More than 50 carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects are currently in development along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast, hundreds nation-wide, yet public understanding of CCS technology remains limited. Leveraging decades of research, UT's Gulf Coast Carbon Center (GCCC) has developed classroom-ready educational materials as a part of the Texas-Louisiana Carbon Management Community (TXLA CMC) initiative, aimed at increasing CCS knowledge along the Gulf Coast. These materials are aligned with existing teaching standards to help high school educators introduce CCS within existing environmental science and chemistry curricula.

This poster focuses on a hands-on laboratory activity designed to connect CCS concepts with groundwater protection and environmental monitoring. In the lab, students simulate how injected carbon dioxide interacts with aquifer rocks by introducing CO₂ into two groundwater systems representing silicate and carbonate aquifers. Students observe and compare geochemical changes over time, including pH shifts and mineral dissolution reactions, while exploring how scientists monitor for potential CO₂ leakage.

The activity emphasizes the importance of protecting underground sources of drinking water and demonstrates that these geochemical changes can be effectively monitored using real scientific techniques that are easily replicated in the classroom. Through experimentation and data interpretation, students apply concepts including acid-base chemistry, aqueous geochemistry, mineral reactivity, and environmental monitoring techniques to evaluate aquifer behavior under CO₂ exposure.
Supplementary materials and pre-lab readings further support student and teacher understanding of the subsurface and shallow subsurface, highlighting how underground geologic resources can contribute to climate mitigation solutions. By framing CCS through real-world groundwater safety questions, this curriculum makes emerging energy technologies relevant to classrooms while supporting science outreach in communities directly impacted by CCS development.