Producing hydrogen fuel and capturing CO2
Technology Showcase
Carbon Capture
and Storage
Whether a CPI company’s interest
is based on reducing its own CO2 emissions
or supplying technology to curb
that of its potential customers,
this growing field has implications for all
Michele M. Glessner and Jeffrey E. Young, Alston & Bird
C
arbon capture and storage (CCS)
is an area of technology that has
received national and interna-
tional attention. CCS is seen by
some as a way to reduce carbon dioxide
(CO2) emissions into the atmosphere
and thereby decrease the threat of
global warming. Consequently, propo-
nents have increased pressure on state
and federal governments to make such
reductions mandatory.
Although the benefits of CCS to
the environment may be great, so
are the costs of implementing CCS.
The additional energy required by a
plant employing current CCS tech-
nology to capture and store the CO2,
as well as the initial capital costs of
providing the plant with CCS capa-
bility, is estimated at $40–$90/ton of
CO2 captured. This translates to an
increase in electricity production costs
of $0.02–$0.03/kWh [1].
The chemical process industries (CPI)
expend a significant amount of money
seeking out new ways to use CO2 and
developing more efficient methods for
its capture, transport, and storage. By
seeking intellectual property (IP) pro-
tection through patents, copyrights, and
trademarks for their solutions, those
who spend time and money working on
the problems of CCS can be more cer-
tain of a return on their investments.
Furthermore, IP protection, particu-
larly patent protection, can serve as an
incentive for the development of new
and better CCS approaches.
28 Chemical Engineering www.che.com May 2008
Ambient air
Sep.
H2
CO2
This article explores the current
state of CCS technology and the pro-
tections available for the IP being gen-
erated in this field. It also examines
the areas of CCS that appear to be the
current focus of innovation, as well as
external forces that may affect IP pro-
tection for CCS developments.
The emission of carbon dioxide into
the atmosphere is generally associated
with the combustion of fossil fuels,
such as coal, oil, and gas. Power plants,
automobiles, and industrial facilities
are among the largest sources of CO2
emissions. Mineral production, metal
production, and the use of petroleum-
based products can also result in the
generation of CO2. Although nature
provides for the sequestration, or re-
moval, of CO2 from the atmosphere
through photosynthesis, the destruc-
tion of trees and plants has exacerbated
the accumilation of CO2 emissions [2].
CCS is an effort to capture CO2 as
it is produced and store it in appropri-
ate geologic formations to keep it from
being released into the atmosphere.
Thus, CCS can be broken down into
three challenges: (1) capturing the
CO2; (2) transporting the CO2 to a
storage location; and (3) storing and
maintaining the CO2. Efforts to ad-
dress each one of these challenges may
lead to valuable IP that can provide a
level of exclusivity for a new business
venture and generate income for its
owners if properly protected and man-
aged (see box, p. 31)
Fluegas
Gas turbine
Steam
~
To steam
turbine
Turbine
fuel
Source:
H2 US Patent
Application
PSR Regen Publication No.
Steam 2005/0201929
Shift PSR Reform
Hydrocarbon
feed
FIGURE 1. In ExxonMobil’s process, a
hydrocarbon feed such as methane and
steam are passed through a pressure-
swing reformer (PSR) and converted to
synthesis gas. In a shift reactor, the CO
in the synthesis gas is converted to CO2
and a hydrogen-enriched gas stream is
produced. Hydrogen is separated from
the CO2 in a separation zone and used
as fuel for a gas turbine
Capturing CO2
Based on a search of patents and pub-
lications from the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office (Washington, D.C.;
www.uspto.gov), much of the research
and innovation in CCS thus far has
been to find new and better ways to
capture, or sequester, CO2 as it is pro-
duced — for example at the site of a
power generation plant. Capturing
and compressing CO2 requires a large
amount of energy, and so efforts to
find more efficient methods of seques-
tration that require less energy and
less cost (both environmental and eco-
nomic) remain at the forefront of CCS
development. Companies heading up
these efforts have often sought and
obtained patent protection for their
inventive technologies (Table, p. 29).
