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Permanent Electromagnetic Monitoring of CO@ Sequestration in Deep Reservoirs

Award Information
Agency: Department of Energy
Branch: N/A
Contract: DE-FG02-12ER90388
Agency Tracking Number: 87670
Amount: $149,991.00
Phase: Phase I
Program: SBIR
Solicitation Topic Code: 17 c
Solicitation Number: DE-FOA-0000628
Timeline
Solicitation Year: 2012
Award Year: 2012
Award Start Date (Proposal Award Date): 2012-06-28
Award End Date (Contract End Date): 2013-03-27
Small Business Information
3895 Clairemont Dr. Suite 101-266
San Diego, CA 92117-5833
United States
DUNS: 968252382
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: No
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: No
Principal Investigator
 Andrew Hibbs
 Dr.
 (858) 373-0232
 ahibbs@groundmetrics.com
Business Contact
 Gayle Guy
Title: Ms.
Phone: (858) 412-1839
Email: gguy@groundmetrics.com
Research Institution
 Stub
Abstract

Most schemes currently proposed for carbon sequestration rely on storing CO2 in a supercritical state in deep saline reservoirs where buoyancy forces drive the injected CO2 upward in the aquifer until a seal is reached. The permanence of this type of sequestration depends entirely on the long-term geological integrity of the seal. In this SBIR project, we propose the development of an integrated electromagnetic (EM) acquisition, processing and imaging system for the permanent monitoring, verification, and accounting of CO2 in deep saline aquifers. The system will be capable of producing time-lapsed 3D resistivity images of the CO2 container and its geological integrity. Electric (E) field have superior sensitivity to variations in formation resistivity compared to magnetic fields. However, this has historically meant using galvanic electrodes which rely on electrochemical coupling. It is unfeasible to permanently deploy these electrodes. We will apply a new type of electric (E) field sensor developed by GMI which employs chemically inert electrodes that capacitively couple to the E-field. This coupling is a purely electromagnetic phenomenon, which, to first order, has no temperature, ionic concentration or corrosion effects. These factors are critical for year-round deployment and should result in an operational lifetime of many years, even when exposed to extreme environmental conditions. In addition, the E-field sensor employs ultra-high impedance feedback techniques to provide unprecedented gain and phase accuracy under varying ground moisture conditions. To monitor, verify, and account for CO2, the EM data will be processed to produce 3D resistivity images. However, the resistivity characteristics of different CO2 states are poorly understood. This is largely because there has been an absence of an adequate rock physics model which can describe different states of CO2, and which can be used as a constraint on the 3D inversion of the measured EM data. For in-situ rock property and fluid content determination using EM, we will develop our 3D imaging based on rigorous 3D modeling and inversion of the EM responses with the generalized effective medium theory of induced polarization (GEMTIP), which directly relates the observed electric fields to rock and fluid properties such as fraction volume, grain size, grain shape, porosity, fluid saturation, conductivity and polarizability. Phase I will provide the first accurate projection of the feasibility and cost of deploying a practical EM-based measurement system for monitoring CO2 in deep saline aquifers. These results will enable us to define a proof-of-concept scaled-down measurement system for quantifying CO2 saturation, or an equivalent physical variable, at a test site in Phase II. Commercial applications for the technology exist in the oil industry, resource exploration and geophysics.

* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *

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