EDINBURGH University is out to cash in on the current carbon fashion by launching a Master’s degree on the subject.
Anyone wanting to sign up for the full or part-time courses kicking off in September this year is too late as the course is full and has a waiting list. As a result, Edinburgh advises that the next start date for anyone who wants to study for a Carbon Master’s is September 2010.
In any event, prospective course candidates must possess, as a minimum, a 2.1 honours first degree or international equivalent in an engineering or geoscience subject. You also have to be smart with numbers.
This is the first MSc in carbon capture and storage in the UK and Edinburgh says the programme will provide high-level interdisciplinary skills and training in the entire value chain of carbon capture and storage, including combustion, transport, geoscience and legal aspects.
It is designed for science graduates in engineering or geosciences-related subjects such as geology, geochemistry and geophysics looking for an advanced academic qualification as a launch pad for careers in business, industry and government in the field of low-carbon energy production.
Expected learning outcomes include:
Detailed examination of key CCS (carbon capture and storage) techniques and technologies through the entire supply chain (combustion, transport, geoscience, legal).
Development of conceptual and analytical skills to enable critical evaluation of projected CCS schemes.
Enable dialogue with specialists in the CCS supply chain – for example, geoscientists, engineers, regulators.
Understanding of background environmental issues surrounding CCS.
Appreciation of environmental issues for individual CCS sites.
Completion of a tailored research project of a standard suitable for publication in the peer-reviewed literature to provide graduates with high-level experience in one aspect of the design and assessment of a CCS scheme
The programme will comprise of two semesters of taught courses, including lectures and practical courses. In the third semester, students will undertake an individual research project.
Some of the research projects will be undertaken in collaboration with industrial partners who have an interest in the commercial application of CCS technology.
There will be one compulsory field visit to spectacular and classic geological localities on the Dorset Heritage Coast of south-west England. This will be jointly run with the MSc in Geoscience for Subsurface Exploration, Appraisal and Development, and provides for experiential learning of geological and geophysical concepts.
Edinburgh says that skills gained here will be applied as part of teamwork evaluation of CCS opportunities.
Field site visits will also be made to a large coal-fired power plant being assessed for CO storage and to experimental oxy-fuel burner facilities. Clearly, the most obvious candidate is Longannet power station in Scotland’s central belt.