Methane and brine leakage rates and associated time scales along the cemented casing of a hypothetical decommissioned shale gas well have been assessed with a multiphase flow and multicomponent numerical model. The conceptual model used for the simulations assumes that the target shale formation is 200 m thick, overlain by a 750 m thick caprock, which is in turn overlain by a 50 m thick surficial sand aquifer, the 1000 m geological sequence being intersected by a fully penetrating borehole. This succession of geological units is representative of the region targeted for shale gas exploration in the St. Lawrence Lowlands (Qu ebec, Canada). The simulations aimed at assessing the impact of well casing cementation quality on methane and brine leakage at the base of a surficial aquifer. The leakage of fluids can subsequently lead to the contamination of groundwater resources and/or, in the case of methane migration to ground surface, to an increase in greenhouse gas emissions. The minimum reported surface casing vent flow (measured at ground level) for shale gas wells in Quebec (0.01 m 3 /d) is used as a reference to evaluate the impact of well casing cementation quality on methane and brine migration. The simulations suggest that an adequately cemented borehole (with a casing annulus permeability k c 1 mD) can prevent methane and brine leakage over a time scale of up to 100 years. However, a poorly cemented borehole (k c ! 10 mD) could yield methane leakage rates at the base of an aquifer ranging from 0.04 m 3 /d to more than 100 m 3 /d, depending on the permeability of the target shale gas formation after abandonment and on the quantity of mobile gas in the formation. These values are compatible with surface casing vent flows reported for shale gas wells in the St. Lawrence Lowlands (Quebec, Canada). The simulated travel time of methane from the target shale formation to the surficial aquifer is between a few months and 30 years, depending on cementation quality and hydrodynamic properties of the casing annulus. Simulated longterm brine leakage rates after 100 years for poorly cemented boreholes are on the order of 10 25 m 3 /d (10 mL/d) to 10 23 m 3 /d (1 L/d). Based on scoping calculations with a well-mixed aquifer model, these rates are unlikely to have a major impact on groundwater quality in a confined aquifer since they would only increase the chloride concentration in a pristine aquifer to 1 mg/L, which is significantly below the commonly recommended aesthetic objective of 250 mg/L for chloride.

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Three‐dimensional numerical simulations are used to provide insight into the behavior of methane as it migrates from a leaky decommissioned hydrocarbon well into a shallow aquifer. The conceptual model includes gas‐phase migration from a leaky well, dissolution into groundwater, advective‐dispersive transport and biodegradation of the dissolved methane plume. Gas‐phase migration is simulated using the DuMux multiphase simulator, while transport and fate of the dissolved phase is simulated using the BIONAPL/3D reactive transport model. Methane behavior is simulated for two conceptual models: first in a shallow confined aquifer containing a decommissioned leaky well based on a monitored field site near Lindbergh, Alberta, Canada, and secondly on a representative unconfined aquifer based loosely on the Borden, Ontario, field site. The simulations show that the Lindbergh site confined aquifer data are generally consistent with a 2 year methane leak of 2–20 m3/d, assuming anaerobic (sulfate‐reducing) methane oxidation and with maximum oxidation rates of 1 × 10−5 to 1 × 10−3 kg/m3/d. Under the highest oxidation rate, dissolved methane decreased from solubility (110 mg/L) to the threshold concentration of 10 mg/L within 5 years. In the unconfined case with the same leakage rate, including both aerobic and anaerobic methane oxidation, the methane plume was less extensive compared to the confined aquifer scenarios. Unconfined aquifers may therefore be less vulnerable to impacts from methane leaks along decommissioned wells. At other potential leakage sites, site‐specific data on the natural background geochemistry would be necessary to make reliable predictions on the fate of methane in groundwater.

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[1] This article presents experimental results for single-and two-phase flows at high flow rates through a replica of an actual rough-walled rock fracture. The results of the single-phase flow are interpreted using non-Darcian laws: the weak inertia cubic law, Forchheimer's law, and the full cubic law. They allow the determination of the fracture's intrinsic properties (absolute permeability and inertial coefficient). These laws are then generalized to describe non-Darcian two-phase flows. The generalized cubic and Forchheimer's laws are shown to be inconsistent in terms of the relative permeabilities. The generalization of the full cubic law is used to describe the liquid and gas relative permeabilities in the non-Darcian regime with a good accuracy.

Magnesium-rich minerals that are abundant in ultramafic mining waste have the potential to be used as a safe and permanent sequestration solution for carbon dioxide (CO). Our understanding of thermo-hydro-chemical regimes that govern this reaction at an industrial scale, however, has remained an important challenge to its widespread implementation. Through a year-long monitoring experiment performed at a 110 Mt chrysotile waste pile, we have documented the existence of two distinct thermo-hydro-chemical regimes that control the ingress of CO and the subsequent mineral carbonation of the waste. The experimental results are supported by a coupled free-air/porous media numerical flow and transport model that provides insights into optimization strategies to increase the efficiency of mineral sequestration at an industrial scale. Although functioning passively under less-than-optimal conditions compared to laboratory-scale experiments, the 110 Mt Thetford Mines pile is nevertheless estimated to be sequestering up to 100 tonnes of CO per year, with a potential total carbon capture capacity under optimal conditions of 3 Mt. Annually, more than 100 Mt of ultramafic mine waste suitable for mineral carbonation is generated by the global mining industry. Our results show that this waste material could become a safe and permanent carbon sink for diffuse sources of CO.

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