Unknown

Dataset Information

0

Geophysical early warning of salt precipitation during geological carbon sequestration.


ABSTRACT: Sequestration of industrial carbon dioxide (CO2) in deep geological saline aquifers is needed to mitigate global greenhouse gas emissions; monitoring the mechanical integrity of reservoir formations is essential for effective and safe operations. Clogging of fluid transport pathways in rocks from CO2-induced salt precipitation reduces injectivity and potentially compromises the reservoir storage integrity through pore fluid pressure build-up. Here, we show that early warning of salt precipitation can be achieved through geophysical remote sensing. From elastic P- and S-wave velocity and electrical resistivity monitoring during controlled laboratory CO2 injection experiments into brine-saturated quartz-sandstone of high porosity (29%) and permeability (1660 mD), and X-ray CT imaging of pore-scale salt precipitation, we were able to observe, for the first time, how CO2-induced salt precipitation leads to detectable geophysical signatures. We inferred salt-induced rock changes from (i) strain changes, (ii) a permanent?~?1.5% decrease in wave velocities, linking the geophysical signatures to salt volume fraction through geophysical models, and (iii) increases of porosity (by?~?6%) and permeability (~?7%). Despite over 10% salt saturation, no clogging effects were observed, which suggests salt precipitation could extend to large sub-surface regions without loss of CO2 injectivity into high porosity and permeability saline sandstone aquifers.

SUBMITTER: Falcon-Suarez IH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7536243 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

altmetric image

Publications

Geophysical early warning of salt precipitation during geological carbon sequestration.

Falcon-Suarez Ismael Himar IH   Livo Kurt K   Callow Ben B   Marin-Moreno Hector H   Prasad Manika M   Best Angus Ian AI  

Scientific reports 20201005 1


Sequestration of industrial carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) in deep geological saline aquifers is needed to mitigate global greenhouse gas emissions; monitoring the mechanical integrity of reservoir formations is essential for effective and safe operations. Clogging of fluid transport pathways in rocks from CO<sub>2</sub>-induced salt precipitation reduces injectivity and potentially compromises the reservoir storage integrity through pore fluid pressure build-up. Here, we show that early warnin  ...[more]

Similar Datasets

| S-EPMC5772497 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC9246965 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC6377623 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC3968132 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC7540070 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC4780221 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC4784813 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC8176297 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC5910859 | biostudies-other
| S-EPMC4837360 | biostudies-other