Ah Tan Blog
2021-04-20
【Climate Innovation Stories】Turning CO2 into something rather... special
Writer: Sing
Global Warming is a dangerous threat to all livelihood, including us, that’s why under Paris Agreement, which entered into force on 4 November 2016, has made countries pledged to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius by 2100. Whilst different countries attempt to reach the goal through various methods, Iceland, one of the signatories and most sustainable countries, has taken a rather radical, yet creative way to slow down Global Warming - and it’s working.
CarbFix is a program situated at Hellisheidi, a power plant site just outside of volcano Rekjavik in Iceland. It is initiated jointly by various universities, energy companies, and even the Icelandic President himself. These half-cube, pentagon-shaped infrastructure captures CO2 emissions from the volcano (which is currently still erupting) and the air, and magically turn them into rocks, which will then be stored 3300 feet underground forever.
So how does CarbFix work? To make the program run smoothly and efficiently, they applied the Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technology which was developed in 2005. The CCS technology captures up to 90% of CO2 emissions from fossil-fuel resources and sends them underground, so they can stay away from Earth’s atmosphere. Moreover, CarbFix took this one step further- it liquefies the CO2 they captured and dissolve them in water (which they have unlimited access to as there’s endless water available underneath the volcano). The carbonated water, now acidic, is then pumped to the bedrock which is filled with Basaltic Rock - a type of rock that contains chemical elements such as calcium, magnesium and iron (it is also one of the most common rocks on earth). Such elements in rocks allow carbonated water to react and combine the two, forming solid carbonates. These minerals are then permeated into rocks, sunk and be stored underground, forever.
The only side effect of this technology is it needed a lot of water in order to make the formula work. However, since 2014, CarbFix has injected 66 thousand carbon dioxide into the ground, helped reduce the location’s total emissions by a third, and is currently on pace to store 1 billion tons of C02 by 2030. Such an innovative solution can also be replicated anywhere as long as it’s near a water source and a floor filled with basalt formations. The program, now running for over 26 years, has become another small step to tackle Global Warming.
References:
https://www.carbfix.com/
https://edition.cnn.com/2018/02/01/world/gallery/carbon-capture-global-projects/index.html
https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/03/srccs_wholereport-1.pdf
https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/the-paris-agreement
https://inhabitat.com/carbfix-turns-emissions-into-stone/
https://www.66north.com/uk/nordur/carbfix
Image Source:
https://www.carbfix.com/
https://www.66north.com/uk/nordur/carbfix