Numerical studies of enthalpy and CO2 transients in two-phasewells

Numerical studies of enthalpy and CO2 transients for wellscompleted in composite reservoir systems are carried out. Both constantrate and constant pressure production are considered. The results showthat relatively small variations in hydrologic parameters and vaporsaturation can have large effects on the enthalpy and CO2 content of theproduced fluids. Field data are presented that illustrate the theoreticalresults obtained

Studies of injection into naturally fractured reservoirs

A semi-analytical model for studies of cold water injectioninto naturally fractured reservoirs has been developed. The model can beused to design the flow rates and location of injection wells in suchsystems. The results obtained using the model show that initially thecold water will move very rapidly through the fracture system away fromthe well. Later on, conductive heat transfer from the rock matrix blockswill retard the advancement of the cold water front, and eventuallyuniform energy sweep conditions will prevail. Where uniform energy sweepconditions are reached the cold waer movement away from the injectionwell will be identical to that in a porous medium; consequently maximumenergy recovery from the rock matrix will be attained. The time ofuniform energy sweep and the radial distance from the injection wellwhere it occurs are greatly dependent upon the fracture spacing, butindependent of the fracture aperture

Studies of injection into naturally fractured reservoirs

A semi-analytical model for studies of cold water injectioninto naturally fractured reservoirs has been developed. The model can beused to design the flow rates and location of injection wells in suchsystems. The results obtained using the model show that initially thecold water will move very rapidly through the fracture system away fromthe well. Later on, conductive heat transfer from the rock matrix blockswill retard the advancement of the cold water front, and eventuallyuniform energy sweep conditions will prevail. Where uniform energy sweepconditions are reached the cold waer movement away from the injectionwell will be identical to that in a porous medium; consequently maximumenergy recovery from the rock matrix will be attained. The time ofuniform energy sweep and the radial distance from the injection wellwhere it occurs are greatly dependent upon the fracture spacing, butindependent of the fracture aperture

System-level modeling for geological storage of CO2

One way to reduce the effects of anthropogenic greenhousegases on climate is to inject carbon dioxide (CO2) from industrialsources into deep geological formations such as brine formations ordepleted oil or gas reservoirs. Research has and is being conducted toimprove understanding of factors affecting particular aspects ofgeological CO2 storage, such as performance, capacity, and health, safetyand environmental (HSE) issues, as well as to lower the cost of CO2capture and related processes. However, there has been less emphasis todate on system-level analyses of geological CO2 storage that considergeological, economic, and environmental issues by linking detailedrepresentations of engineering components and associated economic models.The objective of this study is to develop a system-level model forgeological CO2 storage, including CO2 capture and separation,compression, pipeline transportation to the storage site, and CO2injection. Within our system model we are incorporating detailedreservoir simulations of CO2 injection and potential leakage withassociated HSE effects. The platform of the system-level modelingisGoldSim [GoldSim, 2006]. The application of the system model is focusedon evaluating the feasibility of carbon sequestration with enhanced gasrecovery (CSEGR) in the Rio Vista region of California. The reservoirsimulations are performed using a special module of the TOUGH2 simulator,EOS7C, for multicomponent gas mixtures of methane and CO2 or methane andnitrogen. Using this approach, the economic benefits of enhanced gasrecovery can be directly weighed against the costs, risks, and benefitsof CO2 injection

Merger Externalities in Oligopolistic Markets

The spatial variability of layer-scale hydrogeologic properties of the unsaturated zone (UZ) at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, is investigated using inverse modeling. The thick UZ is grouped into five hydrostratigraphic units and further into 35 hydrogeologic layers. For each layer, lateral variability is represented by the variations in calibrated values of layer-scale properties at different individual deep boreholes. In the calibration model, matrix and fracture properties are calibrated for the one-dimensional vertical column at each individual borehole using the ITOUGH2 code. The objective function is the summation of the weighted misfits between the ambient unsaturated flow (represented by measured state variables: water saturation, water potential, and pneumatic pressure) and the simulated one in the one-dimensional flow system. The objective function also includes the weighted misfits between the calibrated properties and their prior information. Layer-scale state variables and prior rock properties are obtained from their core-scale measurements. Because of limited data, the lateral variability of three most sensitive properties (matrix permeability, matrix of the van Genuchten characterization, and fracture permeability) is calibrated, while all other properties are fixed at their calibrated layer-averaged values. Considerable lateral variability of hydrogeologic properties is obtained. For example, the lateral variability of is two to three orders of magnitude and that of and is one order of magnitude. The effect of lateral variability on site-scale flow and transport will be investigated in a future study

An Integrated Modeling Analysis of Unsaturated Flow Patterns inFractured Rock

Characterizing percolation patterns in unsaturated zones hasposed a greater challenge to numerical modeling investigations thancomparable saturated zone studies, because of the heterogeneous nature ofunsaturated media as well as the great number of variables impactingunsaturated zone flow. This paper presents an integrated modelingmethodology for quantitatively characterizing percolation patterns in theunsaturated zone of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, a proposed undergroundrepository site for storing high-level radioactive waste. It takes intoaccount the multiple coupled processes of air, water, heat flow andchemical isotopic transport in Yucca Mountain s highly heterogeneous,unsaturated fractured tuffs. The modeling approach integrates a widevariety of moisture, pneumatic, thermal, and isotopic geochemical fielddata into a comprehensive three-dimensional numerical model for modelinganalyses. Modeling results are examined against different types offield-measured data and then used to evaluate different hydrogeologicalconceptual models and their results of flow patterns in the unsaturatedzone. In particular, this integration model provides a much clearerunderstanding of percolation patterns and flow behavior through theunsaturated zone, both crucial issues in assessing repositoryperformance. The integrated approach for quantifying Yucca Mountain sflow system is also demonstrated to provide a comprehensive modeling toolfor characterizing flow and transport processes in complex subsurfacesystems

Analyzing flow patterns in unsaturated fractured rock of YuccaMountain using an integrated modeling approach

This paper presents a series of modeling investigations to characterize percolation patterns in the unsaturated zone of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, a proposed underground repository site for storing high-level radioactive waste. The investigations are conducted using a modeling approach that integrates a wide variety of moisture, pneumatic, thermal, and isotopic geochemical field data into a comprehensive three-dimensional numerical model through model calibration. This integrated modeling approach, based on a dual-continuum formulation, takes into account the coupled processes of fluid and heat flow and chemical isotopic transport in Yucca Mountain's highly heterogeneous, unsaturated fractured tuffs. In particular, the model results are examined against different types of field-measured data and used to evaluate different hydrogeological conceptual models and their effects on flow patterns in the unsaturated zone. The objective of this work to provide understanding of percolation patterns and flow behavior through the unsaturated zone, which is a crucial issue in assessing repository performance