• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.53 no.5
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• pp.609-617
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• 2020

After introducing the industry 4.0 policy, Korean government announced 'Digital New Deal' and 'Green New Deal' as 'Korean New Deal' in 2020. We analyzed Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM)'s research projects related to that policy and conducted markets analysis focused on Digital Twin and environmental monitoring technologies. Regarding 'Data Dam' policy, we suggested the digital geo-contents with Augmented Reality (AR) & Virtual Reality (VR) and the public geo-data collection & sharing system. It is necessary to expand and support the smart mining and digital oil fields research for '5th generation mobile communication (5G) and artificial intelligence (AI) convergence into all industries' policy. Korean government is suggesting downtown 3D maps for 'Digital Twin' policy. KIGAM can provide 3D geological maps and Internet of Things (IoT) systems for social overhead capital (SOC) management. 'Green New Deal' proposed developing technologies for green industries including resource circulation, Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS), and electric & hydrogen vehicles. KIGAM has carried out related research projects and currently conducts research on domestic energy storage minerals. Oil and gas industries are presented as representative applications of digital twin. Many progress is made in mining automation and digital mapping and Digital Twin Earth (DTE) is a emerging research subject. The emerging research subjects are deeply related to data analysis, simulation, AI, and the IoT, therefore KIGAM should collaborate with sensors and computing software & system companies.

• 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.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.50 no.6
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• pp.1002-1007
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• 2012

The considerable portion of energy demand has been satisfied by the combustion of fossil fuel and the consequent $CO_2$ emission was considered as a main cause of global warming. As a technology option for $CO_2$ emission mitigation, absorption process has been used in $CO_2$ capture from large scale emission sources. To set up optimal operating parameters in $CO_2$ absorption and solvent regeneration units are important for the better performance of the whole $CO_2$ absorption plant. Optimal operating parameters are usually selected through a lot of actual operation data. However theoretical approach are also useful because the arbitrary change of process parameters often limited for the stability of process operation. In this paper, a theoretical approach based on vapor-liquid equilibrium was proposed to estimate optimal operating conditions of $CO_2$ absorption process. Two $CO_2$ absorption processes using 12 wt% aqueous $NH_3$ solution and 20 wt% aqueous MEA solution were investigated in this theoretical estimation of optimal operating conditions. The results showed that $CO_2$ loading of rich absorbent should be kept below 0.4 in case of 12 wt% aqueous $NH_3$ solution for $CO_2$ absorption but there was no limitation of $CO_2$ loading in case of 20 wt% aqueous MEA solution for $CO_2$ absorption. The optimal regeneration temperature was determined by theoretical approach based on $CO_2$ loadings of rich and lean absorbent, which determined to satisfy the amount of absorbed $CO_2$. The amount of heating medium at optimal regeneration temperature is also determined to meet the difference of $CO_2$ loading between rich and lean absorbent. It could be confirmed that the theoretical approach, which accurately estimate the optimal regeneration conditions of lab scale $CO_2$ absorption using 12 wt% aqueous $NH_3$ solution could estimate those of 20 wt% aqueous MEA solution and could be used for the design and operation of $CO_2$ absorption process using chemical absorbent.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.25-39
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• 2015

$CO_2$ geological storage plays an important role in reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, but there is a lack of research for CCS demonstration. To achieve the goal of CCS, storing $CO_2$ safely and permanently in underground geological formations, it is essential to understand the characteristics of them, such as total storage capacity, stability, etc. and establish an injection strategy. We perform the impedance inversion for the seismic data acquired from the Ulleung Basin in 2012. To review the possibility of $CO_2$ storage, we also construct porosity models and extract attributes of the prospects from the seismic data. To improve the quality of seismic data, amplitude preserved processing methods, SWD(Shallow Water Demultiple), SRME(Surface Related Multiple Elimination) and Radon Demultiple, are applied. Three well log data are also analysed, and the log correlations of each well are 0.648, 0.574 and 0.342, respectively. All wells are used in building the low-frequency model to generate more robust initial model. Simultaneous pre-stack inversion is performed on all of the 2D profiles and inverted P-impedance, S-impedance and Vp/Vs ratio are generated from the inversion process. With the porosity profiles generated from the seismic inversion process, the porous and non-porous zones can be identified for the purpose of the $CO_2$ sequestration initiative. More detailed characterization of the geological storage and the simulation of $CO_2$ migration might be an essential for the CCS demonstration.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.33-43
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• 2020

CO₂ geological storage is currently considered as the most stable and effective technology for greenhouse gas reduction. The saline formations for CO₂ geological storage are generally located at a depth of more than 800 m where CO₂ can be stored in a supercritical state, and an extensive impermeable cap rock that prevents CO₂ leakage to the surface should be distributed above the saline formations. Trough analysis of seismic and well data, we identified the basalt flow structure for potential CO₂ storage where saline formation is overlain by basalt cap rock around PZ-1 exploration well in the Southern Continental Shelf of Korea. To evaluate CO₂ storage capacity of the saline formation, total porosity and CO₂ density are calculated based on well logging data of PZ-1 well. We constructed a 3D geological grid model with a certain size in the x, y and z axis directions for volume estimates of the saline formation, and performed a property modeling to assign total porosity to the geological grid. The estimated average CO₂ geological storage capacity evaluated by the U.S. DOE method for the saline formation covered by the basalt cap rock is 84.17 Mt of CO₂(ranges from 42.07 to 143.79 Mt of CO₂).

