Alkalinity Generation Constraints on Basalt Carbonation for Carbon Dioxide Removal at the Gigaton-per-Year Scale

The world adds about 51 Gt of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere each year, which will yield dire global consequences without aggressive action in the form of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) and other technologies. A suggested guideline requires that proposed CDR technologies be capable of removing at least 1% of current annual emissions, about half a gigaton, from the atmosphere each year once fully implemented for them to be worthy of pursuit. Basalt carbonation coupled to direct air capture (DAC) can exceed this baseline, but it is likely that implementation at the gigaton-per-year scale will require increasing per-well CO2 injection rates to a point where CO2 forms a persistent, free-phase CO2 plume in the basaltic subsurface. Here, we use a series of thermodynamic calculations and basalt dissolution simulations to show that the development of a persistent plume will reduce carbonation efficiency (i.e., the amount of CO2 mineralized per kilogram of basalt dissolved) relative to existing field projects and experimental studies. We show that variations in carbonation efficiency are directly related to carbonate mineral solubility, which is a function of solution alkalinity and pH/CO2 fugacity. The simulations demonstrate the sensitivity of carbonation efficiency to solution alkalinity and caution against directly extrapolating carbonation efficiencies inferred from laboratory studies and small-injection-rate field studies conducted under elevated alkalinity and/or pH conditions to gigaton-per-year scale basalt carbonation. Nevertheless, all simulations demonstrate significant carbonate mineralization and thus imply that significant mineral carbonation can be expected even at the gigaton-per-year scale if basalts are given time to react.

Automated summary

The world adds about 51 Gt of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere each year, and aggressive action is needed in the form of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) and other technologies to prevent dire global consequences. Proposed CDR technologies should be capable of removing at least 1% of current annual emissions, about half a gigaton, from the atmosphere each year. Basalt carbonation coupled to direct air capture (DAC) shows promise, but there are challenges to implementing carbon removal technologies at the gigaton-per-year scale, such as maintaining carbonation efficiency and dealing with CO2 injection rates.