Underground Carbon Capture Could Curb Data Center Emissions
New research suggests that capturing and storing carbon dioxide emissions from data centers in underground saline aquifers could mitigate a significant portion of their environmental impact.
The rapid expansion of data centers, driven by the increasing demand for computational power and the rise of artificial intelligence, poses a threat to recent progress in reducing U.S. carbon dioxide emissions. Projections indicate that the power requirement for U.S. data centers could more than quadruple from 40 gigawatts in 2025 to an estimated 169 gigawatts by 2030.
To meet this escalating energy demand, an expansion of energy production is necessary. Researchers propose that natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) power plants equipped with carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies offer the most reliable solution for powering these facilities while preventing atmospheric CO₂ release. Previous studies have identified deep saline aquifers as suitable underground reservoirs for permanently storing captured carbon dioxide.
The study calculated that powering all U.S. data centers with fossil fuels could increase annual CO₂ emissions from 90 million tons in 2025 to 404 million tons by 2030. By mapping the locations of data centers and underground saline aquifers, researchers assessed the potential for emission storage. The findings revealed that 34 U.S. states possess sufficient saline aquifer capacity to store emissions for over a century.
If emissions from data centers in these states are injected into saline aquifers starting in 2025, approximately three-fourths of the total emissions could be mitigated by 2030. This mitigation figure could rise to 90% if carbon dioxide captured in other states is transported via pipelines to neighboring states with available aquifer storage. Strategically locating data centers near both natural gas sources and saline aquifers could further reduce energy supply costs and the expenses associated with large-scale CCS initiatives.
This research highlights a critical challenge in the growth of digital infrastructure: its energy demand and associated emissions. The proposed solution of underground carbon capture and storage (CCS) for data centers aligns with broader industrial decarbonization efforts. Applying CCS to power generation for data centers, especially using NGCC plants, is a pragmatic step toward mitigating their environmental footprint, potentially enabling continued growth while addressing climate concerns.
Edited by the news editor with AI from the original report — please refer to the original source.