UofA - University of Alberta

The University of Alberta is located adjacent to a stretch of the North Saskatchewan River valley in
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Established in 1908, the University of Alberta currently has an enrolment of
37,000 students attracted from all across Canada as well as 116 other countries to its 18 faculties.

Considered a world-class research university, the UofA has tripled its research funding in the past decade with close to 400 teaching and research agreements with governments and partner institutions in nearly 50 countries. The University of Alberta ranks 25th in North America according to Newsweek (2006) with the fields of Engineering and IT ranking in the top 50 world-wide by the QS Times Higher Education World University Rankings (2008.)

Several researchers at the University of Alberta have been involved with the IEA GHG Weyburn-Midale CO2 Storage and Monitoring Project since its inception in 2000 and continue as theme leaders for the geological integrity theme (Dr. Ben Rostron) and the risk assessment theme (Dr. Rick Chalaturnyk) for the final phase of the project scheduled to end in 2012. Dr.’s Chalaturnyk and Rostron reside in the Faculty of Engineering (Civil and Environmental Engineering) and Faculty of Science (Earth and Atmospheric Sciences) respectively and have collectively built a research team comprised of 12 PhD students, three research engineers and two technicians.

The research team at the University of Alberta has established experience in the design and deployment of downhole technology for CO2 storage reservoir surveillance programs. The research team was responsible for the successful installation of a permanently installed downhole system consisting of 8 geophones, 6 pressure/ temperature sensors and 2 downhole fluid sampling ports to a depth of 1640 m. This experience is being applied to an extensive well integrity assessment program within the Weyburn Project that will include specialized pressure transient tests using a custom designed and built multiple packer system to assess the condition of the cement sheath behind casing of wells with varying age.

 

The University of Alberta is also active at the international level through membership on the organizing committees for the IEA GHG Research Networks on Risk Assessment, Well Integrity and Monitoring. Researchers at the University of Alberta have also been engaged in peer review of international projects such as the CO2CRC Otway Project in Australia. Among the numerous international collaborations is the Helmholtz-Alberta Initiative (HAI) with GFZ.

Relevant project experience (most recent only):

Within CO2CARE, the UofA will contribute to the WP2.