Peter D Warwick, Ph.D.
Peter Warwick is Project Chief of the 'Utilization of Carbon and other Energy Gases–Geologic Research and Assessments' project at the USGS Geology, Energy & Minerals (GEM) Science Center in Reston, VA.
Biography
Peter's scientific and technical specialties include sedimentology, stratigraphy, the geology of fossil fuels, and geologic carbon sequestration. His career with the USGS has focused on energy-related research, exploration, and resource assessments in various sedimentary basins in North and South America, Europe, and Asia. He has authored or co-authored more than 200 scientific research publications. In addition, Dr. Warwick has served as the President of the Energy Minerals Division of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) and is an AAPG Charles Taylor Fellow. He has been President of The Society for Organic Petrology, and Chair of the Coal Geology Division of the Geological Society of America (GSA). He is a GSA Fellow and an active member of several scientific journal review boards.
Education
- B.S. Political Science and Geology, North Carolina State University
- M.S. Geology, North Carolina State University
- Ph.D. Geology, University of Kentucky
Work Experience
- Supervisory Research Geologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia
- Research Geologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia
- Geologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia
- Resident Research Associate, U.S. Geological Survey, National Research Council
Science and Products
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...
Project Staff
Below is a project staff list containing the current staff members of the Utilization of Carbon and other Energy Gases - Geologic Research and Assessments project.
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...
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...
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.
Geologic Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Interactive Map
The Geologic CO2 Sequestration interactive web map includes investigated basins, assessed areas, stratigraphic columns, and well density information.
Federal Lands Emissions and Sequestration in the United States: Estimates 2005-14
This website is a data visualization companion to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) report titled Federal Lands Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sequestration in the United States: Estimates 2005-14. The maps and charts on this site include the estimated emissions and sequestration from both fossil fuel activities and ecosystem processes on Federal lands only.
Geospatial Data for a Preliminary GIS Representation of Deep Coal Areas for Carbon Dioxide Storage in the Contiguous United States and Alaska
These geospatial data and their accompanying report outline many areas of coal in the United States beneath more than 3,000 ft of overburden. Based on depth, these areas may be targets for injection and storage of supercritical carbon dioxide. Additional areas where coal exists beneath more than 1,000 ft of overburden are also outlined; these may be targets for geologic storage of carbon
Federal Lands Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sequestration in the United States: Estimates 2005-14 - Data Release
This dataset includes ten years of emissions and sequestration estimates (2005-2014) in two separate tables, 1) the combustion and extraction of fossil fuels on Federal lands and 2) processes from the ecosystems on those Federal lands. The fossil fuel related estimates include the greenhouse gases carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O), and the ec
Methodology for estimating the prospective CO2 storage resource of residual oil zones at the national and regional scale
Residual oil zones (ROZs) are increasingly gaining interest as potential reservoirs for carbon dioxide (CO2) storage. Here, we present a national- and regional-scale methodology for estimating prospective CO2 storage resources in residual oil zones. This methodology uses a volumetric equation that accounts for CO2 storage as a free phase...
Sanguinito, Sean; Singh, Harpreet; Myshakin, Evgeniy M.; Goodman, Angela L.; Dilmore, Robert M.; Grant, Timothy C.; Morgan, David; Bromhal, Grant; Warwick, Peter D.; Brennan, Sean T.; Freeman, Philip A.; Karacan, C. Özgen; Gorecki, Charles; Peck, Wesley; Burton-Kelly, Matthew; Dotzenrod, Neil; Frailey, Scott; Pawar, RajeshA probabilistic assessment methodology for carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery and associated carbon dioxide retention
The U.S. Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 authorized the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to conduct a national assessment of the potential volume of hydrocarbons recoverable by injection of carbon dioxide (CO2) into known oil reservoirs with historical production. The implementation of CO2 enhanced oil recovery (CO2-EOR) techniques could...
Warwick, Peter D.; Attanasi, Emil D.; Olea, Ricardo A.; Blondes, Madalyn S.; Freeman, Philip A.; Brennan, Sean T.; Merrill, Matthew D.; Verma, Mahendra K.; Karacan, Cevat O.; Shelton, Jenna L.; Lohr, Celeste D.; Jahediesfanjani, Hossein; Roueché, Jacqueline N.Preliminary GIS representation of deep coal areas for carbon dioxide storage in the contiguous United States and Alaska
This report and its accompanying geospatial data outline many areas of coal in the United States beneath more than 3,000 ft of overburden. Based on depth, these areas may be targets for injection and storage of supercritical carbon dioxide. Additional areas where coal exists beneath more than 1,000 ft of overburden are also outlined; these may be...
