Posted on 08/19/2018 7:42:33 AM PDT by ETL
Scientists are already working to slow global warming by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, but there are serious practical and economic limits on developing the technology.
Now, for the first time, they have explained how magnesite forms at low temperature, and offered a route to dramatically accelerating its crystallization.
“Our work shows two things. Firstly, we have explained how and how fast magnesite forms naturally,” Professor Power said.
“This is a process which takes hundreds to thousands of years in nature at Earth’s surface.”
“The second thing we have done is to demonstrate a pathway which speeds this process up dramatically.”
Professor Power and colleagues were able to show that by using polystyrene microspheres as a catalyst, magnesite would form within 72 days.
The microspheres themselves are unchanged by the production process, so they can ideally be reused.
“Using microspheres means that we were able to speed up magnesite formation by orders of magnitude,” Professor Power said.
“This process takes place at room temperature, meaning that magnesite production is extremely energy efficient.”
“For now, we recognise that this is an experimental process, and will need to be scaled up before we can be sure that magnesite can be used in carbon sequestration (taking carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and permanently storing it as magnesite).”
“This depends on several variables, including the price of carbon and the refinement of the sequestration technology, but we now know that the science makes it do-able.”
The researchers presented their results this week at the Goldschmidt 2018 conference in Boston, Massachusetts.
(Excerpt) Read more at sci-news.com ...
Algore would have to file for bankruptcy if this can drop atmospheric CO2 to permissible levels.
Oh sure but will it alter cyclical global wind patterns and solar activity? Nyet.
Remember that volcanic explosion 2009 in Iceland that sent a huge plume of smoke and ash into Europe shutting down air traffic for a day or two?
Mother Nature the biggest polluter of them all. Oh the doomsday fears of LIEberals.
Didn’t Obama ban plastic micro-spheres? They are supposedly the worst thing since white people.
This is great, we need this for steel making
Mankind cannot and will not destroy the earth. Only the Almighty Creator of it has the power and authority to decide its fate and when. Puny humanity may damage the earth in certain spots but to destroy it? Fahgedaboudit!
I looked also for the source. I saw that it is usually naturally formed from one of the olivine family of minerals.
"Now, hold on a minute! I have a yacht and a mansion to pay for."
One principal that holds in physics [and physical chemistry] is that there is no free lunch, but the environwhackos keep looking for a free lunch.
I don't have specific knowledge on the mechanisms for this proposed method of sequestration (because the paper lacks such specifics), but it is not my responsibility to disprove their scheme. As the proponents of this scheme the authors have the responsibility to examine these issue of practicality.
Magnesium is the eighth-most-abundant element in the Earth’s crust by mass and tied in seventh place with iron in molarity.[6] It is found in large deposits of magnesite, dolomite, and other minerals, and in mineral waters, where magnesium ion is soluble.
Although magnesium is found in more than 60 minerals, only dolomite, magnesite, brucite, carnallite, talc, and olivine are of commercial importance.
The Mg2+
cation is the second-most-abundant cation in seawater, which makes seawater and sea salt attractive commercial sources for Mg. To extract the magnesium, calcium hydroxide is added to seawater to form magnesium hydroxide precipitate.
MgCl
2 + Ca(OH)
2 Mg(OH)
2 + CaCl
2
Magnesium hydroxide (brucite) is insoluble in water and can be filtered out and reacted with hydrochloric acid to produced concentrated magnesium chloride.
Mg(OH)
2 + 2 HCl MgCl
2 + 2 H
2O
From magnesium chloride, electrolysis produces magnesium.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnesium#Occurrence
One suspects that one of the key reasons that atmospheric CO2 is so low (~400 ppm) is that our green photosynthetic friends have adapted as survival strategies to be aggressive CO2 vacuum cleaners, competing for the minor, but essential for photosynthesis atmospheric gas.
.
I know some will regard what you say as ‘tin foil hat’ nonsense, but given the objectives of Agenda 21 (or 2030 now I guess), depopulation is near the top of the list.
I guess wars and famine and abortion and GMOing the food supply and poisoning the water supplies might not get the job done in time to suit the elites. Getting rid of 5 or 6 billion people ain’t easy ya know!
Intentionally altering atmospheric composition....what could go wrong?
And we think we can bring the cost to under 100 quadrillion dollars and we are asking for the taxing authority...
DK
Magnesite occurs as veins in and an alteration product of ultramafic rocks, serpentinite and other magnesium rich rock types in both contact and regional metamorphic terrains. These magnesites are often cryptocrystalline and contain silica in the form of opal or chert.
Magnesite is also present within the regolith above ultramafic rocks as a secondary carbonate within soil and subsoil, where it is deposited as a consequence of dissolution of magnesium-bearing minerals by carbon dioxide in groundwaters.
