Next step to understanding stored carbon dioxide

Construction of two shallow observation wells has been successfully completed as part of a new carbon capture and storage project at CO2CRC’s Otway Research Facility at Nirranda South in Victoria. The key milestone in the Prediction and Verification of Shallow CO₂ Migration Project will allow core to be analysed alongside formation evaluation logs to appraise the site and design the CO₂ injection location and monitoring program.

Jointly managed by CO2CRC and Geoscience Australia, the project involves five of Australia’s leading research institutions, as well as international researchers and industry partners, to better understand how CO₂ behaves around a geological fault when it is injected and stored deep underground.

The next phase of the project, planned for early 2021, will see the injection of between 10 and 40 tonnes of carbon dioxide into the deepest well (approximately 126 m) and surrounding subsurface. From this test, scientists will observe how carbon dioxide migrates when it meets a fault. The resulting scientific knowledge will be applied in the development of more effective and accurate near-surface monitoring techniques for CO₂ storage sites worldwide.

Image courtesy of CO2CRC