Impact of microbial growth on hydraulic properties of porous gas storages
Abstract
The bulk of renewable energy production varies in a way that typically does not correspond to time dependent energy consumption. This may lead, depending on the demand, to either surplus energy production or shortage of energy supply caused by the inherent volatility of renewable energy production. To smoothen these supply variations, and enable large scale surplus renewable energy storage, an enormous energy storage capacity is required. Gas as energy carrier, and hence Energy, can be stored in such large amounts in subsurface reservoirs like in depleted gas fields. Hydrogen gas is an efficient energy carrier and can be produced by electrolysis from renewable energy. A first attempt to store hydrogen in a gas field was carried out in Austria (”Underground Sun Storage“, an FFG Flagship Project). In the frame of this pilot project, a methane/hydrogen mixture was injected and stored in a depleted gas field to estimate the risk of hydrogen loss due to physical, chemical and biological processes in the reservoir; it turned out that especially microbial processes can lead to hydrogen loss and potentially to a loss of energy. In one of these processes, microorganisms convert hydrogen and carbon dioxide to methane which is as the main component of natural gas a well-established energy carrier. The Flagship Project “Underground Sun Conversion” focuses on metabolic proficiencies of in situ microbiota to convert hydrogen and carbon dioxide to methane so efficiently storing renewable energy. In situ gas conversion will, however, result in the formation of biomass in the pore space of reservoir rock. As a consequence of excessive growth, biomass will reduce the available pore space for gas storage and likely the permeability of the reservoir rock as well. As a result, biomass may compromise storage capacity and injectivity substantially. In the BioPore project, we systematically investigate microbial growth processes at resembled reservoir conditions and its arising consequences at the micro-scale involving microfluidic and imaging methods. Of prime concern is how a change in permeability affects the porosity of the rock and if this relation can be expressed in a mathematical way. Furthermore, this project reaches out to elaborate a profound understanding on the distribution of biomass in the pore space and to elucidate the role of microbial interactions on the formation of biofilms and aggregates. In combination with numerical flow simulations, distinct characteristics of biomass accumulation and other microbial processes will be assessed and resulting effects on selected hydraulic parameters of the investigated porous media will be described. This project will lay the foundation for future applied research activities with the scope of accessing natural gas storages for the large-scale storage of renewable energy.
Publikationen
Project staff
Andreas Paul Loibner
Ao.Univ.Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr.nat.techn. Andreas Paul Loibner
andreas.loibner@boku.ac.at
Tel: +43 1 47654-97470
BOKU Project Leader
01.08.2019 - 31.07.2023
Elisabeth Edlinger
Dipl.-Ing. Elisabeth Edlinger B.Sc.
elisabeth.edlinger@boku.ac.at
Project Staff
01.11.2021 - 31.07.2023
Sabine Frühauf
Mag. Dr. Sabine Frühauf
sabine.fruehauf@boku.ac.at
Tel: +43 1 47654-97443
Project Staff
01.01.2022 - 31.07.2023
Hannes Konegger
Dipl.-Ing. Hannes Konegger
hannes.konegger@boku.ac.at
Tel: +43 1 47654-97472
Project Staff
01.08.2019 - 31.07.2023
BOKU partners
External partners
Montanuniversität Leoben
Department Petroleum Engineering
coordinator
Rohöl-Aufsuchungs Aktiengesellschaft
none
partner
Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz
Institut für Geowissenschaften
partner
University of Bergen
Department of Physics and Technology
partner