1. CO2 Sequestration and Climate: Forefront
Technologies in the Pacific Northwest
B. Peter McGrail, Ph.D
Laboratory Fellow
Energy & Environment Directorate
Washington Society of Professional Engineer’s Conference
Seattle, Washington
May 15, 2009

2. Historical Record of Atmospheric
CO2 Concentrations
400
CO2 Concentration (ppmv)
350
300
250
200
150
50000 40000 30000 20000 10000 0
Time (yr BP)

3. Climate change is a long-term strategic
problem with implications for today 20
Global Fossil Fuel Carbon Emissions Gigatons per Year
Historical Emissions
Stabilizing atmospheric concentrations of GTSP_750
GTSP_650
greenhouse gases and not their annual 15 GTSP_550
GTSP_450
emissions levels should be the strategic GTSP Reference Case
goal of climate policy 10
A fixed and finite amount of CO2 can be 5
released to the atmosphere over the
course of this century -
1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 2100 2150 2200 2250 2300
Every ton of emissions released to the
atmosphere reduces the budget left for Stabilization of CO2 at 550 ppm
1600
future generations History Future
Oil
1400
As we move forward in time and the Natural Gas
.
Coal
planetary emissions budget is drawn
Global Primary Energy 1850-2100 (Exajoules)
1200 Biomass Energy
down, the remaining allowable emissions Non-Biomass Renewable Energy
1000
will become more valuable Oil + CCS
Natural Gas + CCS
CO2 capture and storage (CCS) plays a 800
Coal + CCS
Nuclear Energy
large role but… 600 End-use Energy
Government and industry must make
adequate provision for its use 400
CCS is not a silver bullet
200
0
1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 2100
3

4. Coal Gasification Integrated with CO2
Capture Conventional Gas Cleanup PRODUCT CO2
ABSORBER VENT
Sulfur
Coal
ASU
DEMIN WATER MAKEUP
CW
CW
CW
H2
CO2 to
LP
Sequestration LP
WGS STEAM
STEAM
Reactor Gas Separator
FLUE GAS
FEED
WASTE TO
EXCESS DISPOSAL
CW
WATER
SODA ASH
MAKEUP
SOLVENT

5. Metal-Organic Solid Sorbent Technology
Several classes of organic solids (including
clathrates) are stable at high temperatures
(250°C+)
Cage/pore properties can be tailored to
targeted guest
Molecular engineered selectivity for CO2
(or other gases)
Can be produced in engineered structures,
i.e. thin films, membranes, microporous
materials
No covalent/ionic chemical bonds involved
– gas separation and retrieval cycles
performed without degradation of the host

6. New Technologies Offer Breakthroughs in
CO2 Capture Economics
Coordination solid based on
hydroxytetephalic acid and various metals
Porous tubular network
25 wt% CO2 uptake at 1 bar and RT (4X amine solvents)
No uptake of N2 at 1 bar
Absorbs SO2 without degradation of material
Heat of regeneration <140 BTU/lb-CO2 versus 710 BTU/lb-CO2 for
MEA

7. Worldwide Portfolio of CCS Projects
7

8. Generic Sequestration System
CO2 Phase Diagram
8

9. Reservoir Simulation of CO2 Injection

10. The Sequestration System Design
“Pentagon” Capture system
Pipeline
ity Le Wellbore
bil ga
l
Lia &
Lia Reservoir(s)
l& Monitoring
ga Verification bil
ity
Le Accounting
Systems
Control and
Delivery Data
Infrastructure Acquisition
Systems
ity
Le
iabil
gal &
L
gal &
Liabil
Cost
Le
Permitting
Estimation
ity
Legal & Liability

11. The CCS and Power Plant Developer Nexus
CCS introduces a new
and unfamiliar paradigm Outline of Incised Valley (>50
ft Muddy thickness) Thins
may indicate areas with
for power plant preserved Rozet remnants
developers
Traditional siting factors
(water, transmission lines, Rozet Member, largely
fuel cost) no longer solely continuous to the east;
variable porosity
determine project viability should offer the
possibility of multiple,
segregated aquifers.
Suitable geology for
sequestration or buyer for Gas - Red
Oil - Green
CO2 required Water - Blue
Production ratios tend to
distinguish Springen Ranch vs
400 to 700 acre plant Ute Members. No Rozet
production this immediate area.
boundary expands to
5000 to 10,000 acre AOI

