The VICCO talk is helt by: Marija Plahter Rosenqvist, Doctoral Research Fellow at Department of Geosciences & The NJORD centre, University of Oslo
Porosity structures and local compositional variations associated with natural CO2 sequestration in basalts offshore Norway
Abstract:
Permanent storage of CO2 as carbonates in basalt deposits utilizes natural weathering reactions between silicate minerals and carbonic water. By studying how CO2-enriched water has altered basalt in 43 samples from the Vøring Margin, offshore Norway, we demonstrate the pathways and reactions of CO2 within a basalt reservoir. The study is based on detailed micro-CT, microscope, and microprobe studies as well as single crystal x-ray diffraction and U/Pb-radiometric dating.
The results show that carbonate has filled in larger-scale vesicles and has replaced minerals within the ground mass of the rock. In conclusion, CO2 storage has primarily occurred in vesicles along lava flow margins, but CO2 has also migrated into the micro- and nano-pore networks of the basalts, enhancing storage potential. Coupled dissolution-precipitation reactions between silicate minerals and carbonates may further increase available storage space.
BIO:
Marija Rosenqvist is a PhD student at the Njord Centre, working on the CO2Basalt project since 2022. She holds a BSc and MSc in structural geology and tectonics from the University of Oslo. Her research focusses on understanding pore network of basalts across different scales, from looking at the internal architecture of lava flows, to vesicle networks in lava crusts and the micro-pores and fractures that may connect them, based on field work and samples from the Faroes and the Vøring Margin.
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About the VICCO+ seminar series
The seminars are open for everyone interested, and especially students are welcome. The talks in VICCO+ seminar series are offered by the The VICCO centre, Dept. of Geosciences, University of Oslo.
The VICCO+ talk seminar series are normally held in the Geology Building, at UiO's campus Blindern, see this map.
The Co-ordinator for the talks is
– Bjørgunn Heggem Dalslåen