Quality degradation of alfalfa caused by CO2 leakage from carbon capture and storage

Abstract

A complete understanding of the potential environmental risks associated with carbon capture and storage (CCS) is critical for its large-scale deployment. Many experiments have simulated plant responses to soil CO₂ stress caused by CCS leakage; however, crop quality has received less attention. This study assessed the effects of leaked CO₂ from CCS on alfalfa yield and nutritional quality using pot experiments, focusing on crude protein and amino acids to address this knowledge gap. Our results showed that the aboveground and underground fresh weights decreased by 43.55 % and 66.06 %, respectively. The root-to-shoot ratio of alfalfa decreased from 1.04 to 0.63, indicating greater inhibition effects on the root than on the aboveground part of alfalfa. Crude protein and total amino acids in alfalfa declined by approximately 15.20 % and 11.37 %, respectively, compared to the non-leaked scenario. Our findings could potentially shed light on the environmental impact of CCS leakage, explicitly concerning the decline of crop quality, which adds to existing knowledge of the environmental effects of CCS failure.

Keywords: Alfalfa; CO(2) leakage; Carbon capture; Quality degradation; Simulated experiment; Storage.