Alstom Technology LTD (Leval-
lois-Perret, France; www.alstom.com)
owns several patents and patent ap-
plications related to carbon sequestra-
tion. U.S. Patent No. 7,022,168, which
issued in April of 2006, describes a
device that removes CO2 from the
exhaust gas of a gas-turbine plant by
subjecting it to a heat recovery process.
The CO2 is removed at a high temper-
ature level before the heat recovery
process using a rotating, regenerative
absorber/desorber that operates be-
tween the exhaust gas stream and a
separate carbon dioxide cycle [3].
More recently, in 2007 Alstom
entered into a memorandum of un-
derstanding with American Electric
 Seeking Patents on Aspects of CO2 Capture
Invention title Patent or pub- Owner
lished application
Method and apparatus for efficient 6,598,407 UT-Battelle, LLC
injection of CO2 in oceans
Device for removing carbon dioxide 7,022,168 Alstom Technology
from exhaust gas LTD
Power (AEP; Columbus, Ohio;
Method for recycling carbon dioxide 6,237,284 The Agricultural
www.aep.com) allowing AEP to
for enhancing plant growth Gas Co.
use Alstom’s Chilled Ammonia
Integration of hydrogen and power gen- 2005/0201929 ExxonMobil Research
Process (CE, April, p. 13) for eration using pressure swing reforming and Engineering
post-combustion carbon capture.
Removal of carbon dioxide from air 2006/0186562 Wright, et. al.
According to AEP, Alstom’s pro-
Efficient combined cycle power plant 2006/0112696 Statoil ASA
cess captures CO2 by isolating with CO2 capture and a combustor
the gas from the power plant’s arrangement with separate flows
flue gases and can significantly System and method for combined 2006/0081412 Pinnacle
increase the efficiency of the microseismic and tiltmeter analysis Technologies, Inc.
CO2 capture process. The system
chills the flue gas, recovering large cost that is less expensive than other from a different angle. U.S. Published
quantities of water for recycle, and carbon capture technologies. Application Nos. 2006/0186562 and
then uses a CO2 absorber in a simi- Other large energy companies are 2006/0289003, both published in 2006,
lar way to absorbers used in systems also getting in on the action. Compa- deal with removing CO2 from the air
that reduce sulfur dioxide emissions. nies like ExxonMobil Corp. (Irving, after it has been released by power
The remaining low concentration of Tex.; www.exxonmobil.com) and Statoil plants and other sources. Devices that
ammonia in the clean flue gas is cap- ASA (Stavanger, Norway; www.statoil. would function like “synthetic trees”
tured by a cold-water wash and re- com) have published applications deal- would absorb CO2 from the ambient
turned to the absorber. The captured ing with facilitating CO2 capture and air and hold it for disposal or further
CO2 may then be compressed and designing power plants that implement processing. The appeal of capturing
used for enhanced oil recovery or CO2 capture (Figure 1) [4]. CO2 from the ambient air is that such a
stored away. Alstom claims that its Allen Wright, Klaus Lackner, and process would allow for removal of CO2
new process has been demonstrated Eddy Peters are three inventors that that is already released and present in
to capture more than 90% of CO2 at a have approached the capture problem the atmosphere, rather than requiring

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Technology Showcase
CO2 to be captured directly from ex-
haust gases as it is produced [5].
Much, if not all, of the capture tech-
nology is dependent upon technical
standards that do not yet exist. For
example, there is no pipeline or res-
ervoir specification for CO2 intended
for storage in deep saline formations.
This means that the designers of such
equipment face hurdles in making the
billions of dollars of investments that
would be needed to design and build
facilities such as capture-ready Inte-
grated Gasification Combined Cycle
(IGCC) power plants.
Transporting CO2
Carbon dioxide is transported and in-
jected as a supercritical liquid, which
means that pipeline transport is nearly
always required. The compression costs
associated with moving CO2 long dis-
tances by pipeline are not trivial.
