Global InformationCarbon capture and storage information
Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is a process in which a relatively pure stream of carbon dioxide (CO2) from industrial sources is separated, treated and transported to a long-term storage location.[2]: 2221 For example, the burning of fossil fuels or biomass results in a stream of CO2 that could be captured and stored by CCS. Usually the CO2 is captured from large point sources, such as a chemical plant or a bioenergy plant, and then stored in a suitable geological formation. The aim is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and thus mitigate climate change.[3][4] For example, CCS retrofits for existing power plants can be one of the ways to limit emissions from the electricity sector and meet the Paris Agreement goals.[5]: 16
Carbon dioxide can be captured directly from the gaseous emissions of an industrial source, for example from a cement factory (cement kiln). Several technologies are in use: adsorption, chemical looping, membrane gas separation or gas hydration.[6][7][8] However, as of 2022, only about one thousandth of global CO2 emissions are captured by CCS, and most of those CCS projects are for natural-gas processing.[9]: 32 CCS projects generally aim for 90% capture efficiency,[10] but most of the current installations have failed to meet that goal.[11]
Storage of the captured CO2 is either in deep geological formations or in the form of mineral carbonates. Geological formations are currently the favored option for storage. Pyrogenic carbon capture and storage (PyCCS) is another option.[12] Long-term predictions about submarine or underground storage security are difficult. There is still the risk that some CO2 might leak into the atmosphere.[13][14][15] A 2018 evaluation estimates the risk of substantial leakage to be fairly low.[16][17]
CCS is so far still a relatively expensive process.[18] Carbon capture becomes more economically viable when the carbon price is high, which is the case in much of Europe.[9] Another option is to combine CCS with a utilization process where the captured CO2 is used to produce high-value chemicals to offset the high costs of capture operations.[19]
Some environmental activists and politicians have criticized CCS as a false solution to the climate crisis. They cite the role of the fossil fuel industry in origins of the technology and in lobbying for CCS focused legislation.[20] Critics also argue that CCS is only a justification for indefinite fossil fuel usage and equate to further investments into the environmental and social harms related to the fossil fuel industry.[21][22] With regards to public support, communities who have been negatively affected by an industrial activity in the past are less supportive of CCS.[23] Communities that feel inadequately informed about or excluded from project decision-making may also resist CCS development.[24]
Globally, a number of laws and rules have been issued that either support or mandate the implementation of CCS. In the US, the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides support for a variety of CCS projects, and the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 updates tax credit law to encourage the use of CCS.[25][26] Other countries are also developing programs to support CCS technologies, including Canada, Denmark, China, and the UK.[27][28]
- ^ Abdulla, Ahmed; Hanna, Ryan; Schell, Kristen R.; Babacan, Oytun; et al. (29 December 2020). "Explaining successful and failed investments in U.S. carbon capture and storage using empirical and expert assessments". Environmental Research Letters. 16 (1): 014036. Bibcode:2021ERL....16a4036A. doi:10.1088/1748-9326/abd19e.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:9was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Metz, Bert; Davidson, Ogunlade; De Conink, Heleen; Loos, Manuela; Meyer, Leo, eds. (March 2018). "IPCC Special Report on Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage" (PDF). Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change; Cambridge University Press. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ Ketzer, J. Marcelo; Iglesias, Rodrigo S.; Einloft, Sandra (2012). "Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions with CO2 Capture and Geological Storage". Handbook of Climate Change Mitigation. pp. 1405–1440. doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-7991-9_37. ISBN 978-1-4419-7990-2.
- ^ IPCC, 2022: Summary for Policymakers [P.R. Shukla, J. Skea, A. Reisinger, R. Slade, R. Fradera, M. Pathak, A. Al Khourdajie, M. Belkacemi, R. van Diemen, A. Hasija, G. Lisboa, S. Luz, J. Malley, D. McCollum, S. Some, P. Vyas, (eds.)]. In: Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change. Contribution of Working Group III to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [P.R. Shukla, J. Skea, R. Slade, A. Al Khourdajie, R. van Diemen, D. McCollum, M. Pathak, S. Some, P. Vyas, R. Fradera, M. Belkacemi, A. Hasija, G. Lisboa, S. Luz, J. Malley, (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA. doi: 10.1017/9781009157926.001.
