Fault activation and induced seismicity in geological carbon storage--Lessons learned from recent modeling studies

In the light of current concerns related to induced seismicity associated with geological carbon sequestration(GCS),this paper summarizes lessons learned from recent modeling studies on fault activation,induced seismicity,and potential for leakage associated with deep underground carbon dioxide(CO2) injection.Model simulations demonstrate that seismic events large enough to be felt by humans require brittle fault properties and continuous fault permeability allowing pressure to be distributed over a large fault patch to be ruptured at once.Heterogeneous fault properties,which are commonly encountered in faults intersecting multilayered shale/sandstone sequences,effectively reduce the likelihood of inducing felt seismicity and also effectively impede upward CO2leakage.A number of simulations show that even a sizable seismic event that could be felt may not be capable of opening a new flow path across the entire thickness of an overlying caprock and it is very unlikely to cross a system of multiple overlying caprock units.Site-specific model simulations of the In Salah CO2storage demonstration site showed that deep fractured zone responses and associated microseismicity occurred in the brittle fractured sandstone reservoir,but at a very substantial reservoir overpressure close to the magnitude of the least principal stress.We conclude by emphasizing the importance of site investigation to characterize rock properties and if at all possible to avoid brittle rock such as proximity of crystalline basement or sites in hard and brittle sedimentary sequences that are more prone to injection-induced seismicity and permanent damage.

Influence of hysteretic stress path behavior on seal integrity during gas storage operation in a depleted reservoir

In this study,we numerically investigate the influence of hysteretic stress path behavior on the seal integrity during underground gas storage operations in a depleted reservoir.Our study area is the Honor Rancho Underground Storage Facility in Los Angeles County(California,USA),which was converted into an underground gas storage facility in 1975 after 20 years of oil and gas production.In our simulations,the geomechanical behavior of the sand reservoir is modeled using two models:(1)a linear elastic model(non-hysteretic stress path)that does not take into consideration irreversible deformation,and(2)a plastic cap mechanical model which considers changes in rock elastic properties due to irreversible deformations caused by plastic reservoir compaction(hysteretic stress path).It shows that the irreversible compaction of the geological layer over geologic time and during the reservoir depletion can have important consequences on stress tensor orientation and magnitude.Ignoring depletion-induced irreversible compaction can lead to an over-estimation of the calculation of the maximum working reservoir pressure.Moreover,this irreversible compaction may bring the nearby faults closer to reactivation.However,regardless of the two models applied,the geomechanical analysis shows that for the estimated stress conditions applied in this study,the Honor Rancho Underground Storage Facility is being safely operated at pressures much below what would be required to compromise the seal integrity.

Interactive roles of geometrical distribution and geomechanical deformation of fracture networks in fluid flow through fractured geological media

In this study,the combined effects of geometrical distribution and geomechanical deformation of fracture networks on fluid flow through fractured geological media are investigated numerically.We consider a finite-sized model domain in which the geometry of fracture systems follows a power-law length scaling.The geomechanical response of the fractured rock is simulated using a hybrid finitediscrete element model,which can capture the deformation of intact rocks,the interaction of matrix blocks,the displacement of discrete fractures and the propagation of new cracks.Under far-field stress loading,the locally variable stress distribution in the fractured rock leads to a stress-dependent variable aperture field controlled by compression-induced closure and shear-induced dilatancy of rough fractures.The equivalent permeability of the deformed fractured rock is calculated by solving for the fracture-matrix flow considering the cubic relationship between fracture aperture and flow rate at each local fracture segment.We report that the geometrical connectivity of fracture networks plays a critical role in the hydromechanical processes in fractured rocks.A well-connected fracture system under a high stress ratio condition exhibits intense frictional sliding and large fracture dilation/opening,leading to greater rock mass permeability.However,a disconnected fracture network accommodates much less fracture shearing and opening,and has much lower bulk permeability.We further propose an analytical solution for the relationship between the equivalent permeability of fractured rocks and the connectivity metric(i.e.percolation parameter)of fracture networks,which yields an excellent match to the numerical results.We infer that fluid flow through a well-connected system is governed by traversing channels(forming an“in parallel”architecture)and thus equivalent permeability is sensitive to stress loading(due to stress-dependent fracture permeability),whilst fluid flow through a disconnected system is more ruled by matrix(linking isolated clusters“in series”)and has much less stress dependency.

Mesh generation and optimization from digital rock fractures based on neural style transfer

The complex geometric features of subsurface fractures at different scales makes mesh generation challenging and/or expensive.In this paper,we make use of neural style transfer(NST),a machine learning technique,to generate mesh from rock fracture images.In this new approach,we use digital rock fractures at multiple scales that represent’content’and define uniformly shaped and sized triangles to represent’style’.The 19-layer convolutional neural network(CNN)learns the content from the rock image,including lower-level features(such as edges and corners)and higher-level features(such as rock,fractures,or other mineral fillings),and learns the style from the triangular grids.By optimizing the cost function to achieve approximation to represent both the content and the style,numerical meshes can be generated and optimized.We utilize the NST to generate meshes for rough fractures with asperities formed in rock,a network of fractures embedded in rock,and a sand aggregate with multiple grains.Based on the examples,we show that this new NST technique can make mesh generation and optimization much more efficient by achieving a good balance between the density of the mesh and the presentation of the geometric features.Finally,we discuss future applications of this approach and perspectives of applying machine learning to bridge the gaps between numerical modeling and experiments.

