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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

The Emissions Model Intercomparison Project (Emissions-MIP): quantifying model sensitivity to emission characteristics

Abstract. Anthropogenic emissions of aerosols and precursor compounds are known to significantly affect the energy balance of the Earth–atmosphere system, alter the formation of clouds and precipitation, and have a substantial impact on human health and the environment. Global models are an essential tool for examining the impacts of these emissions. In this study, we examine the sensitivity of model results to the assumed height of SO2 injection, seasonality of SO2 and black carbon (BC) particulate emissions, and the assumed fraction of SO2 emissions that is injected into the atmosphere as particulate phase sulfate (SO4) in 11 climate and chemistry models, including both chemical transport models and the atmospheric component of Earth system models. We find large variation in atmospheric lifetime across models for SO2, SO4, and BC, with a particularly large relative variation for SO2, which indicates that fundamental aspects of atmospheric sulfur chemistry remain uncertain. Of the perturbations examined in this study, the assumed height of SO2 injection had the largest overall impacts, particularly on global mean net radiative flux (maximum difference of −0.35 W m−2), SO2 lifetime over Northern Hemisphere land (maximum difference of 0.8 d), surface SO2 concentration (up to 59 % decrease), and surface sulfate concentration (up to 23 % increase). Emitting SO2 at height consistently increased SO2 and SO4 column burdens and shortwave cooling, with varying magnitudes, but had inconsistent effects across models on the sign of the change in implied cloud forcing. The assumed SO4 emission fraction also had a significant impact on net radiative flux and surface sulfate concentration. Because these properties are not standardized across models this is a source of inter-model diversity typically neglected in model intercomparisons. These results imply a need to ensure that anthropogenic emission injection height and SO4 emission fraction are accurately and consistently represented in global models.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1992

Acceleration of positrons in supernova shocks

During this project we investigated the acceleration of leptons (electrons and positrons) in collisionless shock waves. In particular, we were interested in how leptons are accelerated in the blast waves existing in the remnants of supernova explosions. Supernova remnants (SNRs) have long been considered as the most likely source of galactic cosmic rays but no definite connection between SNRs and the cosmic rays seen at earth can be made. Only by understanding lepton acceleration in shocks can the rich SNR data base be properly used to understand cosmic ray origins. Our project was directed at the neglected aspects of lepton acceleration. We showed that the efficiency of lepton acceleration depended critically on the lepton injection energy. We showed that, even when infection effects are not important, that proton and lepton distribution functions produced by shocks are quite different in the critical energy range for producing the observed synchrotron emission. We also showed that transrelativistic effects produced proton spectra that were not in agreement with standard results from radio observations, but that the lepton spectra were, in fact, consistent with observations. We performed simulations of relativistic shocks (shocks where the flow speed is a sizable fraction of the speed of light) and discovered some interesting effects. We first demonstrated the power of the Monte Carlo technique by determining the shock jump conditions in relativistic shocks. We then proceeded to determine how relativistic shocks accelerate particles. We found that nonlinear relativistic shocks treat protons and leptons even more differently than nonrelativistic shocks. The transrelativistic effects on the shock structure from the heavy ion component reduces the lepton acceleration to a tiny fraction of the ion acceleration. This effect is dramatic even if high energy leptons (many times thermal energy) are injected, and was totally unexpected. Our results have important consequences for astrophysical environments expected to harbor relativistic flows such as extra-galactic radio sources and accretion onto compact objects.

