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Title: A Finite Element Model for Simulation of Carbon Dioxide Sequestration

Journal Article · · Environmental Geotechnics, 1(3):152-160
 [1];  [1];  [1]
  1. Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

We present a hydro-mechanical model, followed by stress, deformation, and shear-slip failure analysis for geological sequestration of carbon dioxide (CO2). The model considers the poroelastic effects by taking into account of the two-way coupling between the geomechanical response and the fluid flow process. Analytical solutions for pressure and deformation fields were derived for a typical geological sequestration scenario in our previous work. A finite element approach is introduced here for numerically solving the hydro-mechanical model with arbitrary boundary conditions. The numerical approach was built on an open-source finite element code Elmer, and results were compared to the analytical solutions. The shear-slip failure analysis was presented based on the numerical results, where the potential failure zone is identified. Information is relevant to the prediction of the maximum sustainable injection rate or pressure. The effects of caprock permeability on the fluid pressure, deformation, stress, and the shear-slip failure zone were also quantitatively studied. It was shown that a larger permeability in caprock and base rock leads to a larger uplift but a smaller shear-slip failure zone.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
1158503
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-97945
Journal Information:
Environmental Geotechnics, 1(3):152-160, Vol. 1, Issue 3; ISSN 2051-803X
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English