Australian carbon researchers capturing interest in Kyoto

Researchers from the Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC) are major contributors to the International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies (GHGT-11) which began in Kyoto today. The conference, held every two years, covers the latest advances in the development of carbon capture and storage, one of the key technologies being developed globally to deal with growing greenhouse gas emissions.

CO2CRC researchers will give 12 presentations at the conference on a range of CCS-related fields including carbon storage science, monitoring techniques, new carbon dioxide capture technologies, the economics of CCS and community engagement. A further 11 CO2CRC scientific poster presentations have been included in the conference proceedings.

The work to be shared will include results from world-leading experiments conducted in 2011 at the CO2CRC Otway Project, where carbon dioxide has been safely stored deep underground since 2008. Australia is making a strong show at the conference, with many of CO2CRC’s research partners, including CSIRO and Geoscience Australia, also presenting.

The timing of the conference is particularly apt after the launch of the International Energy Agency (IEA) 2012 World Energy Outlook last week, which predicts that fossil fuels will continue to be a major part in the global energy mix to 2035, especially in developing nations where energy demand is growing strongly. Developing clean energy technology, including carbon capture and storage, is therefore essential if the world is to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and meet international emissions targets.

CO2CRC is also holding its annual Research Symposium in Queensland the week following the GHGT11 conference. The CO2CRC Symposium draws together over 150 of CO2CRC’s researchers, as well as Australian and international industry and government partners and representatives, to discuss progress and plans for the organisation’s comprehensive CCS research portfolio and its application to CCS in Australia.