{"id":531,"date":"2016-10-27T17:00:29","date_gmt":"2016-10-27T21:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/?p=218"},"modified":"2024-02-16T20:48:23","modified_gmt":"2024-02-16T20:48:23","slug":"the-truth-about-carbon-capture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/our-take\/the-truth-about-carbon-capture\/","title":{"rendered":"The Truth About Carbon Capture"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>There\u2019s a promising technology to make fossil fuels clean, and yet environmentalists cling to their &#8220;keep it in the ground&#8221; mentality. Adding carbon-capture technology to our power plants and industrial factories can be a win for our environment and economy. But green groups insist this technology is not effective, not available and not affordable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This skepticism is understandable given that carbon capture has struggled for a decade. But happily for anyone who cares about coal workers or carbon emissions, the environmentalists are wrong. Carbon capture is real, it is happening now and it can be affordable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<aside class=\"float-right\" style=\"text-align: center; padding-left: 20px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"clearpath-lightbox-img alignnone wp-image-4478 size-full lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/67\/2018\/01\/0adb80494a524145f98e399b359838e2-ccs-sketch-logo-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"265\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 500px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 500\/265;\"><span class=\"md-reg\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><br><span class=\"md-bold\" style=\"color: #9d1c20;\">13 million metric tons of CO2:<\/span><br><span style=\"color: #003366;\">Carbon already captured from America\u2019s industrial plants.<sup><a href=\"#source-1\">1<\/a><\/sup><\/span><br><span class=\"md-bold\" style=\"color: #9d1c20;\">&gt;1 million metric tons of CO2 a year:<\/span><br><span style=\"color: #003366;\">What the Boundary Dam coal power plant in Canada captures<\/span><br><span style=\"color: #003366;\"> already, and what the Petra Nova clean coal power project<\/span><br><span style=\"color: #003366;\"> in Texas expects to capture later this year.<\/span><br><span class=\"md-bold\" style=\"color: #9d1c20;\">0 energy wasted with next generation technology:<\/span><br><span style=\"color: #003366;\">Breakthrough technology promises to capture carbon without<\/span><br><span style=\"color: #003366;\"> using up energy from the power plant, so-called \u201cparasitic load\u201d.<sup><a href=\"#source-2\">2<\/a><\/sup>,<sup><a href=\"#source-3\">3<\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/aside>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Doubts:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Carbon Capture Is Not True<\/strong><br>\u201cGreenpeace opposes Carbon Capture and Storage as a dangerous distraction\u201d<sup><a href=\"#source-4\">4<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Facts:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Carbon capture is already here.<\/strong><br>America has already captured 13 million tons of CO2, from factories that make fertilizer and ethanol, purify natural gas and produce hydrogen. &nbsp;Since 1972, America\u2019s oil industry has stored 67 million tons of CO2 underground in oil fields to recover additional oil. &nbsp;The other 54 million tons of CO2 came from natural sources.<sup><a href=\"#source-5\">5<\/a><\/sup> We built 4,500 miles of pipelines to ship the CO2.<sup><a href=\"#source-6\">6<\/a><\/sup> We know how to do this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So what about power plants?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Doubts:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Carbon Capture Is Not Now<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;To put the fate of our climate on clean coal\u2026 We might as well bet on leprechauns&#8221; &#8211; Michael Brune, Sierra Club<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Facts:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Carbon capture is ready for power plants<\/strong><br>It\u2019s already working. In 2014, Canada\u2019s Boundary Dam turned on the world\u2019s biggest carbon-capture coal project. They\u2019ll soon lose that honor to the Petra Nova project in Houston, which will capture carbon from a 240-megawatt coal unit starting later this year.<sup><a href=\"#source-7\">7<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<aside class=\"float-left\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<h3><span class=\"md-bold\" style=\"color: #9d1c20;\">Petra Nova Carbon Capture<sup><a href=\"#source-8\">8<\/a><\/sup><\/p><\/span><\/h3><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4476 size-full clearpath-lightbox-img lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/67\/2018\/01\/3345b645c0ad1366aec96c8eeaa82026-ccs-process-01.jpg\" width=\"500\" height=\"487\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 500px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 500\/487;\">\n<\/aside>\n\n\n\n<p><em>*Kemper is an entirely different sort of project because of its lignite coal, that deserves its own blog.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Doubts:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Carbon Capture Can\u2019t Be Affordable<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The technology works. The economics don\u2019t.&#8221;- NYTimes<sup><a href=\"#source-9\">9<\/a><\/sup><\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Facts:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Carbon Capture&nbsp;is Affordable Today, Because CO2 is Valuable<\/strong><br>The challenge for capturing carbon from power plants has always been cost. Capturing carbon requires upfront capital and uses power. What\u2019s making some projects work is that the CO2 can be sold. It\u2019s already valuable to oil companies and other uses, from buildings to shoes, are being explored. Projects can use their captured CO2 for enhanced oil recovery, creating a profit stream to offset their new costs. Boundary Dam is selling CO2 for an estimated $20-$25 a ton, and Petra Nova bought into a oil field that will produce 75 million barrels of oil from their CO2.