EnRUp GCS:

Enabling representative upscaling in geological CO2 storage.

Employment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies is today’s only realistic solution to achieve a meaningful cut in emissions while ensuring the increasing energy needs. The overall objective of EnRUp GCS is to contribute to accelerating the safe implementation of geological CO2 sequestration (GCS) on large scales to mitigate climate change.

Successful scale-up of GCS requires information at spatial and temporal scales that cannot be gleaned from available site and lab-scale data. The project aims to span this scale gap by proposing a unique meter-scale for testing and observation. CO2 injection will be performed in a world-first setup that will host different geological layers (caprock and reservoir), and representative subsurface conditions (stress, pressure) will be reproduced. Advanced monitoring with pressure and optical fibre sensors will provide a unique high-resolution dataset that will used to develop a sophisticated, data-driven geomechanical model for GCS.

SusEcoCCUS

The project is an integrated research and innovation plan. Its highlight is a CCUS demonstrator with a CO₂ flow of up to 1 ton per day (TPD). At the same time, critical technologies, i.e., direct air capture (DAC) and the conversion of CO₂ to value-added chemicals, will be advanced.

The demonstration will be built near the EPFL Valais campus at the industrial site (waste incineration plant of Enevi) in Uvrier. Notably, in 2024, it is planned to heat EPFL Valais I17 building via the district heating network of Enevi. By capturing CO₂ from the waste incineration plant at a rate of 1 TPD, we will reduce the CO₂ footprint of the EPFL campus in alignment with the EPFL 2030 Climate & Sustainability Strategy.

The project is built on five key pillars of CCUS, including point source capture, atmospheric CO₂ capture, short-term and long-term CO₂ storage, CO₂ conversion into energy carriers and value-added chemicals, and the enablers of this transition. We are developing layers of technology, including optimizing and validating promising proof-of-concept technologies at a technology readiness level (TRL) of 2/3 through fundamental research and accelerating scale-up of TRL 4/5 technologies to promote promising CCUS both at the early and the late stages of development, in line with the needs for a carbon-based circular economy.

Further information can be found on the project website at: https://www.epfl.ch/labs/las/susecoccus/

DemoUpStorage

The DemoUpCarma and DemoUpStorage are partner projects that aim to demonstrate for the first time the feasibility of the entire Carbon chain: Capture, Transport and Storage (CCTS) for a net-zero Switzerland. CO2 is captured in Switzerland and transported for permanent storage in Basalts (in collaboration with Carbfix).
In the context of DemoUpStorage, Swiss CO2 will be dissolved in seawater and injected in an appropriate basaltic formation where it is expected to be permanently stored by means of mineralization: injected CO2 will be turned into stone within a couple of years and locked away forever.

The Laloui Group, thanks to its expertise in hydromechanical characterization of geomaterials and microstructural analysis with live x-ray imaging, aims to contribute as part of the consortium to a better understanding of the interactions between the host basalt rock and the CO2 rich seawater.
Headed by Dr Eleni Stavropoulou, the team has been tasked with:
– providing a mineralogical, petrophysical and hydromechanical characterization of the field cores,
– evaluating the coupled geomechanical and geochemical response of basalt reservoir rocks to CO2-rich seawater
– CO2 injection under realistic conditions, and
– quantifying the time-dependent response of mineral trapping

CS-C Experiment: Experimental assessment of shale properties for safe geological CO₂ storage – sponsored by Mont Terri consortium (Swisstopo)

The storage of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in underground reservoir formation strongly relies on the presence of impermeable caprock formations to prevent the migration of CO₂ towards the surface. Shales are considered among the best candidates caprock formation due to their low permeability, high water retention properties, and self-sealing capacity. The goal of this project is the experimental assessment of the sealing capacity and integrity of the Opalinus Clay that is considered as representative shale caprock formation. Swisstopo ( Mont Terri project ) and FANC are partners of this project.