Effects of in situ stress measurement uncertainties on assessment of predicted seismic activity and risk associated with a hypothetical industrial-scale geologic CO_2 sequestration operation

Carbon capture and storage(CCS) in geologic formations has been recognized as a promising option for reducing carbon dioxide(CO) emissions from large stationary sources.However,the pressure buildup inside the storage formation can potentially induce slip along preexisting faults,which could lead to felt seismic ground motion and also provide pathways for brine/COleakage into shallow drinking water aquifers.To assess the geomechanical stability of faults,it is of crucial importance to know the in situ state of stress.In situ stress measurements can provide some information on the stresses acting on faults but with considerable uncertainties.In this paper,we investigate how such uncertainties,as defined by the variation of stress measurements obtained within the study area,could influence the assessment of the geomechanical stability of faults and the characteristics of potential injection-induced seismic events.Our modeling study is based on a hypothetical industrial-scale carbon sequestration project assumed to be located in the Southern San Joaquin Basin in California,USA.We assess the stability on the major(25 km long) fault that bounds the sequestration site and is subjected to significant reservoir pressure changes as a result of 50 years of COinjection.We present a series of geomechanical simulations in which the resolved stresses on the fault were varied over ranges of values corresponding to various stress measurements performed around the study area.The simulation results are analyzed by a statistical approach.Our main results are that the variations in resolved stresses as defined by the range of stress measurements had a negligible effect on the prediction of the seismic risk(maximum magnitude),but an important effect on the timing,the seismicity rate(number of seismic events) and the location of seismic activity.

An experimental investigation on acoustic emission characteristics of sandstone rockburst with different moisture contents

Rockburst occurred frequently during deep mining in China. The mechanism of rockburst is very complicated and related to many factors. In order to investigate the influence of moisture contents of rockmass on rockburst, we conducted a series of laboratory rockburst experiments of sandstone under three different moisture contents by the Modified True-Triaxial Apparatus (MTTA),in which the acoustic emission (AE) system was employed to monitor the internal damage of rock mass. A high-speed video camera was utilized to record the detail of rockburst. Based on the experimental results, the AE characteristics, such as AE count,AE energy, and AE frequency, were analyzed. The rockburst process, type, and indensity under different moisture contents were discussed. The research results show that with the increase of moisture contents, rock strength was soften, the elastic and the cumulative damage of the rock were reduced, resulting in a gradual decrease in AE cumulative counts and cumulative energy over the course of rockburst. This study provides an experimental basis and reference for better understanding to the rockburst mechanism and control.

Structural defects in MAX phases and their derivative MXenes:A look forward

MAX phases and corresponding 2 D derivative MXenes have attracted considerable interests due to not only their fascinating mechanical,physical and chemical properties but also their unique atomically laminated structures.As the most important way to tailor the materials properties,the structural defects in MAX phases and MXenes have been extensively investigated but lack of systematic survey although six reviews and two books in this field have been published.To make the defect-engineering based materials design and exploration more efficient and targeted,this paper provides a review of the recent progress on the nature of different-dimensional structural defects and their influence on the properties,in the hope of facilitating the conversion of established experiment and simulation results into practical guideline for optimizing defects in a broad range of demand-oriented materials development in the future.Also,unsolved issues on the structural defects of these scientifically and technologically important materials are also highlighted for the future study.

Thermo-economic analysis of a direct supercritical CO_(2) electric power generation system using geothermal heat

A comprehensive thermo-economic model combining a geothermal heat mining system and a direct supercritical CO_(2) turbine expansion electric power generation system was proposed in this paper.Assisted by this integrated model,thermo-economic and optimization analyses for the key design parameters of the whole system including the geothermal well pattern and operational conditions were performed to obtain a minimal levelized cost of electricity(LCOE).Specifically,in geothermal heat extraction simulation,an integrated wellbore-reservoir system model(T2Well/ECO_(2)N)was used to generate a database for creating a fast,predictive,and compatible geothermal heat mining model by employing a response surface methodology.A parametric study was conducted to demonstrate the impact of turbine discharge pressure,injection and production well distance,CO_(2) injection flowrate,CO_(2) injection temperature,and monitored production well bottom pressure on LCOE,system thermal efficiency,and capital cost.It was found that for a 100 MWe power plant,a minimal LCOE of$0.177/kWh was achieved for a 20-year steady operation without considering CO_(2) sequestration credit.In addition,when CO_(2) sequestration credit is$1.00/t,an LCOE breakeven point compared to a conventional geothermal power plant is achieved and a breakpoint for generating electric power generation at no cost was achieved for a sequestration credit of $2.05/t.