Effects of Coalbed Methane Production on Stream Flow

Coalbed methane production has the potential to reduce instream flows in Powder River Basin streams. Quantifying this effect is difficult, but important, for water users in both Wyoming and Montana. Isotope tracing of coal aquifer groundwater entering the streams can help.

Technical and economic factors in applying the enhanced coalbed methane recovery process

Geological sequestration of CO2 is a technically feasible and potentially economic option for significantly and safely reducing greenhouse gas emissions, with CO2 injection already practiced in Canada and the USA to enhance crude oil production. The Enhanced Coalbed Methane (ECBM) process is seen as the next most economical sequestration options. The authors estimate an incremental methane recovery factor from 20% to 50%, depending on coal rank and seam depth. Others have estimated the potential to increase worldwide CBM production, utilising ECBM, by 18 Trillion cubic meters, while simultaneously sequestering 345 Giga tonnes of CO2. This paper presents technical and economic factors to consider for developing a commercial ECBM project. Technical factors include: geostructural and hydrogeological issues, geochemical reactions, stressed and competitive sorption, counter-diffusion, effective and relative 4-D coal permeability and methane recovery levels. Key economic factors are injectant acquisition price, sale price of methane and the level of carbon credits.

Coal Seam Gas Water from Maramarua, New Zealand: Characterisation and Comparison to United States Analogues

Groundwater from Maramarua has been identified as coal seam gas (CSG) water by studying its composition, and comparing it against the geochemical signature from other CSG basins. CSG is natural gas that has been produced through thermogenic and biogenic processes in underground coal seams; CSG extraction requires the abstraction of significant amounts of CSG water. To date, no international literature has described coal seam gas water in New Zealand, however recent CSG exploration work has resulted in CSG water quality data from a coal seam in Maramarua, New Zealand. Water quality from this site closely follows the geochemical signature associated with United States CSG waters, and this has helped to characterise the type of water being abstracted. CSG water from this part of Maramarua has low calcium, magnesium, and sulphate concentrations but high sodium (334 mg/l), chloride (146 mg/l) and bicarbonate (435 mg/l) concentrations. In addition, this water has high pH (7.8) and alkalinity (360 mg/l as CaCO3), which is a direct consequence of carbonate dissolution and biogenic processes. Different analyte ratios ('source-rock deduction' method) have helped to identify the different formation processes responsible in shaping Maramarua CSG water

Assessment of Geogenic Contaminants in Water Co-Produced with Coal Seam Gas Extraction in Queensland, Australia : Implications for Human Health Risk

Organic compounds in Australian coal seam gas produced water (CSG water) are poorly understood despite their environmental contamination potential. In this study, the presence of some organic substances is identified from government-held CSG water-quality data from the Bowen and Surat Basins, Queensland. These records revealed the presence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in 27% of samples of CSG water from the Walloon Coal Measures at concentrations <1 µg/L, and it is likely these compounds leached from in situ coals. PAHs identified from wells include naphthalene, phenanthrene, chrysene and dibenz[a,h]anthracene. In addition, the likelihood of coal-derived organic compounds leaching to groundwater is assessed by undertaking toxicity leaching experiments using coal rank and water chemistry as variables. These tests suggest higher molecular weight PAHs (including benzo[a]pyrene) leach from higher rank coals, whereas lower molecular weight PAHs leach at greater concentrations from lower rank coal. Some of the identified organic compounds have carcinogenic or health risk potential, but they are unlikely to be acutely toxic at the observed concentrations which are almost negligible (largely due to the hydrophobicity of such compounds). Hence, this study will be useful to practitioners assessing CSG water related environmental and health risk.

Groundwater balance research to improve the accuracy of drawdown predictions in the Surat Basin, Queensland

Groundwater modelling studies rely on an accurate determination of inputs and outputs that make up the water balance. Often there is large uncertainty associated with estimates of recharge and unmetered groundwater use. This can translate to equivalent uncertainty in the forecasting of sustainable yields, impacts of extraction, and susceptibility of groundwater dependent ecosystems. In the case of Coal Seam Gas, it is important to characterise the temporal and special distribution of depressurisation in the reservoir and how this may or may not extend to the adjacent aquifers. A regional groundwater flow model has been developed by the Queensland Government to predict drawdown impacts due to Coal Seam Gas activities in the Surat basin. This groundwater model is undergoing continued refinement and there is currently scope to address some of the key areas of uncertainty including better quantification of groundwater recharge and unmetered groundwater extractions. Research is currently underway to improve the accuracy of estimates of both of these components of the groundwater balance in order to reduce uncertainty in predicted groundwater drawdowns due to CSG activities.

