2024 Tapia STEM CCS Camps at Rice University

For the ninth consecutive year, ExxonMobil Pipeline teamed up with Rice University’s Tapia Center for Excellence and Equity in Education to offer a unique week-long summer camp that teaches students about an important tool to help fight climate change.

Working in teams of four, the campers built a detailed model of an underground saltwater reservoir inside a plastic cup. With the materials at their disposal – Play-Doh, dry pasta, and uncooked beans – they recreated the process of storing captured CO2 in the reservoir, then securing it beneath a thick layer of caprock. Using vegetable oil to symbolize liquified CO2, the teams competed to maximize the amount of CO2 in their miniature reservoir, displacing the water under the caprock.

Our goal with this program is to ignite a passion for science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) among young people, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds, and empower a new generation of STEM leaders.