Removing CO2 from the atmosphere and storing billions of tons of CO2 in aquifers, minerals, and soils causes myriad CO2-water-rock interactions, which has always been my core expertise. My research aims to predict the consequences of these interactions in terms of CO2 storage efficiency and safety. Our current NSF project focuses on reaction kinetics in multi-mineral systems and uses non-traditional stable isotope doping as an innovative experimental technique. We want to know how reactions are coupled, e.g., how clay mineral precipitation can slow down basalt dissolution and compete for divalent metals for carbon sequestration. Click here for the NSF grant project description.
I have worked on CO2 storage since 2000 and have a substantial list of publications on a wide range of topics. My contributions under the CCUS and CDR umbrella, together with my collaborators, are (1) breaking new grounds in near-equilibrium reaction kinetics; (2) developing thermodynamic models of CO2 and H2S solubility, which are widely used by the CCUS community (3) the first equation of state for H2S-CO2-H2O-NaCl quaternary system, (4) simulation of the CO2 plume migration and chemical reactions in both model systems and a real geological system—CO2 injection site at Sleipner, Norway and in the Mt. Simon sandstone in the US Midwest. The fundamental science question is how chemical reactions proceed in a geological system through space and time and the uncertainties of our knowledge due to the uncertain parameters.