TECH

Scientists in Iceland are turning CO2 into rock to help the environment

The project is named after CarbFix and after the pilot tests started in 2014, it is now a permanent solution capable of cleaning up a third of the emissions generated annually by the factory installed there.Since November last year, it has become the world's first negative emissions system, being able to capture CO2 directly from the air and store it underground permanently.In a process that is not simple, first the carbon dioxide is dissolved in water and then injected into the soil, where it mixes the formations of basalt.CarbFix is ​​a collaborative research project led by Reykjavik Energy, which aims at developing safe, simple and economical methods and technology for permanent CO2 mineral storage in basalts. It was founded in 2007 by Reykjavík Energy, CNRS, the University of Iceland, and Columbia University.In 2011-2014, the CarbFix project received funding through the 7th Framework European Commission (EC coordinated action 283148). The partners involved in the project were; The University of Iceland, CNRS in Toulouse, France, Amphos21 in Barcelona, ​​Spain, Nano Science Center of Copenhagen University, Denmark, and the project leader Reykjavik Energy, Iceland. The first pilot injections took place during the project, and it was demonstrated that the solubility trapping of CO2 occurs immediately, and the injected carbon is trapped in minerals within a few years using the CarbFix injection method in basalt hosted storage reservoirs.The CarbFix2 project aims at moving the demonstrated CarbFix technology from the demonstration phase to a general and economically viable complete CCS chain that can be used throughout Europe and throughout the world. CarbFix2 has received funding from the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (Project ID 764760). Five partners are involved with the project; The University of Iceland, CNRS in Toulouse, France, Amphos 21 in Barcelona, ​​Spain, Climeworks in Zürich, Switzerland, and the project leader Reykjavik Energy, Iceland.


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