Ellison, Donald C.↗
DOE OSTI2011

Controlled Betatron X-Ray Radiation from Tunable Optically Injected Electrons

The features of Betatron x-ray emission produced in a laser-plasma accelerator are closely linked to the properties of the relativistic electrons which are at the origin of the radiation. While in interaction regimes explored previously the source was by nature unstable, following the fluctuations of the electron beam, we demonstrate in this Letter the possibility to generate x-ray Betatron radiation with controlled and reproducible features, allowing fine studies of its properties. To do so, Betatron radiation is produced using monoenergetic electrons with tunable energies from a laser-plasma accelerator with colliding pulse injection [J. Faure et al., Nature (London) 444, 737 (2006)]. The presented study provides evidence of the correlations between electrons and x-rays, and the obtained results open significant perspectives toward the production of a stable and controlled femtosecond Betatron x-ray source in the keV range.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Corrigendum to “The Emissions Model Intercomparison Project (Emissions-MIP): quantifying model sensitivity to emission characteristics” published in Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 14779–14799, 2023

Anthropogenic emissions of aerosols and precursor compounds are known to significantly affect the energy balance of the Earth–atmosphere system, alter the formation of clouds and precipitation, and have a substantial impact on human health and the environment. Global models are an essential tool for examining the impacts of these emissions. In this study, we examine the sensitivity of model results to the assumed height of SO 2 injection, seasonality of SO 2 and black carbon (BC) particulate emissions, and the assumed fraction of SO 2 emissions that is injected into the atmosphere as particulate phase sulfate (SO 4 ) in 11 climate and chemistry models, including both chemical transport models and the atmospheric component of Earth system models. We find large variation in atmospheric lifetime across models for SO 2 , SO 4 , and BC, with a particularly large relative variation for SO 2 , which indicates that fundamental aspects of atmospheric sulfur chemistry remain uncertain. Of the perturbations examined in this study, the assumed height of SO 2 injection had the largest overall impacts, particularly on global mean net radiative flux (maximum difference of -0.35?W?m-2), SO2 lifetime over Northern Hemisphere land (maximum difference of 0.8?d), surface SO 2 concentration (up to 59?% decrease), and surface sulfate concentration (up to 23?% increase). Emitting SO 2 at height consistently increased SO 2 and SO 4 column burdens and shortwave cooling, with varying magnitudes, but had inconsistent effects across models on the sign of the change in implied cloud forcing. The assumed SO 4 emission fraction also had a significant impact on net radiative flux and surface sulfate concentration. Because these properties are not standardized across models this is a source of inter-model diversity typically neglected in model intercomparisons. These results imply a need to ensure that anthropogenic emission injection height and SO 4 emission fraction are accurately and consistently represented in global models.

Ahsan, Hamza [Pacific Northwest National Laborator↗
DOE OSTI2016

Moving Toward an Optimal and Automated Geospatial Network for CCUS Infrastructure

Modifications in the global climate are being driven by the anthropogenic release of greenhouse gases (GHG) including carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) (Middleton et al. 2014). CO 2 emissions have, for example, been directly linked to an increase in total global temperature (Seneviratne et al. 2016). Strategies that limit CO 2 emissions—like CO 2 capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technology—can greatly reduce emissions by capturing CO 2 before it is released to the atmosphere. However, to date CCUS technology has not been developed at a large commercial scale despite several promising high profile demonstration projects (Middleton et al. 2015). Current CCUS research has often focused on capturing CO 2 emissions from coal-fired power plants, but recent research at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) suggests focusing CCUS CO 2 capture research upon industrial sources might better encourage CCUS deployment. To further promote industrial CCUS deployment, this project builds off current LANL research by continuing the development of a software tool called SimCCS, which estimates a regional system of transport to inject CO 2 into sedimentary basins. The goal of SimCCS, which was first developed by Middleton and Bielicki (2009), is to output an automated and optimal geospatial industrial CCUS pipeline that accounts for industrial source and sink locations by estimating a Delaunay triangle network which also minimizes topographic and social costs (Middleton and Bielicki 2009). Current development of SimCCS is focused on creating a new version that accounts for spatial arrangements that were not available in the previous version. This project specifically addresses the issue of non-unique Delaunay triangles by adding additional triangles to the network, which can affect how the CCUS network is calculated.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

