Project Summary

Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) is growing in popularity as a means to store water in aquifers and boost declining aquifer pressure. In the case of coal seam gas (CSG) development in the Surat Basin of Queensland, MAR into the Precipice Sandstone provides a beneficial use of associated water produced as a by-product of gas development.

CSG MAR provides a niche opportunity for potentially low cost carbon storage if gaseous CO2 could be dissolved in the MAR water at surface prior to injection. This project proposal is a techno-economic assessment of this process.

The evaluation will take a high level look at three critical elements:

  1. Volume, timing, and location of CSG MAR;
  2. surface plant, material requirements and operability of surface or wellbore dissolution; and
  3. assessing the influence of density and pH on MAR.

A successful outcome could highlight an opportunity for low cost carbon storage in the Surat Basin of Queensland and could also be applied to other water disposal schemes such as in North America.

Project Name:
Using Managed Aquifer Recharge for Carbon Storage: a Feasibility Study

Research Organisation:
The University of Queensland

Status:
Completed, 2018

Reference:
7-1115-0268

Research Program: Carbon Transport + Storage
Demonstration: Surat Basin
Research Focus: Containment, Leakage risks and fluxes

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