The geological risks of exploring for a CO2 storage reservoir

Xia, Changyou; Wilkinson, Mark

doi:10.1016/j.ijggc.2017.05.016

Cited by 13 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Reservoir porosity and permeability have been identified as key controls on the efficiency and effectiveness of CO 2 injection into the subsurface geological formations for both CO 2 storage and enhanced hydrocarbon recovery. This is because low-porosity or low-permeability are often influenced by high volume of clay minerals and ductile grains, poor sorting, quartz cementation, and illite growth [16]. In this study, we documented the role of depositional characteristics and diagenesis (particularly grain-coating clays) on RQ evolution of the Forties submarine turbidite-channel sandstones in two wells from Nelson oil field, UK Central North Sea (Figure 1).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 84%

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Impact of Grain-Coating Clays on Porosity Preservation in Paleocene Turbidite Channel Sandstones: Nelson Oil Field, UK Central North Sea

et al. 2022

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The Forties Sandstone Member is an important deep-water reservoir in the Central North Sea. The role of depositional characteristics, grain-coating clays, and diagenesis in controlling the reservoir quality of the sandstones is poorly understood. The main aim of the study is to understand the role of depositional characteristics, grain-coating and pore-filling clays, and diagenesis in controlling the reservoir quality evolution of turbidite-channel sandstones. The study employed a multi-disciplinary technique involving thin section petrography and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to investigate the impact of grain size, clay matrix content, mode of occurrence of grain-coating chlorite and illite, and their impact in arresting quartz cementation and overall reservoir quality in the sandstones. Results of our study reveal that porosity evolution in the sandstones has been influenced by both primary depositional characteristics and diagenesis. Sandstones with coarser grain size and lower pore-filling clay content have the best reservoir porosity (up to 28%) compared to those with finer grain size and higher pore-filling clay content. Quartz cement volume decreases with increasing clay-coating coverage. Clay coating coverage of >40% is effective in arresting quartz cementation. Total clay volume of as low as 10% could have a deleterious impact on reservoir quality. The Forties Sandstone Member could potentially be a suitable candidate for physical and mineralogical storage of CO2. However, because of its high proportion (>20%) of chemically unstable minerals (feldspar, carbonates, and clays), their dissolution due to CO2 injection and storage could potentially increase reservoir permeability by an order of magnitude, thereby affecting the geomechanical and tensile strength of the sandstones. Therefore, an experimental study investigating the amount of CO2 to be injected (and at what pressure) is required to maintain and preserve borehole integrity. The findings of our study can be applied in other reservoirs with similar depositional environments to improve their reservoir quality prediction.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 84%

“…RQ is a critical risk factor in exploration for hydrocarbons and carbon capture and storage [13][14][15][16]. Therefore, it is essential to understand the impact of diagenesis on RQ evolution of sandstones in order to enhance prediction of RQ away from wells [8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of Grain-Coating Clays on Porosity Preservation in Paleocene Turbidite Channel Sandstones: Nelson Oil Field, UK Central North Sea

et al. 2022

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“…As one part of site suitability algorithms, many algorithms can be applied similarly. Algorithms such as Bayesian network, CO 2 -PENS, multi-criteria method, fault tree, certification framework, QPAC-CO 2 , NRAP, and other algorithms and related tools have been developed for quantitative and qualitative risk assessment applications (Price and Oldenburg, 2009;Tanaka et al, 2011;Zhang et al, 2011;Aktouf and Bentellis, 2016;Li and Liu, 2016;Dean and Tucker, 2017;Xia and Wilkinson, 2017;Hnottavange-Telleen, 2018). These approaches can also predict the behavior of the CO 2 storage process and corresponding risk (risk probability and consequence).…”

Section: Risk Minimizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Hierarchical Framework for CO2 Storage Capacity in Deep Saline Aquifer Formations

Jiao

et al. 2022

Front. Earth Sci.

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Carbon dioxide (CO2) storage in deep saline aquifers is a vital option for CO2 mitigation at a large scale. Determining storage capacity is one of the crucial steps toward large-scale deployment of CO2 storage. Results of capacity assessments tend toward a consensus that sufficient resources are available in saline aquifers in many parts of the world. However, current CO2 capacity assessments involve significant inconsistencies and uncertainties caused by various technical assumptions, storage mechanisms considered, algorithms, and data types and resolutions. Furthermore, other constraint factors (such as techno-economic features, site suitability, risk, regulation, social-economic situation, and policies) significantly affect the storage capacity assessment results. Consequently, a consensus capacity classification system and assessment method should be capable of classifying the capacity type or even more related uncertainties. We present a hierarchical framework of CO2 capacity to define the capacity types based on the various factors, algorithms, and datasets. Finally, a review of onshore CO2 aquifer storage capacity assessments in China is presented as examples to illustrate the feasibility of the proposed hierarchical framework.

