Active

Adipic acid nitrous oxide abatement

Florida  ·  $7.14USD per tonne

This project reduces nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions from the Ascend Performance Materials chemical plant in Pensacola, Florida. N₂O is an often-forgotten climate supervillain—it’s 273 times more harmful than carbon dioxide (CO₂) and in 2022, it was responsible for 6% of human-generated greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.

A major source of these N₂O emissions is the production of adipic acid. Adipic acid is used in the production of nylon, which in turn is used to manufacture seatbelts, airbags, mattresses, and more everyday goods. Annually, adipic acid production plants contribute over 140 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e) every year. Sadly, there is no economic or regulatory incentive for companies to update production processes to abate N₂O emissions, despite readily deployable technology.

It’s clear action is needed now to address this super pollutant. We cannot wait for governments to pass regulatory measures or expect companies to spend millions on new technology without an economic incentive. That’s why this project is important. It catalyzes systemic change by incentivizing an adipic acid producer to implement technology that can abate N₂O emissions by nearly 98%, making it North America's largest voluntary N₂O abatement project.

How does it work?

Greenhouse gas reductions make up the majority of carbon offset projects. Reducing emissions from industrial processes—like adipic acid production—is a common sector for these reduction activities to occur. This project reduces emissions by enhancing processes to destroy nitrous oxide (N₂O), an unwanted by-product of adipic acid production. Here’s how it works:

1. In 2020, Ascend Performance Materials invested well over $30 million to enhance existing N₂O control technology at its adipic acid production facility in Pensacola, Florida. Price signals from the voluntary carbon market justified this large up-front investment.
2. In 2021, a continuous emissions monitoring system was installed and certified to measure the additional abatement of N₂O emissions beyond what is required by law.
3. The enhancement included installing an absorption column that uses high-pressure water to convert N₂O into nitric acid and increases the amount of N₂O that can be sent to the facility’s thermal reduction unit, which in turn destroys N₂O using heat.
4. The continuous emissions monitoring system measures the concentration of N₂O directed into the thermal reduction unit, allowing accurate quantification of additional abatement against a baseline.
5. Quarterly, a certified third-party verification body reviews data and inspects operations to ensure compliance with the Climate Action Reserve’s U.S. Adipic Acid Production Protocol.

This diagram shows how harmful emissions are reduced at the adipic acid plant. The process starts with the adipic acid production, which creates off-gases. These gases are then treated in two ways: some go through a special absorption column that uses water to convert harmful gases into reusable nitric acid, while the rest goes to thermal reduction units (TRUs) that destroy nitrous oxide using heat. There's also a separate system (SCR) that handles other types of emissions. The end result is significantly reduced emissions released into the atmosphere.

Why this project?

It’s a hard truth that despite countless dire warnings, governments and corporations are not doing their part to address the climate crisis. Despite this adipic acid plant being the largest point source of nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions in the United States, there is no legal mandate in place for Ascend Performance Materials to abate its emissions beyond limits for nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) set by the plant’s Title V permit under the Clean Air Act. Furthermore, the cost of implementing and operating abatement technology is well north of $30 million, meaning that without a clear economic incentive, the company is highly unlikely to make the needed changes to its operations on its own.

Another hard truth is that nylon 6,6, which adipic acid is used to create, is still present in our daily lives. Seatbelts, airbags, bedding foam, and even bike tires, are just some of the places where you might come in contact with nylon 6,6. We do not have an alternative for these everyday products, and demand for them isn’t going away.

Bike tires made with nylon 6,6, an everyday product that requires adipic acid in its production, demonstrating how this chemical compound is present in common items we use regularly.

Wren’s perspective is that there are ways to clean up this dirty industry today while we simultaneously work to make the systemic changes needed to clean it up once and for all via policy and innovation. The best, readily deployable mechanism we have at our fingertips is voluntary carbon market finance. A 2014 study found that because of the operational expenses associated with abatement, N₂O abatement projects such as this one are at risk of stopping in the absence of carbon market finance because there are no cost savings or revenues without it.

