Providing clean energy for the UK: testing the efficacy of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) in the North Sea

在本研究中，将调查北海潜在CCS储层初级封印上方覆盖层地层的完整性。越来越明显的是，新的可再生能源将不足以帮助英国政府实现其温室气体（GHG）排放目标。为了实现2050年二氧化碳排放量减少80%的目标，碳捕集与封存（CCS）很可能必须在任何低碳能源组合中发挥不可或缺的作用。任何CCS发电的理想地点都是靠近现有储层的地方，比如北海的那些已经耗尽了石油和天然气的储层。因此，北海油气行业的巨大成功意味着将该基础设施用于CCS的潜力巨大。然而，目前人们对北海CCS计划的有效性知之甚少，而且在与该计划相关的风险量化方面仍然缺乏详细的信息。通过使用地震反射数据来描述这些鲜为人知的沉积物及其包含的任何地貌特征（例如隧道山谷、冰山冲刷、河流通道、砂岩侵入、烟囱和管道），将绘制出快速垂直和横向气体和流体流动的潜在路线。地震属性将与来自北海油井的丰富地下数据相结合，以定量岩石属性来填充这种更好约束的地层。这些数据将用于生成一个3D模型，其中潜在的CCS储层将被填充直到二氧化碳饱和。这个模型代表了一个接近现实的模型，将允许对覆盖层泄漏进行评估，更广泛地说，研究区域作为北海潜在的CCS站点的有效性进行测试。该项目的主要结论将有助于更好地了解CCS在北海的潜力和应用。预计覆盖层的特征将提供关于过去环境变化的额外古气候学信息，这将对气候建模者有用。

In this fellowship the integrity of the overburden stratigraphy above the primary seal of potential CCS reservoirs in the North Sea will be investigated. It has become increasingly clear that new sources of renewable energy will be insufficient for helping the British government to achieve their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions targets. In order to accomplish the 2050 target of an 80% reduction of CO2 emissions it is likely that Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) will have to play an integral part of any low-carbon energy portfolio. The ideal location for any CCS generation is going to be proximal to existing reservoirs, such as those in the North Sea, which have been depleted of oil and gas. Thus, the prolific success of the oil and gas industry in the North Sea means that there is significant potential for using this infrastructure for CCS. However, the current state of knowledge on the efficacy of a CCS scheme in the North Sea is poorly-known and there remains an important lack of detail on the quantification of risk that would be associated with such a scheme. By using seismic reflection data to characterise these poorly-known sediments and any geomorphological features that they contain (e.g. tunnel valleys, iceberg scours, fluvial channels, sandstone intrusions, chimneys, and pipes) potential routes for rapid vertical and lateral gas and fluid flow will be mapped. Seismic attributes will be combined with abundant subsurface data from wells in the North Sea to populate this better-constrained stratigraphy with quantitative rock properties. This data will then be used to produce a 3D model where the potential CCS reservoir will be filled until saturated with CO2. This model, which represents an approximation to reality, will allow for overburden leakage to be assessed and, more broadly, for the efficacy of the study area as a potential CCS site in the North Sea to be tested. The main conclusions from this project will lead to a better understanding of the potential and application for CCS in the North Sea. It is also anticipated that the overburden characterisation will provide additional palaeo-climatological information on past environmental changes that will be of use to climate modellers.