The impact of reservoir conditions on the residual trapping of carbon dioxide in Berea sandstone

Abstract

AbstractThe storage of carbon dioxide in deep brine‐filled permeable rocks is an important tool for CO2 emissions mitigation on industrial scales. Residual trapping of CO2 through capillary forces within the pore space of the reservoir is one of the most significant mechanisms for storage security and is also a factor determining the ultimate extent of CO2 migration within the reservoir. In this study we have evaluated the impact of reservoir conditions of pressure, temperature, and brine salinity on the residual trapping characteristic curve of a fired Berea sandstone rock. The observations demonstrate that the initial‐residual characteristic trapping curve is invariant across a wide range of pressure, temperature, and brine salinities and is also the same for CO2‐brine systems as a N2‐water system. The observations were made using a reservoir condition core‐flooding laboratory that included high‐precision pumps, temperature control, the ability to recirculate fluids for weeks at a time, and an X‐ray CT scanner. Experimental conditions covered pressures of 5–20 MPa, temperatures of 25–50°C, and 0–5 mol/kg NaCl brine salinity. A novel coreflooding approach was developed, making use of the capillary end effect to create a large range in initial CO2 saturation (0.15–0.6) in a single coreflood. Upon subsequent flooding with CO2‐equilibriated brine, the observation of residual saturation corresponded to the wide range of initial saturations before flooding resulting in a rapid construction of the initial‐residual curve. For each condition we report the initial‐residual curve and the resulting parameterization of the Land hysteresis models.