Partial Support for US Participation in a Workshop Geological Carbon Capture & Storage in Mafic and Ultramafic Rocks

Columbia University, New York NY

Investigators

Abstract

These funds support the participation of students and early career scientists at a major international workshop held by in Oman in January 2011 by the International Ocean Drilling Program, the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program, the European Science Foundation, and others on the geological aspects of carbon sequestration in mafic and ultramafic rocks. The workshop site is close to one of the best 3-D exposures of ocean crust on Earth and will allow field trips and first hand observations of how carbon occurs and is distributed in mafic and ultramafic rocks by various processes involved in carbon capture and storage. Given the importance of finding ways to reduce the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere, this workshop is both important and timely; and it is being convened by the leading experts in the field from nine countries. A main goal of the workshop is to discuss the potential for carbon sequestration in seafloor basement rocks and their exposed remnants on the continents. Utilization of funds will be determined by competition using a set of established priority criteria. The opportunity to attend will be advertised widely to the academic and geological communities. Broader impacts of the work include investigating possible new means and reservoirs for CO2 storage and reducing levels of atmospheric CO2, building potential collaborations between academics and industrial and international partners, and promoting interaction between US and Middle Eastern scientists. The work will also support the attendance of students, postdocs, and early career faculty members helping to build workforce in the important area of carbon sequestration.