This aspect of CCS holds great prom-
ise for IP opportunities as researchers
Circle 27 on p. 90 or go to adlinks.che.com/7372-27
Seawater
Source: U.S. Patent No. 6,598,407
CO2
liquid
FIGURE 2. UT-Battelle’s
method of mixing seawater
and CO2 is claimed to in-
crease efficiency, increase the
residence time of CO2 in the
identify more efficient ways of ocean, and decrease the cost
moving the CO2 from the cap- of CO2 sequestration, while
ture site to the storage site reducing the negative effects
of simply releasing CO2 gas
and develop better devices and into ocean water
methods of monitoring the gas
during transportation to avoid
leakage. Improvements in and geochemical trapping
compression technology, for ex- mechanisms to prevent the
ample, may hold great promise carbon dioxide from escap-
in reducing operating expenses ing to the surface.
associated with pipeline trans- In some cases, the process
portation of CO2. of storing the CO2 can pro-
Consolidated hydrate–
duce additional benefits. For
CO2–water system
Storing CO2 example, CO2 injected into
Currently, most efforts view the oil reservoirs may serve to
goal of CCS as the safe storage of cap- increase oil production by expanding
tured CO2 for a very, very long time, and thinning out the oil so that the
geologically speaking. At present, most oil is able to flow more easily (see, CE,
captured CO2 is injected directly into January, p. 12). In another example,
underground geological formations in storing the CO2 in deep coal beds can
a method known as geological storage, free natural gas that sits on the coal’s
or geo-sequestration. Suitable storage surface. The natural gas can then be
locations have included oil fields, gas burned to provide energy [6]. The ben-
fields, saline formations, and un-min- efit of enhanced oil and natural-gas
able coal seams that include physical recovery is that the sale of the recov-
 PROTECTING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
I
ntellectual property is a term used to describe the legal rights
that authors, inventors, and others have in the product of their
creative efforts. There are different types of intellectual prop-
erty, and the protection of each type confers a particular bundle
of rights to the owners for a certain amount of time.
The three most common forms of IP are copyrights, patents,
and trademarks. Copyrights apply to the expression of an idea
in a tangible media, such as a scientific paper, technical manual,
drawing, or brochure. If the author of the work is one or more in-
dividuals, copyright protection may endure for the life of the oldest
living author plus an additional 70 years. If the work is created
on behalf of a corporation or is otherwise considered “made for
hire,” the term of copyright protection is 95 years from the year of
first publication or 120 years from the year of creation, whichever
expires first [17]. However, copyright does not protect the ideas
expressed in the paper or drawing, only how it is expressed. Thus,
while an owner of a copyright generally has the exclusive right to
reproduce the copyrighted work, the right to prepare derivative
works based upon the work, the right to distribute copies of the
work to the public, the right to perform the copyrighted work pub-
licly, and the right to display the copyrighted work publicly [18],
copyright provides no right to stop a competitor from using new
concepts described in the copyrighted work.
A patent, on the other hand, does protect inventive concepts,
such as a new and useful process, machine, article of manufac-
ture, or composition of matter [19]. Patent rights include the right
to exclude others from making, using, selling, offering for sale,
or importing a patented invention for the life of the patent [20].
In general, a patent expires 20 years from the date the patent
application was filed [21].
Trademark rights protect brands — that is, the reputation that
a company has developed for its product in association with a
trademark or service mark. Some good examples in the energy
industry are Exxon for petroleum products and HTC Purenergy for
CCS equipment. HTC Purenergy is a trademark and service mark
owned by HTC Hydrogen Technologies Corp. and covers, among
other goods and services, “Scientific apparatus for capturing and
storing carbon dioxide, namely, sensors, controllers and auto-
mated process control systems comprised of computer hardware
and software that provide realtime performance analysis to ensure
operation of power plants and CO2 reservoirs in accordance with
guidelines to meet performance specifications to remove CO2 from
oilfields and to capture and store CO2 and produce and deliver
alternative fuels such as hydrogen and bio-fuels etc.” A company
can select a name, word, phrase, logo, symbol, design, image, or
a combination of these elements and use it in commerce to distin-
guish a product or service from the products and services of others.
