SaltPreCO2

• Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Masoudi, Mohammad; Shokri, Nima & Hellevang, Helge (2022). Precipitation-induced Geometry Evolution in Porous Media: Numerical and Experimental Insights based on New Model on Probabilistic Nucleation and Mineral Growth. 16th Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies Conference 2022 (GHGT-16). doi: 10.2139/ssrn.4272555. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Precipitation and growth of solid phases during a reactive fluid flow and solute transport are critical in many natural and industrial systems. Mineral nucleation and growth is a prime example where (geo)chemical reactions give rise to geometry evolution in porous media. The precipitation reactions can reduce the amount of void space, alter pore space connectivity and morphology, modify tortuosity, deteriorate permeability, and change the fluid flow and solute transport. Additionally, precipitation events reshape the available surface area for growth, leading to changes in reactivity, reaction progress, and reaction rates. The target is to ideally limit the mineral growth in many applications, such as avoiding damage to reservoir permeability due to solid precipitation near CO2 injection wells. In other cases, maximizing mineral growth in porous media can be highly favorable, such as sealing fractured caprocks or increasing mineral trapping in the sequestration sites. Understanding, controlling, and predicting this reactive transport phenomenon is challenging because it requires coupling flow, transport, and chemical processes often characterized by different temporal and spatial resolutions. Nucleation is the pre-growth process that controls the primary position of any mineral precipitation and subsequent growth dynamics. Mineral nucleation is a probabilistic process where crystals might nucleate anywhere given similar conditions, such as surface properties, supersaturation, and temperature. It is imperative to use a probabilistic approach or an upscaled physically sound representation to understand the effect of mineral precipitation on porous medium hydrodynamics. Motivated by the importance of incorporating stochastic dynamics of nucleation and growth kinetics in studying various multiphase and multiscale processes occurring in geo-environmental and geo-energy systems, this paper provides numerical and experimental insights into the recently proposed probabilistic nucleation model. We present laboratory experiments (microfluidic and flow-through column reactor) and pore-scale reactive Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM) numerical simulations. As variations in the properties of the porous medium are intimately linked to the spatial distribution of the precipitation events, we quantify the evolution of experimental and numerical modeled systems at different physiochemical conditions by mapping the disorder of the system (Shannon's entropy) induced by the spatial mineral distributions across time. We use experimental and numerical results to show the importance of the spatial and temporal location and distribution of nucleation and growth events, particularly when the interplay among several determining parameters is inevitable. The results show that probabilistic nucleation contributes to broad stochastic distributions in both amounts and locations of crystals in temporal and spatial domains.

• Sharifi, Javad; Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Mohammadkazem, Amiri & Mondol, Nazmul Haque (2022). Developing a relationship between static Young’s modulus and seismic parameters. Journal of Petroleum Exploration and Production Technology. ISSN 2190-0558. 13, p. 203–218. doi: 10.1007/s13202-022-01546-6. Full text in Research Archive
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad (2022). Clay Mineral Type and Content Control Properties of Fine-Grained CO<inf>2</inf> Caprocks—Laboratory Insights from Strongly Swelling and Non-Swelling Clay–Quartz Mixtures. Energies. ISSN 1996-1073. 15(14). doi: 10.3390/en15145149. Full text in Research Archive
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Masoudi, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2022). Precipitation-Induced Geometry Evolution During Reactive Transport: Experimental and Numerical Insights into Stochastic Dynamics of Mineral Growth, 83rd EAGE Annual Conference & Exhibition 2022. European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (EAGE). ISSN 978-90-73834-12-5. doi: 10.3997/2214-4609.202210470. Show summary

  Crystal nucleation, precipitation, and growth during a reactive fluid flow and solute transport are critical in many natural and industrial systems. Mineral growth is a prime example where (geo)chemical reactions give rise to geometry evolution in porous media. Motivated by the importance of incorporating stochastic dynamics of nucleation, crystallization, and growth kinetics in studying a variety of multiphase and multiscale processes occurring in geo-environmental and geo-energy systems, this work presents experimental and numerical results delineating geometry evolution induced by mineral precipitation. A total of 27 microfluidic experiments (3×3×3 sets of supersaturation-temperature-time) extend the understanding of factors controlling crystal nucleation and growth rates, the impact of ambient and aqueous phase properties, and the substrate characteristics. For numerical simulations, we used the Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM) to solve the advection-diffusion-reaction equation for tracking the concentration of different species. We developed a reactive transport model based on our recently proposed probabilistic nucleation and crystal growth theory. The results indicated the probabilistic nature of the process, which is affected by the physiochemistry of the aqueous phase and governed by fluid-solid surface interactions. We underscore the importance of theoretical reactive transport models considering the probabilistic nature of nucleation events before crystal formation.

