Ali Kiani’s journey to carbon capture innovation

By  Joshua Janssen 10 September 2026 5 min read

Dr Ali Kiani's path to CSIRO was driven by a desire to make meaningful change to the world. Born in a small town near Shiraz in southern part of Iran, his parents instilled in him and his four siblings a deep appreciation for education and hard work.

Although neither of his parents attended university, they were determined to create opportunities for their children. As a teenager, Ali moved away from home to attend high school in Shiraz, a larger city with greater educational opportunities.

Growing up, he balanced his studies with a love of football. With the World Cup taking place this year, Ali reminisced on being given a chance to take his sporting career further.

“I was offered to play football at a high level, and dreamt of playing professionally one day,” he said.

However, Ali chose to focus his drive and passion into his studies in STEM.

After completing a degree in chemical engineering at Shiraz University, Ali was admitted to the University of Tehran in the nation’s capital, where he completed a masters in chemical engineering specialising in process simulation and design.

"It wasn't easy being away from my family," Ali said. "But looking back, that sacrifice was worth it."

A new chapter in Australia

Determined to advance his career internationally, Ali began preparing for opportunities overseas, studying English to add to his native Farsi before applying to universities around the world.

In 2012, he moved to Australia to start a PhD at the University of Newcastle.

His doctoral research focused on recovering valuable low dense hollow materials such as cenosphere – a lightweight material used in construction – from mineral and coal processing waste streams, combining chemical engineering with positive environmental impacts.

During his PhD, Ali published extensively and engaged internationally, receiving the award for Best Oral Presentation at the World of Coal Ash Conference in Nashville, USA.

Australia quickly became more than a destination for study. Newcastle would become home, and in 2016 Ali married his wife, Sara, also a chemical engineering PhD student at the University of Newcastle he first met while studying at Shiraz University.

Following the completion of his PhD, in 2017 he joined CSIRO in Sydney, beginning his career helping solve the huge challenges of decarbonisation and supporting a more sustainable Australia.

“It was a challenging decision for me, as my wife was still living in Newcastle and I had to commute between Sydney and Newcastle, often staying in Sydney during the week. However, this was one of the most positively impactful decisions of my career,” Ali said.

Research into carbon capture

Ali's early work at CSIRO focused on carbon dioxide (CO₂) absorption and storage technologies. A move back to Newcastle and the opportunity to work alongside leading researchers in the field introduced him to a new and rapidly growing area of research: direct air capture.

Direct air capture (DAC) technologies are focused on the chemistries and engineering needed to efficiently remove CO₂ directly from the ambient air around us, creating opportunities to address decades of legacy industrial emissions and those still coming from sectors that are difficult to decarbonise through other means such as electrification.

At CSIRO, project-focused teams are collaborating across Australia, the UK and the US on a range of DAC technologies. These are investigated in the lab and through demonstrators, aiming to increase their technology and commercial readiness level.

For Ali, it was an opportunity to apply his background in chemical engineering to one of the world's biggest challenges.

Over the past eight years, he has been leading the advancement of CSIRO amine based direct air capture technology from laboratory-scale research towards commercial opportunities, under the excellent mentorship of a prominent researcher in the area, Dr Paul Feron.

“I was very lucky to be working with a prominent and highly regarded researcher in the field in the early stage of my career," said Ali.

Along the way, he has published scientific papers, patents and developed collaboration opportunities with industry partners seeking practical pathways to decarbonisation.

Today, he leads projects involving multidisciplinary teams and works closely with partners to help translate research into real-world outcomes.

"What excites me is seeing something that started in the laboratory move towards implementation and realisation," he said. "You can see the impact that the technology may have in the future, and this is incredibly rewarding, after the time and effort put in.”

Turning research into real-world impact

Much of Ali's current research focuses on liquid-based direct air capture technologies.

His team has been developing approaches designed to make carbon capture more practical, scalable and energy efficient. One area of innovation has focused on reducing water losses during the capture process through modifications to the chemistry of the capture liquid.

The technology has attracted industry interest because of its potential to operate at lower temperatures and integrate with renewable electricity sources, creating opportunities to reduce both costs and emissions.

While the science is complex, the goal is straightforward: remove CO₂ from the atmosphere in a way that can be deployed at a meaningful, commercial scale.

“The CO₂ can then be utilised in small and large scale applications such as beverage, greenhouse and industrial gas-supplying industries or green fuels such as methane and methanol to be used in the transport industry,” he said

“If the CO₂ is stored underground, it can be used to offset emissions from hard-to-abate industries such as aviation, maritime and agriculture.”

For Ali, one of the most rewarding aspects of the work is the collaborative nature of the research. Large-scale technology development requires expertise from many different disciplines such as chemistry, mechanical and chemical engineering and physics.

Ali now works as part of a team of specialists covering a wide range of technical areas.

"I'm in the centre of the project, but I have very supportive team members, locally and also across other states," he said.

"Everyone is leading one part of the project brilliantly and bringing those parts together is what I do. For me, teamwork is everything. Perhaps that is something that was naturally instilled in me through playing a lot of football growing up."

Looking ahead

Ali believes direct air capture has an important role to play alongside other decarbonisation technologies, particularly in industries such as aviation, shipping and heavy industry where emissions can be difficult to eliminate entirely.

His ambition is to see the technology being developed today deployed on a global scale in the decades ahead.

"I would like to see our technology implemented everywhere around the world," he said.

At the same time, he is already looking at the next challenge: how captured carbon dioxide can be converted into renewable fuels, including methanol and sustainable aviation fuel.

He hopes to expand the capabilities of his team's facilities in Newcastle, creating a research platform that spans both carbon capture and renewable fuel production.

What continues to drive Ali is the opportunity to contribute to technologies that can have meaningful impact on our community, economy and environment. That and his love for football, which he still plays regularly.