THERMAL STRUCTURAL AND SHOCK EVENT EVALUATIONS OF THE FUELING PELLET INJECTION SYSTEM FOR ITER

The US is among seven partner nations in a collaborative effort to design, build, and demonstrate fusion’s ability to be a large-scale carbon free energy source. Each country has its own Domestic Agencies (DA) that contribute directly to the ITER project. US ITER, which is a DOE Office of Science project managed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory, is developing world class engineering solutions to the design, construction, and assembly of the burning plasma experiment that can demonstrate the scientific and technological feasibility of fusion. US ITER’s scope includes completing the preliminary and final design, qualifying materials and processes for manufacture and testing, executing manufacturing, and delivering the Fueling Pellet Injection System (FPIS) to the ITER site for assembly. The US-ITER FPIS system is designed to inject cryogenically frozen pellets of deuterium-tritium (D-T) into the plasma. The FPIS has two main functions: 1. Provide a steady supply of deuterium and tritium fuel, 2. Mitigating the impact of edge localized modes on the plasma facing components. The FPIS will have the capability to reside in three port cells within a tritium second barrier containment cask. Each pellet cask contains three flight tubes linking with penetrations on the torus cryopump housing and vacuum vessel (VV): two for the magnetic high field side (HFS) pellet injection and one for the magnetic low field side (LFS) pellet injection. This paper presents results of the thermal-structural analyses of the FPIS flight tube structural components when subjected to various loads such as electromagnetic (EM) loads, nuclear heating, seismic, and operational, and dynamic shock events. The resulting temperatures and stresses under combined conditions have been found to satisfy the design criteria to ensure safe and reliable operation of the FPIS flight tubes within the vacuum vessel.

Martinez, Oscar↗
NASA NTRS2023

The Emissions Model Intercomparison Project (Emissions-MIP): Quantifying Model Sensitivity to Emission Characteristics

Anthropogenic emissions of aerosols and precursor compounds are known to significantly affect the energy balance of the Earth–atmosphere system, alter the formation of clouds and precipitation, and have a substantial impact on human health and the environment. Global models are an essential tool for examining the impacts of these emissions. In this study, we examine the sensitivity of model results to the assumed height of SO 2 injection, seasonality of SO 2 and black carbon (BC) particulate emissions, and the assumed fraction of SO 2 emissions that is injected into the atmosphere as particulate phase sulfate (SO 4 ) in 11 climate and chemistry models, including both chemical transport models and the atmospheric component of Earth system models. We find large variation in atmospheric lifetime across models for SO 2 , SO 4 , and BC, with a particularly large relative variation for SO 2 , which indicates that fundamental aspects of atmospheric sulfur chemistry remain uncertain. Of the perturbations examined in this study, the assumed height of SO 2 injection had the largest overall impacts, particularly on global mean net radiative flux (maximum difference of −0.35 W m −2 ), SO 2 lifetime over Northern Hemisphere land (maximum difference of 0.8 d), surface SO 2 concentration (up to 59 % decrease), and surface sulfate concentration (up to 23 % increase). Emitting SO 2 at height consistently increased SO 2 and SO 4 column burdens and shortwave cooling, with varying magnitudes, but had inconsistent effects across models on the sign of the change in implied cloud forcing. The assumed SO 4 emission fraction also had a significant impact on net radiative flux and surface sulfate concentration. Because these properties are not standardized across models this is a source of inter-model diversity typically neglected in model intercomparisons. These results imply a need to ensure that anthropogenic emission injection height and SO 4 emission fraction are accurately and consistently represented in global models.

