Energy Technologies: How They Work and Their Induced Seismicity Potential - Induced Seismicity Potential in Energy Technologies - page 72

CARBON CAPTURE AND STORAGE
Introduction of large amounts of CO 2 , a greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere is con-
sidered a likely driver in climate change (NRC, 2011). In 2010 approximately 33.5 billion
metric tonnes of CO 2 (~37 million tons) were introduced to the atmosphere by industry,
transportation, and agricultural production globally (Boden and Blasing, 2011; Friedling-
stein et al., 2010). For a number of years research has explored various methods for reducing
carbon emissions to the atmosphere, including methods that can capture CO 2 from point
sources (e.g., fossil fuel burning power plants, industrial plants, and refineries), transport it
to a geological storage site, and inject it into the ground for permanent storage (sometimes
called sequestration) and monitoring (shown schematically in Figure 3.14). If successful
and economical, CCS could become an important technology for reducing CO 2 emissions
to the atmosphere.
FIGURE 3.14 Illustration of the concept of carbon sequestration. SOURCE: USGS; Duncan and Morrissey
(2011).