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Wormholes: Chemically Damaged States in Carbonate Rocks During CO2-Acidized Fluid Flow

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Bifurcation and Degradation of Geomaterials with Engineering Applications (IWBDG 2017)

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Abstract

Carbonate rocks and carbonate zones in sandstone formations can experience chemical reaction with CO2 acidized water; this can degrade the fabric of the carbonate rock leading to the formation of damaged regions that are referred to as wormholes. The experimental research shows that once a wormhole is formed in a carbonate zone, the retention capabilities of the storage medium are lost, leading to unrestricted flow of the injected fluids in the defective zones. Collateral effects of such erosion processes is the accumulation of dissolved solids in remote locations that can promote permeability reduction causing potential zones for the initiation of hydraulic fracture and void-compaction-induced distress to the caprock barriers.

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Acknowledgements

The work described in the paper was supported by the following research grants awarded to the first author: A Discovery Grant awarded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and a Research Grant awarded by Carbon Management Canada.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Geomechanics Laboratory, Department of Civil Engineering and Applied Mechanics, McGill University, H3A 0C3, Montréal, QC, Canada

    A. P. S. Selvadurai & C.-B. Couture

Authors
  1. A. P. S. Selvadurai
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  2. C.-B. Couture
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to A. P. S. Selvadurai .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Aristotle Univ of Thessaloniki Department of Civil Engineering, Thessaloniki, Greece

    Euripides Papamichos

  2. Department of Civil and Environmental En, University of Cyprus Department of Civil and Environmental En, Nicos, Cyprus

    Panos Papanastasiou

  3. School of Mechanical & Chemical Engg, University of Western Australia School of Mechanical & Chemical Engg, Crawley, West Australia, Australia

    Elena Pasternak

  4. Sch Civil, Envtl & Mining Engg, University of Western Australia Sch Civil, Envtl & Mining Engg, Crawley, West Australia, Australia

    Arcady Dyskin

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Selvadurai, A.P.S., Couture, CB. (2017). Wormholes: Chemically Damaged States in Carbonate Rocks During CO2-Acidized Fluid Flow. In: Papamichos, E., Papanastasiou, P., Pasternak, E., Dyskin, A. (eds) Bifurcation and Degradation of Geomaterials with Engineering Applications. IWBDG 2017. Springer Series in Geomechanics and Geoengineering. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56397-8_39

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56397-8_39

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-56396-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-56397-8

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