Modeling and Forecasting of Coal Bed Methane Reservoir from Raniganj Coalfield, India

Abstract

Demand for a cleaner source of energy is increasing in India. In the search for alternate energy sources, coal bed methane gas receives considerable attention for its potential as a good energy source. During the coalification process, methane gas is captured in the coal seams and later released during coal mining operations. Coal bed methane separation is crucial for both economic benefit and methane emission reduction. The methane production from seams is an efficient way to reduce greenhouse emissions and provide a safe mining operation environment. In India, the production of coal bed methane on a commercial scale has been recently observed. In the present paper, an attempt is made to understand and establish a 3-D excavation of coal bed methane from reservoir simulation (COMET3) for Gondwana coal seams in the Sitarampur block of the Raniganj coalfield in India. The simulation study was carried out for a period of 25 years for the recovery of methane from the reservoir. It is observed from the simulation study that 372 million cubic meters CO2 equivalent greenhouse gas emissions can be prevented by the extraction of methane with space and time. The fracture gas concentration increases with time, and it is observed that fractures are fully saturated with gas in 3000 days.

Development of Empirical and Artificial Neural Network Model for the Prediction of Sorption Time to Assess the Potential of CO2 Sequestration in Coal

“…Accurate estimation of sorption time for the coals of the Mand Raigarh region can be very useful to estimate its CO 2 storage potentiality. As compared to coals from other coalfields of India such as Jharia (Moonidih CBM block) with sorption time between 1.09 and 2.15 days; Raniganj coalfield having sorption time in the range of 0.21–1.42 days and South Karanpura coalfield in the range 0.12–6.65 days, coal sample tested from Mand Raigarh show high sorption time characteristic. Therefore, it can be a potential storage site for bulk CO 2 sequestration.…”

Biogeochemical Controls on Methane Generation: A Review on Indian Coal Resources

“…In India, simulation studies are also underway to boost CBM exploration and development. As an example, Panwar et al [204] established a three-dimensional excavation of CBM from reservoir simulation (COMET3) for the Sitarampur coal beds (Gondwana) of the Raniganj Basin. The Sitarampur block is a virgin and highly gassy coal block in the Burdwan district of West Bengal, India.…”