Emissions Model Intercomparison Project↗
DOE OSTI2019

Multiphysics approach to plasma neutron source modelling at the JET tokamak

A novel multiphysics methodology for the computation of realistic plasma neutron sources has been developed. The approach is based on state-of-the-art plasma transport and neutron spectrum calculations, coupled with a Monte Carlo neutron transport code, bridging the gap between plasma physics and neutronics. In the paper two JET neutronics tokamak models are used to show the application of the developed plasma neutron sources and validate them. Diagnostic data for the record JET D discharge 92436 are used as input for the TRANSP code, modelling neutron emission in two external plasma heating scenarios, namely using only neutral beam injection and a combination of the latter and ion cyclotron resonance heating. Neutron spectra, based on plasma transport results, are computed using the DRESS code. The developed PLANET code package is employed to generate plasma neutron source descriptions and couple them with the MCNP code. The effects of using the developed sources in neutron transport calculations on the response of JET neutron diagnostic systems is studied and compared to the results obtained with a generic plasma neutron source. It is shown that, although there are significant differences in the emissivity profiles, spectra shape and anisotropy between the neutron sources, the integral response of the time-resolved ex-vessel neutron detectors is largely insensitive to source changes, with major relative deviations of up to several percent. However it is calculated that, because of the broadening of neutron spectra as a consequence of external plasma heating, larger differences may occur in activation of materials which have threshold reactions located at DD neutron peak energies. The PLANET plasma neutron source computational methodology is demonstrated to be suitable for detailed neutron source effect studies on JET during DT experiments and can be applied to ITER analyses.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

Studies on space charge neutralization and emittance measurement of beam from microwave ion source

A 2.45 GHz microwave ion source together with a beam transport system has been developed at VECC to study the problems related with the injection of high current beam into a compact cyclotron. This paper presents the results of beam profile measurement of high current proton beam at different degrees of space charge neutralisation with the introduction of neon gas in the beam line using a fine leak valve. The beam profiles have been measured at different pressures in the beam line by capturing the residual gas fluorescence using a CCD camera. It has been found that with space charge compensation at the present current level (∼5 mA at 75 keV), it is possible to reduce the beam spot size by ∼34%. We have measured the variation of beam profile as a function of the current in the solenoid magnet under the neutralised condition and used these data to estimate the rms emittance of the beam. Simulations performed using equivalent Kapchinsky-Vladimirsky beam envelope equations with space charge neutralization factor are also presented to interpret the experimental results.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2018

Seismic Analysis of Spatio-Temporal Fracture Generation During EGS Resource Development

This DOE GTO funded project was a collaborative effort between Array Information Technology and the University of California at Berkeley. The project goal is to improve technology to assess in-situ stress magnitude and orientation, kinematic fracture parameters, rupture size, rupture orientation as well as temporal changes and volumetric distribution of the injected fluid during Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) resource development. The project leveraged high-frequency seismic data recorded by the LBNL 34-station permanent geophone network and seismic broadband data recorded by a temporary 33-station seismometer network that operated in The Geysers during the injection phase of the DOE GTO funded EGS demonstration project at the well Prati-32. The operation of the broadband network with high station density and good azimuthal coverage to monitor the injection phase produced an unprecedented dataset that is typically unavailable for EGS operations. The two datasets offer the advantages of studying the parameters under investigation over a broader frequency band and the higher sensitivity of the broadband seismometers resulted in a richer dataset with a lower magnitude of completeness. Moment tensor (MT) inversion have been employed to develop a catalog of earthquake source solutions including moment tensor and finite source rupture area. This resulted in a 168-event waveform-based seismic moment tensor catalog for events 0.7≤Mw≤3.9 based on a semi-automated moment tensor analysis technique. The MT solutions were used for in-situ stress estimation during the EGS injection phases. We found an approximate 15-degree counterclockwise rotation of the least compressive stress sigma-3, and a rotation of the maximum compressive stress sigma-1 toward the vertical as the injected volume of water increased. We developed a rupture-area magnitude scaling relationship of The Geysers earthquakes obtained from finite-source inversion for fault slip that reveals a very high correlation to published results. Based on the rupture area-magnitude relationship we mapped Mw from the LBNL earthquake catalog to estimate the activated fracture area, its location and orientation within the injection volume of Prati-32. The double-difference Wadati (DDW) technique was applied to high-accuracy P- and S-wave differential travel times derived from waveform cross correlation to image fluid saturation in the subsurface based on Vp/Vs-ratio. The recently developed technique has been applied to estimate temporal changes of fluid distribution in fault zones and in volcanic regions but not yet in engineered geo-reservoirs. The improvement of the technology includes high-resolution waveform cross correlation applied to the high-quality datasets with lower magnitude of completeness resulting in a higher number of recorded events. The improvement allowed to estimate both, the spatial and temporal distribution of injected fluids and the state of the injected fluid during reservoir stimulation. Results of the DDW analysis revealed the development of an injection-derived steam plume during the early injection phase, particularly in the northern part of the Prati-32 study area.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

