Carbon Sink definition
A carbon sink is a natural or artificial system capable of absorbing and storing carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere.
Several types of Carbon Sinks exist:
- Forests:
- Trees and vegetation absorb CO₂ through photosynthesis, transforming carbon into biomass (trunk, branches, leaves, roots).
- Oceans:
- Oceans absorb about 30% of CO₂ emissions. Phytoplankton plays a key role in this process through photosynthesis.
- CO₂ is also dissolved in water, where it can be utilized by marine organisms or stored in the form of carbonate.
- Wetlands:
- Marshes, peatlands, and other wetlands store carbon due to the slow decomposition of organic matter in saturated conditions.
- Soils:
- Soils can store carbon as organic matter resulting from the decomposition of vegetation and animal residues.
Comments
The last case is what we focus on at 2b1st Consulting; it includes the Carbon Capture & Storage activities. Usually resulting from a conversion of depleted oil & Gas fields into a CO2 storage.
First step is to capture CO2 before it enters the atmosphere (via chemical absorption, physical adsorption, or membrane separation) usually from neighboring industries. The CO2 is then transported and injected into deep geological formations typically at depths greater than 800 meters. These are depleted Oil & gas fields but it also can be deep saline aquifers or un-mineable coal seams.
Carbon Sink practice faces competition from Carbon Capture Utilization & Storage (CCUS) which re-use CO2 to create alternative fuels or to decarbonate a factory thanks to H2 addition.
Nevertheless, re-using current Oil & Gas infrastructures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions provides a quick-win solution. Using previous fields as Carbon Sink is particularly efficient when close to shores or part of a web of platforms. Injection of CO2 can also help to improve Oil & Gas production. We are then talking about Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR)
Carbon Capture & Storage is a concrete example of how Oil & Gas Companies are today major actors of the solution to a problem they highly contributed to in the past.
These Carbon Sink applications are covered by our experts at 2b1st Consulting.
If you want to know more about these projects, contact us at Ask a demo
