The Groundwater and Storage interactions project arose out of a meeting on the shoulder of the Greenhouse Gas Technologies Conference in Amsterdam in 2010. It was decided to concentrate initially on the Australian Flagships projects. On 3 May 2011 Australian researchers and government agencies met and presented their work to date. In these slides the Queensland Carbon Geostorage Initiative present on Groundwater Research Projects

1. Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation
Queensland Carbon Geostorage Initiative
Groundwater Research Projects

2. The Queensland Carbon Geostorage Initiative
CGI Stage 1 Atlas EOI
Site Assessment
Acreage
CGI Stage 2 Gap Analysis
Site Selection
Release
Hydrodynamics
Geological Models
Hydrochemistry
Mineralogy
Drilling Program
Demonstration Commercial
CGI Stage 3
Site Characterisation Projects Deployment
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 2

3. The Change in Queensland Government Objectives
Decreasing
Uncertainty
Increasing
Data-Effort
Required
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 3

4. Research Perspectives
• The applicability and timing of research programs
• Timeframes
• FID impacts
• Research ambiguity
• Fundamental Vs applied research
• Embedded research
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 4

5. CGI Groundwater Studies
• Completed studies
• QA of the Department of the Environment and Resource
Management Groundwater Database (DERM GWB)
• QA of selected Queensland petroleum well data points in the Surat
and Galilee basins
• Conceptual hydrodynamic modelling in the Surat Basin
• Aquifer media mineral stability in the presence of CO2 charged
groundwater
• Hydrochemical characterisation of Jurassic groundwaters
• Proposed Studies
• Conceptual hydrodynamic modelling in the Galilee Basin
• Regional numerical groundwater flow modelling in the Surat Basin
• Experimental studies on rock reactivity under CO2 stress
• Reactive Transport modelling in the Surat and Galilee basins
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 5

6. Existing Regional Groundwater Flow Models
Habermehl 1980 Radke et al. 2000
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 6

7. Regional Hydrodynamic Modelling
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 7

8. Regional Hydrodynamic Modelling
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 8

9. Pressure/Depth Hydraulic Analysis
Hutton Sandstone
Hutton Sandstone
Evergreen Formation
Hutton Sandstone
Evergreen Formation
Precipice Sandstone
Precipice Sandstone
basement
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 9

10. Groundwater Hydrochemical QA Methodology
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 10

11. Aquifer Media Mineral Composition and Groundwater Chemical Character
Precipice Sandstone
Mean
mineralogical
composition
(n = 17)
Quartz
Stiff diagram TDS (mg/L)
Illite
Na Cl < 300
Kaolinite
300 - 1500
Ca HCO3
Chlorite 1500 - 20000
Mg SO4
Calcite 20000 - 35000
Chemical composition (n = 248)
Na K Ca Mg Fe Mn HCO3 CO3 Cl SO4
Mean 88.5 2.2 12.4 4.7 0.16 0.02 149.2 9.6 64.6 9.3
Median 44.3 1.9 2.5 0.6 0.00 0.00 106.8 0.1 14.0 0.0
Mode 31.0 0.0 2.0 0.3 0.00 0.00 105.0 0.0 12.0 0.0
Standard Deviation 190.1 3.1 34.3 21.6 0.79 0.06 243.1 31.2 238.8 58.6
Minimum 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.00 0.00 0.0 0.0 5.0 0.0
Maximum 1590 30 290 275.5 8.7 0.47 3103.1 203.3 2189.7 753.9
0 50 100 200
Km
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 11

12. Geochemical Modelling
Examples of rock-water interactions
Quartz
100
Precipice Sandstone
Some minerals (grams)
10
Kaolinite
System:
1 sandstone (>95% quartz)
+ Na-HCO3 fresh gw (40 mg/L Na)
.1
quartz – constant
kaolinite – slight precipitation
.01
8 7 6 5
pH
100 Quartz
Muscovite
System:
Some minerals (grams)
10 Kaolinite siltstone (53% quartz, 3 % mica,
20% K-feldspars, 13% kaolinite)
1 + Na-HCO3 fresh gw (40 mg/L Na)
quartz – constant
.1
mica – dissolution
kaolinite – significant precipitation
.01
8 7 6 5
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 12
pH

13. Geochemical Modelling
Examples of rock-water interactions
100 Quartz Precipice Sandstone
Kaolinite
Minerals (grams)
10
System:
Muscovite sandstone (82% quartz, 13% kaolinite)
Albite low + Na-HCO3 gw (860 mg/L Na)
1 quartz – constant
mica + feldspar – significant dissolution
kaolinite – slight precipitation
.1
9 8.5 8 7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5
pH
100 Quartz
System:
Muscovite
siltstone (53% quartz, 20% K-feldspars,
Some minerals (grams)
13% kaolinite)
Albite low
10
K-feldspar + Na-HCO3 gw (860 mg/L Na)
Dawsonite
Kaolinite
quartz – constant
1
-
Clinochl 14A mica – slight dissolution
feldspar – significant dissolution
kaolinite – significant precipitation
.1
9 8.5 8 7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5
dawsonite – precipitation
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 13
pH

14. Geochemical Modelling
100 Examples of rock-water interactions
Quartz
Kaolinite Evergreen Formation
Muscovite System:
10
mudstone (48% quartz, 35% kaolinite, 2% K-
Minerals (grams)
feldspar)
Albite low
+ Na-HCO3 gw (530 mg/L Na)
1 quartz – constant
mica – slight dissolution
feldspar – significant dissolution
kaolinite – significant precipitation
.1
8.5 8 7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5
pH
100
Quartz
System:
Muscovite
Nontronit-Na mudstone (25% quartz, 10% kaolinite, 24%
Albite low Kaolinite
smectite-illite mixed layer,
10
10% K-feldspar)
Minerals (grams)
Dawsonite + Na-HCO3 gw (530 mg/L Na)
quartz – constant
1
mica, mixed layers – slight dissolution
feldspar – significant dissolution
kaolinite – significant precipitation
.1
dawsonite – precipitation
8.5 8 7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 14
pH

15. Geochemical Modelling
100 Examples of rock-water interactions
Quartz
Kaolinite Evergreen Formation
Muscovite System:
10
Albite low
mudstone (40% quartz, 31% kaolinite, 10% K-
Minerals (grams)
Nontronit-Na feldspar, 1% siderite, 1% calcite)
+ Na-HCO3 gw (530 mg/L Na)
Siderite quartz – constant
1
Calcite Dawsonite
mica – slight dissolution
feldspar – significant dissolution
kaolinite – precipitation
.1
8.5 8 7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5 siderite – constant
pH
calcite – significant dissolution
100
Quartz
dawsonite – significant precipitation
Kaolinite
Muscovite
Some minerals (grams)
10
System:
mudstone (40% quartz, 31% kaolinite, 10% K-
feldspar, 1% siderite, 1% calcite)
Siderite
1 Calcite + Na-Cl gw (630 mg/L Na)
same processes
Dawsonite
.1
7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 15
pH

16. Current and Future Requirements
• New data is the key
• Reservoir and seal mineralogy at depth
• Hydrochemistry – accurate minor and trace element compositions
• Improved kinetic rate constants – asymmetry between precipitation
and dissolution
• Empirical confirmation of modelled scenarios
• Hydraulic data – porosity/permeability/relative permeability
• Modelling studies
• Improved geological frameworks
• Sequence stratigraphic interpretation for regional correlation
• 3D fluid flow
• Vertical hydraulic relationships
• Hydraulic significance of faults
• Reactive transport
• Geomechanics
© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010 16