Now do this put-the-text-back-together activity.
This is the text (if you need help).
Scientists have come up with a smart but simple way to deal with carbon dioxide emissions, by turning them back into stone. Researchers in Iceland pumped 220 tons of CO2 deep underground into volcanic rock. It reacted with minerals in the rock and over a relatively short space of time, transformed into a chalk-like solid substance similar to limestone. The team expressed their surprise at both the success and the speed of the CO2 conversion. Lead scientist Juerg Matter said: "Of our 220 tons of injected CO2, 95 per cent was converted to limestone in less than two years." He added: "It was a huge surprise to all the scientists involved in the project, and we thought, 'Wow! This is really fast'."
The scientists hope their experiment will be adapted on a larger, more industrial scale. It could help to alleviate the problem of growing CO2 emissions entering the atmosphere and warming the planet. It could also become a key technique in carbon capture and storage (CCS) solutions. Many other CCS techniques have involved injecting and trapping CO2 underground. However, there was always the problem of the emissions leaking their way back above ground and into the atmosphere. Dr Matter was enthusiastic about his team's experiments. He said: "We need to deal with rising carbon emissions and this is the ultimate permanent storage – turn them back to stone."
Comprehension questions- How much carbon dioxide did scientists pump into the ground?
- What is the stone that the CO2 changed into similar to?
- What surprised the team about the conversion of CO2 to stone?
- How long did it take 95% of the CO2 to turn to stone?
- What word did the lead scientist use to express his surprise?
- What kind of scale do the scientists hope the experiment will go to?
- What does the abbreviation CCS mean?
- What happened to CO2 in previous attempts at pump it underground?
- How did Dr Matter feel about his team's experiments?
- What kind of storage did Dr Matter call his procedure?
Back to the CO2 emissions lesson.