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.46 no.6
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• pp.485-494
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• 2013

$CO_2$ Monitoring, Mitigation and Verification (MMV) is the essential part in the Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project in order to assure the storage permanence economically and environmentally. In large-scale CCS projects in the world, the seismic time-lapse survey is a key technology for monitoring the behavior of injected $CO_2$. In this study, we developed a basic process procedure for 3-D seismic baseline data from the Aquistore project, Estevan, Canada. Major target formations of Aquistore CCS project are the Winnipeg and the Deadwood sandstone formations located between 1,800 and 1,900 ms in traveltime. The analysis of trace energy and similarity attributes of seismic data followed by spectral decomposition are carried out for the characterization of $CO_2$ injection zone. High trace energies are concentrated in the northern part of the survey area at 1,800 ms and in the southern part at 1,850 ms in traveltime. The sandstone dominant regions are well recognized with high reflectivity by the trace energy analysis. Similarity attributes show two structural discontinuities trending the NW-SE direction at the target depth. Spectral decomposition of 5, 20 and 40 Hz frequency contents discriminated the successive E-W depositional events at the center of the research area. Additional noise rejection and stratigraphic interpretation on the baseline data followed by applying appropriate imaging technique will be helpful to investigate the differences between baseline data and multi-vintage monitor data.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
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• 2003.04a
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• pp.61-62
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• 2003

Clonal propagation of high-value forest trees through somatic embryogenesis (SE) has the potential to rapidly capture the benefits of breeding or genetic engineering programs and to improve raw material uniformity and quality. A major barrier to the commercialization of this technology is the low quality of the resulting embryos. Several factors limit commercialization of SE for Corsican pine, including low initiation rates, low culture survival, culture decline causing low or no embryo production, and inability of somatic embryos to fully mature, resulting in low germination and reduced vigour of somatic seedlings. The objective was to develop a Corsican pine maturation medium that would produce cotyledonary embryos capable of germination. Treatments were arranged in a completely randomized design. Data were analyzed by analysis of variance, and significant differences between treatments determined by multiple range test at P=0.05. Corsican pine (Pinus nigra var. maritima) cultures were initiated on modified !P6 medium. Modifications of the same media were used for culture multiplication and maintenance. Embryogenic cultures were maintained on the same medium semi solidified with 2.5 g/l Gelrite. A maturation medium, capable of promoting the development of Corsican pine somatic embryos that can germinate, is a combination of iP6 modified salts, 2% maltose, 13% polyethylene glycol (PEG), 5 mg!l abscisic acid (ABA), and 2.5 g/l Gelrite. After initiation and once enough tissue developed they were grown in liquid medium. Embryogenic cell suspensions were established by adding 0.951.05 g of 10- to 14-day-old semisolid-grown embryogenic tissue to 9 ml of liquid maintenance media in a 250ml Erlenmeyer flask. Cultures were then incubated in the dark at 2022$^{\circ}$C and rotated at 120 rpm. After 2.53 months on maturation medium, somatic embryos were selected that exhibited normal embryo shape. Ten embryos were placed horizontally on 20 ml of either germination medium ($\frac{2}{1}$strength Murashige and Skoog (1962) salts with 2.5 g/l activated charcoal) or same medium with copper sulphate adjusted to 0.25 mg/1 to compensate for copper adsorption by activated carbon. 2% and 4% maltose was substituted by 7.5% and 13% PEG respectively to improve the yield of the embryos. Substitution of' maltose with PEG was clearly beneficial to embryo development. When 2% of the maltose was replaced with 7.5% PEG, many embryos developed to large bullet-shaped embryos. At latter stages of development most embryos callused and stopped development. A few short, barrel-shaped cotyledonary embryos formed that were covered by callus on the sides and base. When 4% of the maltose was removed and substituted with 13% PEG, the embryos developed further, emerging from the callus and increasing yield slightly. Microscopic examination of the cultures showed differing morphologies, varying from mostly single cells or clumps to well-formed somatic embryos that resembled early zygotic embryos only liquid cultures with organized early-stag. A procedure for converting and acclimating germinants to growth in soil and greenhouse conditions is also tested. Seedling conversion and growth were highly related to the quality of the germinant at the time of planting. Germinants with larger shoots, longer, straighter hypocotyls and longer roots performed best. When mature zygotic embryos germinate the root emerges, before or coincident with the shoot. In contrast, somatic embryos germinate in reverse sequence, with the cotyledons greening first, then shoot emergence and then, much later, if at all, the appearance of the root. Somatic seedlings, produced from the maturation medium, showed 100% survival when planted in a field setting. Somatic seedlings showed normal yearly growth relative to standard seedlings from natural seed.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.266-275
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• 2012

In this study, a method is devised to implement a supercritical $CO_2$ ($scCO_2$) injection environment on a laboratory scale and to investigate the effects of $scCO_2$ on the properties of rock specimens. Specimens of shale and sandstone normally constituting the cap rock and reservoir rock, respectively, were kept in a laboratory reactor chamber with $scCO_2$ for two weeks. From this stage, a chemical reaction between rock surface and the $scCO_2$ was induced. The effect of saline water was also investigated by comparing three conditions ($scCO_2$-rock, $scCO_2-H_2O$-rock and $scCO_2$-brine(1M)-rock). Finally, we checked the changes in the properties before and after the reaction by destructive and nondestructive testing procedures. The swelling of shale was a main concern in this case. The experimental results suggested that $scCO_2$ has a greater effect on the swelling of the shale than pure water and brine. It was also observed that the largest swelling displacement of shale occurred after a reaction with the $H_2O-scCO_2$ solution. The results of a series of the destructive and nondestructive tests indicate that although each of the property changes of the rock differed depending on the reaction conditions, the $H_2O-scCO_2$ solution had the greatest effect. In this study, shale was highly sensitive to the reaction conditions. These results provide fundamental information pertaining to the stability of $CO_2$ storage sites due to physical and chemical reactions between the rocks in these sites and $scCO_2$.