Then, no one other than the trademark owner or its licensee has the
right to identify goods or services using that trademark or a mark
that is sufficiently similar to the trademark to create a likelihood of
confusion in the mind of a consumer. Unlike copyright and patent
rights, trademark rights can last indefinitely, as long as the mark
continues to identify a product or service and has not been “ge-
nericized”. Examples of words that once were strong trademarks
but have become generic and thus are available for anyone to use
as the name of the item include escalator, zipper, thermos, and
frisbee, among many others.
Work in the field of CCS implicates all forms of IP. Research
and findings published for public access in hard copy, as well
as on the internet, are protected under copyright laws; new
methods and devices for accomplishing or implementing CCS,
including improvements on existing methods and devices, may
be protected under patent laws; and marks used in connection
with CCS products and services, such as the name of a machine,
a chemical composition, or a company, may be identified by a
trademark and receive protection under trademark laws. For a
new technology, patents are usually the most valuable IP, because
patent rights allow a startup venture to invest in developing the
technology while preventing competitors from freely copying pat-
ented concepts.
Each aspect of CCS represents its own set of problems and chal-
lenges. In the following discussion, we will consider the current
state of CCS technology and take a closer look at how IP factors
into the CCS equation.
IP protection in an international context
Research and development work in the field of CCS is not limited,
by any means, to the U.S. Many of the sites currently implement-
ing CCS are located elsewhere. For example, the aforementioned
Sleipner project is located off the coast of Norway and is run by
a Norwegian petroleum company; the Weyburn project is lo-
cated in Southeastern Saskatchewan in Canada; and the In Salah
CCS site is located in a natural gas reservoir in Algeria.
The international and cooperative nature of CCS projects today
raises a number of important questions relating to the protection
of IP in the global context. In many countries, IP can be protected
through a variety of mechanisms, including patents, copyrights,
and trademarks, similar to the protections available under U.S.
laws. However, there is as yet no true unitary system of IP protec-
tion at the moment, and each country has its own twist on IP pro-
tection. For example, in the area of patent laws, the number of
claims that can be included in each patent application may vary
from country to country, with substantial increases in application
and maintenance costs associated with additional claims. Fur-
thermore, subject matter that may be patentable in the U.S. may
be more difficult or even impossible to protect in other countries
[22]. In addition, rules regarding permitted disclosure of an in-
vention prior to filing for a patent (for example in a publication or
in an offer for sale) vary, which may cause a researcher relying
on U.S. laws to inadvertently abandon an invention to the public
domain in a foreign country, thereby forfeiting patent protection
in that particular country.
In many developing countries, IP protection is not as robust as
it is in the U.S., and one must take additional precautions to
guard against infringement. However, the good news is that more
and more countries are realizing the importance of IP protec-
tion to their economies and are actively working on improving
such protections. For example, the Agreement on Trade Related
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (known as TRIPS) is an
international agreement administered by the World Trade Or-
ganization (WTO) that sets down minimum standards for many
forms of IP, including patents. Any nation seeking to be a member
of the WTO must ratify TRIPS and enact the IP laws that TRIPS
mandates. For this reason, TRIPS is considered by many to be
the most important multilateral instrument for the globalization of
intellectual property laws [23].
Closely related to the protection of the IP itself is the need for
agreements between members of joint ventures or partners other-
wise collaborating on a CCS project. Both in the U.S. and abroad,
an agreement regarding who will own what aspects of the IP de-
veloped during the project is essential at the start of project. Often,
members of a team consisting of more than one corporation or
business entity that start out in the true spirit of collaboration can
end up at odds with one another over technology that both de-
veloped. In the absence of a contract, laws may allow joint own-
ers to pursue an invention independently without any obligation
to share profits with another joint owner. Thoughtful, reasoned IP
agreements entered into before such problems arise can be use-
ful in maintaining the positive engagement of all team members
and fairly distributing the fruits of the collective development of IP.