Wren is excited about this project because it is one of the most cost-effective solutions we currently have on the table. Multiple studies have found that the marginal cost of avoiding N₂O emissions is between $4 and $5 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e) avoided. For comparison, the average cost of avoiding 1 tonne of CO₂e by reducing deforestation is between $30-$50. This means that for a low cost, we can make a big difference in addressing the climate crisis now.

Lastly, this flagship project is laying the groundwork for similar projects in China, where the vast majority of adipic acid production is located. The Climate Action Reserve has recently approved a protocol applicable to the Chinese landscape and the success of this project in driving the adoption of abatement technology can serve as proof of concept for similar projects in the future.

Press mentions

Nitrous Oxide Abatement: How Reducing N2O Emissions Protects Our Health and Planet

ClimeCo CEO Bill Flederbach Highlights Industrial N2O Mitigation at COP29

US Diplomats Notch a Win on Climate Super Pollutants With Help From the Private Sector

ClimeCo Speaks at White House Super Pollutants Summit

Project updates

Apr2026

5 million more tonnes of CO₂e avoided and counting

Since our last update on this project, our partner has reduced over five million tonnes of emissions with Adipic acid nitrous oxide abatement! Our project partner has also just passed the 50 million credits issued milestone since their founding....

Apr

2026

Jan2026

What our projects are working toward in 2026

Looking to the new year, Wren subscribers will help scale climate solutions, advocate for smart policy, and protect nature-based projects that deliver real, measurable impact....

Jan

2026

Jun2025

How we’re avoiding millions of tonnes of CO₂e from a hidden climate threat

With the support of buyers like Wren, our Adipic acid nitrous oxide abatement project partners issued 5.7M CO₂e avoidance credits in 2024. This brings their total issuance total to 17M+ carbon credits....

Jun

2025

Where is the project located?

This project is located in Pensacola, Florida at the Ascend Performance Materials adipic acid plant. Pensacola is located in Escambia County, which is home to 324,878 residents according to 2022 United States Census Data. The Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool does not designate this county as disadvantaged.

The Ascend Performance Materials chemical plant in Cantonment, Florida, where advanced N₂O abatement technology has been installed to reduce harmful emissions from adipic acid production.

Who is behind this project?

Ascend Performance Materials developed the project with technical support from ClimeCo. Ascend Performance Materials was founded in 1949 and is a chemical company with locations across three continents. ClimeCo is a global sustainability company advancing the low-carbon future with market-based solutions. ClimeCo’s goal is to reduce greenhouse gases via scalable emissions reduction projects, for example, bio-digester deployment, and reducing N₂O emissions from nitric acid and adipic acid production.

How is the money spent?

Receipts and documents

We keep a public record of all payment receipts we've received from our project partners. You can browse the receipt ledger here.

Wren funding sent to the project is shared by ClimeCo (the technical supporter) and Ascend Performance Materials (the project developer). The funds are used to operate the emissions abatement technology and continuously monitor the emissions reductions that result from the technology deployment, and verify and validate the project impact. Additionally, the funds are used to incentivize the second phase of the project, which involved installing a new thermal reduction unit and using the existing thermal reduction unit as a backup. This increased the reliability of the project, and reduced the possibility of time periods with reduced emission reduction.

Verification

This project complies with the Climate Action Reserve’s U.S. Adipic Acid Production Protocol. Industry stakeholders, scientists, and researchers collaborated over the course of a year to develop this protocol, which was accepted by the Climate Action Reserve in 2020. This protocol is solely designed for use at the Ascend Performance Materials plant in Pensacola, Florida. The specificity of this protocol helps safeguard against over-crediting risks because specialized controls are put in place to ensure that emissions are additional compared with historical baseline emissions.

An ISO-accredited third-party verification body reviews the project activities Wren users support, ensuring impact. This project received a BBB rating from BeZero, indicating it is in the top 20% of all projects rated by the agency.

A close-up of the Ascend Performance Materials chemical plant that hosts North America's largest voluntary N₂O abatement project.

Contact information

Dan Linsky, ClimeCo, dlinsky@climeco.com

Talk to a

Wren team member

If you have specific questions about Adipic acid nitrous oxide abatement, our team is here to help answer them.