Assessing the Adsorption Properties of Shales

Abstract:

Fine-grained rocks, such as shales, contain a significant amount of nanopores that can significantly contribute to their storage capacity through the mechanism of adsorption. The current ability to extract natural gas that is adsorbed in the rock’s matrix is limited and current technology focuses primarily on the free gas in the fractures, thus leading to very low recovery efficiencies. Shales constitute also a great portion of so-called caprocks above potential CO₂ sequestration sites; hereby, the adsorption process may limit the CO₂ mobility within the cap-rock, thus minimizing leakage phenomena. Whether it is a reservoir or a caprock, understanding and quantifying the mechanisms of adsorption in these natural materials is key to improve the engineering design of subsurface operations. Results will be presented from a laboratory study that combines conventional techniques for the measurement of adsorption isotherms with novel methods that allows for the imaging of adsorption using x-rays. Various nanoporous materials are considered, thus including rocks, such as shales and coals, pure clay minerals and engineered adsorbents with well-defined nanopore structures, such as zeolites. Supercritical CO₂ adsorption isotherms have been measured with a Rubotherm Magnetic Suspension balance by covering the pressure range 0.1-20~MPa. A medical x-ray CT scanner has been used to identify three-dimensional patterns of the adsorption properties of a packed-bed of adsorbent, thus enabling to assess the spatial variability of the adsorption isotherm. The data are analyzed by using thermodynamically rigorous measures of adsorption and a graphical method is applied for their interpretation. The density of the adsorbed phase is estimated and compared to data reported in the literature; the latter is key to disclose gas-reserves and/or potential storage capacity estimates. When evaluated against classic adsorbent materials, the adsorption mechanism in shales is further complicated by the presence of resident fluids (such as oil) that can additionally contribute to their total uptake capacity. This further highlights the need of improving our current understanding of the fundamental mechanisms controlling the uptake and release of fluids in natural nanoporous materials.