Mechanisms for mechanical trapping of geologically sequestered carbon dioxide

Carbon dioxide (CO[subscript 2]) sequestration in subsurface reservoirs is important for limiting atmospheric CO[subscript 2] concentrations. However, a complete physical picture able to predict the structure developing within the porous medium is lacking. We investigate theoretically reactive trans...

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Main Authors: Rothman, Daniel H., Cohen, Yosef
Other Authors: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemical Engineering
Format: Article
Language:en_US
Published: Royal Society 2015
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/93870
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4006-7771
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7997-0119
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author Rothman, Daniel H.
Cohen, Yosef
author2 Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemical Engineering
author_facet Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemical Engineering
Rothman, Daniel H.
Cohen, Yosef
author_sort Rothman, Daniel H.
collection MIT
description Carbon dioxide (CO[subscript 2]) sequestration in subsurface reservoirs is important for limiting atmospheric CO[subscript 2] concentrations. However, a complete physical picture able to predict the structure developing within the porous medium is lacking. We investigate theoretically reactive transport in the long-time evolution of carbon in the brine–rock environment. As CO[subscript 2] is injected into a brine–rock environment, a carbonate-rich region is created amid brine. Within the carbonate-rich region minerals dissolve and migrate from regions of high-to-low concentration, along with other dissolved carbonate species. This causes mineral precipitation at the interface between the two regions. We argue that precipitation in a small layer reduces diffusivity, and eventually causes mechanical trapping of the CO[subscript 2]. Consequently, only a small fraction of the CO[subscript 2] is converted to solid mineral; the remainder either dissolves in water or is trapped in its original form. We also study the case of a pure CO[subscript 2] bubble surrounded by brine and suggest a mechanism that may lead to a carbonate-encrusted bubble owing to structural diffusion.
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spelling mit-1721.1/938702022-10-01T01:43:58Z Mechanisms for mechanical trapping of geologically sequestered carbon dioxide Rothman, Daniel H. Cohen, Yosef Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemical Engineering Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences Lorenz Center (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Cohen, Yossi Rothman, Daniel H. Carbon dioxide (CO[subscript 2]) sequestration in subsurface reservoirs is important for limiting atmospheric CO[subscript 2] concentrations. However, a complete physical picture able to predict the structure developing within the porous medium is lacking. We investigate theoretically reactive transport in the long-time evolution of carbon in the brine–rock environment. As CO[subscript 2] is injected into a brine–rock environment, a carbonate-rich region is created amid brine. Within the carbonate-rich region minerals dissolve and migrate from regions of high-to-low concentration, along with other dissolved carbonate species. This causes mineral precipitation at the interface between the two regions. We argue that precipitation in a small layer reduces diffusivity, and eventually causes mechanical trapping of the CO[subscript 2]. Consequently, only a small fraction of the CO[subscript 2] is converted to solid mineral; the remainder either dissolves in water or is trapped in its original form. We also study the case of a pure CO[subscript 2] bubble surrounded by brine and suggest a mechanism that may lead to a carbonate-encrusted bubble owing to structural diffusion. United States. Dept. of Energy. Office of Science (Contract DE-AC02-05CH11231 Subcontract 6896518) 2015-02-05T18:49:20Z 2015-02-05T18:49:20Z 2015-01 2014-11 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 1364-5021 1471-2946 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/93870 Cohen, Y., and D. H. Rothman. “Mechanisms for Mechanical Trapping of Geologically Sequestered Carbon Dioxide.” Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences 471, no. 2175 (January 21, 2015): 20140853–20140853. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4006-7771 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7997-0119 en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspa.2014.0853 Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences Creative Commons Attribution http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ application/pdf Royal Society Royal Society
spellingShingle Rothman, Daniel H.
Cohen, Yosef
Mechanisms for mechanical trapping of geologically sequestered carbon dioxide
title Mechanisms for mechanical trapping of geologically sequestered carbon dioxide
title_full Mechanisms for mechanical trapping of geologically sequestered carbon dioxide
title_fullStr Mechanisms for mechanical trapping of geologically sequestered carbon dioxide
title_full_unstemmed Mechanisms for mechanical trapping of geologically sequestered carbon dioxide
title_short Mechanisms for mechanical trapping of geologically sequestered carbon dioxide
title_sort mechanisms for mechanical trapping of geologically sequestered carbon dioxide
url http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/93870
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4006-7771
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7997-0119
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