<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">70% of the carbon used to recover the oil remains stored underground.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not only is it cleaner, that\u2019s how Petra Nova will be actually profitable. The project\u2019s backers, U.S. energy giant NRG and a Japanese energy company, plan to make a profit on capturing carbon.<sup><a href=\"#source-13\">13<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t do loss leaders,\u201d said an NRG vice president. \u201cPetra Nova is a billion-dollar project, so we expect to get the economics and risk-adjusted return that our investors are happy with.\u201d<sup><a href=\"#source-14\">14<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The technology isn\u2019t standing on its own legs yet. Petra Nova got a $167 million grant from the Department of Energy and a low-interest loan from the Japanese, which made the economics work. Any first-of-a-kind project will be more expensive. NRG thinks they can reduce the cost by 20-30% next time.<sup><a href=\"#source-15\">15<\/a><\/sup> Those economics could work without a $167 million grant. This technology, partnered with an old oil field, would be profitable while reducing pollution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Carbon Capture Could Get Drastically Cheaper<\/strong><br>There are two breakthrough technologies on the horizon that could make carbon capture radically cheaper. Both solve the problem of needing extra electricity to capture carbon, when electricity is what power plants sell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>NetPower<\/strong> designed a new power plant that captures all its CO2 and uses it as the fluid that turns the turbine to make electricity. CO2 is actually a more efficient turbine-turner than steam, which could cancel out the power lost by capturing CO2. This could be as efficient as your regular combined cycle gas plant. NetPower thinks it may be just as cheap too, before selling the CO2 it captures. &nbsp;If their projections are right, this could rapidly revolutionize how the globe burns its fossil fuels. Their 50-MW pilot plant will be done in 2017. And if all goes well, a 295-MW plant in 2020 will demonstrate that this is the future of clean fossil fuel power.<sup><a href=\"#source-16\">16<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<aside class=\"float-right\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<h3><span class=\"md-bold\" style=\"color: #9d1c20;\">NetPower Claims It Can Be Cheap<sup><a href=\"#source-17\">17<\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/h3><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4482 size-full clearpath-lightbox-img lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/67\/2018\/01\/3345b645c0ad1366aec96c8eeaa82026-ccs-process-01.jpg\" width=\"500\" height=\"367\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 500px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 500\/367;\">\n<\/aside>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>FuelCell&nbsp;Energy<\/strong> found a way to produce electricity that captures carbon dioxide as a byproduct. Their carbonate fuel cell technology can concentrate coal exhaust &#8211; making it easy to capture, transport and sell. They pulled off a \u201cchemical bait-and-switch,\u201d where they run a natural gas fuel cell using dilute power plant CO2 exhaust as an input. This produces power and happens to concentrate carbon for capture.<sup><a href=\"#source-18\">18<\/a><\/sup> These fuel cells can be added to existing fossil plants to reduce their emissions and create more electricity. The predicted premium is just 2 cents per kwh<sup><a href=\"#source-19\">19<\/a><\/sup>, less than the current wind tax credit. If they can sell that CO2, it could capture all the carbon from coal without raising the price of power. The technology is exciting enough that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/05\/06\/science\/exxon-mobil-backs-fuelcell-effort-to-advance-carbon-capture-technology.html?_r=0\">Exxon Mobil is onboard<\/a>. It\u2019s still a ways off, with the Department of Energy hoping for the first 50-MW plant in 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Clearly, I\u2019m bullish on carbon capture. It\u2019s certainly vital. And it won\u2019t be easy to scale, especially because new technologies have tougher time accessing financing and capital. But the world will keep using fossil fuels, <a href=\"\/jays-take\/coal-is-not-a-4-letter-word-in-india\">just look at India<\/a>. We need clean energy that can be on 24\/7, that can stabilize the grid. Carbon capture is that technology. It\u2019s real, it\u2019s being done now, and it could get drastically cheaper. Lovers of coal and carbon reductions alike ought to be excited and optimistic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><p style=\"font-size:20px;\"><strong>View more of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/our-take\/\">Our Take<\/a>&nbsp;and let us&nbsp;know what you think at <a href=\"mailto:jaylistens@saperemarketing.com\">jaylistens@saperemarketing.com<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There\u2019s a promising technology to make fossil fuels clean, and yet environmentalists cling to their &#8220;leave it in the ground&#8221; mentality. Adding carbon capture technology to our power plants and industrial factories can be a win for our environment and economy, but green groups say this technology is not true, not now, and not affordable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":296,"featured_media":37778,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"wds_primary_category":19,"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[15],"class_list":["post-531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-our-take","tag-carbon-capture"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/296"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=531"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37778"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saperemarketing.com\/clearpath\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}