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Laboratory and Simulation Investigation of Enhanced Coalbed Methane Recovery by Gas Injection

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Abstract

Methane/carbon dioxide/nitrogen flow and adsorption behavior within coal is investigated simultaneously from a laboratory and simulation perspective. The samples are from a coalbed in the Powder River Basin, WY. They are characterized by methane, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen sorption isotherms, as well as porosity and permeability measurements. This coal adsorbs almost three times as much carbon dioxide as methane and exhibits significant hysteresis among pure-component adsorption and desorption isotherms that are characterized as Langmuir-like. Displacement experiments were conducted with pure nitrogen, pure carbon dioxide, and various mixtures. Recovery factors are greater than 94% of the OGIP. Most interestingly, the coal exhibited ability to separate nitrogen from carbon dioxide due to the preferential strong adsorption of carbon dioxide. Injection of a mixture rich in carbon dioxide gives slower initial recovery, increases breakthrough time, and decreases the volume of gas needed to sweep out the coalbed. Injection gas rich in nitrogen leads to relatively fast recovery of methane, earlier breakthrough, and a significant fraction of nitrogen in the produced gas at short times. A one-dimensional, two-phase (gas and solid) model was employed to rationalize and explain the experimental data and trends. Reproduction of binary behavior is characterized as excellent, whereas the dynamics of ternary systems are predicted with less accuracy. For these coals, the most sensitive simulation input were the multicomponent adsorption–desorption isotherms, including scanning loops. Additionally, the coal exhibited a two-porosity matrix that was incorporated numerically.

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Abbreviations

a :

Adsorbed concentration of a component

b :

Co-volume of a component in the Peng Robinson EOS

B :

Langmuir constant

C :

Molar concentration of component in gas phase

L :

Characteristic length

PV:

Pore volume

PVI:

Pore volumes injected

q :

Volumetric flow rate

Q :

Source/sink term for mass balance

t :

Time

v :

Total flow velocity

V :

Volume

V m :

Langmuir constant

y :

Mole fraction of a component in the gas phase

z :

Mole fraction of a component in the adsorbed phase

α :

Extended Langmuir isotherm parameter

β :

Extended Langmuir isotherm parameter

\(\varepsilon\) :

Coefficient used in numerical solution

\(\phi\) :

Porosity

ρ :

Density

τ :

Dimensionless time

ξ :

Dimensionless distance

θ :

Adsorbed amount of a component

106 Pa(MPa):

145.04 pounds per square inch absolute (psia)

Kelvin (K):

to Farenheit (F): T(F)= (T(K)  ×  9/5)  −  459.67

Standard cubic feet per ton (SCF/ton):

1.1953 * 10−3 moles/kg

10−3 Darcy (mD):

0.9869 * 10−15 m2

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, 90089-1211, USA

    Kristian Jessen

  2. Energy Resources Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305-2220, USA

    Guo-Qing Tang & Anthony R. Kovscek

Authors
  1. Kristian Jessen
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  2. Guo-Qing Tang
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  3. Anthony R. Kovscek
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Correspondence to Kristian Jessen.

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Jessen, K., Tang, GQ. & Kovscek, A.R. Laboratory and Simulation Investigation of Enhanced Coalbed Methane Recovery by Gas Injection. Transp Porous Med 73, 141–159 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11242-007-9165-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11242-007-9165-9

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