Experimental Determination of Clay Mineral Reactions in Clastic Reservoir Rock Resulting from the Injection of Supercritical CO2
Abstract
The Cretaceous Frontier Formation of the Powder River Basin, WY has been considered as a potential reservoir for storing anthropogenic CO2. The reservoir zones are composed of fine-grained quartz and potassium feldspar rich sandstones, cemented with clay minerals (kaolinite and interlayered illite and montmorillonite). The purpose of these experiments is to determine whether susceptible minerals such as illite, montmorillonite, and potassium feldspar undergo in-situ 'weathering' reactions when exposed to the high concentrations of carbonic acid generated by the dissolution of supercritical CO2 in formation water. The transformation of these minerals has the potential to: 1.) open up pore space through dissolution; 2.) reduce pore space and/or close pore throats by precipitating new minerals, or 3.) cause little change if the reactions take place slowly. Core samples of the Frontier Formation were obtained from the USGS Core Repository in Denver, CO and their physical and mineralogical properties analyzed. Porosity and permeability of the cores have been determined by helium porosimetry and gas permeability testing. Pore space distribution was analyzed by CT scan. Mineralogy was determined by thin section analysis, X-Ray diffraction, and Scanning Electron Microscopy. Ongoing experiments will expose the cores to CO2 saturated brine in a flow-through reactor at conditions similar to those found in the subsurface (100oC and 15MPa). Changes to the chemical composition of the brine will be determined by withdrawing samples at regular intervals during the experiment and analyzing their contents with ion chromatography and colorimetry. The physical and mineralogical properties of the cores will be analyzed after each experiment and compared to the initial conditions. We will report on the results of these experiments.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2013
- Bibcode:
- 2013AGUFM.H23B1234M
- Keywords:
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- 1000 GEOCHEMISTRY;
- 1039 GEOCHEMISTRY Alteration and weathering processes;
- 1051 GEOCHEMISTRY Sedimentary geochemistry;
- 1800 HYDROLOGY