Carbon capture

Carbon capture
Name	Carbon capture
Type	Technology
Inventor	Various
Introduced	20th century

Carbon capture is the collection of technologies and practices designed to remove carbon dioxide from point sources or the atmosphere for transport, utilization, or long-term storage. It encompasses industrial processes, chemical engineering, energy infrastructure, and environmental management, intersecting with international agreements, national energy strategies, and private-sector innovation. Implementation involves collaboration among research institutions, corporations, financiers, regulators, and civil society actors.

Overview

Carbon capture systems address emissions from power plants, manufacturing, and diffuse sources associated with urban centers, industrial zones, and agriculture. Major stakeholders include Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, International Energy Agency, World Bank, and multinational firms such as ExxonMobil, Shell plc, BP, and TotalEnergies. Academic contributors include Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Imperial College London, ETH Zurich, and Tsinghua University. Demonstration projects and pilot facilities have been hosted in regions like United States, Norway, Canada, United Kingdom, and Australia.

Technology and Methods

Capture approaches are broadly categorized as pre-combustion, post-combustion, and oxy-fuel methods practiced in contexts ranging from fossil fuel plants to bioenergy installations. Chemical solvent systems employ amines developed in laboratories at University of California, Berkeley, University of Cambridge, and Delft University of Technology; solid sorbents leverage materials researched at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Membrane technologies have roots at Georgia Institute of Technology and Purdue University, while cryogenic separation and mineralization techniques trace to work at Carnegie Mellon University and University of Oxford. Transport employs pipelines akin to infrastructure built by Transportadora de Gas del Perú models and is informed by regulations from agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency and Norwegian Petroleum Directorate. Storage strategies include geologic sequestration in saline aquifers and depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs referenced in projects led by Equinor, Shell plc and research consortia including IEAGHG. Utilization pathways convert CO2 into chemicals, fuels, and building materials through partnerships among Carbon Engineering, Climeworks, LanzaTech, Sasol, and academic spinouts from ETH Zurich.

Applications and Deployment

Applications span power generation retrofits, industrial decarbonization for sectors such as cement, steel, and chemicals, and direct air capture installations serving negative-emissions goals. Notable large-scale facilities include projects in Boundary Dam, initiatives at Gorgon gas project, and pilot plants supported by DOE demonstration programs. Deployment models feature public–private collaborations resembling arrangements by European Investment Bank, Asian Development Bank, US Department of Energy, and national agencies in Norway and Canada. Energy companies, utilities, and manufacturers collaborate with consortia like Carbon Capture and Storage Association and Global CCS Institute to scale capacity and share best practices.

Environmental and Economic Impacts

Environmental analyses draw on assessments by IPCC, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, International Energy Agency, and academic teams at Princeton University and Yale University. Life-cycle studies examine upstream emissions, water use, land impacts, and co-pollutant effects, often comparing capture pathways against renewable portfolios championed by International Renewable Energy Agency. Economic viability is influenced by price signals and markets such as carbon pricing schemes in European Union Emissions Trading System, tax incentives modeled after Section 45Q in the United States, and investment mechanisms deployed by Green Climate Fund and Clean Energy Ministerial initiatives. Cost reductions depend on learning curves observed in technologies adopted by firms like Siemens Energy, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Honeywell UOP, and Schlumberger.

Policy, Regulation, and Incentives

Policy frameworks encompass permitting, liability, long-term stewardship, and incentives implemented in jurisdictions such as United Kingdom, Norway, United States, Canada, and Australia. Legislative and regulatory tools include tax credits, grants, procurement rules, and market mechanisms informed by analysis from OECD and World Resources Institute. International agreements and national commitments under Paris Agreement influence deployment targets and funding priorities channeled through institutions like the European Commission and national ministries of energy and environment. Standards, monitoring, reporting, and verification practices draw on technical guidance developed by ISO committees and research from International Organization for Standardization-aligned groups.

Criticisms, Risks, and Controversies

Critiques arise from environmental groups, researchers, and policy analysts at organizations such as Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, NRDC, and academic critics at University of Oxford and London School of Economics who question scalability, lock-in of fossil infrastructure, and opportunity costs relative to renewable deployment. Risks include leakage, induced seismicity documented in hydrocarbon and geothermal contexts studied by US Geological Survey and Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, permanence and monitoring challenges explored by IPCC and IEAGHG, and governance issues debated in forums like COP meetings. Concerns about equity and community consent echo cases studied by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.

Research, Innovation, and Future Directions

Ongoing research spans novel sorbents, electrochemical conversion, mineralization, and circular-economy applications led by laboratories at MIT Energy Initiative, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Max Planck Institute for Coal Research, Fraunhofer Society, and university consortia. Demonstration and scaling efforts are pursued by startups like Climeworks, Carbon Clean, Carbon Engineering, and corporate R&D labs at BASF, Dow Chemical Company, and Toyota Research Institute. Future pathways integrate carbon management with hydrogen strategies promoted by Hydrogen Council, negative-emission scenarios considered by IPCC pathways, and regional industrial hubs proposed in policy roadmaps by European Commission and United States Department of Energy. International collaboration, finance, and standards will shape trajectories explored at summits such as COP26 and forums convened by World Economic Forum.

Category:Climate change mitigation