Experiments in mineral-based carbon dioxide removal
- 2 students
- 40 hours per week, June 9 (Tuesday) through August 14th – exact dates are flexible, and work could begin during Spring Term
- In-person, on campus with limited ability to conduct work remotely
Description:
Carbon dioxide removal will likely be required alongside significant emissions reduction to stabilize global temperatures in the coming century. Mineral-based technologies that leverage natural weathering processes to consume atmospheric carbon dioxide can be embedded within some of the largest industries in the world including agriculture, mining, and water treatment.
Enhanced rock weathering is a form of accelerated mineral weathering facilitated by applying crushed rocks to agricultural soils. Mineral weathering consumes carbon dioxide, neutralizes acidity, and releases nutrients that improve crop yields. We are entering into the fifth summer of a field experiment testing enhanced rock weathering in agricultural fields on campus. One main area of work this summer will be to continue monitoring and evaluating soil and water samples from the field experiment, with some modifications to test variable soil types.
In addition to the field trial, work this summer will aim to develop experiments that test mineral weathering in more controlled laboratory settings. Goals for this project are more flexible, but could include evaluating soil-water-rock slurries, creating and testing biochar-mineral mixtures, and testing filtration mechanisms for water treatment applications.
Suggested prerequisites:
Helpful coursework for this project could include introduction to geology, carbon and climate, soils, paleoclimate, intro chemistry series, biology, inorganic chemistry, mineralogy, geomorphology, geochemistry, and stats.
Additional experience (or willingness to learn) in the following areas could be helpful:
- Field work
- R (or other programming languages like Python)
- Wet chemistry lab work
How to apply:
If you would like to apply, please fill out this application form by March 2nd. Please reach out to Dan Maxbauer (dmaxbauer@carleton.edu) with any questions.