Leakage of CO2 Through Abandoned Wells

Scherer, George W.; Celia, Michael A.; Prévost, Jean‐Hérve; Bachu, Stefan; Bruant, Robert G.; Duguid, Andrew; Fuller, Richard; Gasda, Sarah E.; Radonjic, Mileva; Vichit-Vadakan, Wilasa

doi:10.1016/b978-008044570-0/50136-7

Cited by 41 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 23 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Many studies investigated the potential of CO 2 and brine leakage through abandoned wells at CO 2 storage sites. 5,[24][25][26] In general, if there are abandoned wells intersecting the CO 2 storage interval, migration of CO 2 and brine through the abandoned wells to the shallow aquifer is possible. Ebigbo et al 5 show that if an abandoned well was close to the CO 2 injector (e.g., 100 m), a small amount of CO 2 leakage through the well occurred (i.e., the flux of CO 2 leakage at t = 2.7 years was 0.12% of the CO 2 injection rate).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Application of a new reduced‐complexity assessment tool to estimate CO₂ and brine leakage from reservoir and above‐zone monitoring interval (AZMI) through an abandoned well under geologic carbon storage conditions

et al. 2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This study employs a combination of detailed simulations and reduced‐complexity models in the Well Leakage Analysis Tool (WLAT), developed by the National Risk Assessment Partnership (NRAP), US Department of Energy, to investigate how the rates of CO2 and brine leakage through an abandoned well under geologic CO2 storage conditions are affected by various factors. The factors considered in this study include depth of well penetration into the storage system, location relative to the point of injection, and effective permeability of the abandoned well. Location is the primary factor used to identify high‐ and low‐risk abandoned wells. For the typical CO2 injection scenario considered in this study, the potential impact of CO2 and brine leakage through an abandoned well is very low if the abandoned well is 6.2 km or further away from the CO2 injector. Due to the buoyancy of CO2 relative to formation brine, wells intersecting (i.e., accepting flow from) the top of the above‐zone monitoring interval (AZMI), which is the interval immediately above the seal, have a higher chance to become a pathway for CO2 than wells intersecting the bottom of the AZMI. If the permeability of an abandoned well is 10−14 m2 or less, the risk of CO2 and brine leakage through the well becomes very low. Due to the combined effect of pressure increase and buoyancy, the CO2 leakage rate is higher than brine leakage rate within the CO2 plume extent. Specific values reported in this study are site‐specific results and cannot be regarded as general findings. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Application of a new reduced‐complexity assessment tool to estimate CO₂ and brine leakage from reservoir and above‐zone monitoring interval (AZMI) through an abandoned well under geologic carbon storage conditions

et al. 2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Portlandite (Ca(OH) 2 ) and Calcium Silicate Hydrates (C-S-H) are the two primary mineral phases formed upon hydration [Taylor, 1997]. Numerous studies in recent years have addressed the interactions between cement and supercritical CO 2 or CO 2 -saturated formation water under conditions relevant to carbon sequestration [Bachu and Bennion, 2009;Barlet-Gouedard et al, 2006;Barlet-Gou edard et al, 2009;Brandvoll et al, 2009;Duguid and Scherer, 2010;Duguid et al, 2006;Kutchko et al, 2007Kutchko et al, , 2009Liteanu et al, 2009;Mason et al, Water Resources Research PUBLICATIONS 2013; Scherer et al, 2005;Condor and Asghari, 2009]. Many studies have focused on the reactive transport of CO 2 -rich fluid through cement-cement interface and the associated property evolution of cement fractures [Cao et al, 2013;Huerta et al, 2011;Huerta et al, 2013aHuerta et al, , 2013bLiteanu and Spiers, 2011;Luquot et al, 2013;Ozyurtkan and Radonjic, 2014;Walsh et al, 2012;Wenning et al, 2013;Yalcinkaya et al, 2011].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Self‐healing of cement fractures under dynamic flow of CO₂‐rich brine

