Read the full report (PDF27.8 MB) - CO2CRC

Due to its location (proximal to the Rockhampton–Gladstone region) and existing pipeline
corridors, the Denison Trough in the northwest Bowen Basin appears suitably located to act as a
node/distribution centre for multiple CO 2 injection sites in the Galilee and Bowen basins.
The east Bowen Basin area (Burunga Anticline, Dulacca area; Figure 2.2b) is located adjacent to the
township of Wandoan, 300 to 350 km from Brisbane, Rockhampton and Gladstone regions. With
only small CBM (coal bed methane) fields located in this region, the smallest area examined, the
Burunga Anticline/Dulacca area, has limited infrastructure and minimal data on the deeper potential
CO 2 storage reservoirs. The limited data indicates a high risk of less than optimal reservoir (using
the current minimum cut-off of 50 mD for optimal CO 2 injection).
The Wunger Ridge flank area (Figure 2.2c) contains significant producing hydrocarbon
accumulations and associated infrastructure. Located in the southwest Bowen Basin, it is suitably
placed to accept CO 2 emissions from a southeast Queensland hub servicing the greater Brisbane
area. Direct pipeline access to Brisbane, via the Jackson–Moonie–Brisbane oil pipeline potentially
provides an easement for CO 2 infrastructure.
The southeast Bowen Basin area (Figure 2.2d) is the closest region to Brisbane, less than 300
kilometres, and has direct pipeline access via the Roma–Brisbane gas pipeline in the north and the
Jackson–Moonie–Brisbane oil pipeline in the south. The southeast Bowen Basin area has very
minor hydrocarbon production and as such has little internal infrastructure.
Work is presently being conducted by a private consortium that is considering building an
integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) plant in Queensland (IEAGHG, 2005). This
consortium may have to consider injection in less than optimal reservoirs with a minimum average
permeability of around 2–5 mD. If this innovative programme is successful in injecting CO 2 at rates
which match the expected emissions, then the east and southeast Bowen Basin areas could
potentially become attractive.
2.2. CO 2 Properties
Industrial and power generation processes in the state of Queensland are currently emitting large
volumes of CO 2 with power usage and corresponding CO 2 emissions expected to grow significantly
in the coming years. If geological storage of CO 2 is to have a significant impact on these emissions
then storage space must be used effectively.
Injecting CO 2 in a supercritical phase has major benefits for injectivity and storage efficiency. In a
supercritical phase, the CO 2 has a viscosity less than the liquid phase, a diffusivity similar to the gas
phase, but has been compressed to the point were it has similar density to the liquid phase
(Table 2.1). Having CO 2 in a supercritical phase greatly increases the volume of CO 2 able to be
stored within a geological formation. At 800 m, the pressure exerted at depth is approximately 8
Mpa, and the temperature is normally greater than 32 0 C, which are the conditions at which CO 2
enters a supercritical phase (Figure 2.3, Bachu, 2001). Therefore, having a reservoir–seal pair at
depths greater than 800 m is desirable for CO 2 storage.
Table 2.1. Physical properties of Carbon Dioxide (After Cook et al., 2000).
Phase Density (g/mL) Viscosity (poise) Diffusivity (cm 2 /s)
Gas 0.001 0.00005–0.00035 0.1–1.0
Supercritical fluid 0.2–0.9 0.002–0.001 0.00033
Liquid 0.8–1.0 0.003–0.024 0.000005–0.00002
8