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Water Upconing in Underground Hydrogen Storage: Sensitivity Analysis to Inform Design of Withdrawal

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A Correction to this article was published on 08 March 2024

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Abstract

The gas–water interface in Underground Hydrogen Storage (UHS) reservoirs creates the possibility that water will upcone to the well during hydrogen (H2) withdrawal with detrimental impacts. We study the upconing of water to a hydrogen injection/withdrawal (I/W) well using both an analytical solution and numerical simulation. We carried out sensitivity analyses of the engineered properties (e.g., distance of well bottom to gas–water interface, withdrawal rate) and the intrinsic properties (e.g., reservoir permeability, porosity) of an idealized UHS system. Horizontal permeability is the main parameter controlling the height of upconing. Daily I/W cycles to some degree mitigate upconing because injection pushes down the gas–water interface. Sampling-based global sensitivity analyses show clearly that reservoirs with large horizontal permeability are preferred for avoiding upconing. Minimizing withdrawal rate and maximizing either the distance from well to gas–water interface or the length of the perforated well interval are important engineering controls to minimize upconing.

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Abbreviations

d :

Distance from original gas–water interface to well bottom (m)

D :

Molecular diffusivity (m2 s−1)

k H , k x , k r :

Permeability in the horizontal direction (m2)

k V , k Z :

Permeability in the vertical direction (m2)

K H :

Hydraulic conductivity in the horizontal direction (m s−1)

K V :

Hydraulic conductivity in the vertical direction (m s−1)

P :

Pressure (Pa, bar)

Q :

Volumetric I/W rate (m3 s−1)

Q m :

Mass-based I/W rate (kg s−1)

R :

Radial coordinate (m)

R’ :

Intermediate term in DB model (–)

S :

Phase saturation (Sl = aqueous, Sg = gas) (–)

T :

Temperature (°C)

X :

Mass fraction (–)

Z :

Vertical coordinate (m)

ϕ :

Porosity (–)

\(\gamma\) :

Gas density in DB model (kg m−3)

\(\gamma^{\prime }\) :

Intermediate term in DB model (m s−1)

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by a grant from EPRI to Finsterle GeoConsulting LLC.

Funding

This work was supported by a grant from EPRI to Finsterle GeoConsulting, LLC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Oldenburg PhD and Energy Geosciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA, USA

    Curtis M. Oldenburg

  2. Finsterle GeoConsulting, LLC, Kensington, CA, USA

    Stefan Finsterle

  3. Electrical Power Research Institute (EPRI), Palo Alto, CA, USA

    Robert C. Trautz

Authors
  1. Curtis M. Oldenburg
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  2. Stefan Finsterle
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Contributions

Oldenburg, Finsterle, and Trautz contributed to problem conceptualization. Oldenburg and Finsterle developed the methodology and carried out the formal analysis and simulations. Oldenburg and Finsterle wrote the original draft. Trautz was project administrator, and carried out review and editing.

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Correspondence to Curtis M. Oldenburg.

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Competing interests

The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Curtis M. Oldenburg and Stefan Finsterle report financial support was provided by Electrical Power Research Institute (EPRI), Palo Alto, California, USA.

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Oldenburg, C.M., Finsterle, S. & Trautz, R.C. Water Upconing in Underground Hydrogen Storage: Sensitivity Analysis to Inform Design of Withdrawal. Transp Porous Med 151, 55–84 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11242-023-02033-0

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