Olivine weathering in field trials : effect of natural environmental conditions on mineral dissolution and the potential toxicity of nickel

One of the most common silicate minerals on earth is olivine, which has been a natural regulator for atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations for millions of years. In the presence of water, CO2 is chemically converted to calcareous products. In past years, the possibility of olivine applications to acquire negative emissions of CO2 has received the attention of scientists and policy. The CO-Action project targeted the obstructions for the use of olivine to capture CO2 such as scientific knowledge gaps that inhibited the estimation of mineral weathering rates, and addresses the bottlenecks for large scale applications in natural environments. Main obstructions are: 1) uncertainty of weathering rates of olivine under natural conditions; 2) toxicity risks of nickel that is incorporated in the mineral and is released upon weathering.