• Masoudi, Mohammad; Nooraiepour, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2022). The Effect of Preferential Nucleation Sites on the Distribution of Secondary Mineral Precipitates, 83rd EAGE Annual Conference & Exhibition 2022. European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (EAGE). ISSN 978-90-73834-12-5. doi: 10.3997/2214-4609.202210445. Show summary

  In the process of mineral nucleation and growth, substrate surface properties and substrate types introduce favorable areas where nucleation events are more likely to occur. The preferential sites for mineral nucleation exist because of the lower interfacial free energy between the precipitating phase and the substrate. In this work, we used a pore-scale Lattice Boltzmann (LB)-based reactive transport model incorporated with the developed probabilistic nucleation model in our previous works to investigate the role of the interfacial free energy between the nucleating phase and the substrate on the nucleation and growth of secondary minerals. We also used Shannon entropy to assess the spatial randomness and the evolution path of the systems as solid phases form. The results showed that the developed model can accurately capture the selective behavior of nucleation processes in the presence of preferential sites. The simulation results demonstrate the importance of using a probabilistic nucleation model to capture the correct physics of this phenomenon. It is also concluded that the probabilistic nucleation models are more relevant in environments with longer induction times.

• Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Fazeli, Hossein; Masoudi, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2021). Effect of Mineral Heterogeneity on Fracture Dissolution in Carbonate-Rich Caprocks During Subsurface Co2 Injection. In SPE, , (Eds.), SPE Europec featured at 82nd EAGE conference and exhibition, October 18-21, 2021, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Society of Petroleum Engineers. ISSN 9781613997918. doi: 10.3997/2214-4609.202011174. Show summary

  Chemical interactions between CO2, brine and caprock-forming minerals might lead to the dissolution of the fractures present in the caprock of CO2 storage sites. One factor that can affect the chemically induced fracture alterations is mineral heterogeneity in the caprock. In this study, we investigate the effect of mineral heterogeneity on fracture dissolution of four carbonate-rich caprock samples, having different levels of heterogeneity, where CO¬2-rich brine flows through the fractured caprocks. A HPHT geomaterial microfluidic experimental setup is used to monitor the evolution of the fractures. Results indicate that the homogeneous caprock samples, i.e. the samples that are mainly composed of calcite, show a uniform fracture wall dissolution while fracture wall roughness increases for heterogeneous samples. The effluent chemistry analyses show that the sample-scale calcite dissolution rate decreases over time, which can be due to the mass transfer limitations in the boundary layer near the fracture wall (for the homogeneous sample) or in the altered layer formed around the fracture (for the heterogeneous samples). Microfluidic experiments were also done for one carbonate-rich fine-grained shale sample, which showed no detectable fracture alteration. However, the effluent analysis for the shale sample confirmed the calcite dissolution.

• Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Masoudi, Mohammad; Shokri, Nima & Hellevang, Helge (2021). Probabilistic Nucleation and Crystal Growth in Porous Medium: New Insights from Calcium Carbonate Precipitation on Primary and Secondary Substrates. ACS Omega. ISSN 2470-1343. 6(42), p. 28072–28083. doi: 10.1021/acsomega.1c04147. Full text in Research Archive
• Fazeli, Hossein; Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Masoudi, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2021). Effect of Mineral Heterogeneity on Fracture Dissolution in Carbonate-Rich Caprocks During Subsurface Co2 Injection. EAGE extended abstracts. doi: 10.3997/2214-4609.202011174. Show summary

