Schlagwort: enhanced weathering

Pengxiao Xu, Christopher T Reinhard IN: Envrionmental Research Letters, 2025, https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/adc020

One prominent CDR approach is enhanced rock weathering (ERW), in which crushed silicate rock is applied on land or in the open ocean to accelerate natural weathering processes that absorb carbon dioxide from Earth’s ocean-atmosphere system. However, in addition to a range of potential environmental, socioeconomic, and ethical issues associated with this pathway, bottlenecks in feedstock sourcing represent a key barrier for deployment of ERW at scale. Here, the authors evaluate the potential of silicate wastes produced from industrial processes — such as steel slag and cement waste — as feedstocks for the enhanced weathering process. An empirical model that links industrial alkaline waste production to gross domestic product at purchase power parity [GDP(PPP)] is developed to forecast waste production in the alternative futures described by the Shared Socioeconomic Pathway (SSP) framework.

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Emily E. E. M. te Pas, Elliot Chang, Alison R. Marklein,
Rob N. J. Comans, Mathilde Hagens IN: Frontiers in Climate 6, 1524998, https://doi.org/10.3389/fclim.2024.1524998

Various approaches are currently used to quantify the carbon dioxide removalassociated with enhanced weathering, which involves amending soils with crushed silicate minerals. The authors aimed to contribute to the development of a standardized procedure for CDR quantification by complementing the results of a recently published soil column experiment, in which crushed olivine, wollastonite, and albite were added to soils, with total fusion ICP-OES analyses of base cation concentrations.

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David J. Beerling, Euripides P. Kantzas, Mark R. Lomas, Lyla L. Taylor, Shuang Zhang, Yoshiki Kanzaki, Rafael M. Eufrasio, Phil Renforth, Jean-Francois Mecure, Hector Pollitt, Philip B. Holden, Neil R. Edwards, Lenny Koh, Dimitar Z. Epihov, Adam Wolf, James E. Hansen, Steven A. Banwart, Nick F. Pidgeon, Christopher T. Reinhard, Noah J. Planavsky, Maria Val Martin IN: Nature, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-08429-2

Enhanced weathering with agriculture uses crushed silicate rocks to drive CDR. If widely adopted on farmlands, it could help achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. Here we show, with a detailed US state-specific carbon cycle analysis constrained by resource provision, that EW deployed on agricultural land could sequester 0.16–0.30 GtCO₂ yr⁻¹ by 2050, rising to 0.25–0.49 GtCO₂ yr⁻¹ by 2070. 

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Emily E. E. M. te Pas, Elliot Chang, Alison R. Marklein, Rob N. J. Comans, Mathilde Hagens IN: Frontiers in Climate, doi: 10.3389/fclim.2024.1524998

The authors aimed to contribute to the development of a standardized procedure for CDR quantification by complementing the results of a recently published soil column experiment, in which crushed olivine, wollastonite, and albite were added to soils, with total fusion ICP-OES analyses of base cation concentrations. CDR quantified by soil-based mass balance approaches was only comparable to leachate-based total alkalinity measurements after correcting for the weathering products that were retained within the soil profile.

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Harun Niron, Arthur Vienne, Patrick Frings, Reinaldy Poetra, Sara Vicca IN: Global Change Biology 30 (9), e17511, https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.17511

Among CDR technologies, enhanced silicate weathering (ESW) has been suggested as a promising option. While ESW has been demonstrated to depend strongly on pH, water, and temperature, recent studies suggest that biota may accelerate mineral weathering rates. Bacillus subtilis is a plant growth-promoting rhizobacterium that can facilitate weathering to obtain mineral nutrients. It is a promising agricultural biofertilizer, as it helps plants acquire nutrients and protects them from environmental stresses. Given that croplands are optimal implementation fields for ESW, any synergy between ESW and B. subtilis can hold great potential for further practice. B. subtilis was reported to enhance weathering under laboratory conditions, but there is a lack of data for soil applications. In a soil-mesocosm experiment, the authors examined the effect of B. subtilis on basalt weathering.

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Arthur Vienne, Patrick Frings, Sílvia Poblador, Laura Steinwidder, Jet Rijnders, Jonas Schoelynck, Olga Vinduskova, Sara Vicca IN: Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 109596, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2024.109596

The role of soil organisms, such as earthworms, in enhancing silicate weathering (both physically and chemically) has been suggested, but there is limited quantitative data on how biota, especially earthworms, contribute to inorganic carbon sequestration. To address these gaps, the authors conducted a mesocosm experiment with earthworms and basalt.

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Harun Niron, Arthur Vienne, Patrick Frings, Reinaldy Poetra, Sara Vicca IN: Global Change Biology, https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.17511

While ESW has been demonstrated to depend strongly on pH, water, and temperature, recent studies suggest that biota may accelerate mineral weathering rates. Bacillus subtilis is a plant growth-promoting rhizobacterium that can facilitate weathering to obtain mineral nutrients. It is a promising agricultural biofertilizer, as it helps plants acquire nutrients and protects them from environmental stresses. Given that croplands are optimal implementation fields for ESW, any synergy between ESW and B. subtilis can hold great potential for further practice. B. subtilis was reported to enhance weathering under laboratory conditions, but there is a lack of data for soil applications. In a soil-mesocosm experiment, the authors examined the effect of B. subtilis on basalt weathering. B. subtilis–basalt interaction stimulated basalt weathering and increased soil extractable Fe.

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Charlotte R. Levy, Maya Almaraz, David J. Beerling, Peter Raymond, Christopher T. Reinhard, Tim Jesper Suhrhoff, Lyla Taylor IN: Environmental Science & Technology, https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.4c02368

This paper identifies potential negative consequences and positive co-benefits of ERW scale-up and suggests mitigation and monitoring strategies. To do so, the authors examined literature on not only ERW but also industry, agriculture, ecosystem science, water chemistry, and human health. From this work, they develop recommendations for future research, infrastructure, and policy needs. The authors also recommend target metrics, risk mitigation strategies, and best practices for monitoring that will permit early detection and prevention of negative environmental impacts.

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