Geophysical Monitoring of Multiple Phase Saturation of Rocks: Applications to CO2 Sequestration

The world is increasingly concerned about global warming from the greenhouse effect, and the voluminous CO2 emissions from human activities are a significant contributor to this problem. Carbon sequestration is the concept of isolating and removing CO2 gases from large point sources and then holding them in secure storage. To be viable, any CO2 sequestration option must be safe, predictable, reliable, measurable, and verifiable; yet standard geophysical methods for monitoring and verifying CO2 injections have severe limitations. In particular, while the standard methods can be used to monitor the presence or absence of CO2 during an injection, they are unable to quantify changes in the amounts of CO2 saturation in most reservoirs. This project will develop a seismic surveying method, known as Amplitude versus Offset (AVO), for use as a more sensitive discriminator for CO2 presence. Commercial Applications and other Benefits as described by the awardee: This project will further the DOE¿s commitment to provide solutions to the global warming trend due to anthropogenic sources of carbon in the atmosphere. The AVO technology would efficiently evaluate potential CO2 sequestration sites and monitor their performance and effectiveness.