The use of tracers to assess leakage from the sequestration of CO2 in a depleted oil reservoir, New Mexico, USA

Wells, Arthur W.; Diehl, J. Rodney; Bromhal, Grant; Strazisar, Brian R.; Wilson, Thomas H.; White, Curt M.

doi:10.1016/j.apgeochem.2007.01.002

Cited by 79 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…To assess the ability to quantify global capture rates, it is useful to consider the composite tracer 'atmospheric potential oxygen' (APO) [17,43] The main contributions to changes in dAPO are fossil-fuel burning, and airsea exchanges of O 2 , N 2 and CO 2 , and possibly also carbon capture. Fossil-fuel burning reduces dAPO because it is characterized by an O 2 : C ratio higher than 1.1.…”

Section: Global Verification Of Carbon Capture and Storagementioning

confidence: 99%

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The atmospheric signature of carbon capture and storage

Keeling

Manning

Dubey

2011

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A.

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Compared with other industrial processes, carbon capture and storage (CCS) will have an unusual impact on atmospheric composition by reducing the CO 2 released from fossil-fuel combustion plants, but not reducing the associated O 2 loss. CO 2 that leaks into the air from below-ground CCS sites will also be unusual in lacking the O 2 deficit normally associated with typical land CO 2 sources, such as from combustion or ecosystem exchanges. CCS may also produce distinct isotopic changes in atmospheric CO 2 . Using simple models and calculations, we estimate the impact of CCS or leakage on regional atmospheric composition. We also estimate the possible impact on global atmospheric composition, assuming that the technology is widely adopted. Because of its unique signature, CCS may be especially amenable to monitoring, both regionally and globally, using atmospheric observing systems. Measurements of the O 2 /N 2 ratio and the CO 2 concentration in the proximity of a CCS site may allow detection of point leaks of the order of 1000 ton CO 2 yr −1 from a CCS reservoir up to 1 km from the source. Measurements of O 2 /N 2 and CO 2 in background air from a global network may allow quantification of global and hemispheric capture rates from CCS to the order of ±0.4 Pg C yr −1 .

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Section: Global Verification Of Carbon Capture and Storagementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Soils naturally contain excess CO 2 from plant and microbial respiration, which may mask any excess from leakage. Chemical tracers, such as SF 6 or perfluorocarbons, may be injected along with the CO 2 to aid in leak detection [17]. Tracer injection has additional up-front and detection costs, however.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The atmospheric signature of carbon capture and storage

Keeling

Manning

Dubey

2011

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A.

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“…In addition to storage capacity, key environmental questions include CO 2 leakage related to the storage integrity and the physical and chemical processes that are initiated by injecting CO 2 underground (Emberley et al 2005;Knauss et al 2005;White et al 2005;Wells et al 2007). Leakage of CO 2 to the atmosphere would negate the goal of sequestration, but an equally critical issue concerns the potential for contamination and chemical alteration of shallow groundwater (Hepple and Benson 2005;Kharaka et al 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in the chemistry of shallow groundwater related to the 2008 injection of CO2 at the ZERT field site, Bozeman, Montana

