Phil Renforth on Carbon Sequestration
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Phil Renforth is an Associate Professor in the School of Engineering and Physical Sciences at Herriot-Watt University in Edinburgh. His research focuses on geochemical techniques of removing atmospheric carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. He is especially interested in methods that sequester carbon dioxide by enhancing the weathering of rocks and human waste materials.
The image was shot in Hawaii, which is covered in basaltic rocks that contain minerals that weather rapidly, such as olivine.
Podcast Illustrations
All images courtesy of Phil Renforth unless otherwise indicated.
The main steps of the geochemical carbon cycle.
Courtesy of The Geological Society of London
The diagram illustrates the various geochemical methods of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Hawrot et al., 2021
The figure illustrates the phases of carbon sequestration and development, from bench-scale experiments, to pilot-scale projects, to demonstration at the field scale.
In the podcast, Phil Renforth introduces the main approaches to carbon sequestration by enhancing the weathering of rocks.
Renforth & Henderson (2017), Reviews of Geophysics, 55, 636
Further Reading
Hartmann, J. et al. (2013), Enhanced chemical weathering as a geoengineering strategy to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide, supply nutrients, and mitigate ocean acidification, Reviews of Geophysics, 51, 113
Renforth, P. & Henderson, G. (2017), Assessing ocean alkalinity for carbon sequestration, Reviews of Geophysics, 55, 636
Pogge Von Strandmann, et al. (2021), The lithium and magnesium isotope signature of olivine dissolution in soil experiment, Chemical Geology, 560, [120008]
Pogge Von Strandmann, et al. (2022), The Dissolution of Olivine Added to Soil at 4°C: Implications for Enhanced Weathering in Cold Regions, Frontiers in Climate Research, https://doi.org/10.3389/fclim.2022.827698
Renforth, P (2012), The potential of enhanced weathering in the UK, International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 10, 229