Confidentiality agreements between the different players often play
a key role in keeping new technologies from being prematurely
placed in the public domain and may also be used to protect as
trade secrets technology that will not be patented [24].  ❏
Chemical Engineering www.che.com May 2008 31
 Technology Showcase

ered resources can be used to offset
the cost of CCS.
The storage of CO2 in the ocean has
also been proposed as an alternative
to geological storage. One concept is
that CO2 injected by ship or pipeline
into the water column at a depth of at
least 1,000 m would dissolve into its
surroundings. A second concept in-
volves depositing the CO2 onto the sea
floor at more than 3,000 m so that the
CO2, which is denser than water, can
form a self-contained “lake,” thereby
delaying dissolution of the CO2 into
the environment. Another idea is to
convert the CO2 into bicarbonates or
hydrates through reactions with other
substances, such as limestone [7].
Ocean storage, however, presents re-
searchers with numerous environmen-
tal challenges. Large quantities of CO2
may pose a threat to ocean organisms
in the area, and the reaction of CO2
with the surrounding water may form
carbonic acid, increasing the acidity of
the ocean water and very likely affect-
ing the surrounding aquatic life.
Federally sponsored research by UT-
Battelle, LLC (Oak Ridge, Tenn.; www.
ut-battelle.org) in an attempt to over-
come such challenges has resulted in
U.S. Patent No. 6,598,407, which issued
in July of 2003. UT-Battelle’s patent
covers a method of mixing seawater
and CO2 in a pipeline at a predeter-
mined ocean depth, such as 700 m or
greater, until a paste-like consolidated
CO2-hydrate/ CO2-liquid/water stream
is formed (Figure 2). The paste-like mix-
ture is then discharged into the ocean
at that predetermined depth, where
it forms a negatively buoyant stream.
The patented method of forming the
CO2-seawater mixture is claimed to in-
crease efficiency, increase the residence
time of CO2 in the ocean, and decrease
the cost of CO2 sequestration while re-
ducing the negative effects of simply
releasing CO2 gas into ocean water [8].
Mineral storage, in which the CO2
is reacted with minerals such as metal
oxides to produce stable carbonates,
is also being explored as a potential
storage method. Considered one of the
most permanent methods of storage,
its downside is the amount of energy
required to facilitate the reaction.
Although the process of CO2 mineral
storage is a natural one, accounting for
the presence of surface limestone, the
reaction itself is very slow and would
require pretreatment of the minerals
in a large-scale operation — a very
energy-intensive proposition. A power
plant implementing CCS, for example,
is estimated to require 60–180% more
energy to accomplish mineral storage
than a power plant without CCS [9].
More research is still needed to de-
velop ways to make large-scale min-
eral storage a cost-effective solution.
Monitoring stored CO2
Once the CO2 has been captured, trans-
ported, and stored, it cannot be forgot-

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 AVOIDING INFRINGEMENT OF OTHERS’ IP

A
s CCS activity increases and IP protection accelerates, compa-
nies entering the CCS arena will have to be careful to avoid
infringing the patents of others. A corporation or individual
may be liable for direct infringement under U.S. law if they make,
use, sell, offer to sell, or import a patented technology or its equiv-
alent without permission of the patent owner during the term of the
patent. Unlike infringement of a copyright, a party may be liable
even if it did not actively copy the patented invention or intend to
infringe the patent [25].
