Solutions for sustainable CO₂ capture

Carbon capture is a technology that aims to capture carbon dioxide (CO₂) from industrial emissions or the atmosphere in order to reduce the concentration of CO₂ in the air. This is particularly relevant in sectors where emissions are difficult to avoid. Carbon capture technology plays an important role in achieving net zero emission targets and actively reducing CO₂ that has already been emitted.

The carbon capture process comprises three main stages: Capture, transportation and storage or utilization. In the capture phase, the CO₂ is removed directly at the emission source or from the air. Different processes are used depending on the application. In the post-combustion process, the CO₂ is filtered out of the exhaust gases after combustion, often with the help of chemical solvents. In the pre-combustion process, the fuel is converted into CO₂ and hydrogen before combustion, whereby the CO₂ is separated and the hydrogen is used to generate energy. A third option, oxyfuel combustion, uses pure oxygen to produce almost exclusively CO₂ and water vapor, which facilitates capture.

After capture, the CO₂ is compressed and transported to a storage site via pipelines, for example. Transportation in a supercritical state (at high pressure) reduces the volume of CO₂, which increases efficiency and safety. In the final phase, storage or utilization, the CO₂ is either stored permanently in geological formations or used for industrial processes.

Carbon capture offers great opportunities to reduce emissions from sectors that are difficult to reduce and at the same time lower the concentration of CO₂ in the atmosphere. However, the technology is still under development and is associated with challenges such as high costs, energy consumption and safe long-term storage.