Probing the gamma-ray emission from HESS J1834–087 using H.E.S.S. and Fermi LAT observations

Aims. Previous observations with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) have revealed an extended very-high-energy (VHE; E> 100 GeV) γ-ray source, HESS J1834-087, coincident with the supernova remnant (SNR) W41. The origin of the γ-ray emission was investigated in more detail with the H.E.S.S. array and the Large Area Telescope (LAT) onboard the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. Methods. For this research, the γ-ray data provided by 61 h of observations with H.E.S.S., and four years with the Fermi LAT were analyzed, covering over five decades in energy from 1.8 GeV up to 30 TeV. The morphology and spectrum of the TeV and GeV sources were studied and multiwavelength data were used to investigate the origin of the γ-ray emission toward W41. Results. The TeV source can be modeled with a sum of two components: one point-like and one significantly extended (σ TeV = 0.17° ± 0.01°), both centered on SNR W41 and exhibiting spectra described by a power law with index Γ TeV ≃ 2.6. The GeV source detected with Fermi LAT is extended (σ GeV = 0.15° ± 0.03°) and morphologically matches the VHE emission. Its spectrum can be described by a power-law model with an index Γ GeV = 2.15 ± 0.12 and smoothly joins the spectrum of the whole TeV source. A break appears in the γ-ray spectra around 100 GeV. No pulsations were found in the GeV range. Conclusions. Two main scenarios are proposed to explain the observed emission: a pulsar wind nebula (PWN) or the interaction of SNR W41 with an associated molecular cloud. X-ray observations suggest the presence of a point-like source (a pulsar candidate) near the center of the remnant and nonthermal X-ray diffuse emission that could arise from the possibly associated PWN. The PWN scenario is supported by the compatible positions of the TeV and GeV sources with the putative pulsar. However, the spectral energy distribution from radio to γ-rays is reproduced by a one-zone leptonic model only if an excess of low-energy electrons is injected following a Maxwellian distribution by a pulsar with a high spin-down power (>1037 erg s-1). This additional low-energy component is not needed if we consider that the point-like TeV source is unrelated to the extended GeV and TeV sources. Finally, the interacting SNR scenario is supported by the spatial coincidence between the γ-ray sources, the detection of OH (1720 MHz) maser lines, and the hadronic modeling.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Noise from undetected sources in Dark Energy Survey images

ABSTRACT For ground-based optical imaging with current CCD technology, the Poisson fluctuations in source and sky background photon arrivals dominate the noise budget and are readily estimated. Another component of noise, however, is the signal from the undetected population of stars and galaxies. Using injection of artifical galaxies into images, we demonstrate that the measured variance of galaxy moments (used for weak gravitational lensing measurements) in Dark Energy Survey (DES) images is significantly in excess of the Poisson predictions, by up to 30 per cent, and that the background sky levels are overestimated by current software. By cross-correlating distinct images of ‘empty’ sky regions, we establish that there is a significant image noise contribution from undetected static sources (US), which, on average, are mildly resolved at DES resolution. Treating these US as a stationary noise source, we compute a correction to the moment covariance matrix expected from Poisson noise. The corrected covariance matrix matches the moment variances measured on the injected DES images to within 5 per cent. Thus, we have an empirical method to statistically account for US in weak lensing measurements, rather than requiring extremely deep sky simulations. We also find that local sky determinations can remove most of the bias in flux measurements, at a small penalty in additional, but quantifiable, noise.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2017