In addition to direct infringement, a third party may be liable
for indirect infringement if it supplies a product that can only be
reasonably used to make a patented device [26]. For example,
a company that manufactures and sells a gadget that only has
a use as part of a patented piece of equipment may be liable
for contributory infringement for, in effect, contributing to the in-
fringement of the equipment patent. Furthermore, a third party
may be liable for inducing infringement if it encourages or assists
another party to infringe a patent, for example, by requiring the
other party to perform a patented method or build a patented
apparatus [27]. ❏

ten. Systems must be put in place to
measure, monitor, and verify that the
CO2 is being safely maintained in the
storage environment [10]. For geologi-
cal storage sites, the Intergovernmen-
tal Panel on Climate Change (IPCC;
Geneva, Switzerland; www.ipcc.ch) es-
timates that the CO2 could be trapped
for millions of years, with 99% of the
CO2 remaining in storage for at least
1,000 years [11]. The estimates are
somewhat lower for ocean storage,
with retention depending on the depth
at which the CO2 was injected, but the
IPCC estimates 30–85% of the CO2
would be retained after 500 yr for stor-
age depths of 1,000–3,000 m.
Estimates aside, there is very little
empirical data on how safe longterm
storage of CO2 may be. The Sleipner
gas field, operated by Statoil 250 km
off the coast of Norway, is the old-
est plant that sequesters and stores
CO2, having started CCS in 1996. At
Sleipner, natural gas and condensate
(light oil) is produced from the Heim-
dal sandstones, which are about 2,500
m (8,000 ft) below sea level. During
the process, an 8,000-ton treatment
plant separates CO2 from the natu-
ral gas using amines and pumps the
CO2 into the Utsira sandstone forma-
tion 1,000-m beneath the seabed of
the Norwegian North Sea. The Utsira
formation itself is capped by an 80-m
thick layer of shale, which is consid-
ered an additional safeguard against
the leakage of CO2 [12].
At Sleipner, seismic surveys are used
to determine the location of the CO2
and to evaluate the retention of CO2
in the Utsira formation. 4-D seismic
data has also been used at the Wey-
burn CCS project to image injected
CO2. Another technique that is con-
sidered one of the most effective and
economical is known as produced fluid
and gas monitoring. Produced fluid
and gas monitoring takes advantage
of the unique “fingerprint” that hydro-
carbon-derived CO2 has as compared
to organic, or naturally occurring,
CO2. Thus, samples of fluid and gas,
for example taken from production

Circle 28 on p. 90 or go to adlinks.che.com/7372-28
 Technology Showcase
wells or other communicative zones
within the reservoir, can be analyzed
and compared to pre-storage data to
determine whether and how much in-
jected CO2 is being released [13].
Although some CO2 monitoring
technologies already exist or are being
adapted from other related industries,
there is still a great need for the de-
velopment of large-scale, efficient, and
cost-effective monitoring technologies.
In fact, some companies are antici-
pating the rising importance of CO2
monitoring by focusing their offerings
on the monitoring, mitigation and ver-
ification of CO2 sequestered in CCS
operations, indicating a strong poten-
tial for the generation of technological
innovation in this area. For example,
Pinnacle Technologies, Inc. (Houston,
Tex.; www.pinntech.com) has applied
for a patent that would cover a system
and method for combined microseismic
and tiltmeter analysis to determine a
location, orientation, and dimension
Circle 29 on p. 90 or go to adlinks.che.com/7372-29
34 Chemical Engineering www.che.com May 2008
of a fracture developed during a geo-
physical process at a storage site [14].
CO2 outlets as a commodity
Much of the activity surrounding CCS
treats CO2 emissions as a waste prod-
uct to be captured and stored away.
Another approach, however, is to turn
captured CO2 into a commodity rather
than a waste product by using the CO2
to make other products or improve on-
going profit-generating activities.
CO2 is a generally inert gas that will
react with certain elements and com-
pounds and is known for its cooling
properties when compressed into liquid
form. CO2 currently has several com-
mercial uses: it has been used as a raw
material for the production of various
chemicals; as a working material in fire
extinguishing systems; for carbonating
soft drinks; for freezing food products
such as poultry, meats, vegetables and
fruit; for chilling meats prior to grind-
ing; for refrigerating and maintaining
ideal atmospheric conditions during
the transportation of food products
to market; for enhancing oil recovery
from oil wells; and for treating alkaline
water, among many other uses [15].
