Direct Injection of Biomineralizing Agents to Restore Injectivity and Wellbore Integrity

Abstract

Summary In this manuscript, we describe the second of two field demonstrations of microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP) performed in a failed waterflood injection well in Indiana. In 2012, fracture-related flow pathways developed in the wellbore cement, causing injection water to bypass the oil-bearing formation and enter a high-permeability sandstone thief zone, thereby substantially decreasing injection pressure. In the first field demonstration, our study team characterized the well's mode of failure and successfully applied MICP to decrease flow through the defective cement. However, because the MICP treatment was conducted using a bailer delivery system, the degree of permeability reduction achievable was not adequate to fully restore the historic injection pressure of 1,400 psi at 1 gal/min. For the second field demonstration (reported herein), a direct injection system was developed that substantially increased the injection volume of MICP-promoting fluids. Two strategies were implemented to produce more ureolytic microbes: resuspending concentrated frozen cells immediately before injection and scaling up the bioreactor growth capacity. Multiple pulses of microbes and urea-calcium media were pumped into a string of 1-in.-diameter tubing separated by brine spacers and injected continuously at a flow rate of 3.4 to 1.4 gal/min. During the third day of injection, an injection pressure of 1,384 psi at a flow rate of 1.4 gal/min was achieved, and the experiment was terminated. This study demonstrates that MICP can be successfully used in large-volume applications where the time frame for the delivery of reactants is limited. This finding has significant relevance for commercialization of the MICP biotechnology in the oil and gas industry.

Comprehensive Review of Sealant Materials for Leakage Remediation Technology in Geological CO2 Capture and Storage Process

“…Introduction of Biomineralization/MICP. Biomineralization or microbial-induced calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ) precipitation (MICP) technology has been widely developed for applications in numerous areas such as sealing of cement fractures through generating surface coatings or reinforcing cement, 214 decreasing the mobility in high-permeability layers or channels, 215,216 consolidating the permeable media, and so on. Biofilm sealants (i.e., MICP or biofilm barrier) involve urea, Ca 2+ , nutrient feed, and microorganisms.…”

Hydrodynamic Limitations on Biomineralization-Induced Permeability Reduction

“…Ureolytic microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) has been studied extensively for over two decades. − Owing to the low viscosity of MICP reagents, particular interest has emerged around subsurface applications, including immobilization of divalent heavy metals and radionuclides in groundwater, , as well as trapping enhancement and wellbore leakage mitigation − at geological CO 2 sequestration sites. Bioaugmentation using Sporosarcina pasteurii (S.…”

Microbial bio‐film calcite mediated removal of heavy metals from industrial wastewater of Kasur, Pakistan

“…Microbes that break down urea Because of its ability to manufacture the urease enzyme, Sporosarcina pasteurii , nonpathogenic bacteria species, has been extensively tested for the induction of calcium carbonate precipitation [11]. Only a few studies have revealed that ureolytic bacteria such as Variovorax boronicumulans and Stenotrophomonas rhizophila are involved in metal biomineralization [12]. MICP is a method for replacing calcium with other divalent elements and achieving substantial heavy metal absorption at the surface and inside the calcite lattice.…”

“…In subsurface porous media environments, MICP may be arbitrated by devoted microorganisms, called biofilms. MICP also known as biofilm‐mediated calcite precipitation, happens when microbial metabolism modifies the nearby aqueous stage in a method that causes calcite to precipitate [12]. Biofilm‐forming bacteria's capability to build complex structures is reliant on their organic extracellular matrix (ECM).…”