Review of failure modes in supercritical geothermal drilling projects

Kruszewski, Michał; Wittig, Volker

doi:10.1186/s40517-018-0113-4

Cited by 33 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…In volcanic areas, because of the higher geothermal gradients, the critical point of water is located at the accessible depth of 3 ÷ 4 km (Friðleifsson et al, 2017). Isolating the lower part of the well through proper casing—a great technological challenge per se (Kruszewski & Wittig, 2018)—is also necessary to ensure that CO 2 is injected at the proper depth.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sinking CO₂ in Supercritical Reservoirs

Parisio

Vilarrasa

2020

Geophysical Research Letters

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Geologic carbon storage is required for achieving negative CO 2 emissions to deal with the climate crisis. The classical concept of CO 2 storage consists in injecting CO 2 in geological formations at depths greater than 800 m, where CO 2 becomes a dense fluid, minimizing storage volume. Yet CO 2 has a density lower than the resident brine and tends to float, challenging the widespread deployment of geologic carbon storage. Here, we propose for the first time to store CO 2 in supercritical reservoirs to reduce the buoyancy-driven leakage risk. Supercritical reservoirs are found at drilling-reachable depth in volcanic areas, where high pressure (p > 21.8 MPa) and temperature (T > 374°C) imply CO 2 is denser than water. We estimate that a CO 2 storage capacity in the range of 50-500 Mt yr −1 could be achieved for every 100 injection wells. Carbon storage in supercritical reservoirs is an appealing alternative to the traditional approach. Plain Language Summary Geologic carbon storage, which consists in returning carbon deep underground, should be part of the solution to effectively reach carbon neutrality by the middle of the century to mitigate climate change. CO 2 has been traditionally proposed to be stored in sedimentary rock at depths below 800 m, where CO 2 becomes a dense fluid, minimizing the required storage volume. Nevertheless, CO 2 is lighter than brine in the traditional concept, so a rock with sufficient sealing capacity should be present above the storage formation to prevent leakage. Indeed, one of the main hurdles to deploy geologic carbon storage is the risk of CO 2 leakage. To reduce this risk, we propose a novel storage concept that consists in injecting CO 2 in reservoirs where the pore water stays in supercritical conditions (pressure and temperature higher than 21.8 MPa and 374°C, respectively) because at these conditions, CO 2 becomes denser than water. Consequently, CO 2 sinks, leading to a safe long-term storage. This concept, which could store a significant portion of the total requirements to decarbonize the economy, should start being implemented in deep volcanic areas, given that supercritical reservoirs are found at relatively shallow depths between 3 and 5 km.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sinking CO₂ in Supercritical Reservoirs

Parisio

Vilarrasa

2020

Geophysical Research Letters

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“…New drilling concepts, including innovative materials and casings, are required for wells targeting the deeper roots of volcanic geothermal systems potentially containing supercritical fluids, which have yet to be utilized 152 . Good examples of wells targeting unconventional geothermal resources are the wells of the Iceland Deep Drilling Project (IDDP), which aim to drill down to 4-5 km depth in high-temperature volcanic systems.…”

Section: ();mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, low permeability has been encountered in several deep geothermal wells 31,172 , and novel permeability enhancement techniques in superhot geothermal resources have received substantial research attention [173][174][175] . Further, enabling the expansion of the geothermal resource base to include supercritical and near-magma geothermal resources will also require innovations in drilling techniques 152,176 and surface materials 32 . Despite these challenges, accessing these resources could improve the economics and sustainability of power generation from high-temperature geothermal systems in the future.…”

Section: Summary and Future Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geological controls on geothermal resources for power generation

Jolie

Scott

Faulds

et al. 2021

Nat Rev Earth Environ

123

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“…In volcanic areas, because of the higher geothermal gradients, the critical point of water is located at the accessible depth of 3 ÷ 4 km (Friðleifsson et al, 2017). Isolating the lower part of the well through proper casing-a great technological challenge per se (Kruszewski & Wittig, 2018)-is also necessary to ensure that CO 2 is injected at the proper depth.…”

Section: 1029/2020gl090456mentioning

confidence: 99%

Sinking CO2 in supercritical reservoirs

Parisio

Vilarrasa

2020

Preprint

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Geologic carbon storage is required for achieving negative CO 2 emissions to deal with the climate crisis. The classical concept of CO 2 storage consists in injecting CO 2 in geological formations at depths greater than 800 m, where CO 2 becomes a dense fluid, minimizing storage volume. Yet CO 2 has a density lower than the resident brine and tends to float, challenging the widespread deployment of geologic carbon storage. Here, we propose for the first time to store CO 2 in supercritical reservoirs to reduce the buoyancy-driven leakage risk. Supercritical reservoirs are found at drilling-reachable depth in volcanic areas, where high pressure (p > 21.8 MPa) and temperature (T > 374°C) imply CO 2 is denser than water. We estimate that a CO 2 storage capacity in the range of 50-500 Mt yr −1 could be achieved for every 100 injection wells. Carbon storage in supercritical reservoirs is an appealing alternative to the traditional approach.Plain Language Summary Geologic carbon storage, which consists in returning carbon deep underground, should be part of the solution to effectively reach carbon neutrality by the middle of the century to mitigate climate change. CO 2 has been traditionally proposed to be stored in sedimentary rock at depths below 800 m, where CO 2 becomes a dense fluid, minimizing the required storage volume. Nevertheless, CO 2 is lighter than brine in the traditional concept, so a rock with sufficient sealing capacity should be present above the storage formation to prevent leakage. Indeed, one of the main hurdles to deploy geologic carbon storage is the risk of CO 2 leakage. To reduce this risk, we propose a novel storage concept that consists in injecting CO 2 in reservoirs where the pore water stays in supercritical conditions (pressure and temperature higher than 21.8 MPa and 374°C, respectively) because at these conditions, CO 2 becomes denser than water. Consequently, CO 2 sinks, leading to a safe long-term storage. This concept, which could store a significant portion of the total requirements to decarbonize the economy, should start being implemented in deep volcanic areas, given that supercritical reservoirs are found at relatively shallow depths between 3 and 5 km.

show abstract

Review of failure modes in supercritical geothermal drilling projects

Cited by 33 publications

References 29 publications

Sinking CO₂ in Supercritical Reservoirs

Sinking CO₂ in Supercritical Reservoirs

Geological controls on geothermal resources for power generation

Sinking CO2 in supercritical reservoirs

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Review of failure modes in supercritical geothermal drilling projects

Cited by 33 publications

References 29 publications

Sinking CO2 in Supercritical Reservoirs

Sinking CO2 in Supercritical Reservoirs

Geological controls on geothermal resources for power generation

Sinking CO2 in supercritical reservoirs

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Sinking CO₂ in Supercritical Reservoirs

Sinking CO₂ in Supercritical Reservoirs