CO 2 sequestration: opportunities for Wyoming Carol D. Frost Interim Director School of Energy Resources
Outline Why CO 2 sequestration? Carbon capture Storage options Measurement, monitoring and validation Opportunities for Wyoming Thanks to: Scott M. Klara, DOE-NETL Rod Debruin, Wyoming Geological Survey Rob Hurless, Governor s office Bill Gern, UW Research Office
Why CO 2 sequestration? Annual CO 2 Emissions Extremely Large Emissions Total Release in the U.S., short tons per year Mercury 120 Sulfur Dioxide (SO 2 ) 15,000 Municipal solid waste Carbon Dioxide (CO 2 ) 230,000,000 6,300,000,000 (21 tons/u.s. resident) Data sources: Mercury - EPA National Emissions Inventory (1999 data); SO 2 - EPA air trends (2002 data); MSW - EPA OSWER fact sheet (2001 data); CO 2 - EIA AEO 2004 (2002 data) Source: DOE-NETL
CO 2 levels have increased since the Industrial Revolution 381 ppm 2005 Sarmiento and Gruber, Physics Today, 2002
Greenhouse gases CO 2 and terrestrial temperature linked - either may force the other (Arrhenius 1890) Post-1850 CO 2 spike no precedent: amplitude matches known input of anthropogenic CO 2 2006 Stern Report assesses economic cost of inaction much greater than that of inaction Best estimates are that we have to get emissions under control by 2050 but that means starting now The climate models suggest that if CO 2 emissions are controlled within 40 years the most extreme effects of climate change will be avoided Supreme Court ruled 4/2/07 that CO 2 can be regulated as a pollutant by the EPA
9,000 U.S. CO 2 emissions 1990-2030 Million metric tons CO 2 6,000 3,000 If no action is taken, CO 2 emissions are expected to increase 33% by 2030. The U.S. can work towards reducing emissions with carbon capture and storage (CCS) programs. 0 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 Annual Energy Outlook 2007
Technological Carbon Management Options Reduce Carbon Intensity Renewables Nuclear Conservation Improve Efficiency Demand Side Supply Side Sequester Carbon Capture & Store Enhance Natural Sinks All options needed to: Affordably meet energy demand Address environmental objectives Source: DOE-NETL
Capture can occur: at the point of emission when absorbed from air What is Carbon Sequestration? Capture and storage of CO 2 and other Greenhouse Gases that would otherwise be emitted to the atmosphere Storage locations include: underground reservoirs converted to solid materials trees, grasses, soils, or algae dissolved in deep oceans Unmineable Coal Beds Ocean Monitoring involves: measurement monitoring validation Enhanced Oil Recovery Depleted Oil or Gas Reserves Deep Saline Aquifier Source: DOE-NETL
Carbon Capture Focus for capture is on coal and power generation because these are stationary point sources of CO 2 Natural Gas 21% Coal 36% Transportation 32% Oil 43% Other 30% Electricity 39% AEO2004 United States CO 2 Emissions 36% Emissions From Coal 39% Emissions From Electricity Source: DOE-NETL
Carbon Capture Capture Pathways Post-combustion Pre-combustion Oxygen-fired combustion Optimized engineering Technologies Absorption Adsorption Membranes Oxygen-fired Combustion
Carbon Sequestration Capture and Storage Requirements Unmineable Coal Seams Ocean Uptake Depleted Oil / Gas Wells, Saline Reservoirs Mineral Carbonation Environmentally acceptable Safe No legacy for future generations Respect existing ecosystems No sudden large-scale CO 2 discharges Verifiable Ability to verify amount of CO 2 sequestered Economically viable Source: DOE-NETL
Ocean uptake Shallow ocean Deep ocean Storage Options Soil/Plant Sequestration Adding biomass Geologic Sequestration Saline Reservoirs Old Oil/Gas fields Coal Beds Chemical Sequestration Creating terrestrial solids
Oceans are an important carbon sink
Ocean Uptake of Carbon Transfer of carbon to the deep ocean is a slow process Carbon Sequestration Research and Development, DOE/SC/FE-1, U.S. DOE, Dec. 1999
Ocean Sequestration Issues Direct deep injection? Unintended chemical effects (acidification) Unintended environmental effects Will ultimately resurface in future at some rate, with potential unintended consequences Ocean dumping conventions Model of CO 2 distribution, injection from Cape Hatteras http://www-esd.lbl.gov/docs/index2.html
Biomass Carbon Sequestration Soil processes that influence carbon fate and transport Carbon Sequestration Research and Development, DOE/SC/FE-1, U.S. DOE, Dec. 1999
Geologic Sequestration Capacity (Gigaton CO 2 ) 3,700 120 100 80 60 40 N. America Geologic Storage Maximum Capacity Potential 20 ~ 6 Gigatons CO 2 0 Deep Saline Formations Coal Seams Depleted Gas Fields Depleted Oil Fields Storage Option Annual U.S. & Canada Emissions Source: Battelle, A CO2 Storage Supply Curve for North America, September 2004, PNWD-3471
Location of deep saline aquifers in the United States Carbon Sequestration Research and Development, DOE/SC/FE-1, U.S. DOE, Dec. 1999
Location of coal-producing areas and power plants in the U.S. Carbon Sequestration Research and Development, DOE/SC/FE-1, U.S. DOE, Dec. 1999
Location of gas-producing areas in the United States Carbon Sequestration Research and Development, DOE/SC/FE-1, U.S. DOE, Dec. 1999
Storage in depleted oil fields: Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) At appropriate temperature and depth, CO 2 will dissolve in oil, decreasing in-situ viscosity. This will allow enhanced recovery. Source: DOE Although some CO 2 produced, most remains dissolved in subsurface oil.
