With the rise in the concentration of greenhouse gases, environmental problems are continuously increasing. Carbon dioxide is the major greenhouse gas that is mainly responsible for the rise in the temperature and other environmental changes. It is high time and rigorous steps should be taken to control the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Montana State University is working on a project to devise a method of capturing and storing carbon dioxide that is released everyday from different sources such as cement plants or the plants where coal is used. This project is being called the Big Sky Sequestration Project, and it has already received the agreement of the U.S. Energy Department to carry out experiments in order to find out whether capturing carbon dioxide can be a successful method of reducing its concentration in the environment.
The geologists in Montana are concentrating on the Kevin Dome. According to Lee Spangler, the director of the carbon project and an associate vice president of research for Montana State University, Kevin Dome is located in the north-central part of Montana and is a rock formation that has an area of 700 square miles. These porous rocks are the natural absorbers of carbon dioxide. As a part of the project, it has been decided that the gas will be pumped in the porous rocks and will then be covered by nonporous rocks on the top, which will not let the gas escape. The development of this place is planned to start in a week. It involves the drilling of injection wells in the Kevin Dome. The whole project is supposed to be completed in about two years, after which carbon dioxide can be successfully stored in the rocks.
This project is expected to have a great future. Once the scientists complete the experiments to check that the gas is not leaking, a full-fledged storage of carbon dioxide can be started. Although the United States produces enormous amounts of carbon dioxide, capturing and storing it won’t be difficult, as these rocks have an enormous capacity of carbon dioxide storage. This project is also beneficial because storing carbon dioxide is a cheaper and easier method as compared to converting it to other products. This project has received $67 million from federal funds and $18 million from private partners. After completion, the project will be very beneficial, as it can greatly improve the environment.
Via: Reuters
