Optimizing and Quantifying CO₂ Storage Resource in Saline Formations and Hydrocarbon Reservoirs

Technical Report · Fri Jun 30 04:00:00 EDT 2017

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1367566· OSTI ID:1367566

Bosshart, Nicholas W. ^[1]; Ayash, Scott C. ^[2]; Azzolina, Nicholas A. ^[2]; Peck, Wesley D. ^[2]; Gorecki, Charles D. ^[2]; Ge, Jun ^[2]; Jiang, Tao ^[2]; Burton-Kelly, Matthew E. ^[2]; Anderson, Parker W. ^[2]; Dotzenrod, Neil W. ^[2]; Gorz, Andrew J. ^[2]

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1. Univ. of North Dakota, Grand Folks, ND (United States). Energy & Environmental Research Center; Energy & Environmental Research Center
2. Univ. of North Dakota, Grand Folks, ND (United States). Energy & Environmental Research Center

In an effort to reduce carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from large stationary sources, carbon capture and storage (CCS) is being investigated as one approach. This work assesses CO₂ storage resource estimation methods for deep saline formations (DSFs) and hydrocarbon reservoirs undergoing CO₂ enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Project activities were conducted using geologic modeling and simulation to investigate CO₂ storage efficiency. CO₂ storage rates and efficiencies in DSFs classified by interpreted depositional environment were evaluated at the regional scale over a 100-year time frame. A focus was placed on developing results applicable to future widespread commercial-scale CO₂ storage operations in which an array of injection wells may be used to optimize storage in saline formations. The results of this work suggest future investigations of prospective storage resource in closed or semiclosed formations need not have a detailed understanding of the depositional environment of the reservoir to generate meaningful estimates. However, the results of this work also illustrate the relative importance of depositional environment, formation depth, structural geometry, and boundary conditions on the rate of CO₂ storage in these types of systems. CO₂ EOR occupies an important place in the realm of geologic storage of CO₂, as it is likely to be the primary means of geologic CO₂ storage during the early stages of commercial implementation, given the lack of a national policy and the viability of the current business case. This work estimates CO₂ storage efficiency factors using a unique industry database of CO₂ EOR sites and 18 different reservoir simulation models capturing fluvial clastic and shallow shelf carbonate depositional environments for reservoir depths of 1219 and 2438 meters (4000 and 8000 feet) and 7.6-, 20-, and 64-meter (25-, 66,- and 209-foot) pay zones. The results of this work provide practical information that can be used to quantify CO₂ storage resource estimates in oil reservoirs during CO₂ EOR operations (as opposed to storage following depletion) and the uncertainty associated with those estimates.

• Research Organization: Univ. of North Dakota, Grand Folks, ND (United States). Energy & Environmental Research Center
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: FE0009114
• OSTI ID: 1367566
• Report Number(s): DOE-EERC--0009114-1
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES