Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is widely regarded as a key technology in the medium term to reduce carbon emissions from the energy industry during the transition to renewable energy generation, and in the longer term to decarbonise refining, iron and steel, cement, chemical and other industries. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), CCS is the most important technology option for reducing direct emissions from industry, with the potential to mitigate 2 to 2.5 Gigatonnes of CO2 per year globally by 2050. Achieving this target affordably requires a combination of cutting edge expertise in subsurface engineering and some very creative thinking.
Heriot-Watt University, along with partners University of Edinburgh and the British Geological Survey (BGS), were the founder members of Scottish Carbon Capture and Storage (SCCS) in 2005. However, CO2 as an injectant for EOR has been studied at Heriot-Watt University since the 1980s. Many projects have been conducted in collaboration with our partners in SCCS, and we also deliver projects in collaboration with other universities, consultancies and industrial partners. Funding has come from research councils, government agencies and industry, sometimes as one-to-one studies, but mainly through consortia.