12. Integrated Sequestration System Design
Wellbore Design Po Pipeline Design
Reservoir Simulation
Pb To Po
&
m m& To
m&
TCO2 TCO2
Pipeline design
Geological data specifications
Hydrologic data
Heat transfer
Geochemical data parameters
Initial and boundary Well design parameters
conditions Soil temperature
Heat transfer parameters
CO2 EOS
Boundary conditions
CO2 EOS
• Plant specifications
12

13. Coupled Thermohydraulic Modeling
One dimensional finite-difference flow model
CO2 properties computed from equation of state (Span and Wagner,
1996)
Heat transfer from soil (pipeline) and surrounding rock (wellbore)
⎡ 64 744 6447448 64 744 ⎤
4
frictional loss
8 gravity head
4 8
flow acceleration
j +1 ⎢
fG (Vi + Vi −1 ) (ρi + ρi −1 ) sin α + G (V − V ) ⎥
p j = p1 − ΔL ∑ ⎢ −g i −1 ⎥
ΔL
i
i =2 ⎢ 4D 2 ⎥
⎢
⎣ ⎥
⎦
⎡ heat transfer 64 energy 64748 gravitational energy ⎤
}
potential
74 8 kinetic energy
j +1 ⎢ 6 74 ⎥
4 8
Qi ⎛ pi pi −1 ⎞ 1 2
u j = u1 + ∑ ⎢ ΔL − ⎜ − ⎟ − (Vi − Vi −1 ) + g ΔL sin α ⎥
2
i =2 ⎢ m ⎝ ρi ρi −1 ⎠ 2 ⎥
⎢
⎣ ⎥
⎦
13

14. Major Features at Each Candidate Site
Jewett Odessa Mattoon Tuscola
Woodbine Delaware Sands Mt. Simon Mt. Simon
• 5K to 6K ft plus Queen • 6K to 7K ft • 6K to 7K ft
• 1 injection well • 3K to 5K ft • 1 injection well • 1 injection well
• 10 vertical • Injection on plant • Install ~10-miles of
Travis Peak injection wells site new pipeline
• R&D Potential
• Use all or part of • No nearby wells • No nearby wells
• 10K to 12K ft existing pipeline penetrate penetrate primary
• 5 Wells (1 injector/4 (56 miles total)
production primary seal seal
• Near-by wells
• Install ~30-miles of new
pipeline
• Near-by wells

15. Depth In
Feet
1000
Major
Features:
Comparison
of Sites by
5000 Depth
5600’
7750’
8350’
Seal
Injection
10000
11,500’

16. Design Data Comparison By Site (130 MMscfd)
Parameter Units Illinois Illinois Texas Texas Odessa
Mattoon Tuscola Jewett
Pipeline miles 0 11.0 52.5 86
Well Connector Pipe miles 0.5 2 1 8
#Wells 1 1 1 10
Injection Tubing OD inches 5.5 5.5 5.5 2.88
Injection Tubing ID (Drift) inches 4.55 4.55 4.55 2.17
Depth to Reservoir feet 6950 6150 4800 2900
Pipeline Inlet Pressure psi 2140-2160 1720-2030 1800-2160 1410-1630
Wellhead Pressure psi 2140-2160 1690-2010 1740-2100 1320-1520
Required BHP psi 3096 2790 2760 2190
In situ Temperature °F 138 130 153 107
Predicted Temp °F 117-118 90-114 69-109 62-101
Pipe Diameter inches 16 16 18 18
Operating at lower pressure in winter can save
$300K to $400K per year in compression costs
16

17. Nonisothermal Simulations with STOMP-CO2
• Woodbine formation, Brazos, Texas
• Field temperature of 68° C with a geothermal gradient
• Injection temperature between 21° C and 43° C
• 50 MMT Injection for 27.34 years with two 28-day plant shutdowns per year
• 50-year simulation period
Temperature, 20° C (blue) - 70° C (red)
17

