An exciting experiment of carbon storage is currently starting in Iceland. The experiment will take place close to Reykjavik’s geothermal plants and aims at capturing the carbon dioxide rising from underground by the geothermal power stations, which would make them truly carbon neutral.
The storage works by pumping CO2 into the basalt rock which turns it into limestone. The CO2 would thereby become part of the rock and locked away underground avoiding negative effects on the climate. The method uses seltzer water which reacts with basalt (ancient volcanic lava) and turns the dissolved CO2 into harmless limestone.
The company undertaking the experiment is a joint Icelandic-American venture CarbFix involving the US Energy Department, the EU, Reykjavik Energy and others.
If successful this method could be very promising for fighting climate change given the huge areas of basalt ground on Earth including offshore under the seabed.
See original article in Times of India
