Numerical simulation and optimization of CO2 enhanced gas recovery in homogeneous and vertical heterogeneous reservoir models

CO2 enhanced gas recovery (CO2-EGR) is a promising, environment-friendly technology with simultaneously sequestering CO2. The goals of this paper are to conduct simulations of CO2-EGR in both homogeneous and heterogeneous reservoirs to evaluate effects of gravity and reservoir heterogeneity, and to determine optimal CO2 injection time and injection rate for achieving better natural gas recovery by employing a genetic algorithm integrated with TOUGH2. The results show that gravity segregation retards upward migration of CO2 and promotes horizontal displacement efficiency, and the layers with low permeability in heterogeneous reservoir hinder the upward migration of CO2. The optimal injection time is determined as the depleted stage, and the corresponding injection rate is optimized. The optimal recovery factors are 62.83 % and 64.75 % in the homogeneous and heterogeneous reservoirs (804.76 m × 804.76 m × 45.72 m), enhancing production by 22.32 × 103 and 23.00 × 103 t of natural gas and storing 75.60 × 103 and 72.40 × 103 t CO2 with storage efficiencies of 70.55 % and 67.56 %, respectively. The cost/benefit analysis show that economic income of about 8.67 and 8.95 million USD can be obtained by CO2-EGR with optimized injection parameters respectively. This work could assist in determining optimal injection strategy and economic benefits for industrial scale gas reservoirs.

Co-Optimization of CO2 Storage and Enhanced Gas Recovery Using Carbonated Water and Supercritical CO2

CO2-based enhanced gas recovery (EGR) is an appealing method with the dual benefit of improving recovery from mature gas reservoirs and storing CO2 in the subsurface, thereby reducing net emissions. However, CO2 injection for EGR has the drawback of excessive mixing with the methane gas, therefore, reducing the quality of gas produced and leading to an early breakthrough of CO2. Although this issue has been identified as a major obstacle in CO2-based EGR, few strategies have been suggested to mitigate this problem. We propose a novel hybrid EGR method that involves the injection of a slug of carbonated water before beginning CO2 injection. While still ensuring CO2 storage, carbonated water hinders CO2-methane mixing and reduces CO2 mobility, therefore delaying breakthrough. We use reservoir simulation to assess the feasibility and benefit of the proposed method. Through a structured design of experiments (DoE) framework, we perform sensitivity analysis, uncertainty assessment, and optimization to identify the ideal operation and transition conditions. Results show that the proposed method only requires a small amount of carbonated water injected up to 3% pore volumes. This EGR scheme is mainly influenced by the heterogeneity of the reservoir, slug volume injected, and production rates. Through Monte Carlo simulations, we demonstrate that high recovery factors and storage ratios can be achieved while keeping recycled CO2 ratios low.

Numerical Simulation and Modeling on CO2 Sequestration Coupled with Enhanced Gas Recovery in Shale Gas Reservoirs

CO2 geological sequestration in shale is a promising method to mitigate global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions as well as to enhance the gas recovery to some degree, which effectively addresses the problems related to energy demand and climate change. With the data from the New Albany Shale in the Illinois Basin in the United States, the CMG-GEM simulator is applied to establish a numerical model to evaluate the feasibility of CO2 sequestration in shale gas reservoirs with potential enhanced gas recovery (EGR). To represent the matrix, natural fractures, and hydraulic fractures in shale gas reservoirs, a multicontinua porous medium model will be developed. Darcy’s and Forchheimer’s models and desorption-adsorption models with a mixing rule will be incorporated into the multicontinua numerical model to depict the three-stage flow mechanism, including convective gas flow mainly in fractures, dispersive gas transport in macropores, and CH4-CO2 competitive sorption phenomenon in micropores. With the established shale reservoir model, different CO2 injection schemes (continuous injection vs. pulse injection) for CO2 sequestration in shale gas reservoirs are investigated. Meanwhile, a sensitivity analysis of the reservoir permeability between the hydraulic fractures of production and injection wells is conducted to quantify its influence on reservoir performance. The permeability multipliers are 10, 100, and 1,000 for the sensitivity study. The results indicate that CO2 can be effectively sequestered in shale reservoirs. But the EGR of both injection schemes does not perform well as expected. In the field application, it is necessary to take the efficiency of supplemental energy utilization, the CO2 sequestration ratio, and the effect of injected CO2 on the purity of produced methane into consideration to design an optimal execution plan. The case with a permeability multiplier of 1,000 meets the demand for both CO2 sequestration and EGR, which indicates that a moderate secondary stimulation zone needs to be formed between the primary hydraulic fractures of injection and production wells to facilitate the efficient energy transfer between interwell as well as to prevent CO2 from channeling. To meet the demand for CO2 sequestration in shale gas reservoirs with EGR, advanced and effective fracking is essential.