- ^ Bui, Mai; Adjiman, Claire S.; Bardow, André; Anthony, Edward J.; Boston, Andy; Brown, Solomon; Fennell, Paul S.; Fuss, Sabine; Galindo, Amparo; Hackett, Leigh A.; Hallett, Jason P.; Herzog, Howard J.; Jackson, George; Kemper, Jasmin; Krevor, Samuel; Maitland, Geoffrey C.; Matuszewski, Michael; Metcalfe, Ian S.; Petit, Camille; Puxty, Graeme; Reimer, Jeffrey; Reiner, David M.; Rubin, Edward S.; Scott, Stuart A.; Shah, Nilay; Smit, Berend; Trusler, J. P. Martin; Webley, Paul; Wilcox, Jennifer; Mac Dowell, Niall (2018). "Carbon capture and storage (CCS): the way forward". Energy & Environmental Science. 11 (5): 1062–1176. doi:10.1039/C7EE02342A. hdl:10044/1/55714.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Deanna M.; Smit, Berend; Long, Jeffrey R. (16 August 2010). "Carbon Dioxide Capture: Prospects for New Materials" (PDF). Angewandte Chemie International Edition. 49 (35): 6058–6082. doi:10.1002/anie.201000431. PMID 20652916.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:10was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b "The carbon capture crux: Lessons learned". ieefa.org. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
- ^ A Moseman, 'How efficient is carbon capture and storage?' (21 February 2021) MIT Climate Portal
- ^ A Vaughan, 'Most major carbon capture and storage projects haven't met targets' (1 September 2022) New Scientist
- ^ Werner, C; Schmidt, H-P; Gerten, D; Lucht, W; Kammann, C (1 April 2018). "Biogeochemical potential of biomass pyrolysis systems for limiting global warming to 1.5 °C". Environmental Research Letters. 13 (4): 044036. Bibcode:2018ERL....13d4036W. doi:10.1088/1748-9326/aabb0e.
- ^ Phelps, Jack J.C.; Blackford, Jerry C.; Holt, Jason T.; Polton, Jeff A. (July 2015). "Modelling large-scale CO2 leakages in the North Sea". International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control. 38: 210–220. Bibcode:2015IJGGC..38..210P. doi:10.1016/j.ijggc.2014.10.013.
- ^ Climatewire, Christa Marshall. "Can Stored Carbon Dioxide Leak?". Scientific American. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
- ^ Vinca, Adriano; Emmerling, Johannes; Tavoni, Massimo (2018). "Bearing the Cost of Stored Carbon Leakage". Frontiers in Energy Research. 6. doi:10.3389/fenrg.2018.00040. hdl:11311/1099985.
- ^ Alcalde, Juan; Flude, Stephanie; Wilkinson, Mark; Johnson, Gareth; Edlmann, Katriona; Bond, Clare E.; Scott, Vivian; Gilfillan, Stuart M. V.; Ogaya, Xènia; Haszeldine, R. Stuart (12 June 2018). "Estimating geological CO2 storage security to deliver on climate mitigation". Nature Communications. 9 (1): 2201. Bibcode:2018NatCo...9.2201A. doi:10.1038/s41467-018-04423-1. PMC 5997736. PMID 29895846. S2CID 48354961.
- ^ Alcade, Juan; Flude, Stephanie (4 March 2020). "Carbon capture and storage has stalled needlessly – three reasons why fears of CO2 leakage are overblown". The Conversation. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
- ^ Ghilotti, Davide (26 September 2022). "High carbon prices spurring Europe's CCS drive | Upstream Online". Upstream Online | Latest oil and gas news. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
- ^ "Dream or Reality? Electrification of the Chemical Process Industries". www.aiche-cep.com. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
- ^ Stone, Maddie (16 September 2019). "Why Are Progressives Wary of Technologies That Pull Carbon From the Air?". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 28 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
- ^ "'Pioneering' CO2 storage projects could have leaked". The Ferret. 6 August 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
Opponents of CCS claim it distracts from the need to invest in renewables and is being pushed by the fossil fuel industry so that it can continue drilling for oil and gas.
- ^ Alexander, Chloe; Stanley, Anna (2022-12). "The colonialism of carbon capture and storage in Alberta's Tar Sands". Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space. 5 (4): 2112–2131. doi:10.1177/25148486211052875. ISSN 2514-8486.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:6was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ McLaren, D.P., 2012, Procedural justice in carbon capture and storage, Energy & Environment, Vol. 23, No. 2 & 3, p. 345-365, https://doi.org/10.1260/0958-305X.23.2-3.345
- ^ "Biden's Infrastructure Law: Energy & Sustainability Implications | Mintz". www.mintz.com. 5 January 2022. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
- ^ "Carbon Capture Provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022". Clean Air Task Force. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
- ^ "2022 Status Report". Global CCS Institute. Page 6. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
- ^ "CCUS Net Zero Investment Roadmap" (PDF). HM Government. April 2023. Retrieved 21 September 2023.