GOVERNMENT Steps up Fight to Curb Global Warming
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THE NETL CARBON SEQUESTRATION NEWSLETTER: ANNUAL INDEX SEPTEMBER 2006 – AUGUST 2007 This is a compilation of the past year’s monthly National Energy Technology Laboratory Carbon Sequestration Newsletter. The newsletter is produced by the NETL to provide information on activities and publications related to carbon sequestration. It covers domestic, international, public sector, and private sector news. This compilation covers newsletters issued between September 2006 and August 2007. It highlights the primary news and events that have taken place in the carbon sequestration arena over the past year. Information that has become outdated (e.g. conference dates, paper submittals, etc.) was removed. To navigate this document please use the Bookmarks tab or the Acrobat search tool (Ctrl+F). To subscribe to this newsletter, please visit http://listserv.netl.doe.gov/mailman/listinfo/sequestration. HIGHLIGHTS ............................................................................................................................................ 2 SEQUESTRATION IN THE NEWS ............................................................................................................ 10 SCIENCE................................................................................................................................................. 27 POLICY .................................................................................................................................................. 34 GEOLOGY .............................................................................................................................................. 43 TECHNOLOGY ....................................................................................................................................... 52 TERRESTRIAL/OCEAN........................................................................................................................... 62 TRADING ............................................................................................................................................... 74 RECENT PUBLICATIONS ........................................................................................................................ 82 LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY......................................................................................................................... 97 ANNOUNCEMENTS .............................................................................................................................. 106 HIGHLIGHTS September 2006 “Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap and Program Plan (2006).” The Department of Energy (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) has released its annual update of the “Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap and Program Plan (Roadmap).” The Carbon Sequestration Program is managed within DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy and implemented through the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). The Roadmap (1) defines the current status of carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and sequestration technology, (2) identifies research pathways that lead to achievement of the Carbon Sequestration Program goal, and (3) describes efforts that the DOE program is pursuing along priority pathways. Among the past year's Program highlights contained in the Roadmap are the following: 1. The Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships have progressed to a validation phase in which they will conduct 25 field tests involving the injection of CO2 into underground formations where it will be stored and monitored. 2. Pilot-scale tests and modeling of amine-based CO2 capture have shown that operating an amine stripper at vacuum can reduce energy use 5–10 percent per unit of CO2 captured; and 3. Novel metal organic frameworks have shown significant potential as CO2 sorbents. http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/2006%20Sequestration%20Roadmap%20FINAL.pdf. “Carbon Sequestration Project Portfolio (2006).” The Department of Energy National Energy Technology Laboratory has released its annual update of the Carbon Sequestration Project Portfolio (Project Portfolio). The Carbon Sequestration Project Portfolio 2006 is a comprehensive document, designed to serve as a key resource of the National Energy Technology Laboratory’s Carbon Sequestration Program. The Project Portfolio includes maps of project distribution; a copy of the new “Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap and Program Plan 2006”; budget information; details about each individual research project; programmatic papers; and an index of project participants. The Project Portfolio is designed to be printed for use in a three-ring binder, or to be viewed online. Frequent updates will be posted to ensure that any new information is incorporated. To view and/or download the various sections of this document, go to the pdf table of contents: http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/project%20portfolio/project_portfolio2/1_CarbonSeques trationProjectPortfolio2005.pdf. To access each section of the document though the table of contents online, click on: http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/project%20portfolio/project_portfolio2/table_contents.pd f. http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/sequestration/publications/programplans/2006/project_portfolio_s equestration_06.pdf. October 2006 DOE Fossil Energy Techline, "Critical Carbon Sequestration Assessment Begins: Midwest Partnership Looks at Appalachian Basin for Safe Storage Sites. Seismic Surveys to Determine Viability of Rock Formations for CO2 Storage." The US Department of Energy's National Energy Technology, through the work of the Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership, is conducting seismic testing of the Appalachian Basin geology to determine whether the sites can serve as reservoirs for carbon dioxide (CO2) storage. The testing is being conducted at FirstEnergy Corp's R.E. Burger plant in Shadyside, Ohio, and in nearby areas. The program falls under the President's Global Climate Change Initiative, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas intensity-the ratio of greenhouse gas emissions to economic output-by 18 percent by 2012. An earlier phase of the project determined that the sandstone and limestone rock formations around the plant held potential for serving as a repository for CO2- estimated storage of at least 200 years. The current phase of the project utilizes truck-mounted seismic equipment to generate pulses in the ground around the Burger plant. The seismic signal from the 2 vibrations is used to create images of the subsurface area and determine its suitability for injecting CO2. The surveys focuses on the area immediately surrounding the Burger Plant but also extends 10 miles in length, and along other routes in order to provide a "quasi three-dimensional" survey, at a lower cost than a full-three dimensional survey. Wells will be drilled at depths of 4,000 to 7,000 feet, well below drinking water supplies, which are at 100 feet in that region. Eventually, CO2 will be injected into the brine field to test the feasibility of geologic sequestration in this type of setting. Battelle of Columbus, Ohio, leads this project in cooperation with the Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership, which includes 38 partners in seven states: Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. In addition to this geologic project, the Battelle-led partnership will later conduct two additional geologic and three terrestrial projects throughout its multi-state region. To see a video of NETL project manager Charlie Byrer discussing the project, go to: http://ims.netl.doe.gov/video/TL-Byrer- 256k.wmv. September 12, 2006, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2006/06052- Sequestration_Assessment_Begins.html. November 2006 DOE Techline, “DOE Project Injects 700 Tons of Carbon Dioxide Into Texas Sandstone Formation; Researchers to Determine the Ability of Brine Formations to Sequester Greenhouse Gas,” and United Press International, “US Tests CO2 Underground Storage Options.” As part of the Carbon Sequestration program, the US Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory is following up on its 2004 effort to determine the feasibility of storing carbon dioxide in brine formations though the Frio Brine Project. The Frio Brine test site is located 40 miles northeast of Houston, Texas near Dayton, Texas. The latest stage in the research consists of pumping more than 700 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) underground to determine how the CO2 moves though brine-filled highly porous sandstone. This sandstone is representative of formations found worldwide. The Frio Brine project is a carbon sequestration project funded by the US Department of Energy and managed by the DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory. The lead project partner is the University of Texas at Austin's Bureau of Economic Geology, and the research team includes: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the US Geological Survey, and Sandia Technologies LLC. The Frio Brine Pilot project falls within the Gulf Coast Carbon Center area, a participant in DOE's Southeast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership. In 2004, the researchers used computer models to predict that the CO2 would stop quickly after traveling a short distance through the formation, and that the researchers were able to accurately measure the pattern of movement and the final distribution of the CO2. For the current year-long monitoring project, researchers have begun to collect chemistry,