Expanding the Geographical Footprint of CO₂ Storage through Numerical Investigations of Industrial-Scale Carbon Sequestration

Abstract

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is a technology for reducing anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions by capturing CO₂ from point source emissions, such as fossil-fuel burning power plants, ethanol producers, and cement factories, or directly from the atmosphere and injecting the gas into deep geologic formations. This technology is rapidly being implemented by both public and private entities as a major technology for mitigating industrial and private contributions to climate change. However, to date, CCS has only been implemented in a small number of projects within a limited number of geologic systems. The goal of this work is to expand the types of geologic systems deemed feasible for carbon storage through numerical simulation demonstrations of the potential of understudied geologic systems for storing millions of tons of CO₂. This dissertation is the culmination of four projects: (1) an ensemble simulation study of the effects of spatially variable permeability for CO₂ storage in offshore settings, (2) a feasibility study on the CCS potential of Devonian-Silurian sandstones in the Pulaski Thrust system of Southwest Virginia for carbon storage, (3) a simulation study identifying major play types that could be utilized for commercial carbon storage within global fold-and-thrust belt geologies, and (4) a reactive transport simulation study on the storage security and trapping mechanisms of basalt-bounded saline aquifers such as those that exist in rift basins for carbon storage. These four studies provide a general framework for sequestering CO₂ within offshore basins, fold-and-thrust belts, and rift basins, demonstrating the feasibility of CCS within these geologies and paving the way for future site-specific CCS development.