Rapid carbon mineralization for permanent disposal of anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions

TLDR: This study demonstrates for the first time the permanent disposal of CO2 as environmentally benign carbonate minerals in basaltic rocks and demonstrates that the safe long-term storage of anthropogenic CO2 emissions through mineralization can be far faster than previously postulated.

Abstract: Carbon capture and storage (CCS) provides a solution toward decarbonization of the global economy. The success of this solution depends on the ability to safely and permanently store CO2. This study demonstrates for the first time the permanent disposal of CO2 as environmentally benign carbonate minerals in basaltic rocks. We find that over 95% of the CO2 injected into the CarbFix site in Iceland was mineralized to carbonate minerals in less than 2 years. This result contrasts with the common view that the immobilization of CO2 as carbonate minerals within geologic reservoirs takes several hundreds to thousands of years. Our results, therefore, demonstrate that the safe long-term storage of anthropogenic CO2 emissions through mineralization can be far faster than previously postulated.

Full text

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Frequently asked questions

Q1. What is the effect of precipitated carbonate minerals on the formation of basalts?

During basalt-water-CO2 interaction, calcium liberated by basalt dissolution tends to provoke calcite precipitation, whereas the liberated magnesium, aluminum and silicon tend to provoke the formation of zeolite and clay minerals (15, 16, 32). 

Q2. What are the contributions in this paper?

Juerg M. Matter, Martin Stute, Sandra Ó. Snæbjörnsdottir, Einar Gunnlaugsson, Gudni Axelsson, Helgi A. Alfredsson, Sigurdur R. Gislason, Edda S. Aradottir and Wallace S. Broecker this paper. 

Q3. Where is the water flow in the top tens of meters?

Groundwater flow in the top tens of meters is to southwest (16); water flow in the lower part of the system is focused in lava flows located at the CO2 injection depth of 400–800 m depth. 

Q4. What was the aqueous solution used for the SF6 and SF5CF?

Carbon-14 was added to the water injection stream as an aqueous H14CO3- solution using a Milton Roy micro-dosing pump (Model AA973-352S3). 

Q5. What is the main effect of advection on the monitoring well?

The dominance of advection as the chemical transport mechanism in the system is evident in the concentration of chemical tracer in the monitoring fluid shown in Fig. 2; aqueous diffusion is far too slow to transport substantial material from the injection to the monitoring well over the 2- year study period. 

Q6. How many days have the aqueous diffusion been used?

Days since injection startedNa-Flu (g/L)SF6 (ccSTP/cc) SF6 Phase The author(ccSTP/cc)*SF5CF3 Phase II(ccSTP/cc) pHDIC (mmol/L)14C (frac. modern)± 

Q7. What is the purpose of the study?

Several experimental studies have been aimed at assessing if precipitated carbonate minerals would eventually slow the overall carbonation rates of basalts and its constituent minerals (9,10). 

Q8. What is the reason for the low carbonation rates of basalts?

These results were attributed to the poor structural match between the dissolving silicate and precipitating carbonate, which leaves sufficient pathways for chemical mass transfer to and from the adjoining fluid phase (e.g. 34). 

Q9. What was the EDXS mapping of the grains?

Imaging of samples EDXS mapping of the grains collected from inside the pump shows a banded structure where they were fractured, with a first generation of calcite containing rich in Fe- and Si and a second generation largely without such material (Fig. S3). 

Q10. What was the morphological feature of the samples?

These samples were sputter coated with Au and imaged under high vacuum (4 x 10-4 Pa) to resolved detailed morphological features. 

Q11. What was the EDXS mapping of the samples?

SEM imaging and EDXS mapping clearly show 10 um to 1 mm slightly elongated grains rich in Ca, C, and O, as expected for calcite, with trace concentrations of Mg, Mn, and Fe (Fig. S2). 

Q12. What was the SF6 concentration in the headspace?

Concentrations in the headspace were measured with a precision of ±2% using gas chromatography (SRI 8610C) and ultrapure nitrogen as the carrier gas. 

Q13. What was the purpose of the SF6 and SF5CF3 injections?

In 2008, the authors injected SF6 and sodium fluorescein (Na-Flu) into the target storage reservoir during a short duration tracer test to characterize the hydrology of the injection site.