What is Carbon Sequestration?
The process of capturing and storing carbon compounds from the environment is called carbon sequestration, which is responsible for reducing the greenhouse effect and mitigating climate change. Methods like direct binding at the source, plant-based sequestration, and advanced techniques like mineral carbonation are popularly known as carbon sequestration. The Earth’s climate is warming in ways not seen in millions of years, making it extremely important to store CO2 emissions. The emission of these gases is the major cause of wildfires, floods, and storms. In addition, sea life is being threatened by the increase in acidity in the oceans. The process of Biologic and geologic carbon sequestration are two broad types of carbon sequestration method that scientists are interested.
Biologic carbon sequestration
The process of biologic carbon sequestration includes storing CO2 in natural locations that it is already stored as part of the carbon cycle. Woody plants and grasslands store carbon as a result of the biological process of photosynthesis. By removing CO2 from the atmosphere, this process transforms it into plant tissue that can grow. Plants contribute to the production of soil organic carbon by moving carbon into the soil. Massive amounts of organic carbon are found in soil. Natural processes eventually break down some of this carbon, and it returns to the atmosphere as CO2, but other parts can remain stable and remain locked in the soil for extended periods of time. Soil is most likely to hold more carbon when it comes to places with specific minerals or climate conditions. Few examples are like with the help of freezing temperatures of the Artic, permafrost stores carbon because cold temperatures slow decomposition. Similarly, waterlogged bogs and marshlands can store carbon by keeping it away from oxygen. In the oceans, CO2 is stored as dissolved gas in the water and carbonate sediments on the seafloor.
Geologic Carbon Sequestration
The act of storing carbon dioxide deep underground in porous rock formations is known as geologic carbon sequestration or carbon storage. This method compresses CO2 to the supercritical phase, which causes it to behave like liquid. Subsequently, it is injected into porous rock formations that are deep beneath the surface, where it becomes trapped in the spaces, dissolves in the fluid inside the formations, and finally reacts to create stable minerals. basaltic rock formations to mineralize. In some cases, this CO2 is injected into oil-bearing rock formations, offsetting the costs of carbon capture, storing CO2, and helping to extract oil.
Carbon sequestration versus utilization
CO2 sequestration and utilization are two separate functions that aim to reduce or avoid greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The objective of sequestration is to reduce net GHG emissions by storing CO2 for a long time, and achieving carbon neutrality in the case of fossil carbon storage (i.e., CCS). Utilization as a function aims to reuse CO2 as a carbon feedstock, resulting in fewer emissions than when the product or service is delivered using fossil carbon. CO2 mineralization for building materials is an example of a product, process, or service that can fulfill both these functions depending on the lifespan of the product. The IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report (IPCC, 2022) has made CDU a key mitigation technology, and waste avoidance is a key tool for mitigation. The role of carbon-containing materials is crucial in today’s world, and it’s challenging to shift from relying on carbon in certain sectors (i.e., long distance air transport). Renewable energy sources (RE) and hydrogen (H2) are required for CDU in most situations. CDU is not solely about producing energy, despite the major objective of producing fuels, but rather about transforming existing energy supplies and carbon into something with greater value at a time. Finally, to meet the Paris Agreement’s goals, sequestration or conversion are not a stand-alone solution, and they will be necessary along with other approaches such as reduced or avoided consumption.
Conclusion
The Office of Science like Basic Energy Sciences (BES) and Biological and Environmental Research (BER) programs are where the DOE (The U.S. Department of Energy) provides support for research on carbon sequestration. BES supports the foundational science behind materials, chemicals, and biochemical and geological processes affecting to the capture, conversion, and sequestration of CO2. BER supports research into atmospheric carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. BER also supports systems biology research to better understand how plants capture atmospheric CO2 and convert it into durable forms of organic carbon, the role of plant-associated microbes (i.e., plant microbiomes) in carbon capture, and how soil microbes impact the long-term stability of sequestered carbon.
