PRI leads applied research into the safe, effective, and economical capture, use, and storage of CO₂ from power plants and industrial operations, preventing these greenhouse gases from reaching the atmosphere. 

Carbon Capture

CO₂ from power plants and industrial operations must be captured before it can be sequestered underground or beneficially used. With backing from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), PRI and industry partners are deploying advanced carbon capture technologies that are proven to remove 90 percent of the carbon dioxide from emissions.

Carbon Storage

The geology of Illinois is ideal for safe carbon storage, with the Mt. Simon Sandstone capped by layers of sedimentary rock that act as a “seal.” The Illinois Basin region, which covers most of Illinois as well as southwestern Indiana and western Kentucky, has a storage capacity ranging between 12 billion and 172 billion metric tons of CO₂.

For almost 20 years, PRI geologists and engineers have been developing methods for the safe capture and underground storage of CO₂ from power plants and industrial operations, helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Multiple projects have shown that carbon storage can be done safely and effectively in Illinois.

The PRI-led Illinois Basin-Decatur project (IBDP) recently concluded and fully met project storage targets, storing approximately 1 million metric tons of CO₂, which was one-third of the captured carbon emissions from ADM’s biofuel plant operations in a three-year period, into the Mt. Simon Sandstone, paving the way for commercial-scale use of the sandstone for CO₂ storage. This world-class project gained one of the first EPA Underground Injection Control Class VI permits (for wells used for geologic sequestration of CO₂) and has garnered international interest, with over 700 visitors from 29 countries.

A second ADM project, the Illinois Industrial Sources Carbon Capture and Storage Project, also is meeting its target of storing all captured emissions from corn processing and has captured and stored 2.4 million metric tons of CO₂ since it began in April 2017.

Carbon Management at Power Plants

PRI leads the large-scale pilot testing of a Linde-BASF CO₂ capture technology at City Water, Light & Power (CWLP) in Springfield, Illinois. When the 10-megawatt capture system is built and begins to process 5 percent of the Dallman Unit 4 flue gas, it will capture more than 90 percent of those CO₂ emissions. By demonstrating effective and economical carbon capture, this project is a building block to commercialization and broader adoption of carbon capture technology.

Through a previous DOE project, PRI has demonstrated that there is significant carbon storage potential in this area, and PRI scientists are conducting a Phase 2 commercial-scale characterization of a potential carbon storage site in Macon County.

PRI also leads a project to design a next-generation power plant at CWLP that both reduces emissions and captures and uses carbon dioxide. The design combines a 270-megawatt ultra-supercritical coal boiler, an 87-megawatt natural gas combustion turbine generator, a 50-megawatt energy storage subsystem, and a post-combustion carbon capture subsystem. The captured CO₂ will be used to feed algae, which in turn will be used to develop biofuels.

PRI and industry partners are working on a front-end engineering design (FEED) study to retrofit the Prairie State Generating Company (PSGC) in Marissa, Illinois, with a system capable of capturing more than 90 percent of treated carbon emissions. The plan is to incorporate additional carbon offset strategies to achieve net-zero CO₂ emissions.

PSGC also is one of two sites included in the Illinois Storage Corridor project led by PRI. This project involves characterizing and constructing carbon storage operations at PGSC and the One Earth Energy ethanol facility in Gibson City. The two sites will provide a combined storage capacity of 6.5 million metric tons of CO₂ annually.

Two DOE-supported carbon-capture research projects are ongoing at U of I’s Abbott Power Plant. PRI is working with industry partner Linde to test three technologies for reducing aerosol particle concentrations in flue gas. This work could help make solvent-based carbon capture technology more economical at commercial scale. The second project is advancing the development of a CO₂ absorption technology that could dramatically improve energy efficiency, lower the equipment cost and footprint, and maintain operational simplicity.

Carbon Management at Industrial Sites

Industrial operations—such as cement and steel manufacture, refineries, chemical plants, etc.—also are significant sources of CO₂ that must be managed. PRI recently began a DOE-backed FEED study for a commercial-scale carbon capture retrofit of an industrial facility in Missouri. The captured CO₂ will be pipeline ready for geological storage.

Direct Air Capture and Storage

PRI is also addressing capture of non-point source CO₂ from transportation and other activities. PRI and industry partners recently began a DOE-backed project to develop preliminary designs and determine feasibility for the first commercial-scale direct air capture and storage system (DAC+S) for CO₂ removal in the United States. This 18-month project will explore the possibility of pulling 100,000 tonnes of CO₂ from the air annually. By using three test sites across the U.S., the project will examine the potential impact of different climate conditions on CO₂ direct air capture.

CCUS Report

The Prairie Research Institute (PRI) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, in consultation with an intergovernmental advisory committee, pursuant to Public Act 102-0341, hereby filed its report on the potential for carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) as a climate mitigation technology throughout Illinois.

The report provides an assessment of Illinois subsurface storage resources, a description of existing and selected subsurface storage projects and best practices for carbon storage. Additionally, the report provides recommendations for policy and regulatory needs at the State level based on its findings.

PRI unites expertise in geoscience, ecology and environmental science, climate, sustainable energy, hydrology and water, archaeology, and pollution prevention. PRI is not a policymaking or advocacy organization. PRI serves as scientists to the state to help policymakers better understand the role CCUS could play in Illinois by providing objective, science-based research.

In assembling this report, the CCUS study group reviewed an invento­ry of existing CCUS initiatives in the state and nationally; performed a literature review; compiled a review of the existing legislation to sup­plement the report; employed an outside firm, Industrial Economics, Incorporated, to conduct an Impact Analysis for Planning (IMPLAN) economic impact analysis; and hosted 13 virtual stakeholder listening sessions with diverse groups, including state agencies, environmental organizations, unions, industry, general public and other stakeholders.

We appreciate all the stakeholders who took the time to provide their perspectives either in writing or by attending a listening session.

The report is now available to the public and can be viewed and downloaded here.

For questions please contact Tiffany Jolley, Assistant Director for Strategic Communications, directly at tjolley2@illinois.edu or 217/300-2356.