Jones, Kevin B.; Barnhart, Laura E.; Warwick, Peter D.; Corum, Margo D.Improving pressure-limited CO2 storage capacity in saline formations by means of brine extraction
The carbon dioxide (CO2) storage capacity of saline formations may be constrained by reservoir pressure limitations. Brine extraction could be necessary to increase the CO2 storage capacity of a given formation, manage the extent of the underground CO2 plume and induced pressure front, and control the migration direction. To estimate the...
Jahediesfanjani, Hossein; Anderson, Steven T.; Warwick, Peter D.Assessment of coal mine methane (CMM) and abandoned mine methane (AMM) resource potential of longwall mine panels: example from Northern Appalachian Basin, USA
"Coal mine methane (CMM) and abandoned mine methane (AMM), are by-products of underground coal mining. The quantity and the emission rate of CMM and AMM may vary depending on the type of mine, gas content of the mined coal seam, and gas sourced from strata and coal beds in overlying and underlying formations affected by mining. Therefore, if a...
Karacan, Cevat O.; Warwick, Peter D.Carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery and residual oil zone studies at the U.S. Geological Survey
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is preparing a national resource assessment of the potential hydrocarbons recoverable after injection of carbon dioxide (CO2) into conventional oil reservoirs in the United States. The implementation of CO2-enhanced oil recovery (CO2-EOR) techniques can increase hydrocarbon production, and lead to incidental...
Warwick, Peter D.; Attanasi, Emil D.; Blondes, Madalyn S.; Brennan, Sean T.; Buursink, Marc; Doolan, Colin A.; Freeman, Philip A.; Jahediesfanjani, Hossein; Karacan, Cevat O.; Lohr, Celeste D.; Merrill, Matthew D.; Olea, Ricardo A.; Roueché, Jacqueline N.; Shelton, Jenna L.; Slucher, Ernie; Varela, Brian; Verma, Mahendra K.Estimating the potential costs of brine production to expand the pressure-limited CO2 storage capacity of the Mount Simon Sandstone
The conventional wisdom is that widespread deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) is likely necessary to be able to satisfy baseload electricity demand, to maintain diversity in the energy mix, and to achieve mitigation of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions at lowest cost (IPCC, 2014). If national-scale deployment of CCS is needed in the...
Warwick, Peter D.; Anderson, Steven T.; Jahediesfanjani, HosseinFederal lands greenhouse emissions and sequestration in the United States—Estimates for 2005–14
In January 2016, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior tasked the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) with producing a publicly available and annually updated database of estimated greenhouse gas emissions associated with the extraction and use (predominantly some form of combustion) of fossil fuels from Federal lands. In response, the...
Merrill, Matthew D.; Sleeter, Benjamin M.; Freeman, Philip A.; Liu, Jinxun; Warwick, Peter D.; Reed, Bradley C.Estimating the pressure-limited CO2 injection and storage capacity of the United States saline formations: Effect of the presence of hydrocarbon reservoirs
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) national assessment of carbon dioxide (CO2) storage capacity evaluated 192 saline Storage Assessment Units (SAUs) in 33 U.S. onshore sedimentary basins that may be utilized for CO2 storage (see USGS Circular 1386). Similar to many other available models, volumetric analysis was...
Jahediesfanjani, Hossein; Warwick, Peter D.; Anderson, Steven T.Geologic framework for the national assessment of carbon dioxide storage resources—Atlantic Coastal Plain and Eastern Mesozoic Rift Basins
This chapter presents information pertinent to the geologic carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration potential within saline aquifers located in the Atlantic Coastal Plain and Eastern Mesozoic Rift Basins of the Eastern United States. The Atlantic Coastal Plain is underlain by a Jurassic to Quaternary succession of sedimentary strata that onlap westward...
Warwick, Peter D.; Corum, M.D.; Craddock, William H.; Merrill, Matthew D.; Roberts-Ashby, Tina L.; Brennan, Sean T.; Buursink, Marc L.; Drake, Ronald M.; Warwick, Peter D.; Cahan, Steven M.; DeVera, Christina A.; Freeman, Philip A.; Gosai, Mayur A.; Lohr, Celeste D.Overview of a comprehensive resource database for the assessment of recoverable hydrocarbons produced by carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery
A database called the “Comprehensive Resource Database” (CRD) was prepared to support U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) assessments of technically recoverable hydrocarbons that might result from the injection of miscible or immiscible carbon dioxide (CO2) for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The CRD was designed by INTEK Inc., a consulting company under...
Carolus, Marshall; Biglarbigi, Khosrow; Warwick, Peter D.; Attanasi, Emil D.; Freeman, Philip A.; Lohr, Celeste D.3D Pressure‐limited approach to model and estimate CO2 injection and storage capacity: saline Mount Simon Formation
To estimate the carbon dioxide (CO2) injection and storage capacity of saline formations, we used Tough2‐ECO2N simulation software to develop a pressure‐limited (dynamic) simulation approach based on applying three‐dimensional (3D) numerical simulation only on the effective injection area (Aeff) surrounding each injection well. A statistical...
