Thermoelastic properties of rock-salt NaCl at high pressures and temperatures

Abstract:

Rock-salt NaCl is an important mineral in our daily lives, in high pressure science/technology, and in the oil/gas industry. The latter has come to prominence since the discovery of deep water pre-salt structures containing great hydrocarbon reserves out of the SE coast of Brazil. The unique aspects of these regions, such as deep water (greater than 2 km below sea level) and deep hydrocarbon reserves (more than 5 km deep) are challenging for oil/gas explorations. Oil/gas field imaging algorithms require good velocity models for seismic wave-propagation within the salt layer. Despite its importance, there is still insufficient information on the elasticity of and sound velocities in NaCl at relevant P,T conditions. Here we report such properties in rock-salt NaCl at relevant P,T conditions as obtained by first principles (DFT) quasiharmonic calculations. We compare intermediate and final results with available experimental data on thermodynamics and thermoelastic properties and combine them for optimum accuracy. These results should be useful for and facilitate imaging pre-salt hydrocarbon reserves.

Research supported by CAPES from Brazil, NSF/DMR, and NSF/EAR.