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Biggest Carbon-Burial Test will Hunt for Leaks

Posted February 17, 2007 11:46 AM

From New Scientist - Latest Headlines:

The largest carbon burial experiment in the world began in earnest on Thursday when the drilling of a 2100-metre well began in the Otway Basin, on the coast of southern Australia. The project promised the most comprehensive monitoring for leaks to date. If all goes well, researchers from the Canberra-based Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC) will start injecting carbon dioxide into the new well in July. They will start by extracting CO2 from a nearby natural geological reservoir and compressing it into a "supercritical fluid" - a gas-liquid hybrid. This will be injected via the new well into a sandstone reservoir (this animated graphic demonstrates the process). The reservoir is shaped liked an upside-down saucer that is partially-filled with methane gas, and covered by a series of impermeable rock layers. Over the following six to nine months, 100,000 tonnes of supercritical CO2 will be injected.

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Guru
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#1

Re: Biggest Carbon-Burial Test will Hunt for Leaks

02/18/2007 3:33 AM

Taking Methane out from the DOME to burn and create more CO2.

AND BURYING CO2 from whereever available.

Good Consentious Cleanup Action by a responsible State.

Must say to Aussies-- "Good Job" and "Please do not leave any stone unturned".

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Guru

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#2

Re: Biggest Carbon-Burial Test will Hunt for Leaks

02/18/2007 4:03 AM

Just as coal lay for millions of years before coming back to the surface - opencast - this CO2 will always be a potential risk. Humans, and other animals, have coped so far with the gradual increase in CO2 levels but I wonder how a sudden glut of the gas would be taken - probably as badly as a nuclear explosion.

This is a case of sweeping the problem under the carpet, so I can only hope that the monitoring is able to last until a better way of disposing of the problem is found.

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#3

Re: Biggest Carbon-Burial Test will Hunt for Leaks

02/18/2007 12:43 PM

I wonder how much carbon dioxide will be released from the hydrocarbon fuel used to power the compressor. I realize its just an experiment, but if they intend to scale this up and make a dent in the atmospheric CO2, they need to crunch those numbers. Compressing to a "supercritical fluid" sounds energy-intensive.

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