About geosequestration

Geological sequestration, or geosequestration, involves capturing carbon dioxide that would otherwise be emitted to the atmosphere, compressing it, transporting it to a suitable site, and injecting it into deep geological formations where it will be trapped for thousands or millions of years.

Geosequestration is often referred to as carbon capture and storage (CCS), carbon capture and geological storage (CCGS), carbon dioxide capture and storage, or clean-coal technology. Some other processes which make smaller reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from combustion of coal are also sometimes called clean-coal technology.

Geosequestration enables the combustion of fossil fuels, such as in the generation of electricity or for industrial processes, without significant emissions of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. Geosequestration can also be used to capture carbon dioxide emitted from a range of other industrial processes such as the manufacture of cement and some fertilisers, in purifying natural gas, and in conversion of gas or coal to liquids.

While the concept of geosequestration of carbon dioxide as a means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere has arisen only in the past decade or so, geosequestration utilises technologies that have been widely practiced in different industries for many years.