Estimating the Carbon Sequestration Capacity of Shale Formations Using Methane Production Rates

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• 作者：Zhiyuan Tao ; Andres Clarens
• 刊名：Environmental Science & Technology
• 出版年：2013
• 出版时间：October 1, 2013
• 年：2013
• 卷：47
• 期：19
• 页码：11318-11325
• 全文大小：357K
• 年卷期：v.47,no.19(October 1, 2013)
• ISSN：1520-5851

文摘

Hydraulically fractured shale formations are being developed widely for oil and gas production. They could also represent an attractive repository for permanent geologic carbon sequestration. Shales have a low permeability, but they can adsorb an appreciable amount of CO₂ on fracture surfaces. Here, a computational method is proposed for estimating the CO₂ sequestration capacity of a fractured shale formation and it is applied to the Marcellus shale in the eastern United States. The model is based on historical and projected CH₄ production along with published data and models for CH₄/CO₂ sorption equilibria and kinetics. The results suggest that the Marcellus shale alone could store between 10.4 and 18.4 Gt of CO₂ between now and 2030, which represents more than 50% of total U.S. CO₂ emissions from stationary sources over the same period. Other shale formations with comparable pressure鈥搕emperature conditions, such as Haynesville and Barnett, could provide significant additional storage capacity. The mass transfer kinetic results indicate that injection of CO₂ would proceed several times faster than production of CH₄. Additional considerations not included in this model could either reinforce (e.g., leveraging of existing extraction and monitoring infrastructure) or undermine (e.g., leakage or seismicity potential) this approach, but the sequestration capacity estimated here supports continued exploration into this pathway for producing carbon neutral energy.