INTRODUCTION 8: Carbon Capture & Storage

Overview 

The capture of CO₂ is motivated by the forecasted change in climate as a result of the increasing concentration of CO₂ in the atmosphere, due in large part, to the world’s dependence on fossil fuels for energy generation. Mitigation of CO₂ emissions is a current challenge but it is expected it will help stabilize global warming. The separation of CO₂ from gas mixtures is not new, industrial processes to produce hydrogen, ammonia, and even natural gas purification plants have used such separations in the past. To date, most power and industrial plants simply release CO₂ to the atmosphere, but new technologies are maturing which allow CO₂ to be captured and possibly used. The traditional approach for CO₂ capture employs solvent-based absorption. While relatively mature, it has the limitation of requiring high energy, so it is unclear whether this technology will be the optimal choice to tackle the scale of CO₂ emitted on an annual basis (> 30 Gt worldwide). The cost of these capture technologies is still a limitation. 

 

Module Objectives

In this module, the activities, content, and assignments will guide your learning process to ensure you can:

• Describe carbon capture and storage strategies and technologies
• Identify and describe environmental sustainability issues within the natural gas sector
• Apply critical thinking, decision-making, and problem-solving skills to environmental sustainability problems
• Critically review and discuss scientific literature
• Apply the content presented in this course to real world problems

 

Module To-Do List

Here's everything you need to do and remember for this module:

• Review the resources provided in the resource section of this module. Please note that I have also included a book titled: "Carbon Capture" by Dr. Wilcox that can help you go deeper in topics of your interest. 
• Watch the lecture: Carbon Capture & Storage
• Participate in the discussion board of this module