technological advances but also protected intellectual property with potential for further development and exploitation.
The joint ownership of the patent reflects the collaboration between the University of Lleida and COMET Global Innovation in advancing the technology, combining academic research and engineering expertise with an innovation-driven approach focused on bringing research results closer to real-world applications.
For COMET, the patent also represents an important outcome of its participation in and coordination of SolDAC. As project coordinator, COMET has led the implementation and testing of the integrated SolDAC process and has supported the consortium in turning individual technological developments into an integrated concept.
A lasting result of the SolDAC project
Funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme, SolDAC brought together eight partners from four countries to develop an integrated process for producing carbon-neutral ethylene and ethanol from atmospheric CO₂, using solar energy as the driving energy source. The project targeted a TRL4 prototype, validating its main components at laboratory level.
The newly granted patent strengthens the project’s legacy by protecting a technology that can contribute to the future development of full-spectrum solar energy systems and integrated clean-energy applications.
For COMET Global Innovation, this achievement reinforces its commitment to transforming collaborative R&D into tangible innovation assets with long-term technological, environmental and market potential.
- European Patent: EP4585864
- Title: A Spectral Splitting Device for a Solar Concentrator System
- Patent owners: University of Lleida and COMET Global Innovation
- Grant date: 5 August 2026