Abstract
The reservoir properties and gas-bearing characteristics of different lithotypes of lignite are different, resulting in complex migration and accumulation laws of methane in lignite. Following systematic collections of samples of different lithotypes from the Erlian Basin, occurrence modes and storage potential of methane in lignite were explored through a series of isothermal adsorption experiments and NMR-based experiments on original water-containing samples. The maceral composition affects the reservoir characteristics and hydrophilicity of different lithotypes of lignite, which control the reservoir’s gas–water competition. Xylite lignite has a strong adsorption capacity, poor development of macropores, and high irreducible water content. Therefore, among various lithotypes of lignite, xylite lignite has the highest occurrence potential for adsorbed gas and soluble gas and the lowest potential for free gas. Notably, the soluble gas in lignite is never dominant in the gas composition. Therefore, gas in xylite lignite is mainly adsorbed. Due to carbonization, the fusain-rich lignite retains many unexpanded primary plant tissue structures and has developed macropore spaces and weak hydrophilicity. Therefore, the fusain-rich lignite has high free fluid porosity and the highest free gas storage potential. When the burial depth of the matrix lignite is less than 500 m, the methane is mainly adsorbed. The storage potential of free gas gradually exceeds that of adsorbed gas as the burial depth increases. There are apparent differences in the occurrence states and accumulation patterns of methane in different lithotypes of lignite. Clarifying methane’s occurrence and storage potential in different lithotypes of lignite are significant for evaluating methane resources and exploring the methane enrichment model.
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Acknowledgments
We acknowledge the support from the Postdoctoral Research Foundation of China (2022M723502), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (42172188), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities of China. We sincerely thank the editor and all reviewers for the valuable feedback that we have used to improve the quality of our manuscript.
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Xin, F., Xu, H., Tang, D. et al. Storage Potential of Multi-State Fluids in Different Lithotypes of Lignite: An In Situ Water-Gas-Bearing Analysis Based on Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. Nat Resour Res 32, 1199–1214 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-023-10172-w
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-023-10172-w