Carbon Capture vs Electrification: Which Wins for Industry?

Hard to abate industry has two decarbonisation pathways on the table: retrofit carbon capture and storage, or electrify the process. Both have credible proponents, and both come up against real engineering and economic limits that often get glossed over. This project asks whether either pathway actually holds up under those limits, or whether we are funding two different ways to miss the target.

The question When is it more feasible and cost effective to retrofit CCS to an industrial process, and when is it better to electrify? The focus is on hard to abate sectors like cement, chemicals, and other energy intensive industries where switching fuels alone will not get you to zero.

Approach A structured literature review of industrial decarbonisation pathways, then simplified comparison scenarios for a small number of case studies. Each case pairs a continued fossil scenario with carbon capture against an electrified or low carbon alternative, supported by clean electricity and green hydrogen where relevant. I will assess each across cost per tonne of CO2 avoided, infrastructure requirements, technology readiness, operational constraints, and social factors like air quality and local employment.

The output is not a full techno economic model. It is an accessible decision guide that clarifies where each pathway is more appropriate, written for students, policymakers, and community stakeholders rather than specialists only.

Before Imperial I took a gap year and backpacked solo through 50+ countries. I am Turkish, originally from Izmir. The gap year is most of why industrial decarbonisation pulls me, and most of why I think about engineering across very different operating contexts. Longer term I want to build something in deep tech, though the specific direction is still sharpening through research and conversations.

Would love to hear from scholars working on engineering, energy, or anywhere on the policy and deployment edge of deep tech. Also genuinely curious about projects across the cohort that have nothing to do with mine. Drop a comment or message me!