UKCCSRC Call 2 Project: Multiscale characterisation of CO2 storage in the United Kingdom

This is a partnership between Imperial College London and the British Geological Survey in which we combine our expertise in pore scale digital rock physics (DRP), reservoir condition Special Core Analysis (SCAL) and dynamic reservoir simulation to enhance modelling strategies for the prediction of the performance of CO2 storage sites leading to lower risk and optimised reservoir management. The proposal is at the forefront of the revolution in digital rock physics and will investigate pore-scale and core-scale processes of CO2 flow, dissolution and residual trapping in the laboratory and incorporate the results into existing and newly developed dynamic reservoir simulation models of major CO2 storage reservoirs in the UK. We leverage in-kind contributions of £213k in capital equipment and reservoir models. Building directly on a large body of experimental and simulation work, the outcomes of the proposed research will include the APGTF R&D roadmap targets of a multi-scale approach for 1.updated and risked first order CO2 storage capacity estimates , 2.an assessment of the value of different kinds of data (core samples, seismic) for strategic data acquisition targets and 3.robust strategies for reservoir management to enhance dissolution trapping and monitoring in the UK. The multiscale approach will be validated against field data from the Carbon Management Canada Field Research Station (CMC-FRS), using rock samples from the target reservoir intervals of the Medicine Hat and Belly River sandstone formations. An engagement and planning trip to the CMC-FRS will foster international engagement. Grant number: UKCCSRC-C2-197.