Basalt is prevalent in the Earth’s crust and makes up about 90% of all volcanic rocks. The earth is warming at an alarming rate, and there is a search for a long-term solution to this problem. Geologic carbon storage in basalt offers an effective and durable solution for carbon dioxide sequestration. Basaltic rocks are widely used for road and building construction and insulation, soil amendment, and in carbon storage. There is a need to understand the parameters that affect this process in order to achieve efficient carbon mineralization. This review systematically analyzes peer-reviewed studies and project reports published over the past two decades to assess the mechanisms, effectiveness, and challenges of carbon mineralization in basaltic formations. Key factors such as mineral composition, pH, temperature and pressure are evaluated for their impact on mineral dissolution and carbonate precipitation kinetics. The presence of olivine and basaltic glass also accelerates cation release and carbonation rates. The review includes case studies from major field projects (e.g., CarbFix and Wallula) and laboratory experiments to illustrate how mineralization performs in different geological environments. It is essential to maximize mineralization kinetics while ensuring the formation of stable carbonate phases in order to achieve efficient and permanent carbon dioxide storage in basaltic rock.

Geological CO₂ storage is essential to pathways to carbon neutrality, but its deployment depends on trustworthy estimates of storage capacity, injectivity, trapping, reactive evolution, and containment. Digital rock physics can provide these estimates from X-ray and electron microscopy images, yet every result depends on image segmentation, which converts grayscale data into pore, mineral, fracture, and fluid phases. This review evaluates classical methods, machine learning, deep learning, transformers, and foundation models according to whether they support reliable storage decisions rather than image overlap scores alone. Evidence is synthesized from imaging of dry rocks, CO₂–brine experiments, multiscale studies of carbonates and shales, and analyses of fractured rocks. We introduce a framework with seven dimensions: class accuracy, boundary fidelity, topology, morphology, calibrated uncertainty, sensitivity of physical properties, and consequences for engineering decisions. The evidence shows that visually similar segmentations can yield substantially different predictions of permeability, connected porosity, residual trapping, reactive surface area, and leakage paths when errors occur at critical pore throats, fluid interfaces, or fractures. We therefore recommend selecting methods according to storage task and lithology, validating them on independent samples, propagating ensembles of plausible segmentations, using metrics that account for topology, and comparing predictions with laboratory measurements. The central message is simple: segmentation should be treated as both a measurement process and a form of risk control. Segmentation with auditable and quantified uncertainty can reduce false site acceptance or rejection, improve injection and monitoring design, and strengthen geological CO₂ storage as a technology for carbon neutrality.

Basalt is a promising geological medium for CO₂ storage because of its potential for permanent mineral trapping, although fluid–rock reactions can alter pore structure and hydraulic properties. This study investigates coupled axial deformation, hydraulic and geochemical evolution of basalt during CO₂-saturated brine flow at 88 °C and approximately 210 bar pore pressure. In situ axial deformation, differential pressure and apparent permeability were monitored continuously, while effluent chemistry, mineral saturation states and pore-structure properties were evaluated. Six axial deformation stages were identified, with a pronounced hydraulic transition after approximately 115 pore volumes (PV) injected. Larger deformation magnitudes coincided with decreasing differential pressure and increasing apparent permeability, and absolute axial strain change was positively correlated with stage-averaged apparent permeability (r = 0.919, R² = 0.8437). Absolute permeability increased from 2.41 to 8.55 mD, while measured porosity increased only slightly from 9.15% to 9.51%. Fe and SiO₂ concentrations generally increased during reactive flow, and late-stage saturation indices indicated thermodynamic favorability for selected secondary phases. Nitrogen adsorption measurements showed changes in accessible pore structure. These results demonstrate concurrent deformation, hydraulic and geochemical evolution and indicate that permeability evolution cannot be explained by changes in bulk porosity alone.