Some firms, for example, have pro-
posed using CO2 as an enhancer for
the growth of crops and other plants.
The Agricultural Gas Co. (Hudson,
Wisc.; www.aggas.com) obtained U.S.
Patent No. 6,237,284 in 2001 to pro-
tect a method of encouraging plant
growth by storing a mixture of gas
containing captured CO2 in an under-
ground void at a temperature of about
68°F, subsequently distributing the
stored mixture to plants during day-
light hours, and distributing water to
the plants during non-daylight hours.
The patent suggests that the use of
CO2 according to this method not
only provides a way to naturally re-
cycle excess CO2, but also reduces the
amount of water and fertilizer con-
sumed by the plants, thereby tackling
 Technology Showcase
more than one environmental issue
at the same time [16].
CO2 is already being used to de-
crease the viscosity of oil trapped un-
derground in enhanced oil recovery
processes, as previously mentioned.
Any productive use of captured CO2,
even if the CO2 eventually ends up
in storage at the end of the process,
would help to recoup the additional
costs associated with capturing,
transporting, and storing the gas and
may make CCS a more financially at-
tractive proposition.
Increasing CCS
incentives on the horizon
Many interested parties envision a
booming market for CCS technology
in the years ahead. Much of the world
has already adopted cap-and-trade
programs, which limit the amount of
carbon dioxide that industrial facili-
ties may emit. Europe, for example,
has adopted regulations that effec-
References
1. “Discussion Paper for 2nd IEA/CSLF Work-
shop on Legal Aspects of Carbon Capture
and Storage, 17 October 2006, Paris, France,”
draft, pp 13–14.
2. “Human-Related Sources and Sinks of Car-
bon Dioxide,” United States Environmen-
tal Protection Agency, http://www.epa.
gov/climatechange/emissions/co2_human.
html#carboncapture.
3. U.S. Patent No. 7,022,168.
4. U.S. Published Application No. 2005/0201929
(assigned to ExxonMobil Research and Engi-
neering Co.); U.S. Published Application No.
2006/0112696 (assigned to Statoil ASA).
5. U.S. Published Application Nos. 2006/0186562
and 2006/0289003.
6. “Carbon Capture and Storage to Combat
Global Warming Examined,” Science Daily,
June 12, 2007, http://www.sciencedaily.com/
releases/2007/06/070611153957.htm.
7. “Carbon Capture and Storage,” http://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_capture_and_
storage.
8. U.S. Patent No. 6,598,407.
9. IPCC special report on Carbon Dioxide Cap-
ture and Storage, Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change, chs 7–8, available
at http://www.mnp.nl/ipcc/pages_media/
SRCCS-final/IPCCSpecialReportonCarbond-
ioxideCaptureandStorage.htm.
10. Id. at 341.
11. Id. at 197.
12. “Global Climate Change and Energy: Case
Study: Sleipner—A Carbon Dioxide Cap-
ture-and-Storage Project, http://www.seed.
slb.com/en/scictr/watch/climate_change/
sleipner.htm; see also http://www.statoil.
com/statoilcom/SVG00990.NSF/web/
sleipneren?opendocument.
13. “Monitoring CO2 During Enhanced Hydrocar-
bon Recovery and Geological Carbon Storage,”
Mark Raistrick, IOR Views, Issue 13, Feb. 2007,
available at http://ior.senergyltd.com/issue13/
research-development/universities/calgary/
14. See Pinnacle Technologies website, http://
www.pinntech.com/index.html; U.S. Patent
Publication No. 2006/0081412, published
April 20, 2006.
15. “Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Properties, Uses, Ap-
plications CO2 Gas and Liquid Carbon Diox-
ide,” Universal Industrial Gases, Inc., http://
www.uigi.com/carbondioxide.html.
