From greenhouse gas to stone

The Sunstones project aims to extend knowledge of CO₂ mineralisation in Denmark. CO₂ mineralisation is a means of removing CO₂ from the air by converting the greenhouse gas into a solid similar to limestone. Once CO₂ is fixated in these minerals, it cannot escape again and affect the climate. The method is based on natural processes which for millions of years have helped to maintain the balance of the earth’s climate, long before human emissions became a problem.

Internationally, CO₂ mineralisation is seen as a potentially important means of combating climate change, because the method both removes CO₂ from the climate system and stores it permanently in a solid form.

The objective of the Sunstones project is to develop and test the technology in collaboration with local players who are already working with CO₂ capture – such as biogas plants and heating and power stations. If a number of relatively small installations are established, CO₂ mineralisation can strengthen local workplaces and contribute to meeting Danish climate targets.

An important element of the project is informing and involving the public.
“With the support of the Vissing Foundation, Sunstones can produce easily accessible information material, including films for websites and social media. In addition, open citizens’ meetings are planned in Skive Municipality, at which Sunstones ApS, Rybjerg Biogas, Aarhus University, Climate Foundation Skive and the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) will jointly inform and involve the public in work on the first pilot plant for CO₂ mineralisation in Denmark,” says David Lundbek Egholm, professor at the Department of Geoscience at Aarhus University.