PETROLEUM EXPLORATION AND DEVELOPMENT

Volume 36, Issue 2, April 2009

Online English edition of the Chinese language journal
Cite this article as: PETROL. EXPLOR. DEVELOP., 2009, 36(2): 216220.

RESEARCH PAPER

Methodology for estimation of CO2 storage capacity in

reservoirs
Shen Pingping1,*, Liao Xinwei2, Liu Qiujie1
1. PetroChina Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration & Development, Beijing 100083, China
2. China University of Petroleum, Beijing 102249, China

Abstract: The CO2 storage in reservoirs is one of the most effective ways of reducing the greenhouse gas emission, which is based on the
mechanisms of structural and stratigraphic trapping, residual gas trapping, dissolution trapping and mineral trapping. The CO2 storage
capacity in oil reservoirs includes theoretical, effective, practical and matched storage capacities. In the estimation of the CO2 storage capacity in both waterflooding and CO2 flooding oil reservoirs, theoretical and effective storage capacities can be obtained by the material
balance and analogy methods. The theoretical storage capacity represents the physical limit of what the reservoir system can accept. The
effective storage capacity represents a subset of the theoretical capacity and is obtained by applying a range of technical cut-off limits to a
storage capacity assessment which incorporate the cumulative effects of reservoir and fluid parameter. When the material balance method
is used, the amount of CO2 dissolution is not negligible. In using the analogy method, the key is to determine CO2 utilization factor. Examples show that the method is simple and convenient for the estimation of the CO2 storage capacity in China.
Key words: carbon dioxide; storage; waterflooding; carbon dioxide flooding; dissolution; algorithm

Introduction
As a result of excessive dependence on fossil fuels, emission of greenhouse gases (mainly carbon dioxide) from industrial production and human activities is increasing. The resulting air pollution and greenhouse effect is seriously threatened to the environment where human survives. One of the
most effective ways to reduce GHG emission is to store CO2
in geologic bodies, such as coalbed, deep saline aquifers and
oil and gas reservoirs. Comparing with coalbed and deep saline aquifers, oil reservoir is much better explored and developed, with clearer characteristics and more data available.
Moreover, CO2 storage in oil reservoirs can not only reduce
the GHG emission, but also improve the oil recovery. Therefore, CO2 storage in reservoirs is the most economical and
reliable technology at present. To apply it, the CO2 storage
potential must be evaluated first to determine the maximum
theoretical storage capacity and effective storage capacity of
CO2 in reservoirs.
Predecessors have studied the calculation methods (mainly
for depleted reservoir) for CO2 storage capacity in reservoirs
[1-11]
, and have made evaluation on the study area. The authors
make a systematical study on the calculation method for CO2
storage capacity after calibrating existing method and considering the practical waterflooding operations in Chinese reser-

voirs and the CO2 dissolution in crude oil and water. This paper will introduce the methods in terms of theoretical storage
capacity and effective storage capacity, thus to provide a technical tool to evaluate the CO2 storage potential in reservoirs in
China.

1 CO2 storage mechanism and capacity classification in reservoirs

Fig. 1 shows that CO2 storage in reservoirs[3-5] is realized

Fig. 1 Mechanism of CO2 storage in reservoir

Received date: 30 December 2008; Revised date: 10 January 2009

* Corresponding author. E-mail: spp@petrochina.com.cn
Foundation item: Supported by the 973 Project (2006CB705800) and the Ministry of Education New Century Talents Support Program.
Copyright 2009, Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, PetroChina. Published by Elsevier BV. All rights reserved.

Shen Pingping et al. / Petroleum Exploration and Development, 2009, 36(2): 216220

through structural space and bond space, dissolution trapping

and mineral trapping, of which first two are the most important storage modes. Therefore, it is the key for calculating
theoretical storage capacity of CO2 in reservoirs to determine
the geometrical space providing for CO2 storage. With CO2
storage duration increases, the dissolution of CO2 in crude oil
and water is not negligible. It should be considered in calculation.
Based on literatures [3-5], CO2 storage potential in geologic
bodies includes four levels theoretical, effective, practical and
matched storage capacities. Theoretical storage capacity represents the physical limit of what the geological system can accept,
and it constitutes the entire resource pyramid. Effective storage
capacity considers the factors technically, such as property of
reservoir, seal ability, storage depth, pressure systems and pore
volume; it is a subset of theoretical storage capacity. Practical
storage capacity is a subset of effective storage capacity by considering technical, legal and regulatory, infrastructural and economic conditions. Matched storage capacity is a subset of practical storage capacity by considering CO2 sources, injectivity
and supply. Depending on evaluation purposes and storage
modes, different calculation methods are required in order to
estimate potential CO2 storage capacity. Generally, practical
storage capacity and matched storage capacity should be calculated only for a given reservoir and relevant conditions. The key
is to determine theoretical storage capacity and effective storage
capacity when CO2 storage sites in reservoirs are screened initially. This paper will discuss the calculations methods for these
two capacities.