16. U.S. Patent No. 6,237,284. See also Day,
Danny M. et al., “Distributed Hydrogen Pro-
duction with Profitable Carbon Sequestra-
tion: A Novel Integrated Sustainable System
for Clean Fossil Fuel Emission and a Bridge
to the New Hydrogen Economy and Global
Socio-Economic Stability,” available at http://
www.eprida.com/hydro/ecoss/presentations/
NHA/Poster_Handout.pdf.
17. 17 U.S.C. § 302.
18. 17 U.S.C. § 106.
19. 35 U.S.C. § 101.
20. 35 U.S.C. § 271.
21. 35 U.S.C. § 154(a)(2).
22. Young, J., “Patenting of Financial Business
Methods Gains Momentum,” IP Value 2006
(Globe White Page).
23. “Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intel-
lectual Property Rights,” http://en.wikipedia.
org/wiki/Agreement_on_Trade-Related_As-
pects_of_Intellectual_Property_Rights.
24. 2nd IEA/CSLF Workshop on Legal Issues of
Carbon Capture and Storage: Summary of
Key Issues Raised, p. 3, http://www.cslforum.
org/documents/iea_cslf_Paris_Summary_
Workshop_Discussions.pdf.
25. 35 U.S.C. § 271.
26. 35 U.S.C. § 271(c).
27. 35 U.S.C. § 271(b).

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36 Chemical Engineering www.che.com May 2008

87_Flexim-Anzeige-ChemEngin 1 11.01.2008 11:18:49 Uh

 Technology Showcase

tively require CCS to be deployed in Conclusion ing resource. And developments in the
a variety of energy facilities in the The problems associated with the var- field of CCS will presumably make the
decade ahead. ious aspects of CCS abound, as do the environment happier, too. ■
Those requirements appear to be opportunities for generating related in- Edited by Rebekkah Marshall
coming to the U.S., too. At the federal tellectual property. As public and gov- Authors
level, Congress continues to debate ernmental support for CCS increases, Jeffrey E. Young is a part-
numerous cap-and-trade proposals. there will be greater restrictions im- ner in the Intellectual Prop-
erty Practice of Alston &
The New England States have ad- posed regarding the emission of CO2, Bird (One Atlantic Center,
opted a regional cap-and-trade pro- both in the U.S. and abroad; and solu- 1201 West Peachtree Street,
Atlanta GA 30309-3424;
gram known as RGGI (the Regional tions to the problems associated with Phone: 404-881-7857; Email:
jeff.young@alston.com; Web:
Greenhouse Gas Initiative), and CCS will become even more valuable. www.alston.com/jeff_young)
California, through a law known as Protecting IP through copyrights, and a registered patent attor-
ney. He advises major corpo-
AB 32, is currently in the midst of de- patents, and trademarks increases rations in seeking worldwide
veloping its own carbon-cap regula- the value of a company’s technology, patent protection, licensing intellectual property,
and analyzing issued patents, publishing and
tions. Even outside of these regions, shields the owner from competition in speaking extensively.
CCS requirements are cropping up in the patented technology for a limited Michele M. Glessner is an
associate in the Intellectual
nearly every venue dealing with the time, and provides a mechanism for Property Practice of Alston &
permitting and siting of new coal- recouping investment and research Bird (Bank of America Plaza,
Suite 4000, 101 South Tryon
fired power generation in the U.S. costs. In addition, knowing what tech- Street, Charlotte NC 28280-
as project developers face increasing nology is already protected can help 4000; Phone: 704-444-1124;
Email: michele.glessner@
pressure to demonstrate that they companies and individuals avoid li- alston.com; Web: www.alston.
are taking steps to manage their ability for infringing the patents of com/michelle_glessner) and
a registered patent attorney.
project’s carbon dioxide emissions, others. IP knowledge and protection Her experience in prepar-
ing and prosecuting patent applications is aug-
even in the absence of formal regula- can be a catalyst for changing CO2 mented by experience as an engineer in the
tory requirements. from a waste gas to a profit-generat- chemical industry.

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38 Chemical Engineering www.che.com May 2008