Are Disused Hydrocarbon Reservoirs Safe for Geological Storage of CO2

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses specifically on the performance assessment issues associated with the use of disused hydrocarbon reservoirs as geological storage sites for the storage of CO 2 . Depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs are regarded as safe sinks for geological storage of greenhouse gases (GHG). However, the depletion of reservoirs can give rise to a variety of coupled physical and chemical processes, which may affect the hydraulic integrity of bounding seals. This chapter discusses how these various processes may impact the hydraulic integrity of the reservoir and caprock to the point where the initial hydraulic integrity prior to depletion may be sufficiently deteriorated. Furthermore, wellbores are included among bounding seals, making them critical elements in a performance assessment for geological storage of CO 2 , because they can act as preferential flow paths, and their integrity is strongly affected by reservoir depletion. Most of the possible mechanisms that may induce leakage are already recognized in the petroleum industry for basin development and evolution.However, the processes that activate or trigger such mechanisms are far more aggressive in reservoir depletion, and their consequences can affect the hydraulic integrity of bounding seals dramatically.

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