Carbon oceanic emission

Infrared absorption in the atmosphere can have the same effect. Over the last century the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has risen dramatically because of combustion. As a result, the atmosphere now absorbs more infrared radiation than it did in the past, and cooling into space is less efficient. A likely consequence is global warming, although a detailed calculation of the magnitude of the expected effect is far from simple. For example, while is it not difficult to estimate total CO2 emissions from combustion, most of these molecules end up in the ocean as carbonates or bicarbonates, and do not directly contribute to global warming. Nonetheless, there is broad consensus in the scientific community that carbon dioxide emissions will tend to increase the Earth s temperature over the next few decades, with environmental consequences which may be severe. 

The following 6 maps show the progression of the ocean rise if nothing is done to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. These maps are limited to the eastern portion of North America. They are some what misleading in that they seem to make the problem look less daunting than it really is. A quick glance at the one meter rise map seems to show that little change has taken place. Look more closely. 

Another means to reduce man-made carbon dioxide emissions is sequestration in the land or the ocean. When carbon dioxide is produced locally it may be possible to efficiently separate it from other gases, concentrate it, and dispose of it. A number of complex scenarios may be envisioned to accomplish this disposal, from pumping it into the ocean, to displacing methane in coal mines, to storage in depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs. 

FIGURE 17.16 Sources of carbon dioxide emission in the United States. Note that not all of the emitted CO2 enters the atmosphere. Some of it is taken up by carbon dioxide sinks," such as the ocean. 

Caldeira, K. and Wickett, M. E., Ocean model predictions of chemistry changes from carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere and ocean, J. Geophys. Res., 110 C09S04, 2005. 

Industrial systems are largely dependent on the utilization of fossil fuels, so many environmental effects are due to fossil fuel extraction and combustion. Greenhouse-warming carbon dioxide emissions, acid gas emissions, smog-forming hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides, and deterioration of atmospheric quality from particles released from fossil fuel combustion are all atmospheric effects associated with fossil fuel combustion. Coal mining activities have the potential to release acid mine water to the hydrosphere, petroleum production can release brines or result in ocean oil spills. 

Climate change constitutes one of the principal challenges of the twenty-first century, and one of the major dimensions of this challenge is technological. Net human carbon dioxide emissions to the ocean-atmosphere must eventually decline to zero for its concentration to be stabilized. This follows from the fact that long-term, steady-state concentrations are determined by cumulative emissions, not by the emissions rate. As such, CO2 is fundamentally different from other greenhouse gases. This feature of the climate problem has several important, near-term implications for the character of efficient policy development. 

Alternatives to fossil fuels, such as hydrogen, are explored in Box 6.2 and Section 14.3. Coal, which is mostly carbon, can be converted into fuels with a lower proportion of carbon. Its conversion into methane, CH4, for instance, would reduce C02 emissions per unit of energy. We can also work with nature by accelerating the uptake of carbon by the natural processes of the carbon cycle. For example, one proposed solution is to pump C02 exhaust deep into the ocean, where it would dissolve to form carbonic acid and bicarbonate ions. Carbon dioxide can also be removed from power plant exhaust gases by passing the exhaust through an aqueous slurry of calcium silicate to produce harmless solid products ... 

Future emissions and concentration of carbon dioxide Key ocean/atmosphere/land analyses. Tech. Pap. 31, Div. of Atmos. Res., Comm. Sci. and Ind. Res. Org., Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. 

Although ocean sequestration is promising in terms of carbon sequestration capacity, the environmental impact may limit the acceptability of ocean storage since the strategy is predicated on the notion that the impacts on the ocean will be less than the avoided impact of these emissions to the atmosphere. Environmental concerns in ocean sequestration focus... 

Carbon could be filtered from power plant emissions, compressed into a liquid, and pumped into ocean depths of ten thousand feet. Here, the water pressure would compress liquid carbon dioxide to a high enough density to pool on the seafloor before dissolving. At shallower depths it would just disperse. However, injecting vast quantities of carbon dioxide could acidify the deep ocean and harm marine life. Protesters have forced scientists to cancel experiments to test the scheme in Hawaii and Norway. 

Scientists now project that within the next few decades, the capacity of the earth and the oceans to absorb carbon emissions will decline, while vast changes in the Arctic may further accelerate warming. Melting tundra will release millions of tons of methane, a greenhouse gas more powerful than C02. 

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