Formation
Magnesite can be formed via talc carbonate metasomatism of peridotite and other ultramafic rocks. Magnesite is formed via carbonation of olivine in the presence of water and carbon dioxide at elevated temperatures and high pressures typical of the greenschist facies.
Magnesite can also be formed via the carbonation of magnesium serpentine (lizardite) via the following reaction:
2 Mg3Si2O5(OH)4 + 3 CO2; Mg3Si4O10(OH)2 + 3 MgCO3 + 3 H2O.
However, when performing this reaction in the laboratory, the trihydrated form of magnesium carbonate (nesquehonite) will form at room temperature.[6] This very observation led to the postulation of a “dehydration barrier” being involved in the low-temperature formation of anhydrous magnesium carbonate.[7] Laboratory experiments with formamide, a liquid resembling water, have shown how no such dehydration barrier can be involved. The fundamental difficulty to nucleate anhydrous magnesium carbonate remains when using this non-aqueous solution. Not cation dehydration, but rather the spatial configuration of carbonate anions creates the barrier in the low-temperature nucleation of magnesite.[8]
Magnesite has been found in modern sediments, caves and soils. Its low-temperature (around 40 °C [104 °F]) formation is known to require alternations between precipitation and dissolution intervals.[9][10]
Magnesite in a natural form (from Lubeník in Slovakia)
Magnesite was detected in meteorite ALH84001 and on planet Mars itself. Magnesite was identified on Mars using infra-red spectroscopy from satellite orbit.[11] Controversy still exists over the temperature of formation of this magnesite. Low-temperature formation has been suggested for the magnesite from the Mars derived ALH84001 meteorite.[12][13] The low-temperature formation of magnesite might well be of significance toward large-scale carbon sequestration.[14]
Magnesium-rich olivine (forsterite) favors production of magnesite from peridotite. Iron-rich olivine (fayalite) favors production of magnetite-magnesite-silica compositions.
Magnesite can also be formed by way of metasomatism in skarn deposits, in dolomitic limestones, associated with wollastonite, periclase, and talc.
Uses:
Dyed and polished magnesite beads
Magnesite of Salem
Similar to the production of lime, magnesite can be burned in the presence of charcoal to produce MgO, which, in the form of a mineral, is known as periclase. Large quantities of magnesite are burnt to make magnesium oxide: an important refractory material used as a lining in blast furnaces, kilns and incinerators. Calcination temperatures determine the reactivity of resulting oxide products and the classifications of light burnt and dead burnt refer to the surface area and resulting reactivity of the product, typically as determined by an industry metric of the iodine number.
‘Light burnt’ product generally refers to calcination commencing at 450 °C and proceeding to an upper limit of 900 °C - which results in good surface area and reactivity. Above 900 °C, the material loses its reactive crystalline structure and reverts to the chemically inert ‘dead-burnt’ product- which is preferred for use in refractory materials such as furnace linings.
Magnesite can also be used as a binder in flooring material (magnesite screed).[15] Furthermore, it is being used as a catalyst and filler in the production of synthetic rubber and in the preparation of magnesium chemicals and fertilizers.
In fire assay, magnesite cupels can be used for cupellation as the magnesite cupel will resist the high temperatures involved.
Magnesite can be cut, drilled, and polished to form beads that are used in jewelry-making. Magnesite beads can be dyed into a broad spectrum of bold colors, including a light blue color that mimics the appearance of turquoise.
Research is proceeding to evaluate the practicality of sequestering the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in magnesite on a large scale[16].
Occupational safety and health
People can be exposed to magnesite in the workplace by inhaling it, skin contact, and eye contact.
USA
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has set the legal limit (permissible exposure limit) for magnesite exposure in the workplace as 15 mg/m3 total exposure and 5 mg/m3 respiratory exposure over an 8-hour workday. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has set a recommended exposure limit (REL) of 10 mg/m3 total exposure and 5 mg/m3 respiratory exposure over an 8-hour workday.[17]
Correct me if I’m wrong, but don’t plants and trees need CO2 to live? And don’t they emit O2 which, by the way, humans and animals need to live?
—
Shhh! You’re harassing the narrative! (Someone should tell the professor that all plants are CO2 storing machines.)
Why are these fools wanting to steal our planet’s plant food?
Forget the burning of coal or other hydrocarbons!
Even if you used wind turbines to generate electricity to produce magnesite - the production of magnesite, itself, probably releases exactly as much CO2 as can later be sequestered in it!
Think: Cat farm where you feed rats to the cats, and the (dead) cats to the rats.
TANSTAAFL!
Regards,
A project (CarbFix) initiated in Iceland 2007 began experimenting with the injection of CO2 plus water into basalt formations. Basalt has the high magnesium content needed for mineral formation incorporating carbon and oxygen. This information was published at least two years ago.
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