  Chemical interactions between CO2, brine, and caprock-forming minerals might lead to dissolution of the fractures present in the caprock of CO2 storage sites. One factor that can affect the chemically induced fracture alterations is mineral heterogeneity in the caprock. In this study, we investigate the effect of mineral heterogeneity on fracture dissolution of four carbonate-rich caprock samples, having different levels of heterogeneity, where CO¬2-rich brine flows through the fractured caprocks. A HPHT geomaterial microfluidic experimental setup is used to monitor the evolution of the fractures. Results indicate that the homogeneous caprock samples, i.e. the samples that are mainly composed of calcite, show a uniform fracture wall dissolution while fracture wall roughness increases for heterogeneous samples. The effluent chemistry analyses show that the sample-scale calcite dissolution rate decreases over time, which can be due to the mass transfer limitations in the boundary layer near the fracture wall (for the homogeneous sample) or in the altered layer formed around the fracture (for the heterogeneous samples). Microfluidic experiments were also done for one carbonate rich finegrained shale sample, which showed no detectable fracture alteration. However, the effluent analysis for the shale sample confirmed the calcite dissolution.

• Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Masoudi, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2021). Probabilistic nucleation governs time, amount, and location of mineral precipitation and geometry evolution in the porous medium. Scientific Reports. ISSN 2045-2322. 11. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-95237-7. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  One important unresolved question in reactive transport is how pore-scale processes can be upscaled and how predictions can be made on the mutual effect of chemical processes and fluid flow in the porous medium. It is paramount to predict the location of mineral precipitation besides their amount for understanding the fate of transport properties. However, current models and simulation approaches fail to predict precisely where crystals will nucleate and grow in the spatiotemporal domain. We present a new mathematical model for probabilistic mineral nucleation and precipitation. A Lattice Boltzmann implementation of the two-dimensional mineral surface was developed to evaluate geometry evolution when probabilistic nucleation criterion is incorporated. To provide high-resolution surface information on mineral precipitation, growth, and distribution, we conducted a total of 27 calcium carbonate synthesis experiments in the laboratory. The results indicate that nucleation events as precursors determine the location and timing of crystal precipitation. It is shown that reaction rate has primary control over covering the substrate with nuclei and, subsequently, solid-phase accumulation. The work provides insight into the spatiotemporal evolution of porous media by suggesting probabilistic and deterministic domains for studying reactive transport processes. We indicate in which length- and time-scales it is essential to incorporate probabilistic nucleation for valid predictions.

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• Masoudi, Mohammad; Nooraiepour, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2022). On the effect of probabilistic nucleation on the distribution of mineral precipitates in porous media. EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts. doi: 10.5194/egusphere-egu22-8398.
• Hellevang, Helge; Masoudi, Mohammad & Nooraiepour, Mohammad (2022). To what degree can the spatial distribution of secondary minerals in porous media be determined?
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad (2022). Career Development Event for the PhDs and Early Career Researchers.
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Masoudi, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2022). new probabilistic framework for nucleation and mineral growth in porous media helps bridge between different spatial and temporal scales— Theory, experiments and simulations.
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Masoudi, Mohammad; Shokri, Nima & Hellevang, Helge (2022). Heterogeneous nucleation and precipitation on solid surfaces: Experimental observation of calcium carbonate formation on primary and secondary substrates. Show summary

  Mineral nucleation and growth are prime examples of (geo)chemical reactions giving rise to geometry evolution during reactive flow and transport in porous media. The precipitation reactions can reduce porosity, alter pore space connectivity and morphology, modify tortuosity, and deteriorate permeability. Therefore, change the fluid flow and solute transport. Additionally, precipitation reshapes the available surface area for growth, leading to changes in the system's reactivity, reaction progress, and reaction rates. As the probabilistic nucle-ation model highlights, it is necessary to delineate both amount and location of nucleation and precipitation events in the spatiotemporal domain for precise prediction of changes in transport properties. This work aims to improve the understanding of factors controlling crystal nucleation and growth rates, the impact of ambient and aqueous phase properties, and the substrate characteristics. To explore the effect of solute concentration, temperature, and experimental elapsed time on the surface coverage area and the number of precipitated crystals , we carried out a total of 27 mineral synthesis experiments on the surface of heterogeneous quartz-rich sandstone with a solution stoichiometry of close to 1 (Ca/CO3 ≈ 1). The tests were performed at three temperatures (T = 20, 40, and 60℃) and three supersaturations (Ω = 15, 50, and 130x). The principal objective was to evaluate solid formation at different controlling conditions when the solid-liquid interface plays a key role. Effects of primary and secondary substrates and control imposed by preferential precipitation locations are identified and discussed. The results indicate that supersaturation and temperature imposed control on the amount, distribution pattern, and growth rate of crystals while the phenomenon still being probabilistic. Substrate characteristics governed the nucleation and crystal growth location and stochastic dynamics across time and space evolution. Moreover, substrate surface properties introduced preferential sites that were occupied and covered with solids first. For reactive transport modeling, in addition to porous medium's geometry and aqueous phase properties, a stochastic nucleation and growth model is necessary to implement substrate surface properties and compute solute transport and fluid flow for different spatial and temporal locations distinctively.

