Safe storage and effective monitoring of CO2 in depleted gas fields
Charles R. Jenkins a,b,1, Peter J. Cooka, Jonathan Ennis-King a,c, James Undershultza,d, Chris Borehama,e, Tess Dancea,d, Patrice de Caritata,e, David M. Etheridgea,f, Barry M. Freifeld a,g, Allison Hortlea,d, Dirk Kirstea,h, Lincoln Patersona,c, Roman Pevznera,i, Ulrike Schachta,j, Sandeep Sharmaa,k, Linda Stalkera,d, and Milovan Urosevica,i
aCooperative Research Center for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC), National Farmers’ Federation House, 14-16 Brisbane Avenue, Canberra 2600, Australia; bEarth Science and Resource Engineering, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Black Mountain, Canberra 2601, Australia; cEarth Science and Resource Engineering, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Ian Wark Laboratory, Bayview Avenue, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia; dEarth Science and Resource Engineering, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, 26 Dick Perry Avenue, Technology Park, Kensington, Perth 6151, Australia; eGeoscience Australia, GPO Box 378, Canberra 2601, Australia; fMarine and Atmospheric Research, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization , 107-121 Station Street, Aspendale, Victoria 3195, Australia; gLawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, MS 90-1116, One Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720; hEarth Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada V5A 1S6; iDepartment of Exploration Geophysics, Curtin University, 26 Dick Perry Avenue, Technology Park, Kensington, Perth 6151, Australia; jAustralian School of Petroleum, University of Adelaide, Adelaide 5005, Australia; and kSchlumberger Carbon Services, 256 St. Georges Terrace, Perth 6000, Australia Edited by E. Ronald Oxburgh, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, and approved October 25, 2011 (received for review May 19, 2011)
Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is vital to reduce CO2 emissions to the atmosphere, potentially providing 20% of the needed reductions in global emissions. Research and demonstration projects are important to increase scientific understanding of CCS, and making processes and results widely available helps to reduce public concerns, which may otherwise block this technology. The Otway Project has provided verification of the underlying science of CO2
storage in a depleted gas field, and shows that the support of all stakeholders can be earned and retained. Quantitative verification of long-term storage has been demonstrated. A direct measurement of storage efficiency has been made, confirming that CO2 storage in depleted gas fields can be safe and effective, and that these structures could store globally significant amounts of CO2.
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Published online before print December 19, 2011, doi: 10.1073/pnas.1107255108 PNAS December 19, 2011