The aim of the GECO project is to develop economical methods to reduce carbon emissions — carbon dioxide (CO2) and hydrogen sulphide (H2S) — from geothermal power plants in Europe and throughout the world. The project builds largely on the CarbFix injection method that has been developed at the Hellisheiði power plant over the past decade. There, carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide are dissolved in water and injected down into the bedrock, where they bind into the minerals calcite and pyrite. The method will now be developed further and injection tried in Italy, Turkey and Germany. In addition, work will be done on utilising geothermal gas species, the key to which is to separate hydrogen sulphide and carbon dioxide. Within GECO, work will also be done on methods for environmental monitoring of geothermal areas and on increasing understanding of the behaviour and fate of the geothermal gas after injection.
– Geothermal Emission Control
About the project
ÍSOR's parts of the project relate to modelling based on geology, reservoir physics and geochemistry; environmental monitoring of geothermal areas and remote sensing, including with drones. ÍSOR is also involved in developing methods for chemical analyses related to injection and developing standards for isotope analyses of chemical gases.
Collaboration and funding
The project is funded by the European Union's research and innovation programme, Horizon 2020.
Partners alongside ÍSOR: Orkuveita Reykjavíkur (lead), GEORG (a geothermal research cluster), Orka náttúrunnar and the University of Iceland. In addition there are foreign participants from France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Germany and Norway.
ÍSOR project manager: Sveinborg H. Gunnarsdóttir.