Fast X-ray imaging of cavitating flows

A new method based on ultra-fast X-ray imaging was developed in this work for simultaneous investigations of the dynamics and the structures of complex two-phase flows. Here in this paper, cavitation was created inside a millimetric 2D Venturi-type test section, while seeding particles were injected into the flow. Thanks to the phase-contrast enhancement technique provided by the APS (Advanced Photon Source) synchrotron beam, high definition X-ray images of the complex cavitating flows were obtained. These images contain valuable information about both the liquid and the gaseous phases. By means of image processing, the two phases were separated, and velocity fields of each phase were therefore calculated using image cross-correlations. The local vapour volume fractions were also obtained thanks to the local intensity levels within the recorded images. These simultaneous measurements, provided by this new technique, afford more insight into the structure and the dynamic of two-phase flows as well as the interactions between then, and hence enable to improve our understanding of their behavior. In the case of cavitating flows inside a Venturi-type test section, the X-ray measurements demonstrates, for the first time, the presence of significant slip velocities between the phases within sheet cavities for both steady and unsteady flow configurations.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2023

A reduced-model (nSOLT) simulation of neutral recycling effects on plasma turbulence in the divertor region of MAST-U

The 2D scrape-off-layer turbulence code (nSOLT), which includes 1D kinetic neutral–plasma interactions, is applied to study effects of neutral recycling on plasma turbulence for parameters illustrative of the MAST-U divertor region. Neutral recycling is modeled by injecting a fraction of the parallel plasma flux to the divertor back into the simulation domain as a source of Franck–Condon-distributed neutrals. Stationary sources, concentrated at the magnetic separatrix, model plasma streaming into the divertor region from the upstream scrape-off-layer and sustain plasma turbulence absent neutral recycling. Starting from one such no-neutrals equilibrium, we initiate recycling in a numerical experiment designed to diagnose and identify the effects of various neutral–plasma interactions on the divertor plasma, divertor turbulence, and plasma exhaust. The onset of recycling triggers an initial burst of enhanced cross field plasma transport that is quelled by ionization cooling and charge–exchange (CX) friction, with growing neutral pressure, leading to a quiescent, turbulence-free state. Diagnosis of this transient burst reveals that (1) the sudden increase in plasma density due to ionization dominates the onset of the burst, (2) electron cooling due to ionization increases collisionality and disconnects blob filaments from the sheath, and (3) CX friction drives tripole polarization of a blob that can dominate the curvature-driven dipole polarization, leading to the stagnation of blob propagation and reduced radial turbulent transport. It is shown that CX friction is negligible compared to sheath physics in determining equilibrium mean flow shearing rates, for parameters considered herein (specifically a short connection length to the divertor target), while it can significantly reduce interchange-instability growth rates.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2013

Cosmological origin of anomalous radio background

The ARCADE 2 collaboration has reported a significant excess in the isotropic radio background, whose homogeneity cannot be reconciled with clustered sources. This suggests a cosmological origin prior to structure formation. We investigate several potential mechanisms and show that injection of relativistic electrons through late decays of a metastable particle can give rise to the observed excess radio spectrum through synchrotron emission. However, constraints from the cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropy, on injection of charged particles and on the primordial magnetic field, present a challenge. The simplest scenario is with a ∼>9 GeV particle decaying into e{sup +}e{sup −} at a redshift of z ∼ 5, in a magnetic field of ∼ 5μG, which exceeds the CMB B-field constraints, unless the field was generated after decoupling. Decays into exotic millicharged particles can alleviate this tension, if they emit synchroton radiation in conjunction with a sufficiently large background magnetic field of a dark U(1)' gauge field.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

An integrated experimental–modeling approach to identify key processes for carbon mineralization in fractured mafic and ultramafic rocks