Cao

Karpyn

2015

Water Resources Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Fractures and defects in wellbore cement can lead to increased possibilities of CO 2 leakage from abandoned wells during geological carbon sequestration. To investigate the physicochemical response of defective wellbore cement to CO 2 -rich brine, we carried out a reactive flow-through experiment using an artificially fractured cement sample at a length of 224.8 mm. A brine solution with dissolved CO 2 at a pH of approximately 3.9 was injected through the sample at a constant rate of 0.0083 cm 3 /s. Surface optical profilometry analysis and 3-D X-ray microtomography imaging confirmed fracture closure and selfhealing behavior consistent with the measured permeability decrease. Visual inspection of the reacted fracture surface showed the development of reactive patterns mapping the flow velocity field inside the fracture, as well as restricted flow toward the sample outlet. The postexperiment permeability of the core sample was measured at half of its initial permeability. A reactive transport model was developed with parameters derived from the experiment to further examine property evolution of fractured cement under dynamic flow of CO 2 -rich brine. Sensitivity analysis showed that residence time and the size of initial fracture aperture are the key factors controlling the tendency to self-healing or fracture opening behavior and therefore determine the long-term integrity of the wellbore cement. Longer residence time and small apertures promote mineral precipitation, fracture closure, and therefore flow restriction. This work also suggests a narrow threshold separating the fracture opening and self-sealing behavior.

show abstract

“…The long-term stability of wellbore materials in a CO 2 -rich environment is another key issue concerning wellbore integrity and is a topic of extensive investigations, both with laboratory experiments and numerical models (e.g., Scherer et al 2005;Metz et al 2005;Viswanathan et al 2008). Some studies (Carey et al 2010) underline that the primary paths for CO 2 migrations along the well are the interfaces, either the casing-cement or the cement-caprock, rather than the flow through the CO 2 resistant matrix cement that can, at least in the short term, provide an effective barrier.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modeling of Rocks and Cement Alteration due to CO2 Injection in an Exploited Gas Reservoir

2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The injection of CO 2 in exploited natural gas reservoirs as a means to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is highly attractive as it takes place in well-known geological structures of proven integrity with respect to gas leakage. The injection of a reactive gas such as CO 2 puts emphasis on the possible alteration of reservoir and caprock formations and especially of the wells' cement sheaths induced by the modification of chemical equilibria. Such studies are important for injectivity assurance, wellbore integrity, and risk assessment required for CO 2 sequestration site qualification. Within a R&D project funded by Eni, we set up a numerical model to investigate the rock-cement alterations driven by the injection of CO 2 into a depleted sweet natural gas pool. The simulations are performed with the TOUGHREACT simulator (Xu et al. in Comput Geosci 32:145-165, 2006) coupled to the TMGAS EOS module (Battistelli and Marcolini in Int J Greenh Gas Control 3:481-493, 2009) developed for the TOUGH2 family of reservoir simulators (Pruess et al. in TOUGH2 User's Guide, Version 2.0, 1999). On the basis of field data, the system is considered in isothermal (50 • C) and isobaric (128.5 bar) conditions. The effects of the evolving reservoir gas composition are taken into account before, during, and after CO 2 injection. Fully watersaturated conditions were assumed for the cement sheath and caprock domains. The gas phase does not flow by advection from the reservoir into the interacting domains so that molecular diffusion in the aqueous phase is the most important process controlling the mass transport occurring in the system under study.

show abstract

Leakage of CO2 Through Abandoned Wells

Cited by 41 publications

References 23 publications

Application of a new reduced‐complexity assessment tool to estimate CO₂ and brine leakage from reservoir and above‐zone monitoring interval (AZMI) through an abandoned well under geologic carbon storage conditions

Application of a new reduced‐complexity assessment tool to estimate CO₂ and brine leakage from reservoir and above‐zone monitoring interval (AZMI) through an abandoned well under geologic carbon storage conditions

Self‐healing of cement fractures under dynamic flow of CO₂‐rich brine

Modeling of Rocks and Cement Alteration due to CO2 Injection in an Exploited Gas Reservoir

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Leakage of CO2 Through Abandoned Wells

Cited by 41 publications

References 23 publications

Application of a new reduced‐complexity assessment tool to estimate CO2 and brine leakage from reservoir and above‐zone monitoring interval (AZMI) through an abandoned well under geologic carbon storage conditions

Application of a new reduced‐complexity assessment tool to estimate CO2 and brine leakage from reservoir and above‐zone monitoring interval (AZMI) through an abandoned well under geologic carbon storage conditions

Self‐healing of cement fractures under dynamic flow of CO2‐rich brine

Modeling of Rocks and Cement Alteration due to CO2 Injection in an Exploited Gas Reservoir

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Application of a new reduced‐complexity assessment tool to estimate CO₂ and brine leakage from reservoir and above‐zone monitoring interval (AZMI) through an abandoned well under geologic carbon storage conditions

Application of a new reduced‐complexity assessment tool to estimate CO₂ and brine leakage from reservoir and above‐zone monitoring interval (AZMI) through an abandoned well under geologic carbon storage conditions

Self‐healing of cement fractures under dynamic flow of CO₂‐rich brine