2 Calculation methods of CO2 storage capacity in

reservoirs
The calculation method of CO2 storage capacity in reservoir
depends on the storage mechanism, and also the reservoir
status. There are two types of reservoirs in China for CO2
storage, namely post-waterflooding reservoir and CO2 flooding reservoir (for reservoir that is hard to produce by waterflooding). The following sections will discuss the calculation
methods and matters of theoretical and effective storage capacities for these reservoirs.
2.1

Calculation method of theoretical storage capacity

Current calculation methods of CO2 theoretical storage capacity and effective storage capacity in reservoirs are established on the basis of material balance equation with the assumption of all geometrical space of produced oil and gas can
be used for CO2 storage. The relevant researchers from USDOE, European Commission and the Carbon Sequestration
Leadership Forum (CSLF) have further investigated the calculation methods for CO2 theoretical storage capacity in reservoir, which were established on the basis of an assumption
that reservoirs are not in contact with an aquifer, or that the
reservoir is not floodout during secondary and tertiary oil recoveries. In China, most oilfields are developed by waterflooding. The paper proposes the calculation methods for CO2

theoretical storage capacity, which considers CO2 dissolution,

according to the characteristics of waterflooding reservoir
development in China and CO2 storage mechanism.
2.1.1 Calculation method of theoretical storage capacity
for waterflooding reservoirs
The method assumes reservoir pressure to build up the
original reservoir pressure when CO2 is injected to the reservoir, i.e., the free space left by the produced oil and gas is
wholly occupied by CO2, and CO2 may dissolve into crude oil
and water during injection. CO2 storage capacity can be expressed by the following equation.

Ur

>ER AhI (1  S wi )  Viw  Vpw  Cws u

109
 AhI Swi  Viw  Vpw   Cos 1  ER  AhI 1  Sw 
Mt

(1)
Where
Mttheoretical storage capacity of CO2 in reservoir, 106 t;
rdensity of CO2 under reservoir condition, kg/m3;
ERthe oil recovery factor, f; Areservoir area, m2;
hreservoir thickness, m; reservoir porosity, f;
Swiirreducible water saturation, f; Viwinjected water
volume, m3; Vpwproduced water volume from reservoir,
m3; Cwsdissolution coefficient of CO2 in water, f;
Cosdissolution coefficient of CO2 in crude oil, f.
In Eq. 1, CO2 theoretical storage capacity consists of three
parts, i.e. the part stored by structural space (including bond
space), the part dissolved in water and the part dissolved in
crude oil.
2.1.2 Calculation method of theoretical storage capacity
for co2 flooding reservoir
CO2-EOR technology is used in the USA more than other
countries. US experience shows that about 40% of injected
CO2 is produced. Based on this, Bachu S et al[7] proposed the
calculations methods of CO2 theoretical storage capacity before and after CO2 breakthrough when CO2 is used for EOR.
In this respect, the authors establish the equation taking into
account the injected water, produced water and CO2 dissolution in reservoir.
Before CO2 breakthrough:

Ur

>ERb AhI (1  S wi )  Viw  Vpw  Cws u

109
 AhI Swi  Viw  Vpw   Cos 1  ERb  AhI 1  Swi 
Mt

(2)
After CO2 breakthrough

Ur

>(0.4ERb  0.6ERh ) AhI (1  S wi )  Viw 

109
Vpw  Cws  AhI S w  Viw  Vpw   Cos 1 
Mt

0.4 ERb  0.6 ERh  AhI 1  S wi 

Where

(3)

Shen Pingping et al. / Petroleum Exploration and Development, 2009, 36(2): 216220

ERboil recovery before CO2 breakthrough, f;

ERhoil recovery when certain CO2 is injected, f.
In the above equations, the key is to determine the oil recovery factor. Generally, it can be achieved by the reservoir
numerical simulation or empirical formula [11-15].
2.2