Worldwide CO 2 Storage Activity 8 Snohvit K C 16 Weyburn 4 L M Sleipner Miller Field 5 7 12 K12-B 3 19 U T Carson 1 A S V D 70 CO 2 -EOR Projects in U.S. (not individually shown) 10 14 G O P H Q R F B N Y E W X I J 15 Allison Unit 6 In Salah 18 13 17 Project size (total CO 2 injection) Commercial (greater than 1 MMtCO 2 ) Large pilot (100 ktco 2 to 1 MMtCO 2 ) Pilot (11 ktco 2 to 99 ktco 2 ) Micro-pilot (10 ktco 2 or less) Storage formation Oil field Gas field Saline formation Coal seam 9 Secunda 2 Gorgon 11 Otway Basin
Existing, large-scale CO 2 sequestration projects-1 Sleipner North Sea Project (Statoil) Natural gas production from Triassic Sandstones (Skagerak Fm.) CO 2 is pulled from production stream and reinjected into saline aquifer with a 4-way structural closure Justin R. Swift, Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Affairs Office of Fossil Energy
Sleipner North Sea Project (cont.) Utsira Formation: Miocene Saline Reservoir 27% porosity 200 m thick high permeability between 15-36 o C within critical range minimum depth 800-1200 m below mudline Currently monitoring CO 2 migration
Existing, large-scale CO 2 sequestration projects-2 Weyburn CO 2 EOR Project Takes ~5000 tons/day CO 2 from a coal gasification plant in North Dakota & uses it for EOR in Canada Dakota-Weyburn pipeline EnCana 200-mile CO 2 pipeline from Dakota Gasification Plant CO 2 injection started 2000, at project end, ~19 million tons CO 2 sequestered http://www.ieagreen.org.uk/weyburn6.htm
Worldwide Geologic Storage Capacity 200,000 Capacity (Gigaton CO 2 ) 1,400 1,200 1,000 800 600 400 200 Maximum Capacity Potential 0 Deep Saline Formations Depleted Oil & Gas Fields Coal Seams 24 Gigatons CO 2 Annual World Emissions Storage Option Storage Options: IEA Technical Review (TR4), March 23, 2004 World Emissions: DOE/EIA, International Energy Outlook 2003, Table A10
Monitoring and Verification Measurement Seismic imaging Monitoring wells Monitoring CO 2 migration Storage integrity Validation Injection efficiency CO 2 in place Leakage rates Risk assessment Carbon Sequestration Research and Development, DOE/SC/FE-1, U.S. DOE, Dec. 1999
Long-term geologic storage Understanding of storage mechanisms is critical to viability as a long-term option Physical trapping Residual phase trapping Solution/mineral trapping Gas adsorption Justin R. Swift, Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Affairs Office of Fossil Energy
Example of MMV: Frio Fm Multi-agency study Kharaka et al. 2006, Geology 34, 577-580 1600 t CO 2 injected to 1500m Oct. 2004 ph of aquifer dropped Carbonate dissolved (could create pathways for leakage, degrade water quality) Frio Formation 6 months after injection no significant leakage
Opportunities for Wyoming Assets: 1. CO 2 resources CO 2 in gas fields: LaBarge: 157 BCF/yr Madden: 29 BCF/yr CO 2 from power plants: 809 BCF/yr De Bruin et al., 2004 Wyoming CO 2 emissions: Only 0.4 % of global release But on per capita basis: Global release per capita: 1 Ton of C Wyoming release per capita: 60 Tons of C
Opportunities for Wyoming Assets: 2. Geologic sequestration options near sites of CO 2 production Coal (shown) Carbonate Sandstone
Opportunities for Wyoming Assets: 3. Opportunities for EOR
Sequestration = Stabilization GHG Emissions Reductions (MMTCE) 2,000 1,500 1,000 500 Advanced Sequestration Value-Added Sequestration Non-CO2 GHGs Forestation and Agriculture Efficiency and Renewables 0 2002 2012 2020 2030 2040 2050 EIA Annual Energy Outlook 2002; EPA special studies; DOE/FE/NETL Sequestration Benefits Model
It is a big problem--but Wyoming is well poised to be a leader in carbon sequestration. CO 2 Storage Capacity required to Stabilize CO 2 emissions Thru 2100 Would fill Lake Erie twice This is equal to: 5% of the land mass of the contiguous U.S. Assume CO 2 capture and geosequestration represents 40% of the total GHG emissions reduction need in 2100 (up from 30% in 2050) 200 x 10 9 tons CO 2 / 1.32 x10 6 tons CO 2 / sq. mile = 150,000 square miles Source: DOE-NETL