In order for Austria to achieve the national climate targets, all sectors must reduce their emissions that are harmful to the climate as much as possible. The most important steps towards this goal involve making the switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources, efficient and economical use of energy and resources, and transitioning towards a circular economy. The resilience of ecosystems must also be strengthened, and permanent carbon storage in natural sinks expanded even further.
 
One key area is industrial production, as this is where a large proportion of CO₂ emissions arise.1 Strategies aimed at decarbonisation have already been developed in many industrial sectors over recent years. The aim is for renewable energy sources and innovative production processes to be implemented in order to completely eliminate process-related greenhouse gas emissions. Nevertheless, these measures can only reduce part of the emissions in some industries, such as the cement, lime and glass industries, as well as in steel and iron production. CO₂ emissions will continue to be generated here as a result of chemical processes (e.g. when burning lime in order to produce cement). CO_{2 i}s also emitted in waste management when organic materials are incinerated. The greenhouse gas scenario ”Transition 2040“ set out by Environment Agency Austria2 states that residual emissions in the energy and industry, agriculture and waste management sectors will amount to around 15 per cent of original emissions (1990), corresponding to approximately 11 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents.
 
Carbon capture technologies (CCU – Carbon Capture and Utilisation and CCS – Carbon Capture and Storage) for the capture, use and geological storage of carbon dioxide could be a solution for these remaining ”hard-to-abate“ emissions. The objective is to bind CO₂ on a permanent basis so that it does not enter the atmosphere.

Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU)

The aim of CCU processes is to reduce the output of process emissions from industrial sources by capturing CO₂ treating it and using it in at least one further utilisation cycle as a valuable raw material for chemical or biotechnological processes. Various technologies for capturing CO₂ from flue gas have already been developed to industrial maturity. Locations with large quantities of CO₂ emissions, known as point sources, e.g. from cement and steel production, are relevant for the purposes of CO₂ separation. Research is also being conducted into methods for capturing CO₂ directly from the air. However, CCU technologies require large quantities of electricity and heat. The energy used must in all cases come from renewable sources and the entire CO₂ balance of the process must be considered in order to achieve a positive climate effect.
 
Once the CO₂ has been treated accordingly, all products containing carbon can in principle be produced at the next stage. Potential uses include the production of urea for nitrogen fertilisers or synthetic resins, polyol, e.g. for the production of polyurethane (PU foam) or methanol, which forms the basis for producing many other chemical products. Synthetic fuels such as synthetic kerosene can also be produced this way. However, this continued use only leads to displaced or delayed emissions because the CO₂ is not bound on a permanent basis using this process.
 
Among other initiatives, research is also being conducted into converting mineral raw materials into carbonates in reaction with CO₂, which can then be used as building material additives (e.g. in concrete). A further topic for research currently is CO₂ utilisation through biological methanation (bio-electrochemical processes and geo-methanation).

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)

CCS refers to the capture, transportation and long-term storage of CO₂ in underground storage facilities. Geological storage of CO₂ has been implemented globally for decades in projects ranging from small-scale pilot schemes to large-scale industrial projects and under different geological framework conditions. Suitable geological storage sites include depleted oil or natural-gas storage facilities and rock layers containing salt water that are known as saline aquifers. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) believes that processes for capturing CO₂ and permanent geological storage or binding are required in order to achieve the Paris climate targets. This is on the condition that CO₂ is only stored in a location that is safe, environmentally sustainable and permanent.
 
In this edition we will present some current projects from Austria that are developing and showcasing new concepts and technologies for the capture, conversion and utilisation of CO₂.
 
¹ Total emissions from the energy and industrial sectors (including emission trading) amounted to 32.6 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent in 2022. Industry accounted for the largest share of the energy and industrial sectors in 2022 with 24.7 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent, with emissions from this sector increasing by 3.0 million tonnes or 14% when compared with 1990.  www.umweltbundesamt.at/fileadmin/site/publikationen/rep0913.pdf
² Source: FAQs on CCU and CCS, Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology (BMK) 2024.
www.umweltbundesamt.at/fileadmin/site/publikationen/rep0880.pdf