Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) is an emissions-mitigation technology suite that captures carbon dioxide from industrial flue gases or directly from ambient air, and either recycles it for commercial use or stores it in deep geological formations to prevent atmospheric release.

Components of the CCUS Technological Chain

• 1. Carbon Capture: Separating carbon dioxide ($CO_2$) from large point sources (coal thermal power stations, blast furnaces, cement kilns, chemical plants) using chemical absorption solvents (e.g., amines), membrane filtration, or Direct Air Capture (DAC) systems.
• 2. Carbon Utilization: Transforming captured carbon dioxide into value-added economic products:
  • Synthesizing industrial chemicals (urea, methanol), synthetic fuels, and polymers.
  • Mineral carbonation to produce sustainable building aggregates, curing concrete, and green construction blocks.
• 3. Carbon Storage (Sequestration): Compressing captured carbon dioxide into a supercritical fluid and injecting it via deep wells into stable geological formations (depleted hydrocarbon fields, deep unmineable coal seams, or deep saline aquifers) for permanent storage.

Potential Role of CCUS in Tackling Climate Change

• Decarbonizing Hard-to-Abate Heavy Industries: For sectors like steel, cement, and petrochemicals where chemical process emissions are difficult to eliminate through electrification alone, CCUS provides an available decarbonization pathway.
• Decarbonizing Thermal Power Generation: Retrofitting operational thermal power and natural gas stations with capture units cuts emissions while preserving grid stability during the transition to renewables.
• Enabling Atmospheric Carbon Removal (Negative Emissions): Integrating CCUS with bioenergy (BECCS – Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage) or Direct Air Capture extracts carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere, supporting Net-Zero goals.
• Facilitating Blue Hydrogen Production: Applying carbon capture to natural gas steam methane reforming produces low-carbon “Blue Hydrogen”, enabling an interim fuel source while green hydrogen infrastructure scales up.
• Building a Circular Carbon Economy: Commercial reuse of carbon dioxide in materials like concrete (e.g., mineral curing technologies) traps carbon permanently while lowering the carbon footprint of construction.
• International Projections: The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that CCUS technologies will need to deliver roughly 15% of cumulative global emissions reductions to achieve global net-zero climate commitments.

Implementation Challenges

• High capital expenditure requirements for capture units and pipeline transport infrastructure.
• Parasitic energy penalties that can reduce the overall thermal efficiency of host industrial plants.
• The need for rigorous long-term geological monitoring to prevent subsurface carbon dioxide leakage.

CCUS acts as an essential bridging and abatement technology alongside renewables. Establishing supportive policy incentives, carbon pricing frameworks, and shared transport hubs will be key to commercial deployment.