Table 1
jects[12]
Project

Weyburn

Calculation method of effective storage capacity

Willard-Wasson

The effective storage capacity considers such factors as

reservoir property, sealing ability, storage depth, pressure
systems and pore volume based on theoretical storage capacity,
namely it will be impacted by the fluid mobility, gravity separation reservoir heterogeneity and underground water body etc.
Therefore, it cannot reach to the ideal theoretical storage capacity.
The effective storage capacity is given by following equation by taking into account buoyancy, gravity override, mobility ratio, reservoir heterogeneity, water saturation and strength
of the underground water body etc, based on theoretical storage capacity calculation method.
Me=Ce Mt=Cm Cb Ch Cw Ca Mt
(4)
Where
Meeffective storage capacity of CO2 in reservoir, 106 t;
Ceeffective storage coefficient affected by all factors, f;
Cmeffective storage coefficient affected by mobility, f;
Cbeffective storage coefficient affected by buoyancy, f;
Cheffective storage coefficient affected by reservoir heterogeneity, f; Cweffective storage coefficient affected by
water saturation, f; Caeffective storage coefficient affected by underground water body, f.
The determination of above coefficients will be generally
achieved by numerical simulation or empirical methods[7].
Eq.4 is suitable for calculating CO2 effective storage capacity
for both waterflooding reservoir and CO2 flooding reservoir.
2.3 Calculation method of CO2 storage capacity based on
analogy method
The analogy method is used to calculate CO2 storage capacity based on the experiences of CO2 flooding EOR demonstration projects on sites and by analogy analysis of the reservoir
parameters and development status. The method is mainly
used for the CO2 storage calculation for CO2 flooding EOR
reservoirs. Many countries and organizations including USA
and EU have conducted a lot of activities regarding CO2-EOR
and obtained valuable experiences. On this basis, the CO2
utilization coefficient is also introduced to calculate CO2 storage capacity by:

Me

106 N p RCO2

CO2 utilization coefficients used in overseas CO2 pro-

(5)

Where
Npproduced oil because of CO2 injection, m3;
RCO2 CO2 utilization coefficient, i.e., the ratio of injected
CO2 to. produced oil, t/m3.
How to determine CO2 utilization coefficient and incremental oil is the key to calculate CO2 storage capacity by the
analogy method. The unitization coefficient can be gained by

SAROC in Main CO2

injection
SACROC pilot

CO2 Utilization coefficient/(tm-3)

0.9435
1.0693-1.3838
1.6354
1.7612-4.9062

Little Creek

4.7804

Permian, North Sea

1.8870

Aver. Value of Miscible

2.1134

Aver. Value of Immiscible

3.5161

Ref.
Wilson,
2000
Stalkup,
1984
Stalkup,
1984
Stalkup,
1984
Stalkup,
1984
Espie,
2000
Stevens,
1999
Stevens,
1999

referring to projects conducted or the numerical simulation

method. Table 1 shows CO2 utilization coefficients [12] used in
major international CO2 projects.
It can be seen in Table 1 that, the CO2 utilization coefficient
vary by areas, ranging from 0.9-5.0 t/m3. It is proposed in
literature [12] that CO2 utilization coefficients are divided into
three grades: maximum, moderate and minimum, with their
values setting at 5.0 t/m3, 3.0 t/m3 and 1.0 t/m3 respectively.
If the produced oil because of CO2 injection is unknown in
Eq. (5), following Eq. (6) may be used.
NP=ERe No C
(6)
Where
EReRecovery increment amplitude after CO2 injection,
f; NoOOIP, 109 m3; Ccontact coefficient of CO2 and
crude oil, f, being 0.75 normally[6].
EOR after CO2 injection can be calculated with analogy,
reservoir numerical simulation or empirical formula. Stevens
[6]
investigated the data on CO2 -EOR in seven Permian basins
and defined the empirical correlation between crude gravity
and recovery increment amplitude after CO2. In literature [12],
recovery increment amplitude after CO2 injection is divided
into three grades: maximum, moderate and minimum, with
their values setting at 0.20, 0.12 and 0.05 respectively.

Case calculations

There are 21 block in an oilfield in China that can be used

for CO2 storage, with current OOIP of 119 212104 t, ultimate
oil recovery factor of 0.2, average formation pressure of 22.0
MPa, average temperature of 93, CO2 and crude oil densities of 750.0 kg/m3 and 856.0 kg/m3 respectively under reservoir conditions, crude oil volume factor being 1.17, and the
dissolution factor of CO2 in crude oil and water being 0.35
and 0.05 respectively.
3.1

Calculation of theoretical storage capacity

According to Eq.1, theoretical storage capacity of 24 186

104 t is stored in the free space, the theoretical storage capacity
of water dissolution is 8 062 104 t, the theoretical storage

Shen Pingping et al. / Petroleum Exploration and Development, 2009, 36(2): 216220

capacity of crude oil dissolution is 44 632 104 t, therefore,

total theoretical storage capacity of CO2 is 76 880 104 t. The
calculation shows that the CO2 dissolution in crude oil takes
higher percentage.
3.2

