The United States (U.S.) domestic energy supply increasingly relies on natural gas and renewable sources; however, their efficient use is limited by supply and demand constraints. For example, a) in summer, natural gas production may outpace home heating fuel demand and b) in daytime, wind and solar electricity production may outpace industrial power requirements. Storing rather than dumping excess energy for later demand is more efficient and may become more cost effective when given a better understanding of available geologic storage resources.
Geologic Energy Storage
Subsurface energy storage options including natural gas storage, compressed air storage, pumped hydroelectric storage, and geothermal storage; each requiring additional geologic investigations and potential future assessments of available storage resources.
Subsurface energy storage options include natural gas storage, compressed air storage, pumped hydroelectric storage, and geothermal storage. Each geologic storage option requires additional subsurface characterization to better understand the potential storage resources that are available for use by the U.S. energy industry.
The purpose of this research is to develop a better understanding of the geologic screening criteria needed to develop a potential future U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) methodology to assess domestic geologic basins for subsurface energy storage resources.
The initial research goal is to compile a report containing recommendations on the geologic datasets needed and the key process steps required to build a probabilistic assessment methodology to assess various geologic subsurface energy storage options.
The second research goal will focus on developing maps of potential subsurface energy storage locations (including salt domes, depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs, and subsurface formations amenable to geothermal storage).
Motivation
The USGS has historically compiled resource assessment methodologies for technically recoverable hydrocarbons (conventional and continuous) and carbon dioxide (CO2) storage, and utilized these methodologies to conduct probabilistic resource size assessments. Advancing this expertise to develop and conduct a geologic energy storage assessment is a reasonable next step.
In addition, a recent National Academy of Science report suggested that the USGS should work on such an assessment: “Assessing the [subsurface energy] storage potential for various basins in the United States could become a new and strategically important priority for the [USGS].”
Questionnaire
To address outstanding questions on storage options and geologic parameters, we invite input from the engineering and scientific community. Please take a few minutes to complete our survey below. Your responses can be emailed directly to the 'Contact' on this webpage, Marc Buursink (buursink@usgs.gov):
QUESTIONS (Note: Responses will only be used internally for this project, and will not be shared nor posted online.)
-
What is your background in energy storage? (Briefly in one or two sentences is much appreciated.)
-
What geologic energy storage option(s) do you foresee as most valuable?
-
For each option listed, what do you see are some key geologic screening criteria (e.g. minimum or maximum depth, reservoir spacing, subsurface pressure regime, geothermal gradient, porosity cutoff) that should be considered when conducting a resource assessment?
-
For each option listed, what do you see are some dominant risks (geologic and/or economic) that should be considered when conducting a resource assessment?
-
May we contact you for additional insights and/or to serve on an advisory panel? If so, please share your preferred contact information.
-
Do you have colleagues working on geologic energy storage that we should contact? If so, would you please share their contact information or forward this questionnaire to them?
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Utilization of Carbon and other Energy Gases - Geologic Research and Assessments
Economics of Energy Transitions
Assessing Emissions from Active and Abandoned Coal Mines
Induced Seismicity Associated with Carbon Dioxide Geologic Storage
Geologic Carbon Dioxide and Energy-related Storage, Gas Resources, and Utilization
Methodology Development and Assessment of National Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery and Associated Carbon Dioxide Storage Potential
- Overview
The United States (U.S.) domestic energy supply increasingly relies on natural gas and renewable sources; however, their efficient use is limited by supply and demand constraints. For example, a) in summer, natural gas production may outpace home heating fuel demand and b) in daytime, wind and solar electricity production may outpace industrial power requirements. Storing rather than dumping excess energy for later demand is more efficient and may become more cost effective when given a better understanding of available geologic storage resources.
Geologic Energy Storage
Subsurface energy storage options including natural gas storage, compressed air storage, pumped hydroelectric storage, and geothermal storage; each requiring additional geologic investigations and potential future assessments of available storage resources.
Subsurface energy storage options include natural gas storage, compressed air storage, pumped hydroelectric storage, and geothermal storage. Each geologic storage option requires additional subsurface characterization to better understand the potential storage resources that are available for use by the U.S. energy industry.