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“…Sandstone reservoirs are key exploration targets for hydrocarbons, geothermal energy, and CO 2 capture and storage (Al-Ramadan et al, 2005;Saner et al, 2006;Xia and Wilkinson, 2017;Hussain et al, 2018;Allen et al, 2020;Herlambang et al, 2022). Additionally, as the energy demand in the world is increasing, and hydrocarbon exploration moves towards deeper, morechallenging systems such as basins affected by igneous intrusion activity (Haile et al, 2019;Duffy et al, 2021;Rong et al, 2021), it is important to understand the interaction of diagenesis and magmatic intrusions on the reservoir quality of sandstones.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of magmatic intrusion on diagenesis of shallow marine sandstones: An example from Qasim Formation, Northwest Saudi Arabia

et al. 2023

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Igneous intrusions are common in sedimentary basins, and their occurrence can significantly affect the diagenesis and reservoir quality evolution of sandstones, thereby strongly impacting their hydrocarbons-, geothermal-, and CO2-storage potentials. The Qasim sandstones in the Tabuk region (NW Saudi Arabia) experienced shallow burial diagenesis (<2 km) when the Tertiary magma intruded to form basaltic sills (0.4–4 m thick). The sedimentology, tectono-stratigraphic framework, provenance, and chemostratigraphy of the Qasim Formation have been extensively covered in the literature. However, the impact of the magmatic intrusion on diagenesis and reservoir quality evolution of the sandstones remains enigmatic. This study employed thin-section petrography, QEMSCAN, XRD, SEM, and energy-dispersive spectrometer analyses to investigate the role of magmatic intrusion on diagenesis and reservoir quality of the Qasim sandstones. The results of the study indicate that reservoir porosity is principally influenced by primary depositional characteristics (grain size and sorting), diagenetic alterations, and magmatic intrusions. Sandstones with coarser grain size and better sorting have the best intergranular porosity and vice versa. The “normal” diagenetic processes that have significantly affected the reservoir porosity of the sandstones occurred during both shallow burial (eodiagenesis) and uplift (telodiagenesis). The eogenetic alterations include mechanical compaction, early diagenetic cementation by calcite, pyrite, and kaolinite, whereas the telogenetic alterations include the formation of kaolinite, goethite, hematite. Overall, mechanical compaction is the main driver for porosity loss in the sandstones. The intrusion-related diagenetic processes include the dissolution of quartz grains, rounded quartz overgrowths, and calcite cement, and the transformation of kaolinite into dickite and chlorite. Detrital quartz and rounded quartz overgrowths have undergone dissolution due to acidic pore fluids from magma and high temperature. The transformation of kaolinite into dickite occurred in a dissolution-recrystallization fashion, and the amounts of kaolinite and dickite increase in fine-grained sediments away from sill contact due to hydrodynamic processes that deposited muscovite (which form kaolinite) in low energy environments. The chloritization of kaolinite was localized, and the magma-induced dissolution of goethite likely supplied the requisite high Fe content. Additionally, the intrusion has resulted in the dissolution of the early calcite and increase in porosity towards the sill contact. However, values for compactional porosity loss have relatively remained similar both at and away from the sill contact, as the sill is too thin to exert significant vertical loading. This study has relevance to understanding hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation in sediment-lava sequences, and to understanding the development of sediment-lava systems.

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The geological risks of exploring for a CO2 storage reservoir

Cited by 13 publications

References 25 publications

Impact of Grain-Coating Clays on Porosity Preservation in Paleocene Turbidite Channel Sandstones: Nelson Oil Field, UK Central North Sea

Impact of Grain-Coating Clays on Porosity Preservation in Paleocene Turbidite Channel Sandstones: Nelson Oil Field, UK Central North Sea

A Hierarchical Framework for CO2 Storage Capacity in Deep Saline Aquifer Formations

Impact of magmatic intrusion on diagenesis of shallow marine sandstones: An example from Qasim Formation, Northwest Saudi Arabia

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