MacDonald et al. (2025): Atmospheric carbon dioxide mineralisation in anthropogenically-derived carbonate deposits
John MacDonald, Charlotte Slaymark, Amanda Stubbs and Marta Kalabová, IN: Swiss Digital Karst, https://doi.org/10.57035/journals/sdk.2025.e31.1929
Removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is important in minimising the impact of anthropogenically-induced climate change. Anthropogenic geomaterials, such as slag and cement, can be utilised in an engineered context for mineralising CO₂. However, such anthropogenic geomaterials, typically waste products, were usually deposited on the land surface and left to passively mineralise CO₂, resulting in the formation of anthropogenic carbonates. In this study, the authors document anthropogenic carbonates from a suite of locations across Scotland and Northern England, and use stable carbon and oxygen isotopes to show that they are formed from atmospheric CO₂.