Ok, that's not exactly what this is about, but it is part of it. The new Wired Magazine (22.04) has an extensive article about Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). Basically the problem is that a large number of credible studies say that we won't be able to fully switch to renewable energy sources in this century. In the mean time we are stuck with coal and the use of coal is increasing rapidly. China in particular to fuel its economic growth and its attempt to get most Chinese out of poverty is using huge amounts of coal. So we need CCS to cut down on the CO2 that is being injected into the atmosphere.
Of course the generation of energy is not the only use of coal. Another major user is the steel industry. Steel production uses huge amounts of coal in the form of coke, and our use of steel is increasing rapidly. And that is a use that can't be replaced with renewable energy.
So we need CCS. The biggest problem seems to be that it is expensive. The equipment and processing is complicated and we don't really understand how to go about it. So far there are no large scale systems actually in use. So it is an emerging technology. Environmental groups are against it because they see it as 'greenwashing' the power companies. The power companies are against it because it is so expensive.
CCS is in development. China is working on a number of systems to help clean up their air, but they won't be coming on line in the immediate future. They do have some serious problems. In Tangshan, SE of Beijing when the author was there the visibility was a quarter of a mile (0.4 km). They plan to get it cleaned up in about 20 years.
In the meantime CCS is a huge problem which needs to be solved.
Bill Gill
