Importance of Integrated Asset Modelling (IAM) in CCS Applications

Abstract

Abstract CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) is increasingly relied upon as a significant contributor to the overall reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, the transportation and injection of carbon dioxide (CO2) presents significant challenges to engineers, in terms of risk mitigation for the facilities, economics, and feasibility. This paper focuses on the thermo-hydraulic connection between surface facilities and reservoir characteristics such as size, permeability, porosity, which ultimately determines the total amount of stored CO2, and the maximum achievable flow rates. As reservoir conditions and the number, type, and size of emitters change over time, this connection plays a key role in the overall feasibility of the project. Furthermore, we examine how the presence of different impurities may add significant uncertainty, which requires careful evaluation of the mixture's physical and thermodynamic properties. This approach ensures the asset's physical constraints are correctly taken into account. Through the novel use of a flexible life-of-field (LOF) simulator, based on first principles and rigorous thermodynamics, we show that a holistic approach to modelling the whole asset comprised of surface facilities as well as subsurface stores, represents a crucial tool to design, plan and optimize the performance of the CCS hub. Based on the simulation of various case studies with different scenarios, we identify the physical constraints of the asset, and highlight methods and strategies to solve the challenges that may hinder the feasibility and sustainability of the project in the long term. The combined modelling integration of process, production, and injection facilities (e.g., pumps, compressors, heaters, pipelines, and wells), a simplified representation of the reservoir, and rigorous thermodynamics enable us to evaluate and compare different operating strategies from various angles. These include power and pressure requirements, achievable injection rates, and estimation of the overall project lifecycle, while monitoring the facility's flow assurance and integrity risks. As boundary conditions change, the continuity of flow between transport and injection facilities determines a variability in thermohydraulic behaviour that can only be examined using an integrated asset modelling (IAM) approach. Furthermore, the unique thermodynamic properties of CO2, combined with the variability of the concentration's impurities, adds complexity to effectively evaluate the design and operating strategies. Such complexity implies that simple non-compositional approaches are ill-suited for evaluating the feasibility of the project.