Controlling Salt Precipitation via Cyclic Low-Salinity Brine–CO₂ Injection in Depleted Gas Reservoirs
(Pengendalian Presipitasi Garam melalui Injeksi Siklik Brine Salinitas Rendah–CO₂ pada Reservoir Gas Terdeplesi)
Keywords:
CO₂ Storage, Salt Precipitation, Cyclic Injection, Low-Salinity Brine, Depleted Gas ReservoirAbstract
Salt precipitation during CO₂ injection into depleted gas reservoirs is a major cause of injectivity loss due to evaporation-driven crystallization of formation brine. This study experimentally evaluates a cyclic low-salinity brine–CO₂ injection strategy to control precipitation and preserve permeability. Core-flood experiments were conducted on Berea sandstone (120 mD, 22% porosity) under reservoir conditions (80°C, 150 bar). The cyclic protocol (0.2 PV low-salinity brine followed by 0.8 PV CO₂, five cycles) was compared with continuous CO₂ injection. Continuous injection caused severe permeability reduction (76±4%), whereas cyclic injection limited the loss to 17±5% (p < 0.01) and increased the CO₂ storage coefficient from 0.32 to 0.53. SEM analysis indicates that cyclic injection suppresses pore-bridging salt and promotes uniform micro-scale deposition. The results suggest that salt precipitation can be dynamically managed through injection design, improving both injectivity and storage efficiency without chemical additives.
Abstrak
Presipitasi garam selama injeksi CO₂ ke reservoir gas terdeplesi merupakan penyebab utama penurunan injektivitas akibat kristalisasi yang dipicu oleh evaporasi brine formasi. Studi ini mengevaluasi secara eksperimental strategi injeksi siklik brine salinitas rendah–CO₂ untuk mengendalikan presipitasi dan mempertahankan permeabilitas. Eksperimen core-flood dilakukan pada batupasir Berea (120 mD, porositas 22%) pada kondisi reservoir (80°C, 150 bar). Protokol siklik (0,2 PV brine salinitas rendah diikuti 0,8 PV CO₂ selama lima siklus) dibandingkan dengan injeksi CO₂ kontinu. Injeksi kontinu menyebabkan penurunan permeabilitas sebesar 76±4%, sedangkan metode siklik membatasi penurunan menjadi 17±5% (p < 0,01) serta meningkatkan koefisien penyimpanan CO₂ dari 0,32 menjadi 0,53. Analisis SEM menunjukkan bahwa metode siklik menghambat pembentukan jembatan garam dan menghasilkan distribusi mikro-kristal yang lebih merata. Hasil ini menunjukkan bahwa presipitasi garam dapat dikendalikan secara dinamis melalui desain injeksi tanpa bahan kimia tambahan.
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