Insights and Commentaries
India's Climate Change Research Institute presents book on CCUS
15th April 2015
Topic(s): Carbon capture, use and storage (CCUS)
Dr Malti Goel is the CEO of the Climate Change Research Institute based in India. She has co-edited a new book on ‘Carbon Capture, Storage and Utilization’. In this Insight Dr Goel provides an overview of the book and discusses some of the key areas of CCSU research in India.
Image courtesy of Vishalpandya1991 CC-BY-3.0
Capturing carbon dioxide for safe, permanent storage or utilising it as an industrial feed has emerged as a solution to climate change mitigation for fossil fuel based energy and industrial facilities. Since it is expected that fossil fuels will continue to dominate energy supply for the next two to three decades, development of carbon capture storage and utilisation is becoming important to address climate change.
The Climate Institute's new book, Carbon Capture, Storage and Utilization: a possible climate change solution for energy industry looks at some of the multi-disciplinary research aspects in carbon capture storage and utilisation (CCSU). It is based on the proceedings from a national level capacity building workshop on CCSU held in New Delhi, India, which brought together experts from government, academia and industry. The book is grouped into three sections: policy, CCS, and CO2 fixation and utilisation.
It is important to communicate to researchers and policy makers some of the issues of this emerging technology. The book describes India’s policy development studies and research into CO2 capture and fixation in the pursuit of more cost-effective processes. Such increases in efficiency and effectiveness are essential if this technology is to be deployed widely.
The section on policy looks at the need for intensifying research and development on CCSU as part of a CO2 reduction policy. The current situation of CO2 emissions, CCSU projects, and policy & strategies adopted to promote CCS in USA, India, China, Australia, and South Africa are reviewed.
The book goes on to portray Indian research in the following areas of carbon capture, storage and CO2 utilisation including:
- advanced pre-combustion and post combustion technologies, such a membrane reforming and adsorbent materials,
- feasibility studies of CO2 storage in India, which will ultimately require further research,
- bio-sequestration, ie carbon management in forests,
- a ‘biomimetic’ approach, i.e. the identification of a biological process to utilise CO2,
- potential of enhanced oil recovery and enhanced methane recovery,
- micro algae growth for the extraction of biodiesel, and
- discussion of an Indian CO2 capture pilot project at Rajeev Gandhi Technical University (RGPV)
The pilot project at RGPV is a 500 kg/day amine-based capture facility attached to a biomass gasifier. The pilot project is used for research into production of syngas from coal gasification, hydrogen from water-gas shift reaction, catalytic methane reforming and algae biosequestration. There is interest in scaling the plant up from pilot scale to demonstration scale. This pilot project along with other carbon capture research in India is an example of the push for industrial use of CO2 along with sequestration.
CARBON CAPTURE, STORAGE & UTILIZATION: a possible climate change solution for energy industry, 2015, Eds. Malti Goel, M. Sudhakar, R.V. Shahi, pp 290, Teri Press, New Delhi, ISBN 9788179935682