Document Type
Article
Journal/Book Title/Conference
Nature Communications
Volume
7
Publisher
Macmillan Publishers Limited
Publication Date
7-28-2016
Abstract
Storage of anthropogenic CO2 in geological formations relies on a caprock as the primary seal preventing buoyant super-critical CO2 escaping. Although natural CO2 reservoirs demonstrate that CO2 may be stored safely for millions of years, uncertainty remains in predicting how caprocks will react with CO2-bearing brines. This uncertainty poses a significant challenge to the risk assessment of geological carbon storage. Here we describe mineral reaction fronts in a CO2 reservoir-caprock system exposed to CO2 over a timescale comparable with that needed for geological carbon storage. The propagation of the reaction front is retarded by redox-sensitive mineral dissolution reactions and carbonate precipitation, which reduces its penetration into the caprock to ~7 cm in ~105 years. This distance is an order-of-magnitude smaller than previous predictions. The results attest to the significance of transport-limited reactions to the long-term integrity of sealing behaviour in caprocks exposed to CO2.
Recommended Citation
Kampman, N.; Busch, A.; Bertier, P.; Snippe, J.; Hangx, S.; Pipich, V.; Di, Z.; Rother, G.; Harrington, J. F.; Evans, James P.; Maskell, A.; Chapman, H. J.; and Bickle, M. J., "Observational Evidence Confirms Modelling of the Long-Term Integrity of CO2-Reservoir Caprocks" (2016). Geosciences Faculty Publications. Paper 476.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/geology_facpub/476
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