et al. 2009

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Approximately 300 kg/day of food-grade CO 2 was injected through a perforated pipe placed horizontally 2-2.3 m deep during July 9-August 7, 2008 at the MSU-ZERT field test to evaluate atmospheric and near-surface monitoring and detection techniques applicable to the subsurface storage and potential leakage of CO 2 . As part of this multidisciplinary research project, 80 samples of water were collected from 10 shallow monitoring wells (1.5 or 3.0 m deep) installed 1-6 m from the injection pipe, at the southwestern end of the slotted section (zone VI), and from two distant monitoring wells. The samples were collected before, during, and following CO 2 injection. The main objective of study was to investigate changes in the concentrations of major, minor, and trace inorganic and organic compounds during and following CO 2 injection. The ultimate goals were (1) to better understand the potential of groundwater quality impacts related to CO 2 leakage from deep storage operations, (2) to develop geochemical tools that could provide early detection of CO 2 intrusion into underground sources of drinking water (USDW), and (3) to test the predictive capabilities of geochemical codes against field data. Field determinations showed rapid and systematic changes in pH (7.0-5.6), alkalinity (400-1,330 mg/l as HCO 3 ), and electrical conductance (600-1,800 lS/cm) following CO 2 injection in samples collected from the 1.5 m-deep wells. Laboratory results show major increases in the concentrations of Ca (90-240 mg/l), Mg (25-70 mg/l), Fe (5-1,200 ppb), and Mn (5-1,400 ppb) following CO 2 injection. These chemical changes could provide early detection of CO 2 leakage into shallow groundwater from deep storage operations. Dissolution of observed carbonate minerals and desorptionion exchange resulting from lowered pH values following CO 2 injection are the likely geochemical processes responsible for the observed increases in the concentrations of solutes; concentrations generally decreased temporarily following four significant precipitation events. The DOC values obtained are 5 ± 2 mg/l, and the variations do not correlate with CO 2 injection. CO 2 injection, however, is responsible for detection of BTEX (e.g. benzene, 0-0.8 ppb), mobilization of metals, the lowered pH values, and increases in the concentrations of other solutes in groundwater. The trace metal and BTEX concentrations are all significantly below the maximum contaminant levels (MCLs). Sequential leaching of core samples is being carried out to investigate the source of metals and other solutes.

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“…For example, noble gases such as He, Ne and Ar, e.g. [49][50][51] and perfluorocarbon tracers [52][53][54] have been used as to identify CO 2 migration or to monitor leakage. The tracers were normally in very small amounts and were injected or added intentionally for short-periods monitoring while sufficient amount of these artificial tracers for large-scale projects might be cost-prohibitive [54].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Numerical investigation of the partitioning phenomenon of carbon dioxide and multiple impurities in deep saline aquifers

Jiang

2017

Applied Energy

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Highlights• The partitioning behaviours of impure CO 2 in geological formations are investigated.• The effects of N 2 , CH 4 or the mixture of N 2 and CH 4 are generally similar.• Less soluble N 2 and CH 4 enhance gas breakthroughs and the partitioning.• More soluble species such as H 2 S dissolves preferentially in the formation brine. AbstractThe partitioning behaviours of CO 2 with three kinds of common impurities, i.e., N 2 , CH 4 and H 2 S, in the formation brine are investigated by numerical simulations. The results indicate that the effects of N 2 , CH 4 or the mixture of N 2 and CH 4 at the same concentrations are generally similar. The leading gas front is usually made up of less soluble impurities, such as N 2 , CH 4 or the mixture of N 2 and CH 4 , while more soluble species such as H 2 S has dissolved preferentially in the formation brine. The separations between different gas species increase as the gas displacement front migrates forwards and contacts more of the aqueous phase. Compared with the partitioning results of the 98% CO 2 and 2% H 2 S mixture, the results indicate that the inclusion of less soluble N 2 and/or CH 4 results in an earlier gas breakthrough and a longer delay between the breakthrough times of CO 2 and H 2 S. The early breakthrough of the gas phase is mainly because that the addition of N 2 and/or CH 4 lowers the viscosity of the gas phase, resulting in a higher gas velocity than that of the CO 2 -H 2 S mixture. Meanwhile, the mobility ratio is higher and the gas mixture contacts the formation brine over a larger area, giving rise to more efficient stripping of the more soluble gas species like H 2 S and thus larger separations. In the meantime, with the same total concentrations of impurities (12%), when 2% H 2 S is contained in the CO 2 streams, gas phase flows slower and thus the breakthrough time is later. Furthermore, the effects on the partitioning phenomenon are weaker with decreasing concentrations of N 2 and/or CH 4 (from 10% to 2%) with fixed concentrations of other impurity like H 2 S (2%). The migration distances and the separations between different gas species change linearly with time on the whole, as confirmed by a simulation in a longer model.

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The use of tracers to assess leakage from the sequestration of CO2 in a depleted oil reservoir, New Mexico, USA

Cited by 79 publications

References 22 publications

The atmospheric signature of carbon capture and storage

The atmospheric signature of carbon capture and storage

Changes in the chemistry of shallow groundwater related to the 2008 injection of CO2 at the ZERT field site, Bozeman, Montana

Numerical investigation of the partitioning phenomenon of carbon dioxide and multiple impurities in deep saline aquifers

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