Calculation of effective storage capacity

According to Eq.4, effective storage coefficients of all the

factors should be obtained by reservoir numerical simulation.
If as defined in literature [1], 0.25 is taken as the effective
storage coefficient affected by all factors, the effective storage
capacity is 19 200 104 t.
3.3

Calculation by analogy method

Two manners are used to determine CO2 utilization coefficient in the analogy method. One takes value referring to foreign literatures, and another one uses numerical simulation
results of typical blocks in this region.
3.3.1 Determination of CO2 storage capacity by referring
to foreign literatures
As stated above, CO2 utilization coefficient can be divided
into three grades: maximum, moderate and minimum, with
their values setting at 5.0 t/m3, 3.0 t/m3 and 1.0 t/m3 respectively, EOR after CO2 injection is divided into three grades:
maximum, moderate and minimum, with values setting at
0.20, 0.12 and 0.05 respectively. Eq. 5 and 6 are used to
calculate CO2 storage capacity (Table 2). Total storage capacity for such three grades is 89 412104 t, 32 186 104 t
and 4 470104 t respectively. CO2 storage capacity for the
maximum grade is equal to theoretical storage capacity obtained in above calculation, and the effective storage capacity ranges between the moderate grade and the minimum
grade.
3.3.2 Determination of storage capacity based on reservoir cases
CO2 utilization coefficient is determined by reservoir numerical simulation of a typical block in this oilfield, and EOR
is obtained by potential prediction model of CO2 flooding.
There are 21 blocks assessed by case analysis, with results
shown in Table 3. It is confirmed that eleven blocks (A to K)
are suitable for CO2 immiscible flooding to enhance oil recovery, with EOR ranging from 7.0% to 9.0%; ten blocks (L
to U) are suitable for CO2 miscible flooding to enhance oil
recovery, with EOR ranging from 9.0% to 15.0%. Also, based
on the CO2 utilization coefficient obtained by numerical
stimulation for block H (1.5935 t/m3), total CO2 storage capacity is defined as 14 988104 t by the calculation of Eq.5
and 6. The value is equal to the effective storage capacity obtained above (19 220104 t).

Conclusions and recognitions

The paper presents that calculation of CO2 storage capacity

should consider reservoir space and must take into account the
fluid dissolution in reservoir, according to characteristics that

Table 2 Calculation of effective storage capacity by referring to

foreign literatures
Block
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
Total

OOIP/
104 t
7 332
341
724
9 808
19 558
567
4 549
2 227
106
4 211
140
7 292
13 999
12 306
1 105
3 177
9 807
1 502
5 838
12 602
2 021
119 212

Max. Stor./
104 t
5 499
256
543
7 356
14 669
425
3 412
1 670
80
3 158
105
5 469
10 499
9 230
829
2 383
7 355
1 127
4 379
9 452
1 516
89 412

Mid. Stor./
104 t
1 980
92
195
2 648
5 281
153
1 228
601
29
1 137
38
1 969
3 780
3 322
298
858
2 648
405
1 576
3 402
546
32 186

Min. Stor./
104 t
275
13
27
368
733
21
171
84
4
158
5
273
525
461
41
119
368
56
219
473
76
4 470

Table 3 Calculation of effective storage capacity based on reservoir evaluation

Effective storage potential for CO2
immiscible flooding
OOIP/
Eff. Stor.
Block
EOR/%
104 t
/104 t
A
7 332
8.0
701
B
341
7.0
29
C
724
8.0
69
D
9 808
9.0
1055
E
19 558
7.0
1 636
F
567
7.0
47
G
4 549
8.0
435
H
2 227
9.0
240
I
106
8.0
10
J
4 211
8.0
403
K
140
8.0
13

Effective storage potential for CO2

Block
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U

miscible flooding
OOIP/
Eff.
EOR/%
104 t
Stor./104 t
7 292
12.0
1046
13 999
12.0
2008
12 306
14.0
2 059
1105
15.0
198
3 177
12.0
457
9 807
12.0
1 406
1 502
12.0
215
5 838
12.0
837
12 602
12.0
1 907
2 021
9.0
217

most Chinese oilfields adopt the development by waterflooding. A systematic study is made on calculation method of
theoretical storage and effective storage capacities of CO2 in
reservoir, providing reference for CO2 storage potential
evaluation for oilfields in China.
Calculation method of CO2 storage capacity in reservoir can
be determined mainly by the material balance and analogy
methods, for which the key parameters are to be obtained by
reservoir numerical simulation or empirical methods.
When the material balance method is used, the amount of
CO2 dissolute in oil has much percentage, which can not be
neglected. When the analogy method is used, CO2 utilization
coefficient is a key parameter. The results prove that the
analogy method can obtain more credible storage potential of
CO2 when CO2 utilization coefficient is determined through
case analysis.

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