• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.133-160
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• 2018

$CO_2$ storage is a very important technology for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and has been considered as almost the only viable and effective option for immediate large-scale $CO_2$ sequestration. Small-scale demonstration project for offshore $CO_2$ storage in the Pohang Basin is the transitional stage R&D program for technological preparation of large-scale $CO_2$ storage project in Korea. Through the extensive exploration research for prospective $CO_2$ storage sites, the offshore strata in the Pohang Basin was recommended for the storage formation of the small-scale demonstration project. The Pohang Offshore Storage Project launched at 2013, and has accomplished the technical demonstration and technological independence in a wide range of $CO_2$ storage technology, such as geophysical exploration, storage site characterization, storage design, offshore platform construction, injection-well drilling and completion, deployment of injection facility, operation of $CO_2$ injection, and $CO_2$ monitoring. The project successfully carried out $CO_2$ test injection in early 2017, and achieved its final goal for technical development and demonstration of $CO_2$ storage in Korea. The realization of $CO_2$ injection in this project is the measurable result and has been recorded as the first success in Korea. The Pohang Offshore Storage Project has a future plan for the continuous operation of $CO_2$ injection and completion of $CO_2$ monitoring system. The project has provided in-house technical and practical expertises, which will be a solid foundation for the commercial-scale $CO_2$ storage business in Korea. Additionally, the project will help to secure national technical competitiveness in growing international technology market for $CO_2$ storage.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.399-413
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• 2023

The present study conducted a numerical modeling of CO₂ injection at the Janggi Basin using the TOUGH-FLAC simulator, and examined the hydro-mechanical stability of the aquifer and the fault. Based on the site investigations and a 3D geological model of the target area, we simulated the injection of 32,850 tons of CO₂ over a 3-year period. The analysis of CO₂ plume with different values of the aquifer permeability revealed that assuming a permeability of 10^-14 m² the CO₂ plume exhibited a radial flow and reached the fault after 2 years and 9 months. Conversely, a higher permeability of 10^-13 m² resulted in predominant westward flow along the reservoir, with negligible impact on the fault. The pressure changes around the injection well remained below 0.6 MPa over the period, and the influence on the hydro-mechanical stability of the reservoir and fault was found to be insignificant.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.49 no.6
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• pp.469-477
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• 2016

To evaluate the $CO_2$ storage capacity for the reservoir rock, the laboratory scale technique to measure the amount of $scCO_2$, replacing pore water of the reservior rock after the $CO_2$ injection was developed in this study. Laboratory experiments were performed to measure the $scCO_2$ displacement efficiency of the conglomerate and the sandstone in Janggi basin, which are classified as available $CO_2$ storage rocks in Korea. The high pressurized stainless steel cell containing two different walls was designed and undisturbed rock cores acquired from the deep drilling site around Janggi basin were used for the experiments. From the lab experiments, the average $scCO_2$ displacement efficiency of the conglomerate and the sandstone in Janggi basin was measured at 31.2% and 14.4%, respectively, which can be used to evaluate the feasibility of the Janggi basin as a $scCO_2$ storage site in Korea. Assuming that the effective radius of the $CO_2$ storage formations is 250 m and the average thickness of the conglomerate and the sandstone formation under 800 m in depth is 50 m each (from data of the drilling profile and the geophysical survey), the $scCO_2$ storage capacity of the reservoir rocks around the probable $scCO_2$ injection site in Janggi basin was calculated at 264,592 metric ton, demonstrating that the conglomerate and the sandstone formations in Janggi basin have a great potential for use as a pilot scale test site for the $CO_2$ storage in Korea.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.13-30
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• 2013

Increase of pore fluid pressure resulting from injection of $CO_2$ may reactivate pre-existing faults, and the induced seismic activities can raise the safety issues such as seal integrity, restoration of storage capacity, and, in the worst case, removal of previously injected $CO_2$. Thus, fault stability and potential for $CO_2$ leakage need to be assessed at the stage of site selection and planning of injection pressure, based on the results of large-scale site investigations and numerical modeling for various scenarios. In this report, studies on the assessment of fault stability during injection of $CO_2$ were reviewed. The seismic activities associated with an artificial injection of fluids or a release of naturally trapped high-pressure fluids were first examined, and then site investigation methods for the magnitude and orientation of in situ stresses, the distribution and change of pore fluid pressure, and the location of faults were generally summarized. Recent research cases on possibility estimation of fault reactivation, prediction of seismic magnitude, and modeling of $CO_2$ leakage through a reactivated fault were presented.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.207-215
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• 2018

Almost all countries of the world have recently made great efforts to reduce green-house gases to alleviate the global warming threatening human survival, because a huge amount of carbon dioxide as one of the main green-house gases has been emitted from the combustion processes of fossil fuels such as coal and oil. $CO_2$ capture and storage (CCS) technology is a representative method to diminish the green-house gases, and actively investigated by many countries. This study focuses on the design and construction of a high pressure $CO_2$ injection facility to store it to underground, which is the first $CO_2$ injection in Korea following the steps of the $CO_2$ capture from large $CO_2$ emission sources and transportation to the sea. Injection tests of $CO_2$ on the platform on the sea were carried out in Yeongil Bay of Pohang city in the early 2017. Thus, we were able to perceive the necessary operating conditions of the injection facility, injection characteristic, and knowhow of the injection facility. The results obtained from the injection test shall be utilized for facility upgrades and scale-ups.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.303-311
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• 2017