Background and motivations

By 2025, the EPFL Carbon Team’s prototypes will be up and running, capturing the first kilos of CO2 directly from the atmosphere and from the gas boiler of the animal facility in the SV Faculty. Several solutions are currently being studied for the further processing of this captured CO2. One of these is permanent storage in specific geological formations in Switzerland. To make this storage as optimal as possible, a number of studies need to be carried out, concerning soil properties, the presence of impurities in the captured CO2 stream, the conditions in which the carbon dioxide must be present during burial, and the impact of the latter on its environment. To this end, a collaboration with the Laboratory of Soil Mechanics, or LMS, has been developed to enable interested students to work on these topics.

List of semester projects / thesis topics

Project 1: Temporary storage of captured CO2

Design and build a system for the temporary storage of CO2 following its capture (from the atmosphere or at the gas boiler outlet). It will be necessary to define the conditions in which the CO2 must be present (pressure, temperature, gas/liquid, etc.) in order to introduce it into the reservoir with the minimum of energy. Finally, a system for preparing analyzable samples from the CO2 stored in the temporary reservoir will have to be developed. This will be used to carry out analyses and burial tests with captured CO2 under real-life conditions.

Skills required: physics, chemical engineering, electrical engineering.

Bonus: laboratory experience.

Project 2: Study of Swiss subsoils suitable for permanent CO2 storage

Characterize the geological system for CO2 injection and permanent storage: a superposition of a porous layer called “reservoir rock” used for CO2 storage, topped by an impermeable layer called “cap rock” used to prevent CO2 from rising to the surface. To be characterized, the “breakthrough” properties of the cap rock and the volume/capacity of the porous rock will need to be determined.

Skills required: physics, porous media mechanics, civil/environmental engineering, basic Python programming.

bonus: laboratory experiment.

Project 3: Impact of CO2 storage on its environment

Study the impact of CO2 on its environment after injection into a geological reservoir. Emphasis will be placed on determining the influence of the interaction of CO2 with the geomaterial in contact and the impact on the microstructure of this material.  This interaction may be linked to possible chemical interactions with certain minerals in the rock, the introduction of CO2 overpressure or other factors. 

Skills required: physics, civil/environmental engineering, mechanical engineering, Python programming.

Bonus: laboratory experience, 3D image processing.

Project 4: Modeling CO2 injection into a geological reservoir

Model the injection of CO2 into a geological formation and understand the propagation of the injected fluid in time and space. In addition, determine the optimum conditions under which the carbon dioxide should be located.

Skills required: Finite element modeling (FEM), physics, thermodynamics, mechanical engineering.

In Iceland, CO2 is injected into basalt formations for permanent storage. CO2, dissolved in water, reacts with favorable minerals in the rock to create new minerals and store carbon dioxide via mineralization. Precipitated zones preferentially form along existing conduits or fissures in the rock material. To better understand the formation of mineralized zones and their impact on pore connectivity in basalts, the micro-structure of a real basalt core precipitated in Iceland will be analyzed in 3D using X-ray tomography.

Skills: physics, chemical engineering, civil engineering, basic Python programming.

Contact

Supervising laboratory: LMS and Dr. Eleni Stavropoulou

Student supervisor EPFL Carbon team: Louis Saix ([email protected])

Geomechanical response of geomaterials to chemical reaction with CO₂ – Taeheon Kim

In order to fully understand the ground response to CO₂, the long term chemical effects of CO₂ on the host ground should be identified. Much experimental evidence suggests that the long term dissolution and precipitation effects of CO₂ on the host materials are non-negligible, however, there are still struggles in quantification. In our lab, we are attempting to quantify the mechanical response of geomaterials to acidic fluid focusing on the effect of mineral dissolution. Along with constitutive model development and experiments are being conducted using the advanced high-pressure oedometer cell invented in our lab and the high-pressure triaxial cell which we can simulate the in situ reservoir stress conditions. By taking both approaches, we aim to achieve confidence in the developed model and a better understanding of the long term geomechanical behaviour to CO₂ injection.