Abstract Controlling atmospheric warming requires immediate reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, as well as the active removal and sequestration of CO2 from current point sources. One promising proposed strategy to reduce atmospheric CO2 levels is geologic carbon sequestration (GCS), where CO2 is injected into the subsurface and reacts with the formation to precipitate carbonate minerals. Rapid mineralization has recently been reported for field tests in mafic and ultramafic rocks. However, unlike saline aquifers and depleted oil and gas reservoirs historically considered for GCS, these formations can have extremely low porosities and permeabilities, limiting storage volumes and reactive mineral surfaces to the preexisting fracture network. As a result, coupling between geochemical interactions and the fracture network evolution is a critical component of long-term, sustainable carbon storage. In this paper, we summarize recent advances in integrating experimental and modeling approaches to determine the first-order processes for carbon mineralization in a fractured mafic/ultramafic rock system. We observe the critical role of fracture aperture, flow, and surface characteristics in controlling the quantity, identity, and morphology of secondary precipitates and present where the influence of these factors can be reflected in newly developed thermo-hydro-mechanical–chemical models. Our findings provide a roadmap for future work on carbon mineralization, as we present the most important system components and key challenges that we are overcoming to enable GCS in mafic and ultramafic rocks.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Building an EPA Class VI Permit Application

Summary To accelerate the commercialization of carbon capture and storage (CCS), the US Department of Energy (US DOE) is building on decades of characterization efforts and pilot-scale projects through their CarbonSAFE program. Administered through their National Energy Technology Laboratory, this program seeks to bring fully integrated projects to the sector that can store more than 50 million tonnes of CO2 over a 30-year period. The program, which was enacted before the enhancement of Internal Revenue Code Section 45Q, is in the capture assessment, characterization, and permitting phase. The objectives of this paper are to discuss (a) the injection permitting requirements of the CarbonSAFE projects; (b) information gathering in support of the permit; (c) the timelines of field development and permit-related activities; (d) the major technical components of the field development plan; and (e) early feedback from the regulators toward acceptance of the permit. In Mississippi, more than 30,000 acres have been characterized by six deep characterization wells, a deep groundwater well, and 92 line miles of 2D seismic as part of the CarbonSAFE Project ECO2S. During the acquisition of seismic data, all receiver lines were live, which resulted in the generation of a pseudo-3D seismic design. The incorporation of a 3D seismic survey was not included as part of this project due to logistical difficulties presented by the undulating, wooded surface terrain. A suite of openhole geophysical logs was taken from each well, allowing for a detailed interpretation of prospective storage reservoirs and confining intervals to complement the analysis carried out on the 290 ft of a whole core that was cut through the prospective confining zone and storage reservoir. The detailed geologic and reservoir data were assembled and entered into a 3D model to assess the injection capacity and the area of review (AoR). This information fed into the detailed corrective action, monitoring, testing, and postinjection site care (PISC) modeling. The results have been exceptional. The geologic assessment has revealed three primary storage targets, ranging in depth from 3,500 ft to 6,000 ft. These storage reservoirs net 1,300 ft of sandstone, with mean porosity and permeability of 29% and 3.6 darcies, respectively. Together, these reservoirs have storage capacities that may exceed 20 million tonnes per square mile, making this a gigatonne prospect. Forward modeling of the project resulted in an AoR of 16 sq miles, injecting about 8000 t/d, for 30 years, via two deep injection wells. The excellent confining characteristics of the caprock, relatively simple geologic structure, and lack of historical well drilling activity in this area provide excellent containment of the injected CO2. Based on this work, the project has proposed 20 years of PISC. To date, only two US CO2 injection permits have been granted. These projects relied on a singular capture point feeding a singular sequestration point (source to sink), and considerations have not been made to garner CO2 emissions from other industrial sources. The Kemper County Storage Complex is a first-of-its-kind storage hub concept that looks to develop an area capable of storing significant quantities of CO2 from the region. Also, this work will show how characterization efforts, geological and numerical modeling efforts, and plan development were constructed in support of permit and incentives acceptance.

Energy & Fuels↗