The laboratory scale experiment was performed to evaluate the sealing capacity of the capping rock such as tuff and mudstone, measuring the intial supercritical $CO_2$ ($scCO_2$) injection pressure and the $scCO_2$-water-rock reaction for 90 days. The drilling cores sampled from 800 m in depth around the Janggi basin, Korea were used for the experiment. The mineralogical changes of mudstone and tuff were measured to evaluate the geochemical stability during the $scCO_2$-water-rock reaction at $CO_2$ storage condition (100 bar and $50^{\circ}C$). The rock core was fixed in the high pressurized stainless steel cell and was saturated with distilled water at 100 bar of pore water pressure. The effluent of the cell was connected to the large tank filled with 3 L of water and 2 L of $scCO_2$ at 100 bar, simulating the subsurface injection condition. The $scCO_2$ injection pressure, which was higher than 100 bar, was controlled at the influent port of the cell until the $scCO_2$ begin to penetrate into the rock and the initial injection pressure (> 100 bar) of $scCO_2$ into the rock was measured for each rock. The mineralogical compositions of mudstones after 90 days reaction were similar to those before the reaction, suggesting that the mudstone in the Janggi basin has remained relatively stable for the $scCO_2$ involved geochemical reaction. The initial $scCO_2$ injection pressure (${\Delta}P$) of a tuff in the Janggi basin was 15 bar and the continuous $scCO_2$ injection into the tuff core occurred at higher than 20 bar of injection pressure. For the mudstone in the Janggi basin, the initial $scCO_2$ injection pressure was higher than 150 bar (10 times higher than that of the tuff). From the results, the mudstone in Janggi basin was more suitable than the tuff to shield the $scCO_2$ leakage from the reservoir rock at subsurface.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Building Construction
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.251-258
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• 2022

In the cement industry, in order to reduce CO₂ emissions, technology for raw materials substitution and conversion, technology for improving process efficiency of utilizing low-carbon new heat sources, and technology for collecting and recycling process-generated CO₂ are being developed. In this study, we conducted a basic experiment to contribute to the development of CSC that can store CO₂ as carbonate minerals among process-generated CO₂ capture and recycling technologies. Three types of CSC clinker with different SiO₂/(CaO+SiO₂) molar ratios were prepared with the clinker raw material formulation, and the characteristics of the clinker were analyzed. As a result of analysis and observation of CSC clinker, wollastonite and rankinite were formed. In addition, as a result of the carbonation test of the CSC paste, it was confirmed that calcite was produced as a carbonation product. The lower the SiO₂/(CaO+SiO₂) molar ratio in the CSC clinker chemical composition, the lower the wollastonite production amount, and the higher the rankinite production amount. And the amount of calcite production increased with the progress of carbonation of the CSC paste specimen. It is judged that rankinite is more reactive in mineralizing CO₂ than wollastonite.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.59-71
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• 2023

Carbon capture, and storage (CCS) is important for the reduction of greenhouse gases and achieving carbon neutrality. CCS focuses on storing captured CO₂ permanently in underground reservoirs. CO₂-enhanced oil recovery (CO₂-EOR) is one form of CCS, where CO₂ is injected into the underground to enhance oil recovery. CO₂-EOR not only aids in the extraction of residual oil but also contributes to carbon neutrality by storing CO₂ underground continuously. CO₂-EOR can be classified into miscible and immiscible methods, with the CO₂-water alternating gas (CO₂-WAG) technique being a representative approach within the miscible method. In CO₂-WAG, water and CO₂ are alternately injected into the reservoir, enabling oil production and CO₂ storage. The WAG method allows for controlling the breakthrough of injection fluids, providing advantages in oil recovery. It also induces hysteresis in relative permeability during the injection and production process, expanding the amount of trapped CO₂. In this study, the effects of enhancing oil recovery and storing CO₂ underground during CO₂-EOR were presented. Additionally, cases of CO₂-EOR application in relation to CCS were introduced.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.175-182
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• 2018

We analyze geological, petrophysical and geomechanical characteristics of a $CO_2$ sequestration test site, Pohang. The target reservoir exists at a depth of 750 m, where porous and permeable sandstones/conglomerates prevail. The reservoir is underlain by thick mudstone formations. We estimate in situ stress conditions using an exploratory wellbore drilled through the target reservoir. The in situ stress condition is characterized by a strike-slip faulting favored stress regime. We discuss various aspects of reservoir fracture pressures and fault reactivation pressures based on the stress magnitudes.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.293-303
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• 2016

Underground $CO_2$ storage technology is one of the most effective methods to reduce atmospheric $CO_2$. In this study, $CO_2$ storage condition was simulated in the laboratory. Sandstone and shale specimens were saturated in 1M NaCl and were reacted at $45^{\circ}C$, 10 atm for 4 weeks. The physical and microstructural properties of rock specimens were measured. Variations on physical properties of shale specimens were bigger than those of sandstone specimens, such as volume, density, elastic wave velocity, Poisson's ratio and Young's modulus. Microstructure were analyzed using X-ray computed tomography. Total number of pores were decreased, and average volume, average area and average equivalent diameter of each pore were changed after $CO_2$ reaction. Swelling and leakage of clay mineral caused by $CO_2$-mineral reaction were the reason of changes. The results of this study can be applied to predict the physical and microstructural changes in underground $CO_2$ storage condition.