• Masoudi, Mohammad; Nooraiepour, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2022). How the Probabilistic Nature of the Nucleation Process Affects and Controls the Distribution of Mineral Precipitates in Porous Media. Show summary

  Nucleation and growth of secondary mineral phases is of great importance in a variety of processes in different fields. Mineral precipitation alters the morphology and hydrodynamics of the porous media by blocking the pore and throats and changing the tortuosity and permeability of flow paths. Even reaction rates are affected by the reshaping of available reactive surfaces. Any mineral precipitation process begins with the nucleation, which is a probabilistic phenomenon. It is often overlooked in studying the reactive transport phenomena. Nucleation controls the location and timing of crystal formation in a porous structure. The spatial distribution of stable secondary nuclei is crucial to precisely predict the hydrodynamics of the porous medium after mineral precipitation. Thus, a deeper understanding of the mineral nucleation and growth process is essential and it is necessary to develop a new probabilistic nucleation approach that could produce more reliable results. Accordingly, we have developed a new probabilistic nucleation model and incorporated it into a pore-scale Lattice Boltzmann reactive transport model to investigate the effect of various factors such as saturation ratio, flow rate, temperature, interfacial free energy, nucleation rate, and growth rates on the distribution of precipitated secondary minerals. In our model, the probabilistic induction time statistically spreads around the measured or reported induction time, either obtained from experiments or approximated by the exponential nucleation rate equation suggested by the classical nucleation theory (CNT). We provide a detailed explanation on how to implement the developed probabilistic nucleation approach into pore-scale reactive transport models. We also gave a thorough description of each parameter of the probabilistic nucleation model and how to measure or calculate them for different fluid and rock systems. Additionally, we used a new approach to measure the disorder of the spatial mineral distributions. The developed models provide new insights into the spatiotemporal evolution of porous media during mineral precipitation. Furthermore, the outcomes provide the basis for implementing mineral nucleation and growth for reactive transport modeling across timescales and length-scales.

• Masoudi, Mohammad; Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Berntsen, Andreas Nicolas & Hellevang, Helge (2021). How to bridge between different time and length scales using a new probabilistic approach for mineral nucleation and growth.
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2021). Solid and Salt Precipitation Kinetics during CO2 Injection into Reservoir.
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2021). Reactive transport and geometry evolution of the porous medium: A geochemical perspective.
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad (2021). A pore-scale perspective into the dissolution and precipitation processes in porous media.
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2021). Coupled THMC processes during subsurface CO2 injection.
• Masoudi, Mohammad; Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Berntsen, Andreas Nicolas & Hellevang, Helge (2021). A new probabilistic nucleation model to predict crystal growth in porous medium. Show summary