The purpose of this research is to develop a better understanding of the geologic screening criteria needed to develop a potential future U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) methodology to assess domestic geologic basins for subsurface energy storage resources.
The initial research goal is to compile a report containing recommendations on the geologic datasets needed and the key process steps required to build a probabilistic assessment methodology to assess various geologic subsurface energy storage options.
The second research goal will focus on developing maps of potential subsurface energy storage locations (including salt domes, depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs, and subsurface formations amenable to geothermal storage).
Motivation
The USGS has historically compiled resource assessment methodologies for technically recoverable hydrocarbons (conventional and continuous) and carbon dioxide (CO2) storage, and utilized these methodologies to conduct probabilistic resource size assessments. Advancing this expertise to develop and conduct a geologic energy storage assessment is a reasonable next step.
In addition, a recent National Academy of Science report suggested that the USGS should work on such an assessment: “Assessing the [subsurface energy] storage potential for various basins in the United States could become a new and strategically important priority for the [USGS].”
Questionnaire
To address outstanding questions on storage options and geologic parameters, we invite input from the engineering and scientific community. Please take a few minutes to complete our survey below. Your responses can be emailed directly to the 'Contact' on this webpage, Marc Buursink (buursink@usgs.gov):
QUESTIONS (Note: Responses will only be used internally for this project, and will not be shared nor posted online.)
-
What is your background in energy storage? (Briefly in one or two sentences is much appreciated.)
-
What geologic energy storage option(s) do you foresee as most valuable?
-
For each option listed, what do you see are some key geologic screening criteria (e.g. minimum or maximum depth, reservoir spacing, subsurface pressure regime, geothermal gradient, porosity cutoff) that should be considered when conducting a resource assessment?
-
For each option listed, what do you see are some dominant risks (geologic and/or economic) that should be considered when conducting a resource assessment?
-
May we contact you for additional insights and/or to serve on an advisory panel? If so, please share your preferred contact information.
-
Do you have colleagues working on geologic energy storage that we should contact? If so, would you please share their contact information or forward this questionnaire to them?
-
- Science
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Utilization of Carbon and other Energy Gases - Geologic Research and Assessments
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is utilized by industry to enhance oil recovery. Subsurface CO2 storage could significantly impact reduction of CO2 emissions to the atmosphere, but the economics and potential risks associated with the practice must be understood before implementing extensive programs or regulations. Utilization of other energy-related gases such as helium (He), if separated and concentrated...Economics of Energy Transitions
This task conducts research to characterize or evaluate the economics of developing technologies or markets in geologic resources. Such research can analyze the relative risks, costs, and benefits from the utilization and not just the extraction of underground resource. Economic analysis builds upon the geologic resource assessment work by other tasks in the Utilization of Carbon and other Energy...Assessing Emissions from Active and Abandoned Coal Mines
The gas emission zone liberates and accumulates significant amounts of coal mine methane as a by-product of active mining. In most active mines, coal mine methane is controlled by wellbores, called gob gas ventholes. Despite the presence of these wellbores, it is not possible to capture all of the methane generated within the gas emission zone. As a consequence, a large amount of gas migrates into...Induced Seismicity Associated with Carbon Dioxide Geologic Storage
As a national science agency, the USGS is responsible for assessing hazards from earthquakes throughout the United States. The USGS studies induced seismicity across the spectrum of energy issues: carbon sequestration, geothermal energy, and conventional and unconventional oil and gas. In the central and eastern United States, earthquakes induced by fluid injection activities contribute...Geologic Carbon Dioxide and Energy-related Storage, Gas Resources, and Utilization
The objectives of this task are to conduct relevant research needed to 1) evaluate helium (He) and CO2 resources; 2) support future assessments of low-thermal gases and better understand their resources and potential for use as analogues for anthropogenic CO2 storage; 3) study the feasibility of large-scale CO2 mineralization in the United States; 4) develop pressure-limited dynamic models for...Methodology Development and Assessment of National Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery and Associated Carbon Dioxide Storage Potential
The objective of this research task is to conduct a national assessment of recoverable oil related to CO2 injection. The amount of CO2 stored (utilized) during the hydrocarbon recovery process will also be evaluated. - Data
- Multimedia
- Publications