Reservatório de gás não convencional: história de caso na Bacia do Recôncavo - Brasil

O principal objetivo deste trabalho foi à realização de um estudo geológico sobre os folhelhos fraturados da Formação Candeias que ocorrem em diferentes partes da Bacia do Recôncavo, sendo enfatizadas suas principais relações com a acumulação de petróleo. Este trabalho contempla, ainda, uma revisão bibliográfica acerca da evolução da campanha exploratória nesta bacia, desde seus primórdios, na década de trinta, além de uma análise sob as perspectivas na área de exploração e produção. A Bacia do Recôncavo, situada na região Nordeste do Brasil, está inserida numa grande bacia tafrogênica (Rifte abortado Recôncavo-Tucano-Jatobá), originada nos momentos iniciais de ruptura do paleocontinente Gondwana ocidental, no Eocretáceo, sob os campos de tensões que produziram o Oceano Atlântico. Em termos estratigráficos, a bacia guarda um importante registro geológico, compreendido por depósitos continentais (lacustres, fluvio-deltáicos, neríticos, eólicos e leques aluviais), sendo subdividido em seis seqüências sedimentares, referentes aos estágios pré-rifte e rifte. As principais acumulações de petróleo na bacia podem ser agrupadas em três grandes sistemas: pré-rifte, rifte-Candeias e rifte-Ilhas, representando plays exploratórios distintos. As perspectivas futuras para a Bacia do Recôncavo devem considerar a importância da identificação de novos plays exploratórios, através da caracterização de novos intervalos geradores e reservatórios, como é o caso dos folhelhos fraturados e do shale gas. Não menos importante é o desenvolvimento de novas técnicas de produção, aumentando o fator de recuperação de campos produtores.

煤层气井试井研究的意义

从国内外对煤层气井试井的主要认识的分析出发,对煤层气试井技术研究的基本观点进行了介绍;从了解煤层储层特征、煤层动态变化、措施效果评价、合理工作制度制定等方面,论述了煤层气井试井技术的研究意义。

为什么说煤层气是一种清洁高效安全的新型能源

随着低碳经济时代的到来,煤层气作为一种清洁优质能源逐渐受到世界的重视。通过煤层气与煤炭、石油和常规天然气等常用化石能源的组成对比,建立了煤层气是一种清洁高效安全新型能源的分析基础。从能源开发历史和能源类型角度说明了煤层气是一种新型能源;从能源燃烧产物角度解释了煤层气是一种更加清洁的能源;从能源热值和能源利用率角度证实了煤层气是一种更加高效的能源;从大气环境保护和煤矿环境安全角度阐明了煤层气是一种更加安全的能源。提出了化石能源优劣程度的主要判别标准,即对于元素组成以C和H为主的化石能源,C/H原子比是决定该能源优劣的主要因素,C/H原子比越小,能源的清洁性、高效性和安全性越好。最后通过对煤层气能源清洁、高效和安全性等特点的研究,揭示了煤层气在能源与环境两方面的重要价值,表明了煤层气开发利用的重要意义。

煤层气储层工程的地下水行为研究

The practice of coalbed methane development from home and abroad demonstrated Hydrogeological factor is one of the important geological factors influencing the coalbed methane productivity. The grasp of groundwater behavior feature is the prerequisite to success development of coalbed methane. Through researching the mechanism by which hydrodynamics factors control the storage and transportation of coalfen methane, the ground- water behavior reflecting the feature of coalbed, and mathematics model describing the production process of coalbed methane, this paper devoted to finding the law of groundwater behavior during the course of storage and production and gave hydrogeology theoretical support to the development of coalbed methane. This paper firstly studied hydrodynamic factors influencing the productivity of coalbed methane, based on the analysis of the relative feature of coalbed methane and that of it's reservoir. The productivity of coalbed methane is controlled by reservoir pressure、permeability and recharge conditions. Reservoir pressure, the key factor controlling gas content of coalbed, is ruled by the history of hydrodynamic and current hydrogeological conditions. It indirectly controls the poductivity through influencing the permeability. The permeability of coalbed is the direct factor controlling the productivity. The recharge conditions controls the productivity through influencing initial reservoir pressure and the descend of reservoir pressure during development of coalbed methane. The field of hydrodynamic and the field of hydrochemistry can be used to identified the flow model of groundwater and the coalbed feature can be deducted by the hydraulic gradient、pressure compartment and hydrochemistry. The production of coalbed methane is a complex physical process which including the mutual action between water、solid and gas. This paper studied the mechanism of water-solid action and that of water-gas action, conducted the controlling equation describing the complex process and gave the corresponding mathematics model with its solution by finite-Element method. Finally, this paper analysised the prospective of coalbed methane development of the south section of Hongguo area in Yizikong basin and put emphasis on the analysis of productivity of liangshan and jingzhuping blocks.

Estudo do processo de difusão de gases em carvões com base em isotérmicas de Langmuir

Tese de Doutoramento apresentada à Universidade Fernando Pessoa como parte dos requisitos para obtenção do grau de Doutror em Ciências da Terra.

Optimum coal properties and engineering processes for CO2 geosequestration in Coal

CO2 Geosequestration is seen by many worldwide scientists and engineers as a leading prospective solution to the global warming problem arising from excessive CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions. CO2 geosequestration in coal seams has two important strategic benefits: the process has an extremely low risk of leakage, due to the adsorbed state of the CO2 and the known reservoir context of essentially-zero leakage into which it is be injected; the second benefit arises from the valuable by-product, clean burning coalbed methane gas. This paper presents the authors’ experience, knowledge and perspective on what coal properties and engineering processes would favour implementing a demonstration or commercial CO2 storage-in-coal project, in Queensland, Australia. As such, it may be considered a template for screening studies to select the optimum coal seam reservoir, and for preliminary studies in designing the injection system and predicting production response to the technology. The paper concludes by examining the current knowledge gaps of CO2 geosequestration in coal, identifying further basic and applied research topics.