Underground Gas Storage: Efficiency and Quality Requirements

October 26, 2016

Sunken gaseous resources necessitate a unique focus on equally unique variables, such as the composition of the soil and the likelihood of unforeseen subterranean site irregularities. This is because geological and geographical sciences hold sway down here, and they require almost as much consideration as any engineering problem or architectural issue. In evaluating these subterranean variables, we need to assess the efficiency and quality requirements of this below-ground scenario. That all sounds a little ambiguous, which isn't a word that should ever be allowed in an engineer's vocabulary, so details are needed.

When Local Legislation Meets Structural Design

Advanced structural shoring techniques define the outer boundaries of an underground enclosure, but much of this infrastructure is already in place below ground. Old salt mines and natural aquifers are classed as injectable gas storage sites. Likewise, previously occupied oil fields can play host to pressurized gas reservoirs, but there are certain factors that will naturally affect how well these natural storage sites can perform when the pressure rises. Thankfully, millions of years of geological action have shaped these underground chambers, so they're well-suited for this repurposing role.

Accounting for Site-Relevant Geological Factors

Rocky strata bands as it's compressed, so its characteristics change sharply at different depths. The porosity and permeability of the layers vary, so those layers require a quality assessment study before site deliverability rate can be properly established. Sedimentary samples may be required to gauge the geological and physical characteristics of a salt cavern, but depleted storage areas are usually already well understood, for they were studied when the oil or gas was first recovered.

Typical Underground gas storage sites:

• Salt Caverns
• Aquifers
• Depleted fields (Formerly occupied by hydrocarbon reserves)

Cycling an Efficient Gas Storage Facility

The reinterment of gas is a unique process, one that's quite unlike the standard oil and gas refinement techniques used today. The quality requirements for the injected gas require it to be cleaned and filtered, then, before it's injected, it's metered and inventoried, all so that the gross injected value can be compared to withdrawn quantities. Any differentials in these two values could indicate a ground permeability or porosity issue. Health and safety boards conduct exhaustive feasibility studies on each subterranean candidate before they're ever selected as a viable storage option.

In terms of legislation, geological studies are correlated with health and safety assessments before an engineering department ever cleans, meters, and injects vast quantities of pressurized gas into natural caverns or aquifers.

Contact Details

Fusion - Weld Engineering Pty Ltd
ABN 98 068 987619

1865 Frankston Flinders Road,
Hastings, VIC 3915

Ph: (03) 5909 8218

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