Australian research leads the world in carbon capture and storage
7 October 2011
Australia’s Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Technology (CO2CRC) has developed the world’s first single well test to demonstrate the safety and environmental efficacy of carbon capture and storage (CSS).
The A$10 million Otway Project has produced tools and techniques that will be used to assess the capacity and security of CCS projects across Australia, China, the United States, Canada and Europe.
The project’s international research team led by CO2CRC has produced more than 100 papers addressing the regulation and verification of CCS. With testing now completed on the 1,500 metre well in south-west Victoria, CEO of CO2CRC says the team are leading the world in storage science research.
“The key achievement from these experiments has been the development of the world’s first single well test, which can be used to evaluate the carbon dioxide storage capacity of saline storage reservoirs for carbon storage projects around the world,” said Dr Richard Aldous.
“It is essentially a very cost-effective way for large industrial CCS projects to determine the potential quantity and security of carbon dioxide to be stored underground in a particular location.”
The Australian Government has committed almost A$40 million to support the CO2CRC, the Global CCS Institute, and joint Australia-China CCS research.
Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson said: "CCS has the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increased international interest in CCS technologies opens up significant opportunities for Australian research and innovation.”
“Work undertaken in Australia through leading projects like Otway is making a significant contribution to the global knowledge base on CCS.”
Austrade has worked closely with CO2CRC to build international awareness of Australia’s capabilities in CCS.
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