Geological CO₂ storage is essential to pathways to carbon neutrality, but its deployment depends on trustworthy estimates of storage capacity, injectivity, trapping, reactive evolution, and containment. Digital rock physics can provide pore-scale inputs to these estimates from X-ray and electron microscopy images, but translation to formation-scale performance requires additional geological, fluid, and operational information. Each image-derived result depends on image segmentation, which converts grayscale data into pore, mineral, fracture, and fluid phases. This review evaluates classical methods, machine learning, deep learning, transformers, and foundation models according to whether they support reliable storage decisions rather than image overlap scores alone. Evidence is synthesized from imaging of dry rocks, CO₂–brine experiments, multiscale studies of carbonates and shales, and analyses of fractured rocks. We introduce a framework with seven dimensions: class accuracy, boundary fidelity, topology, morphology, calibrated uncertainty, sensitivity of physical properties, and consequences for engineering decisions. The evidence shows that visually similar segmentations can yield substantially different predictions of permeability, connected porosity, residual trapping, reactive surface area, and leakage paths when errors occur at critical pore throats, fluid interfaces, or fractures. We therefore recommend selecting methods according to storage task and lithology, validating them on independent samples, propagating ensembles of plausible segmentations, using metrics that account for topology, and comparing predictions with laboratory measurements. The central message is simple: segmentation should be treated as both a measurement process and a form of risk control. Segmentation with auditable and quantified uncertainty has the potential to improve the inputs to site screening, injection design, and monitoring. These project-level benefits are proposed consequences requiring upscaling and project-specific validation, not outcomes demonstrated by this review.

Basalt and granite offer complementary opportunities for geological CO₂ storage where conventional sedimentary reservoirs are limited or permanent mineral trapping and geothermal integration are priorities. This review examines how mineralogy, pore and fracture architecture and fluid–rock reactions control storage performance in these crystalline reservoirs. Basalt contains reactive olivine, pyroxene, plagioclase and volcanic glass that release Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺ and Fe²⁺, supporting carbonate precipitation. Field projects including CarbFix and Wallula demonstrate its potential for rapid mineralization. Granite is less reactive and has low primary porosity, making storage largely dependent on natural or engineered fractures. Feldspar alteration and integration with Enhanced Geothermal Systems may nevertheless support combined CO₂ storage and heat extraction. In both lithologies, dissolution and secondary precipitation modify porosity, permeability and injectivity, creating a tradeoff between mineral trapping and sustained fluid flow. Laboratory experiments, field demonstrations and reactive transport models are evaluated to identify the principal controls on mineralization and reservoir performance. Key research needs include improved laboratory-to-field scaling, coupled hydrochemical and geomechanical modeling and dedicated granite field validation. Basalt and granite should therefore be considered complementary components of a diversified geological carbon storage portfolio.

Basalt and granite offer complementary opportunities for geological CO₂ storage where conventional sedimentary reservoirs are limited or permanent mineral trapping and geothermal integration are priorities. This review examines how mineralogy, pore and fracture architecture and fluid-rock reactions control storage performance in these crystalline reservoirs. Basalt contains reactive olivine, pyroxene, plagioclase and volcanic glass that release Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺ and Fe²⁺, supporting carbonate precipitation. Field projects including CarbFix and Wallula demonstrate its potential for rapid mineralization. Granite is less reactive and has low primary porosity, making storage dependent largely on natural or engineered fractures. Feldspar alteration and integration with Enhanced Geothermal Systems may nevertheless support combined CO₂ storage and heat extraction. In both lithologies, dissolution and secondary precipitation modify porosity, permeability and injectivity, creating a tradeoff between mineral trapping and sustained fluid flow. Laboratory experiments, field demonstrations and reactive transport models are evaluated to identify the principal controls on mineralization and reservoir performance. Key research needs include improved laboratory-to-field scaling, coupled hydrochemical and geomechanical modeling and dedicated granite field validation. Basalt and granite should therefore be considered complementary components of a diversified geological carbon storage portfolio.