Mineral and Geochemical Attributes of the Midcontinent Rift Sequence; an Application for Deep Carbon Dioxide Sequestration
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Scholars' Mine Doctoral Dissertations Student Theses and Dissertations Spring 2015 Mineral and geochemical attributes of the midcontinent rift sequence; An application for deep carbon dioxide sequestration Alsedik Mohamed Ali Abousif Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/doctoral_dissertations Part of the Geochemistry Commons, Geology Commons, and the Geophysics and Seismology Commons Department: Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Recommended Citation Abousif, Alsedik Mohamed Ali, "Mineral and geochemical attributes of the midcontinent rift sequence; An application for deep carbon dioxide sequestration" (2015). Doctoral Dissertations. 2372. https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/doctoral_dissertations/2372 This thesis is brought to you by Scholars' Mine, a service of the Missouri S&T Library and Learning Resources. This work is protected by U. S. Copyright Law. Unauthorized use including reproduction for redistribution requires the permission of the copyright holder. For more information, please contact [email protected]. MINERAL AND GEOCHEMICAL ATTRIBUTES OF THE MIDCONTINENT RIFT SEQUENCE; AN APPLICATION FOR DEEP CARBON DIOXIDE SEQUESTRATION by ALSEDIK MOHAMED ALI ABOUSIF A DISSERTATION Presented to the Graduate Faculty of the MISSOURI UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in GEOLOGY AND GEOPHYSICS 2015 Approved by: David J. Wronkiewicz, Advisor John P. Hogan Wan Yang Baojun Bai Francisca Oboh-Ikuenobe 2015 Alsedik Mohamed Ali Abousif All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT The potential for using the Oronto Group of the Midcontinent Rift (MCR) Sequence for CO2 sequestration has been disparaged because of low porosity- permeability characteristics, which are largely a result of extensive calcite cementation. This study investigated the potential for using the MCR as a target for CO2 sequestration by examining reactions involving detrital host-rock minerals at high pressure-temperature conditions that could provide dissolved Ca2+, Mg2+, and Fe2+, and then precipitating these cations as carbonate minerals. The effect of carbonic acid on cement dissolution was also evaluated with respect to enhancing porosity and permeability. The Oronto Group sediments were enriched in CaO and MgO (5-12 wt%), and dominated by volcanic-lithic fragments with traces of alkali-feldspar, plagioclase, muscovite, quartz, chlorite, illite and smectite. The overlying Bayfield Group sediments are feldspathic quartz arenites with up to 17% porosity, however, they have low abundances of CaO and MgO (<2% wt %) and generally lack an effective cap rock. Cut and polished samples were reacted with either CO2-saturated deionized water at 90°C in Teflon vessels, or mildly acidic nitric acid solution in room-temperature core-flooding experiments to evaluate reactions under potential sequestration conditions. Rapid dissolution of calcite cement was noted in short- term tests (1.6 - 20 mg Ca/cm2.day), while supersaturated conditions were achieved with the associated precipitation of carbonate minerals in longer-term (101.9 day) experiments following the neutralization of carbonic acid and associated pH rise. The potential of using the Oronto Group as a CO2 sequestration target is favored by its carbonate mineralization potential, but hindered by its limited permeability, even for samples that displayed porosity enhancement following calcite cement dissolution. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to give a special note of thanks for my advisor Dr. David J. Wronkiewicz for his patience and guide during my study. I appreciate his guidance in writing reports, papers, and this dissertation. Also, I would like to show my appreciation for the effort of my committee members, Drs. John Hogan, Wan Yang, Baojun Bai, and Francisca Oboh-Ikuenobe, to bestow a great time of their busy schedule to review this dissertation. My great approciations I would like to send to Dr. Shadab Anwar to his suggestions and recommendation during my study period. Also, I would like to thank current and past lab colleagues, especially Dr. Varun Paul, Hanani Tajul Nahar, Robert Swain, Hang Deng, Thomas Herbst, David Davison, and Krista Rybacki. I would like to give my thanks for all institutions that supported my research including; the Department of Energy (DOE)–National Energy Technology Lab by funding this study under agreement number of DE-FE0002416, the Missouri S&T Environmental Research Center (ERC) for giving an access to the ICP-OES, and the Missouri S&T Materials