Presentation materials
Multiscale permeability parametrization in geologic cores is key for quantifying multiphase flow and conservative, reactive, and colloidal transport processes in geologic systems. Despite its importance in controlling flow and transport processes, permeability measurement methods often suffer from low spatial resolution, high computational cost, or lack of generalizability. This study...
The transport of chemical species in subsurface rocks is influenced by their structural heterogeneity, resulting in a wide range of local solute concentrations. In the context of CO₂ storage, understanding chemical transport is crucial for processes such as the convective dissolution of CO₂-rich brine in saline aquifers and the precipitation or dissolution of CaCO₃ in carbonate reservoirs -...
Salt precipitation during underground CO2 storage into saline aquifers poses a risk for injectivity impairment and presents a notable challenge for successful CO2 storage initiatives. Laboratory studies indicate that salt precipitation is sensitive to capillary forces, but extending this to field-scale is non-trivial due to radial flow conditions, gravitational effects (e.g. gravity override),...
Carbon storage is being increasingly relied upon by governments to reach their net-zero obligations. Leakage through permeable pathways such as abandoned wells and faults is identified as a potential risk for successful CCS implementation. Storage failure presents risks of environmental impacts to water resources, atmospheric emissions and reduction to the value of carbon credits. Gas...
It has been 25 years since the first numerical simulation studies of Carbon Sequestration with Enhanced Gas Recovery (CSEGR) were carried out in the GEOSEQ project led by Sally M. Benson (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory). The early CSEGR simulation paper Oldenburg, Pruess, and Benson (2001) was followed by numerous studies and related publications on the subject by other researchers that...
Capillary trapping is a key mechanism that increases CO
This study investigates the dynamics of reactive CO₂ transport in carbonate rock, emphasizing the effects of carbonic acid-induced formation damage. We provide real-time visualizations of these processes using 4D high-resolution synchrotron imaging at the I13 beamline at Diamond Light Source. The research captures and quantifies the temporal effects of reactive CO₂ transport at the pore scale...
Efficient carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) in deep saline aquifers relies on understanding the complex interactions between CO₂ and brine under varying conditions. Previous studies have provided critical insights into the mechanisms driving CO₂ storage. For instance, Wildenschild et al. [1] quantified the effects of interfacial tension, viscosity, and flow rate on capillary trapping,...
This study investigates water redistribution and drying interface morphology in porous media under the combined effects of capillarity and evaporation, with a focus on CO2 injection into saline aquifers for geological CO2 storage. Previous studies have shown that capillary forces transport water to salt precipitation zones during brine evaporation, underscoring the need for a better...
Objectives and Scope
The impact of capillary heterogeneity on CO2 multiphase flow behavior has been increasingly recognized in the past decade. Ranging from millimeter to kilometer scale, capillary barriers are prevalent in the subsurface. They can be formed wherever geologic heterogeneity exists, from slight variation in the sand grain sizes, to an extensive sequence of interbedded sand and...
Ganglia (bubbles, or droplets) are widespread in porous media of various industrial applications such as geological carobon dioxide storage. Thermodynamic properties of a ganglion, including its volume (
Injectivity is an important factor in the carbon dioxide (CO2) geological storage, as it determines how quickly and efficiently CO2 can be injected into underground reservoirs. Improved injectivity not only enables more effective use of storage space but also makes it easier and more cost-efficient to store CO2 in challenging reservoirs. Surfactants, which have both hydrophilic and hydrophobic...
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is considered a necessary technology for mitigating climate change, helping to keep temperature increases within the limits set by the Paris Agreement. In CCS, CO2 is captured from anthropogenic sources and is injected into deep saline aquifers, depleted oil and gas reservoirs or other geological traps. Deep saline aquifers play an important role as their...
CO2 geological storage plays an essential role in global decarbonization and the energy transition. Predicting the transport of CO2 in subsurface formations requires numerical simulations of multiphase flow through porous media. However, such simulations are challenging at scale due to the high computational costs of existing numerical methods. As a result, the lack of efficient modeling...
Storing CO2 in geological formations is a crucial method for mitigating climate change. However, CO2 leakage poses a threat, with faults representing a significant concern. Accurately simulating fault at different scales is crucial to predict the consequences of CO2 injection and storage at the field-scale. However, this task can be challenging, particularly in the early stages of a storage...
Model-based design tools will play a crucial role in the site selection, design, and safe operation of carbon storage facilities within deep saline formations. When selecting sites, key factors such as the permanence of storage through stable trapping and mineralization must be considered. The design process involves strategic decisions regarding injection placement and timing. Ensuring safe...
Continental Flood Basalts (CFBs) have recently garnered significant attention as a prospective target for geological carbon storage (GCS) due to their vast areal extent, good hydraulic connectivity, and mineralogical composition conducive to trapping CO2 as stable secondary carbonates. However, understanding the complete feasibility of CFBs for GCS requires further studies due to the...
In 2023 the GeoCquest project team joined forces with the CO2CRC in Australia to design and carry out the GeoCquest Field Validation (GFV) Experiment at the Otway International Test Centre. The goal of the experiment is to test and refine approaches for predicting plume migration and trapping in highly heterogeneous rocks using advanced multiscale characterization and simulation approaches,...
The GeoCquest Field Validation (GFV) Experiment is a field-scale geological carbon sequestration research test conducted under the Otway Stage 4 program at the Otway International Test Centre, Victoria, Australia. The study involved the injection of approximately 10,000 tonnes of supercritical CO
One of the key issues related to geologic CO2 storage is the risk of leakage of both CO2 and brine to the surface. Wellbores are usually the main conduit of CO2 leakage Legacy wells, often remnants of previous oil and gas operations, are particularly problematic because they are abundant in areas targeted for CO2 storage and may fall within the area of review. These wells, if not properly...
In this presentation I will argue that small, centimetre scale, heterogeneities in multiphase flow properties will have field scale impacts on the movement of CO2 injected underground. I will demonstrate our characterisation and modelling workflows in application to simulations of CO2 storage sites of the offshore UK (An et al., 2023; Wenck et al., 2025). In search of a validating case study,...
