On geoengineering and the CO2 problem

Abstract

PREFACEOne o f t h e main r e s e a r c h l i n e s o f t h e IIASA Energy Program i s t h e a n a l y s i s of t h e l o n g t e r m c o n s e q u e n c e s o f t h e u s e o f e n e r g y . F o s s i l e n e r g y l e a d s t o t h e r e l e a s e of v e r y l a r g e amounts o f C 0 2 i n t o t h e a t m o s p h e r e which due t o s l u g g y k i n e t i c s t a k e a v e r y l o n g t i m e u n t i l t h e y a r e e v e n t u a l l y d i g e s t e d i n t h e f i n a l s i n k o f t h e d e e p ocean.A s a consequence, C02 a c c u m u l a t e s i n t h e a t m o s p h e r e , and by a l t e r i n g t h e i n f r a r e d d i f f u s i o n it may provoke i m p o r t a n t c h a n g e s i n t h e e a r t h ' s c l i m a t i c a n d r a i n p a t t e r n s . I n o u r s t u d y w e t a k e a p o s i t i v e a t t i t u d e toward t h e problemi n t h a t w e l o o k i f it c a n b e s o l v e d o r r e d u c e d by t a k i n g p r o p e r m ea s u r e s i n t h e way o f b u r n i n g f o s s i l f u e l s . T h i s i s done i n t h e s p i r i t o f g e o e n g i n e e r i n g , which i s a k i n d o f " s y s t e m s y n t h e s i s " where s o l u t i o n s t o g l o b a l problems a r e a t t e m p t e d from a g l o b a l view. ABSTRACTThe problem of C02 c o n t r o l i n t h e atmosphere i s t a c k l e d by p r o p o s i n g a k i n d of " f u e l c y c l e " f o r f o s s i l f u e l s where C 0 2 i s p a r t i a l l y o r t o t a l l y c o l l e c t e d a t c e r t a i n t r a n s f o r m a t i o n p o i n t s and p r o p e r l y d i s p o s e d o f .C 0 2 i s d i s p o s e d of by i n j e c t i o n i n t o p r o p e r s i n k i n g t h e r m o h a l i n e c u r r e n t s t h a t c a r r y and s p r e a d it i n t o t h e d e e p o c e a n t h a t h a s a v e r y l a r g e e q u i l i b r i u m c a p a c i t y .The M e d i t e r r a n e a n u n d e r c u r r e n t e n t e r i n g t h e A t l a n t i c a t G i b r a l t a r h a s been i d e n t i f i e d a s one such c

Geoengineering climate by stratospheric sulfur injections: Earth system vulnerability to technological failure

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“…Additional interest in such effects has arisen from recent plans to dispose of anthropogenic CO 2 by introducing it into the ocean, especially the deep sea (an idea originally proposed by Marchetti, 1977Marchetti, , 1979 where it would affect particularly animals living in the aphotic zone. The basic idea is to accelerate the equilibration of rising atmospheric CO 2 with the deep sea, which would otherwise be delayed for centuries, and to reduce the transient atmospheric CO 2 peak otherwise expected to rise from 370 ppm (PCO 2 = 370 µatm) up to more than 1500 ppm (PCO 2 = 1,500 µatm) between the years 2100 and 2200, unless CO 2 emissions can be reduced (e.g.…”

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