A carbon-capture network links multiple industrial capture nodes to a shared pipeline system feeding a central sequestration hub (e.g. saline aquifer or depleted oil field). Network topology and pipeline capacity determine whether captured CO2 can actually reach storage without bottlenecks.
Flow_i = min(node_capture_rate_i, pipeline_capacity)
Utilization = Σ Flow_i / Σ Capacity_i
Bottleneck = node with Flow_i closest to its capacity limit
- Number of capture nodes — how many industrial sites feed CO2 into the shared network.
- Pipeline throughput — capacity multiplier of the connecting pipelines; low throughput creates visible queuing/bottlenecks.
- Node capture rate — how much CO2 each site captures per hour, feeding pulses of flow along the pipes.
- Topology — Hub & Spoke routes everything through one central hub; Mesh connects nodes directly to each other and to storage, improving resilience.
Real projects like the Northern Lights (Norway) and Alberta Carbon Trunk Line networks share exactly this shared-pipeline-to-storage-hub design to make CO2 transport economical across many emitters.