Optimization of a CO2 storage project based on thermal, geomechanical and induced fracturing effects

• Geomechanical and thermal effects of CO2 storage in Ohio River valley were studied.
• Cold injection of CO2 reduces the fracture pressure.
• Cold injection of CO2 lowers storage capacity if operating under fracture pressure.
• Injection above fracture pressure increase injectivity but could fracture the caprock.
• An algorithm was proposed for optimizing the storage while maintaining the security.

A coupled flow, geomechanical and heat transfer model for a potential CO2 storage zone and surrounding formations has been developed. The coupled dynamic, thermal fracture model shows that thermal effects of injection could increase the speed of fracture propagation in the storage layer depending on the injection rate. Our work shows that the injection capacity with cold CO2 injection could be significantly lower than expected, and it may be impractical to avoid induced fracture development. An optimization algorithm is proposed for maximizing the storage based on injection temperature while limiting the maximum fracture length and minimizing the risk of leakage from thermal effects of CO2 storage while improving the injection capacity.