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Vol.1 , No. 4, Publication Date: Aug. 11, 2014, Page: 145-150
. Conventional CBM production involves hydraulic fracturing to connect the wellbore to the coal natural fracture system via induced fracture followed by pumping off large volumes of formation water to cause reservoir pressure depletion and allow methane to desorb from coal i.e. degassing the coal seams. CBM is simple but inefficient due to reported total recovery of generally less than 50% of the gas-in-place. In recent years, enhanced coalbed methane (ECBM) recovery techniques, based on injection of liquefied carbon dioxide (CO2), have been proposed for the recovery of larger fraction of methane in place. ECBM has been reported to have higher yields, of the order of magnitude of 90% total recovery. Injecting CO2 in unmineable coal seams leads not only to methane recovery but also to CO2 sequestration. Coal was discovered in Nigeria in 1909 and coal mining began with a drift mine at Ogbete, Enugu in 1915; coal production attained its climax within the period of 1958 and 1959. Since then, there had been a continual instability in the amount of coal produced in successive years; also some mines were abandoned because the coal-beds are deep and unmineable. The characteristics of these unmineable coalbeds rule out economically profitable mining but can be developed to produce methane (CH4). It, therefore, became imperative for Nigeria to develop her deep unmineable coalbed to meet expanding demand of methane in the different world markets and contribute to reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission that causes global warming and climate change. This, of course, is in line with the current ongoing reforms at making the oil and gas sector in Nigeria more vibrant and attractive to investment. The reforms give strict attention to the Nigerian Gas Master Plan and provide an excellent background for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) projects under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Implementation of CO2-ECBM project in Nigeria would help to build confidence in CCS technology. Hence, this paper reviews CCS techniques and global CCS and CO2-ECBM recovery projects, and assesses the potential and prospects of CO2-ECBM recovery in Nigeria. The technical, financial and legal challenges of CO2-ECBM in Nigeria are also discussed.&picture=http://www.aascit.org/aascit/decorators/img/journal/902.jpg)
| [1] | Falode O. A., Department of Petroleum Engineering, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. |
| [2] | Alawode A. J., Department of Petroleum Engineering, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. |
The need for improved hydrocarbon supply has necessitated the development of unconventional hydrocarbon resources such as tight gas, gas hydrate and coal-bed methane (CBM). Conventional CBM production involves hydraulic fracturing to connect the wellbore to the coal natural fracture system via induced fracture followed by pumping off large volumes of formation water to cause reservoir pressure depletion and allow methane to desorb from coal i.e. degassing the coal seams. CBM is simple but inefficient due to reported total recovery of generally less than 50% of the gas-in-place. In recent years, enhanced coalbed methane (ECBM) recovery techniques, based on injection of liquefied carbon dioxide (CO2), have been proposed for the recovery of larger fraction of methane in place. ECBM has been reported to have higher yields, of the order of magnitude of 90% total recovery. Injecting CO2 in unmineable coal seams leads not only to methane recovery but also to CO2 sequestration. Coal was discovered in Nigeria in 1909 and coal mining began with a drift mine at Ogbete, Enugu in 1915; coal production attained its climax within the period of 1958 and 1959. Since then, there had been a continual instability in the amount of coal produced in successive years; also some mines were abandoned because the coal-beds are deep and unmineable. The characteristics of these unmineable coalbeds rule out economically profitable mining but can be developed to produce methane (CH4). It, therefore, became imperative for Nigeria to develop her deep unmineable coalbed to meet expanding demand of methane in the different world markets and contribute to reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission that causes global warming and climate change. This, of course, is in line with the current ongoing reforms at making the oil and gas sector in Nigeria more vibrant and attractive to investment. The reforms give strict attention to the Nigerian Gas Master Plan and provide an excellent background for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) projects under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Implementation of CO2-ECBM project in Nigeria would help to build confidence in CCS technology. Hence, this paper reviews CCS techniques and global CCS and CO2-ECBM recovery projects, and assesses the potential and prospects of CO2-ECBM recovery in Nigeria. The technical, financial and legal challenges of CO2-ECBM in Nigeria are also discussed.
Keywords
Carbon Dioxide, Sequestration, Enhanced Coal-bed Methane Recovery, Carbon Capture and Storage, Clean Development Mechanism, Nigeria
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