Focus:

• Development of numerical models for fluid dynamics and reactive transport of CO₂ in geologic formations

• Development of realistic reservoir models for different geologies and including reservoir heterogeneities

• Identification and assessment of the importance and rates of trapping mechanisms

• Modeling for risk assessment including all potential pathways to the biosphere

• Development of reservoir management strategies that ensure storage security

Research Efforts by Geologic Storage Formation Type:

• Saline sandstone formation
• Deep basalt formation
• Unmineable coal seams
• Depleted oil and gas reserves

Models and Computational Tools Being Developed

• Scalable computing of CO₂ migration and storage in geologic formations
• CO₂ storage reservoir assessments and analysis of CO₂ loading
• Science-based prediction of performance of engineered geologic CO₂ storage sites
• Process-system integration modeling
• GeoStoreEstimator: A model for predicting solubility and residual gas trapping
• Predictive modeling of the fate of CO₂ in subsurface environments:
• TOUGH2
• TOUGHREACT
• GasEOS
• STOMP

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Monitoring

Focus:

• Development of monitoring technologies (for decades of storage, annual leakage rates must be sub 0.01% requiring ultra-trace detectors for CO₂

• Integrated surface and sub-surface monitoring, measurement, and verification systems

• Measurement of CO₂ behavior for verification of numerical model

• Development and testing of seepage / leakage countermeasures

Research Efforts:

• DIAL: Differential absorption LIDAR for monitoring CO₂ concentrations
• Surface seepage detection
• Geophysical monitoring and verification of CO₂ storage projects

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Basic Science

Focus:

• Laboratory based experiments to measure geophysical and geochemical processes, rates, and thermodynamics for both reservoir rocks and caprock

• Measurement of basic properties for parameterization of numerical models

Research Efforts:

• Monitoring approaches for key potential release pathways
• Biofilms, a leakage countermeasure
• Development of methods and materials for sealing grouted boreholes to CO₂ leakage
• Remediation options
• Residual gas and solubility trapping experiments
• Mitigation strategies for key potential release pathways
• Process-level hydrogeochemical phenomena (theory, experiment, computation)

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ZERT Research by Institution

Montana State University(MSU)
West Virginia University (WVU)
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL)
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)
National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL)
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)

ZERT is funded by the United States Department of Energy, under Award No. DE-FC26-04NT42262. However, any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the DOE.

© 2005 Montana State University