Optimizing Simultaneous CO2 Sequestration and Brine Production In Saline Aquifers-An Analytical Approach

CO2 sequestration is an innovative and continuously evolving technology that serves as an effective environmental mitigation procedure by contributing to reducing the rising accumulation of this greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. Therefore, optimizing and enhancing sequestration technologies is vital, considering the limited storage sites in which it can be implemented. Saline aquifers pose as appropriate sites for executing such procedures due to their characteristics and rock properties. Simultaneous brine production during CO2 injection in saline aquifers contributes to the enhancement of storage capacity by depressurizing the formation. This study focuses on analytically optimizing CO2 sequestration projects in saline aquifers with simultaneous brine production from and technical and economical perspective. In the process of this optimization, the effect of design factors, including well spacing, the number of wells, carbon revenue, and production to injection ratio on storage capacity and net revenue of the project can be evaluated. The developed approach is then tested on a synthetic aquifer formation, and the process of obtaining the most environmentally friendly and profitable project design is discussed. This analytical approach improves the pre-existing models by accounting for simultaneous brine production, using a more accurate transient pressure formulation, and incorporating up-to-date economical data