18. Nonisothermal Simulations with
STOMP-CO2e
• Woodbine formation, Brazos, Texas
• Field temperature of 68° C with a
geothermal gradient
• Injection temperature between 21° C and
43° C
• 50 MMT Injection for 27.34 years with two
28-day plant shutdowns per year
• 50-year simulation period
Dissolved CO2 Concentration, 0.0 (blue) - 0.07 gm/cm3 (red)
18

19. Liquid CO2 (~2500 ppmw H2O, 298 ppmw H2S)
CO2 Purity Effects
Pipeline regulations vary widely
for H2S Pipeline
20 ppm K-M Central Basin system steel
200 ppm Petrosource
10,000 ppm Weyburn
As much as 70% H2S transported
and injected in Canada
Pipeline water content Columbia River Basalt
specifications vary widely and are 90°C, 41 days, 10.2 MPa
related to H2S content in CO2 11,935 ppmw H2S
stream
Dry CO2 and CO2-H2S streams are
unreactive with pipeline steels
Knowledge gap for CO2 streams
containing intermediate water content
Water saturated CO2 phase in pyrite
geologic reservoir
Lack of industry experience and
even basic science studies with
CO2-SO2-H2O systems

20. Principal Legal “Hurdles” in CCS Projects
“Hurdles”
Mineral rights
Complex law and varies state to state
Severed ownership issues
CO2 Storage Deed
Landowner cooperation required over much larger area than traditional
power plant
Liability issues remain unresolved except for specific instances
Texas and Illinois passed liability legislation specific to the FutureGen
project
States that have passed CCS legislation (i.e. WA and WY) have not
addressed liability
Establishment of Trust Funds (State administered) seem to be an often
cited approach
Industry stepping into market (Zurich Financial Services Group, AIG)
20

21. Example of Land Ownership Issues
on a Small CCS Project

22. MVA Tool Suite
Atmospheric Monitoring
Eddy covariance
Accumulation chambers
LIDAR
Remote Sensing
Color infrared orthoimagery
Aerial photography/spectroscopy
Tiltmeter
Gravimetric interferometry
Vadose Zone
Infrared Gas Analyzers
Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy
(LIBS)
Isotope Mass Spectrometry
GC/MS
Geophysical Methods
Electromagnetic Induction
High Resolution Electrical Resistivity
Dedicated Seismic Array Network
Mobile Seismic Surveys
Groundwater Monitoring
Shallow and Deep Monitoring Wells
Water chemistry analysis by ICP-MS and a
variety of other methods

23. Big Sky Carbon Sequestration Partnership
23

24. Pilot Project Partners
Research Institutions (universities, labs, others)
MSU, UI, Columbia University, INL, Oregon State University
Department of Natural Resources
International Collaborators
Institut de Physique du Globe (France)
National Geophysical Research Institute (India)
Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry (Russia)
Industry
Boise White Paper L.L.C.
Shell Oil Company
Portland General Electric
Others
24

25. Layered Basalt Flows
Interflow zones have properties that
allow fluids to move in and out
Overlying flow interiors have
extremely low permeability and act
as caprock seals
25

26. Lab Experiments with Columbia River Basalt
Indirect: Rock-Water-CO2
Direct: Rock-CO2-solvated water
What happens with impurities in the CO2 stream?
Some basalts (like CRB) react even Other basalts form armoring coatings
faster that reduce carbonate formation
Basalt Reacts with Supercritical CO2 in both the Aqueous and Gas Phase
to Form Carbonates
26

27. Why this Area?
Hanford Site
License area
Snake River
+
Field Test Site
Well location
Washington Columbia River
Oregon
Located where some of the deepest and
thickest basalt exists in the region
Located on an active industrial site that
has been extensively disturbed during
original plant construction
Data collected will assist plant owner with
commercial operations after pilot study is
complete
27

