MBDCI

Geomechanics and some Other Uses

2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

for Sedimentary Basins

Maurice Dusseault
 MBDCI

Some Other Uses for Basins

Carbon sequestration
 CO2 injection for EOR or for sequestration
 Direct injection of petroleum refinery coke

 Injection of organics (animal and human biosolids)

2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Waste disposal
 Waste water and slurried solids injection
 Diluted radioactive wastes and shale injection

Geothermal energy and thermal energy storage

Salt caverns and reservoirs for storage
Only a CO2 example will be presented
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Kuwait

Oil

Energy

CO2
Reservoirs
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

EOR

Technical issues

Economics?

Is Kuwait a good
area for CO2
sequestration as a
national policy?
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Geological CO2 Sequestration

Suitability of target reservoir
 Volume and storage capacity
 Permeability and continuity

 Quality of long-term geological seal

2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

 Existing access (wells) or easy access

 Location (near CO2 source?)

Availability of pure CO2

Technical issues arising
 Reservoir:
fluids, flow, rates
 Geomechanics: stresses, pressures, seals
 MBDCI

2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration CO2 Behavior

We must understand the behavior

of CO2 and the site conditions!
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration CO2 Behavior
MBDCI
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Pure CO2 Behavior

Gaseous state storage
 Low density, low viscosity, under low p, T

Liquid state storage
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

 High density, low , high p, low T <35C

 Not compatible with real reservoirs

Supercritical state, > 35C, > 7.2 MPa

 (>95F, > 1035 psi, approximately)
 Higher (0.25 0.88, very low )

 Miscible with water and oil

Hydrate formation low T, high p, +H2O

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Depth and CO2 State - II

Most reservoirs to Z = 3 0 0
20 40 60

km: hydrostatic T - C
gas
pressures ~10 kPa/m TSC

Pure CO2 is SC below gas
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

pSC
~750 m, if T > 35C
liquid

In general, CO2 is a 1000
liquid
supercritical fluid at Z >
800 m (~2620) SC-CO2

Otherwise, it is a gas or
a liquid, depending on p
2000
&T
Depth below
ground - m
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Depth and CO2 State - I

T increases w. depth 0 0
20 40 60

~20-25C/km T - C

In most areas, T > 35C TSC ~35C
below ~800 m
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

7.2 MPa

Only in cold conditions,
will pure CO2 be in a 1000

liquid state, mostly SC

In the presence of water
Practical
and high p, a CO2-H2O
conditions
Typical range
clathrate (hydrate) of Tfor CO
with depth
2
2000
forms placement
Depth below
ground - m
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Sealing Issues for CO2

Reservoir spill point, structure,

Quality of stratigraphic seal against SC-CO2
diffusion and percolation
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Can we count on capillary seals for SC-CO2?

Existence of potential breaches
 Penetrating faults, not fully sealed
 Sinkhole structures from carbonate karst features
or salt dissolution
 Fracture pathways through cap rock

And, of course, the wellbores

2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration Structure and Unconformities
MBDCI
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2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration Spill Point Seal

U of Saskatchewan
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Fault Structures
U of Saskatchewan
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Are faults seals or pathways

for SC-CO2? The answer may
be different than for gas or H2O flat fold
-capillary barrier impairment?
-miscibility with water, oil
-SC-CO2 very low density

lt
fau
-very low viscosity for SC-CO2
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2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration Stratigraphic Traps

How good are shale seals to super-

critical CO2 for 1000 -10,000 years?

U of Saskatchewan
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Geological Complexity

Are these overlying sealing

rocks fractured or not?
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Wara

3SU Mauddud
3SM

3SL
4S
Original oil -water contact

Combined structural and

stratigraphic traps in Kuwait
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration Are Fractures Open or Closed?

Source: N. Barton and A. Makurat

MBDCI
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Deep Fractured Carbonates

Kuwaiti fractured carbonates reservoirs for CO2

sequestration are of interest to our industry
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

World distribution of carbonate rocks

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Depth range is also excellent

To 10 km depth

Fractured carbonates

Sandstones
Huge storage volumes
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

exist

EOR potential as well
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} Too shallow?
} clastics (sandstones)
High porosity
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

} carbonates
Fractured

} low porosity?
Too deep and
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Zubair Sand

Top = -1500 m

Pressure = 15 MPa

Storage capacity is vast
Good porosity, good
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Shuaiba
permeability

This reservoir has a
large capacity for
disposal of carbon
dioxide and should be
carefully studied.
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration
MBDCI
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Raudhatain
Sabiriyah
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Ratqa Abdali

Iraq
SE Ratqa
Arabian
Bahrah Gulf
Kuwait Medina FAILAKA ISLAND

Khashman
Dharif
Abduliyah
KUBER ISLAND
Minagish

Saudi Arabia
Umm Gudair
Greater
Burgan QAROH ISLAND

UMM AL-MARADEM ISLAND

But, is it
AL-KHIRAN

Wafra
N
fully sealed?
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How do We Rank Candidates?

Kuwait has many options for CO2

Geological data varies from highly quantitative
to qualitative
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Some scheme is needed to rank reservoirs as

candidates

A methodology is presented here

The variables and weighting factors must be
chosen appropriately
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Heterogeneity
Geomechanical Earth Model

Faults

Youngs Modulus - MPa

MBDCI
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Disqualifiers

A set of absolute disqualifiers is chosen
 An open fault at the crest of the structure
 Too shallow for SC-CO2 placement

 No top seal (e.g. fractured cap rock)

2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

 Other criteria as well

If the candidate fails on any disqualifying

factor

It is rejected for CO2 placement

Uncertain cases are downgraded
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Important Parameters - Pi

Volume (porosity), thickness, dip

Permeability

Depth and temperature
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Presence of oil (EOR)

Proximity to CO2 source

Stress conditions (reservoir, cap rock)

Reservoir condition
 Penetrating wells and seal quality (t, k)

And so on
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Pi - Parameter Classification
Z - Depth Range Class Value

Less than 800 m 0

Y !
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

800 1200 m
NL 1
O
1200 2000 m
L E 3
P
2000 3000 m
AM 5
E X
> 3000 m 2
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration Sandstones - Heterogeneity
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Weighting Coefficients

Each parameter is weighted according to its
importance (a team of experts may decide this)

For example, 2 will have a high weight (1.0)
because its impact is great
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

D distance from CO2 source might be

weighted as 5 = 0.2

Then, W is calculated = iPi

W = 1Z + 2k + 3 V + 4EOR + 5D + 6 ...
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Weighting Coefficient Choice

Choices for i will be different for different
areas

One way to choose values is
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

 Convene a small panel of experts (geology,

reservoir, geomechanics)
 Let them choose a set of i values y concensus

Now, using the i values, we can look at the

robustness of the classification (candidate
ranking outcomes)

Also capturing the expert knowledge!
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Statistical Evaluation

Values of i are statistically varied (e.g. i =
0.5, varied from 0.3 to 0.7

Also, different parameter classes can be chosen
(see depth example)
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

Then, the robustness of the outcomes can be

studied

This allows the best candidates for CO2 use to
be identified
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Other Uses for Sedimentary Basins

CO2 placement for sequestration

Deep liquid disposal through injection wells
into suitable saline aquifers
2-D Petroleum Generation and Migration

 Strata clean the water over transit distance

Solids disposal as well (Duri, Indonesia)

Energy storage (natural gas, compressed gas?)

Salt caverns & reservoirs for liquids, gas

Geothermal energy (low grade, high grade)

Other ideas??