Carbon capture, transport and geologic storage: A brief introduction

Abstract

Carbon capture and storage can simply be defined as capturing of waste CO2 from industrial sources at various stages (ex. pre-, post- combustion etc.), transporting it to a storage site (through pipelines etc.) and then depositing it underground so that the CO2 will not re-enter the atmosphere for a geologically significant long time. Because of the low prices of fossil fuels and lesser statutory restrictions in developing countries (which are primarily dependent on this form of energy), aided by slow development and high cost of alternative energy projects, the CO2 emission into the atmosphere has been ever increasing. The long lasting effects of such high levels of CO2 in atmosphere can portray an image of an impending catastrophe but a better approach would be to avoid those and look into the solutions to minimize the CO2 levels in atmosphere. This introductory chapter offers an insight into the technologies and the techniques that have been developed for carbon capture followed by transporting methods (and their problems) and ends with discussing the various storage technologies.