28. Basalt Pilot Project Summary
Pre-Injection Site Characterization
Soil gas and shallow well water geochemistry
Seismic survey
Well logging and geochemical sampling during borehole drilling phase
Hydrologic tests
Injection Facts
Water is non-potable at target depth
1000 MT of CO2 total (1/2 Olympic-sized pool)
Injection would occur over a 2 to 4 week period
Initial radius of CO2 bubble is only about 100 ft. Maximum spread radius is about 250 ft
The CO2 will dissolve in the formation water and eventually become mineralized over a period
of a couple of years
Monitoring Program
An extensive monitoring program is planned that includes air, shallow subsurface, and deep
monitoring components
Water samples will be obtained periodically to monitor geochemical changes
Core sample extraction (1-2 years post-injection)
Closure
Wells would be plugged and abandoned according to state regulations
Site would be restored to pre-test condition
Closure option will depend on possible future use by landowner
28

29. Seismic Survey
Seismic survey completed 12/07/2007
Field tests immediately prior to
initiation of the seismic acquisition
showed that ground roll could be
suppressed by eliminating frequencies
below 12 Hz, and by using (for each
seismic source station) four vibroseis
sweeps
Optimized sweep resulted in longer
production of high frequency source
energy and a desirable flattened
frequency spectrum
The swath design of five receiver lines
flanked by two source lines, together
with the use of the optimized sweep
design, results in a dominant
frequency of 80 HZ at the target
interval of 3,000-4,000 feet, and a fold
of 200.
Raw field records of the 2D data
acquired confirm acquisition of P-wave
and converted wave data
Initial data processing complete. No
faulting or fracture zones are indicated
at the site
29

30. Current Stack Overlapped by the Current RMS Velocity
Model: Noise Attenuated, Deconvoluted, Spectral
Balanced, Residual Statics
30

31. 31

32. Seismic swath
North
Basalt Test Well
32

33. Top Water Table 35’
2450
Wallula P ilot
Hydrogeologic Model
Umtanum Basalt
Flow-Interior Section
Top of Basalt 44’
(Secondary Caprock)
Depth, feet below ground surface 2550 Umtanum Basalt
2650
Slack Canyon Basalt
Flow-Interior Section
Slack Canyon Basalt
(Primary Caprock )
Test Zone 8B
2750 (Injection R eservoir)
2850 Test Zone 8A
Ortley Basalt
Ortley Ba salt
Flow Interior Section
Lower Hydrogeologic Confining Unit
2950
10 100 1000 10000
Deep Resistivity, ohm-m
Selected injection zone transects three interconnected
basalt flows that offer significant potential for scientific
study of CO2 migration and mineralization processes in
a unique geological setting
33

34. Packer Tool Assembly Deployment
Shut-In Tool Valve
Assembly
Inflatable Packer
Bottom Well Screen
Pressure Probe Housing
Packer Expansion
Chamber
34

35. 35

36. Cores and Image Log From Test Zone
36

37. Conclusions
Sequestration systems need to be integrated from plant
gate to sequestration site to operate effectively and
efficiently
Design tools are being developed to make the task easier
but maintain robust design
CCS is a completely new paradigm for power plant
developers and their financial backers
Achilles heel of CCS systems appears to rest on financial,
legal, liability, and public acceptance issues
The Pacific Northwest is making unique contributions
towards advancing CCS opportunities both regionally and
worldwide
37

38. Acknowledgements
The work discussed in this presentation was sponsored by
Office of Fossil Energy and
National Energy Technology Laboratory
Department of Energy
with special acknowledgement to

39. Sequestration System Design Considerations
Plant operations
Unscheduled and scheduled plant shutdowns result in periodic flow interruptions
Infrastructure sized to accept full rate of CO2 output when the plant is operating
Pipeline
Specify diameter large enough to handle peak flow rate without excessive
pressure drop and wall thickness sufficient to accommodate pressure
requirements
Cost-benefit analysis may be needed to determine specifications for delivered
CO2 (purity requirements)
Wellbore
Injection tubing string of sufficient diameter to prevent excessive pressure drop at
peak CO2 injection rate
Account for impacts of seasonal temperature variations on operating parameters
Target Formation(s)
Utilize reservoir simulations to estimate required injection pressure to support
range of injection rates
Maintain operating pressures below fracture gradient limit
Assess impacts of CO2 delivery temperature on operating parameters and
reservoir stresses*

40. Components of a CCS Program
Subsurface
Characterization
Permitting
Subsurface
Infrastructure
& Pipeline
Pro Operations &
jec Maintenance
t Tim
e line
Monitoring
Closure