Research Center (MRC), who kindly assisted me in during the SEM-EDS and XRD analysis. Special note of thanks I would like to send to Mr. Eric Bohannan (XRD specialist) and Dr. Clarissa Wisner (SEM specialist). I would like to thank Iowa Department of Natural Recourses (DNR), especially Dr. Raymond R. Anderson, and Kansas Geological Survey (KGS), especially Dr. Dave Newell, for providing us with valuable subsurface samples used in these investigations. I would like to thank Dr. Baojun Bai and his graduate student Abdulmohsin Imgam for assisting with work on the core flooding experiments. I would like to extend my appreciation to Elizabeth Roberson, a technical editor at Missouri S&T office of graduate studies, who provided a great writing editing review of this dissertation. Also, I would like to thank the Libyan Ministry of Higher Education, the University of Sebha – Libya, the Canadian Bureau of International Education (CBIE) for kindly support my study in the United States. I would like to give special note of thanks for my CBIE advisor, Amira Ismail, for her sincere advising during my critical stages of my study, and for all my colleagues and teachers at the Earth Science Department of Sebha University. Finally, unlimited notes of appreciation and thanks I would like to dispatch to my family for their prayers, wishes, and support. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. iv LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ............................................................................................. ix LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ xv SECTION 1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 1 1.1 GLOBAL WARMING AND GEOLOGIC SEQUESTRATION ...................... 1 1.2 POTENTIAL FOR CO2 SEQUESTRATION IN THE MCR ............................ 2 1.3 OBJECTIVES .................................................................................................... 5 1.4 METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................. 6 1.4.1 Sample Collection. ................................................................................... 6 1.4.2 Petrographic Study. ................................................................................ 19 1.4.3 X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) Analysis. ...................................................... 20 1.4.4 X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF). .................................................................. 21 1.4.5 High-Pressure-Temperature (HPT) Corrosion Test. .............................. 22 1.4.6 Inducted Coupled Plasma–Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) Analysis ............................................................................... 24 1.4.7 Weathering Simulation of Minerals. ...................................................... 25 1.4.8 Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). ................................................. 26 1.4.9 Geochemical Modeling. ......................................................................... 26 1.4.10 Core Flooding Experiments and Porosity-Permeability Determinations. ...................................................................................... 27 1.4.11 CO2 Generated During the Calcite Dissolution. .................................... 29 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................................ 31 2.1 GEOLOGY OF THE MIDCONTINENT RIFT .............................................. 31 2.1.1 Tectonic Development of MCR. ............................................................ 31 2.1.2 Structural Elements of the Rift. ............................................................. 33 2.1.3 Rift Stratigraphy..................................................................................... 36 2.1.3.1 Volcanic and intrusive rift sequence. ..........................................36 vi 2.1.3.2 Oronto Group and stratigraphic equivalents. ..............................37 2.1.3.3 Bayfield Group and stratigraphic equivalents. ............................38 2.1.3.4 Overlying Phanerozoic sequence. ...............................................40 2.1.4 Rift Economic Mineralization................................................................ 40 2.2 ADVANTAGEOUS FEATURES OF THE MCR FOR CO2 SEQUESTRATION ......................................................................................... 41 2.3 CHALLENGES FOR CO2 SEQUESTRATION IN MCR .............................. 42 2.4 GEOCHEMISTRY OF CARBONATE MINERAL PRECIPITATION ......... 45 3 PETROGRAPHIC AND X-RAY DIFFRACTION ANALYSIS OF THE MIDCONTINENT RIFT ROCKS ..........................................................................