Bioenergy with CO 2 capture and storage

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The term bio-energy with CO 2 capture and storage (Engl. Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage , therefore abbreviated BECCS ) refers to a process of CO 2 capture and storage , in which biomass is burned in industrial processes, resulting to the case Subsequently separate and store carbon dioxide . In the context of the climate crisis, BECCS is seen as a theoretically promising procedure, the application of which should contribute to achieving the two-degree target from the Paris Agreement . Due to a large number of problems to be expected with regard to land use , biodiversity , etc., it is controversial in research whether and to what extent BECCS systems will actually be able to realize large quantities of negative emissions .

effectiveness

The effectiveness of BECCS depends on assumptions regarding the choice of biomass, the further use of the biomass and the compensation of fossil fuels in the energy system. Depending on these assumptions, the carbon removed from the atmosphere by BECCS is sometimes offset by losses from a dependent change in land use. In the case of a substitution of ecosystems with high carbon content by those with crops by a BECCS could forestation efficient for the removal of CO 2 from the atmosphere be, than would be possible with BECCS.

background

The climate scenarios 3 and 4 (only late emission reduction) included in the special report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change from 2018 must take into account not only afforestation but also negative CO 2 emissions from BECCS in order to still be able to meet the 1.5 degree target . The amount of CO 2 that could be extracted from the atmosphere annually is estimated by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC) and the US Academy of Sciences (NAS) at a maximum of five billion tons. To do this, one sixth of today's global agricultural area would have to be converted.

Comparison with other procedures

In the meantime, electrogeochemical processes are being discussed which, at the same cost, could at least theoretically produce negative emissions more than 50 times as quickly as BECCS. However, research into such processes is still in its early stages.

costs

In a review study published in 2016, the costs for BECCS were put at an average value of 132 US dollars per ton of CO 2 eq for the year 2100. BECCS would thus be cheaper than direct separation of carbon dioxide from the air ( DACCS ) and than artificial weathering, but more expensive than afforestation or reforestation of forests. According to a paper published in 2018, the costs of BECCS at this point in time were more than an order of magnitude higher than the costs of currently existing climate protection technologies. Increased use of BECCS keep the authors then possible if the CO 2 prize has reached a sufficient level for the efficient use of BECCS. As a realistic CO 2 price for such an economically self-supporting use of BECCS, they cite a price range of approx. 100 to 150 dollars / ton.

credentials

  1. ↑ Kevin Anderson , Glen Peters: The trouble with negative emissions . In: Science . tape 354 , no. 6309 , 2016, p. 182 f ., doi : 10.1126 / science.aah4567 .
  2. ↑ AB Harper et al. (2018). Land-use emissions play a critical role in landbased mitigation for Paris climate targets. Nature Communications , 9 (1). doi: 10.1038 / s41467-018-05340-z
  3. ↑ Estimates of the remaining CO2 budget hide the challenges in climate policy , by Wilfried Rickels, Christine Merk, Johannes Honneth, Jörg Schwinger, Martin F. Quaas, Andreas Oschlies, Kiel Institute for the World Economy, November 2018, p. 10
  4. ↑ Christopher Schrader : Controversial Tricks to Stop Climate Change . In: Spectrum of Science , November 24, 2018. Accessed January 1, 2019.
  5. ↑ Rau, GH, Willauer, HD, & Ren, ZJ (2018). The global potential for converting renewable electricity to negative-CO 2-emissions hydrogen. Nature Climate Change, 8 (7), 621. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-018-0203-0
  6. ↑ Pete Smith et al .: Biophysical and economic limits to negative CO2 emissions . In: Nature Climate Change . tape 6 , 2016, p. 42-50 , doi : 10.1038 / nclimate2870 .
  7. ^ Matthias Honegger, David Reiner: The political economy of negative emissions technologies: consequences for international policy design . In: Climate Policy . tape 18 , no. 3 , 2018, p. 306-321 , doi : 10.1080 / 14693062.2017.1413322 .