  A new probabilistic nucleation model to predict crystal growth in porous medium Tuesday, 1 June 2021 15:10 (15 minutes) Nucleation is the first step of any mineral precipitation and crystal growth process. It is often overlooked in studying the reactive transport phenomena. Nucleation controls the location and timing of crystal formation in a porous structure. The spatial distribution of stable secondary nuclei is crucial to predict hydrodynam-ics of the porous medium after mineral precipitation precisely. To better understand the nucleation process, we developed a new probabilistic nucleation approach in which the induction time is considered a random variable. The random induction time statistically spreads around the measured or reported induction time, either obtained from experiments or approximated by the exponential nucleation rate equation suggested by the classical nucleation theory. In this work, we utilized inputs from the classical nucleation theory. In our model, both location and time of nucleation are probabilistic, affecting transport properties in different time-and length-scales. We developed a pore-scale Lattice Boltzmann reactive transport model and implemented the new probabilistic nucleation model to investigate the effect of nucleation rate and reaction rate on the extent, distribution, and precipitation pattern of the solid phases. The simulation domain is a 2D substrate with an infinite source of the supersaturated solution. We use Shannon entropy to measure the disorder of the spatial mineral distributions. The results of the simulations show that all the reactions follow similar random behavior with different Gauss-Laplace distributions. The simulation scenarios start from a fully ordered system with no solid precipitation on the substrate (entropy of 0). Entropy starts to increase as the secondary phase precipitates and grows on the surface until it reaches its maximum value (entropy of 1). Afterward, the overall disorder declines as more surface areas are getting covered, and eventually, entropy approaches a constant value. The research results indicate that the slower reactions have longer windows of the probabilistic regime before entering the deterministic regime. The outcomes provide the basis for implementing mineral nucleation and growth for reactive transport modeling across timescales and length-scales.

• Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Masoudi, Mohammad; Fazeli, Hossein & Hellevang, Helge (2021). Geometry evolution and fracture alteration controlled by spatial mineral heterogeneity during CO2 sequestration -A reactive transport study. Show summary

  Geological CO2 storage and CCS have a crucial role in reducing CO2 emission and therefore mitigating climate change. One of the prerequisites for selecting CO2 storage sites is a low permeability caprock preventing potential CO2 leakage and migration from the storage reservoir. The presence of fractures in the caprock can adversely affect the sealing capacity of caprocks. Chemical interactions between CO2, brine, and caprock-forming minerals can cause fracture evolution, which results in changes in the transmissivity of fractures within the sealing layers. One factor that can affect the chemically induced fracture alterations is mineral het-erogeneity in the caprock. In the present work, we investigate the effect of mineral heterogeneity on fracture geometry evolution when CO2-rich brine flows through a single fracture scribed on different carbonate-rich caprock samples. The rock samples have different carbonate contents and different levels of mineral hetero-geneities. They can represent carbonate-rich caprocks such as some intervals of the Upper Jurassic (Kimmerid-gian) Draupne shales, the caprock for Smeaheia CO2 storage in Norway. An HPHT geomaterial microfluidic experimental setup is used to monitor the evolution of the fractures. Results indicate that the homogeneous caprock samples, i.e., the samples mainly composed of calcite, show a uniform fracture wall dissolution while fracture wall roughness increases for heterogeneous samples. The effluent chemistry analyses show that the sample-scale calcite dissolution rate decreases over time, which can be due to the mass transfer limitations in the boundary layer near the fracture wall (for the homogeneous sample) or the altered layer formed around the fracture (for the heterogeneous samples). Microfluidic experiments were also done for one carbonate-rich fine-grained shale sample, which showed dissolution of calcite with no macroscopic fracture alteration during the ten-day experiment. This indicates that in shale samples where the carbonate minerals, mainly calcite, are armored with other slow reacting minerals such as clays, the rate of fracture geometry evolution will be prolonged, which might be a positive point for the caprock integrity. However, the confirmed fluid-rock geochemical interactions within the shaly sample in a short time frame call for further investigations on the consequent impacts on caprock samples' geomechanical-hydrological properties for more extended periods relevant for subsurface CO2 storage. The microfluidic experiments are also used to validate a reactive transport model. The model will then be utilized to study changes in transport properties of different samples during experiments. The LBM-based model outputs, such as porosity-permeability relationships, can inform reactive models at larger scales to develop a better predictive numerical simulator for processes involved in CO2 storage projects.

• Nooraiepour, Mohammad (2020). Imaging and modeling of fluid-rock processes — Insights from realistic geometry of porous media .
• Nooraiepour, Mohammad & Hellevang, Helge (2020). Solid precipitation in porous reservoir rocks near the injection well: State of the art.
• Hellevang, Helge; Nooraiepour, Mohammad; Masoudi, Mohammad & Fazeli, Hossein (2020). Statistical Model for Mineral Nucleation and Growth.

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