Jahediesfanjani, Hossein; Warwick, Peter D.; Anderson, Steven T.Pre-USGS Publications
Oil, gas, and water separation vessels
Oil, gas, and water separation vessels at a carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery operation, Horseshoe Atoll, Upper Pennsylvanian Wolfcampian play in the Permian Basin Province in Texas.
CO2CRC carbon dioxide injection well, Victoria, Australia
Photograph of a carbon dioxide injection well operated by CO2CRC, at the Otway National Research Facility in the state of Victoria, Australia
USGS Slideshow Presentation
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable slideshow presentation in .pdf format [1.2 MB] titled, 'A Pressure-Limited Model to Estimate CO2 Injection and Storage Capacity of Saline Formations: Investigating the Effects of Formation Properties, Model Variables and Presence of Hydrocarbon Reservoirs'. This presentation is material
Geologic Carbon Sequestration Project Overview Handout
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable handout in .pdf format [.7 MB]. The handout provides an overview of the "Utilization of Carbon and Other Energy Gases — Geologic Research and Assessments" project for FY 2021. The project is directly associated with the USGS Energy Resources Program
USGS Slideshow Presentation
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable slideshow presentation in .pdf format [3.3 MB] titled, 'U.S. Geological Survey Geologic Carbon Dioxide Storage Resource Assessment of the United States – Project Update'. This presentation is material from the Tenth Annual Conference on Carbon Capture & Sequestration held on May 2-5
USGS Slideshow Presentation
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable slideshow presentation in .pdf format [1.4 MB] titled, 'A Probabilistic Assessment Methodology for the Evaluation of Geologic Carbon Dioxide Storage'. This presentation is material from a U.S. Dept. of the Interior talk.
This material is supported by the "Utilization of Carbon and
USGS Slideshow Presentation
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable slideshow presentation in .pdf format [1.9 MB] titled, 'Examining Salinity Restrictions for CO2 Storage: Suggestions from basin to reservoir scales'. This presentation is material from the GWPC 2011: Carbon Capture & Storage & Groundwater meeting September 26, 2011.
This
USGS Slideshow Presentation
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable slideshow presentation in .pdf format [2.2 MB] titled, 'National Assessment of Geologic Carbon Dioxide Storage Resources—Results'. This presentation is material from a USGS talk.
This material is supported by the "Utilization of Carbon and Other Energy Gases — Geologic Research
USGS Slideshow Presentation
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable slideshow presentation in .pdf format [2.6 MB] titled, 'U.S. Geological Survey National Assessment of Geologic Carbon Dioxide Storage Resources and Associated Research'. This presentation is material from the Thirteenth Annual Conference on Carbon Capture, Utilization & Storage held
USGS Slideshow Presentation
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable slideshow presentation in .pdf format [3.9 MB] titled, 'U.S. Geological Survey Geologic Carbon Dioxide Storage Resource Assessment of the United States – 2012 Project Update'. This presentation is material from the Eleventh Annual Conference on Carbon Capture, Utilization &
USGS Slideshow Presentation
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable slideshow presentation in .pdf format [.57 MB] titled, 'Development Philosophy of an Assessment Methodology for Hydrocarbon Recovery Potential Using CO2–EOR Associated with Carbon Sequestration'. This presentation is material from 33rd IEAEOR Symposium held on August 26-30, 2012 in
USGS Slideshow Presentation
Select the thumbnail image above to open a downloadable and printable slideshow presentation in .pdf format [2.3 MB] titled, 'U.S. Geological Survey National Assessment of Geologic Carbon Dioxide Storage Resources and Associated Research'. This presentation is material from a June 5, 2014 U.S. Energy Association talk.
This material is supported by
USGS Releases A New Assessment Methodology for Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery and Associated Carbon Dioxide Retention
The U.S. Geological Survey has developed a new assessment method to estimate how much oil and gas could be produced by injecting carbon dioxide into petroleum reservoirs. The methodology also includes a way to estimate the amount of carbon dioxide remaining in the reservoir after the production of oil and gas is complete.
USGS Releases Three Approaches for Estimating Recovery Factors in Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery
The U.S. Geological Survey has evaluated three methods for estimating how much oil and gas could be produced by injecting carbon dioxide (CO2) into petroleum reservoirs.
USGS Receives International Endorsement for Geologic Carbon Sequestration Methodology
The USGS methodology for assessing carbon dioxide (CO2) storage potential for geologic carbon sequestration was endorsed as a best practice for a country-wide storage potential assessment by the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Interior Releases First-Ever Comprehensive National Assessment of Geologic Carbon Dioxide Storage Potential
Geologic Carbon Sequestration Gauges Potential to Reduce Emissions that Contribute to Climate Change
New Method to Gauge Nation’s CO2 Storage Potential
A new methodology to assess the nation's potential to store carbon dioxide (CO2) is available.