Orca (carbon capture plant)
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The Orca carbon capture plant is a facility that uses direct air capture to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere (The name, "Orca" comes from the Icelandic word, "orka" which means "energy".[1] It was constructed by Climeworks and is joint work with Carbfix, an academic-industrial partnership that has developed a novel approach to capture CO2. The plant uses dozens of large fans to pull in air and pass it through a filter. The filter is then released of the CO2 it contains through heat. The CO2 extracted is later mixed with water and pushed into the ground, using a technology from Carbfix.
CO2 is injected into the ground as opposed to being disposed of in another way because of the reaction that occurs when the carbon dioxide is injected into the earth. It solidifies into a rock, keeping it trapped underground permanently, preventing its negative effect on the atmosphere. However, this does not apply to all the carbon dioxide. Most of the carbon dioxide will not solidify but remain in the gas phase or not get past liquid phase. Unfortunately, it is possible for the carbon dioxide to escape if it's not in the solid phase.[2]
The plant started sequestering carbon dioxide in 2021. It is said to have cost between $10–15 million to build.[3] It is located in Iceland and is the largest facility of its kind on earth.[4][5][6] It is located about 50 kilometers outside Reykjavík next to the Hellisheiði Power Station, which is run by Reykjavík Energy.[7] It was inaugurated on 8 September 2021 in presence of Katrín Jakobsdóttir, the Prime Minister of Iceland.
Carbon offsetting potential[edit]
Climeworks claims that the plant can capture 4000 tons of CO2 per year.[8][9] This equates roughly to the emissions from about 870 cars.[10] It counts Microsoft founder Bill Gates and the reinsurance company Swiss Re as current customers.[11]
The thousands of tons of carbon dioxide being removed is owed to the nearly 20 direct air capture plants currently functioning in the world. As the world's climate climbs towards 2 degrees Celsius, more technology is needed desperately to sustain our climate, preventing it from reaching severe temperatures.[12]
Potential Harm[edit]
Injecting CO2 into the ground does pose some risk, potentially causing earthquakes due to active faults. There are ways to make it an easier process, such as finding the right rock formations to store the CO2 in, where the rock below where the CO2 should be stored should be porous to allow proper injection, and the rock above should be non-porous to keep it contained.[13]
Infrastructure[edit]
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References[edit]
- ^ "Carbon capture and storage plant becomes operational in Iceland". UNESCO. September 20, 2021. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ Chu, Jennifer (January 20, 2015). "Sequestration on shaky ground". MIT News. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
- ^ "World's biggest machine capturing carbon from air turned on in Iceland". the Guardian. Agence France-Presse. 2021-09-09. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
- ^ "World's biggest machine capturing carbon from air turned on in Iceland". The Guardian. 8 September 2021.
- ^ "The world's biggest carbon-removal plant switches on". The Economist. 18 September 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ^ Birnbaum, Michael (8 September 2021). "The world's biggest plant to capture CO2 from the air just opened in Iceland". Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ^ Brown, Chris (30 October 2021). "In Iceland, can a revolutionary new process actually help stop global warming?". Retrieved 30 October 2021.
- ^ "The next step towards a climate-positive world: Orca!". climeworks.com. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
- ^ "World's largest plant capturing carbon from air starts in Iceland". Reuters. 2021-09-13. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
- ^ "World's biggest machine capturing carbon from air turned on in Iceland". the Guardian. Agence France-Presse. 2021-09-09. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
- ^ Hook, Leslie (2021-09-08). "World's biggest 'direct air capture' plant starts pulling in CO2". Financial Times. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
- ^ Okonkwo, Eric; AlNouss, Ahmed; Shahbaz, Muhammad; Al-Ansari, Tareq (November 15, 2023). "Developing integrated direct air capture and bioenergy with carbon capture and storage systems: progress towards 2 °C and 1.5 °C climate goals". Energy Conversion and Management. 296 – via Elsevier Science Direct.
- ^ "What is the risk that CO2 stored underground after carbon capture will escape again?". MIT Climate Portal. February 23, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
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