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Vertically averaged approaches for CO 2 migration with solubility trapping
Author(s) -
Gasda S. E.,
Nordbotten J. M.,
Celia M. A.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/2010wr009075
Subject(s) - plume , buoyancy , dissolution , carbon sequestration , trapping , scale (ratio) , solubility , environmental science , process (computing) , geology , carbon dioxide , computer science , meteorology , mechanics , chemistry , chemical engineering , physics , engineering , geography , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics , forestry , operating system
The long‐term storage security of injected carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is an essential component of geological carbon sequestration operations. In the postinjection phase, the mobile CO 2 plume migrates in large part because of buoyancy forces, following the natural topography of the geological formation. The primary trapping mechanisms are capillary and solubility trapping, which evolve over hundreds to thousands of years and can immobilize a significant portion of the mobile CO 2 plume. However, both the migration and trapping processes are inherently complex, spanning multiple spatial and temporal scales. Using an appropriate model that can capture both large‐ and small‐scale effects is essential for understanding the role of these processes on the long‐term storage security of CO 2 sequestration operations. Traditional numerical models quickly become prohibitively expensive for the type of large‐scale, long‐term modeling that is necessary for characterizing the migration and immobilization of CO 2 during the postinjection period. We present an alternative modeling option that combines vertically integrated governing equations with an upscaled representation of the dissolution‐convection process. With this approach, we demonstrate the effect of different modeling choices for typical large‐scale geological systems and show that practical calculations can be performed at the temporal and spatial scales of interest.