Carbon capture and storage
Carbon capture and storage technologies have the potential to make deep cuts in Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired power stations.
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2 June 2011 | Updated 14 October 2011
CSIRO is working to reduce the cost and improve the efficiency of carbon capture and storage (CCS) so it is a viable option for Australia's energy future.
Research is focused on deploying large-scale demonstration projects that enable substantial reductions in emissions and provide a pathway for industry to adopt the technologies at full scale.
CSIRO has broad capabilities in the science that underpins CCS technology and a strong track record of working with government, industry and research organisations on demonstration projects.
This work is part of CSIRO's coal technology research, which is focused on the development of technologies to improve the safety and efficiency of underground coal mining, and accelerate the deployment of low emission coal-based power technologies.
Post combustion capture
Post combustion capture (PCC) is a process that uses a liquid such as ammonia or another amine to capture CO2 from power station flue gases.
The CO2 is compressed and cooled to form a liquid, which can be stored underground. CSIRO's research is addressing the challenges of achieving inexpensive and efficient CO2 capture in the Australian context.
Carbon capture and storage technologies have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired power stations by more than 80 per cent.
PCC offers several potential benefits:
- it can be retrofitted to existing power plants or integrated with new infrastructure to achieve a range of CO2 reductions, from partial retrofit to full capture capacity
- it presents a lower technology risk compared with competing technologies
- renewable technologies can be integrated with PCC, for example, low cost solar thermal collectors can provide the heat required to separate CO2 from solvents
- PCC can be used to capture CO2 from a range of sources - smelters, kilns and steel works, as well as coal- and gas-fired power stations.
CSIRO is involved in the development, commissioning and operation of PCC pilot plants in Australia and overseas.
This program is supported by extensive laboratory research aimed at developing more cost-effective capture technologies that are applicable in Australia.
Carbon capture and storage technologies have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired power stations by more than 80 per cent.
Storing CO2 underground
CSIRO's CO2 storage research is finding ways to safely and economically store CO2 underground.
CSIRO has committed significant resources and research to find suitable storage sites, minimise the risks of storing large volumes of CO2 and provide cost-efficient monitoring technologies for storage systems.
CSIRO is involved in Australia's largest underground CO2 storage project, The Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC) Otway Project, located in south-west Victoria, Australia.
The project boasts one of the world's most comprehensive monitoring and verification programs for CO2 storage and is demonstrating that CO2 can be safely transported, stored and monitored in the deep subsurface under Australian conditions.
Over 60 000 tonnes of CO2 has been injected two kilometres below the earth's surface and scientists have demonstrated that the CO2 has been successfully contained.
Find out more about CSIRO's Post-combustion capture research.
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