Earth and Environmental Sciences Area Logo Earth and Environmental Sciences Area Logo
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Logo
Menu
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Organizational Charts
    • Virtual Tours
    • EESA Strategic Vision
  • Our People
    • A-Z People
    • Alumni Network
    • Area Offices
    • Committees
    • Directors
    • IDEA Working Group
    • Paul A. Witherspoon
    • Postdocs & Early Careers
    • Search by Expertise
  • Careers & Opportunities
    • Careers
    • Intern Pilot w/CSUEB
    • Mentorship Program
    • Recognition & Funding Opps
    • EESA Mini Grants
    • S&E Metrics for Performance and Promotion
    • Student Opportunities
    • Supervisor EnRichment (SupER) Program
    • Promotion Metrics (Scientific)
  • Research
    • Our Divisions
    • Climate & Ecosystem Sciences Division
      • Environmental & Biological Systems Science
        • Programs
        • Environmental Remediation & Water Resources
        • Ecosystems Biology Program
        • Bioenergy
      • Biosphere-Atmosphere Interactions
        • Programs
        • Climate Modeling
        • Atmospheric System Research
        • Terrestrial Ecosystem Science
      • Climate & Atmosphere Processes
        • Programs
        • Climate Modeling
        • Atmospheric System Research
      • Earth Systems & Society
        • Programs
        • Climate Modeling
    • Energy Geosciences Division
      • Discovery Geosciences
        • Programs
        • Basic Energy Sciences (BES) Geophysics
        • Basic Energy Sciences (BES) Geochemistry
        • Basic Energy Sciences (BES) Isotope
      • Energy Resources
        • Programs
        • Geologic Carbon Sequestration
        • Hydrocarbon Resources
        • Geothermal Systems
        • Nuclear Energy & Waste
      • Resilient Energy, Water & Infrastructure
        • Programs
        • Water-Energy
        • Critical Infrastructure
        • Environmental Resilience
        • Grid-Scale Subsurface Energy Storage
    • Projects
    • Research at a Glance
    • Publication Lists
    • Centers and Resources
    • Technologies & National User Programs
  • Departments
    • Climate Sciences
    • Ecology
    • Geochemistry
    • Geophysics
    • Hydrogeology
    • Operations
  • News & Events
    • News
    • Events
    • Earth & Environment Newsletter
  • Intranet
  • COVID & Safety
    • EESA Safety
    • EESA COVID-19
  • Search

  • all
  • people
  • events
  • posts
  • pages
  • projects
  • publications

New EESA Study Indicates Greater Capacity for Carbon Storage in the Subsurface3 min read

by Christina Procopiou on February 6, 2018

Center for Nanoscale Control of Geologic CO2 Discovery Geosciences Program Domain Energy Geosciences Division Energy Resources Program Area Energy Resources Program Domain Fundamental Earth Sciences Program Area Fundamental Geosciences Program GC-Sustainable Earth Geologic Carbon Sequestration Program Resilient Energy Sustainable Energy Systems Program Sustainable Energy Systems Program Domain

 

Jiamin Wan led a team in the study for NCGC.

New research from the Energy Geosciences Division at Berkeley Lab shows that carbon dioxide can penetrate the inner layers of some non-swelling clay minerals which make up the dominant clays in the Earth’s deep subsurface. Results of the work performed at the Center for Nanoscale Controls on Geologic CO2 (NCGC) and the national lab’s Molecular Foundry could help inform practices intended to help limit carbon dioxide emissions, such as carbon capture and storage (CCS) and enhanced oil recovery (EOR).

The study led by EESA staff scientist Jiamin Wan represents ongoing efforts by the NCGC to understand how CO2 behaves one kilometer and farther below the Earth’s surface. A collaboration of seven partner institutions led by Berkeley Lab under the direction of Don DePaolo, NCGC is one of the country’s 32 Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRCs) funded by the DOE’s Basic Energy Sciences (BES) program.

Previous studies have shown that CO2 can alter typical swelling (or expanding) phyllosilicate minerals such as smectite under the high pressures and temperatures of the deep subsurface. Less is known about the effects of CO2 on non-swelling phyllosilicates illite and muscovite, despite them being the dominant clay minerals in deep subsurface shales and mudstones.

Wan believes there is the assumption that CO2 cannot penetrate layers of minerals that do not expand. “Describing a clay mineral as ‘non-swelling’ means that it does not expand,” says Wan. “Because of this, people don’t imagine that CO2 can get into the mineral’s interlayers. Instead, they imagine CO2 uptake by only the outer surface of the minerals.”

This assumption may lead scientists to underestimate the amount of carbon storage capacity available within the deep subsurface. Wan and her team chose to conduct their experiments on the two similar clay minerals muscovite and illite using muscovite, because of the ability to extract it in large, smooth sheets.

Wan believes there is the assumption that CO2 cannot penetrate layers of minerals that do not expand. “Describing a clay mineral as ‘non-swelling’ means that it does not expand,” says Wan. “Because of this, people don’t imagine that CO2 can get into the mineral’s interlayers. Instead, they imagine CO2 uptake by only the outer surface of the minerals.”

In their study, the researchers subjected single muscovite crystals to incubation with supercritical CO2 (scCO2); then characterized the reacted samples using combined atomic force microscopy (AFM),  X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and off-gassing measurements. The first sign that CO2 had penetrated the muscovite sample came when after depressurization the team observed blisters on the muscovite surface (Fig. 1), indicating gas entering the interlayers.

Blistering on the muscovite surface after exposure.

The scientists then confirmed the presence of CO2 using XPS technology, and later quantified the amount of CO2 present by comparing muscovite samples exposed to scCO2 with unexposed control samples to measure the amount of off-gassing of CO2 from the muscovite samples. The exposed samples yielded approximately seven times more CO2 than control samples.

News & Events

EESA Climate Experts Co-Author Study Predicting 100% Increase in Arctic Lightning2 min read

April 5, 2021

EESA climate scientists contributed to the stunning discovery that lightning strikes will increase by 100% this century above the Arctic Circle, where lightning is practically unheard of, due to climate warming. A paper published today in the journal Nature Climate Change describes how such an increase in lightning will drive further warming and wildfires across…

EESA Participates in International HotBENT Project1 min read

March 29, 2021

The alteration of bentonite buffer under high temperature is a critical research question for the disposal of high-level radioactive waste. Researchers at Berkeley Lab have actively participated with international colleagues in the “HotBENT” project, the centerpiece of which is long-term evaluation of bentonite buffer heated at 175-200 oC at the Grimsel Test Site in Switzerland.…

Study Finds Natural Organic Carbon Source Fuels Growth of Diverse, Distinct Bacteria from Groundwater1 min read

March 25, 2021

  Xiaoqin Wu, Sara Gushgari-Doyle, and Mon Oo Yee from Romy Chakraborty’s group in EESA’s Ecology Department and the Department of Biological Engineering at MIT have published a paper in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology describing a study they hope will advance cultivation and isolation strategies for recovering diverse, uncultivable, and novel microorganisms from Earth’s…

Nigel Quinn Receives ASCE’s Highest Honor1 min read

Nigel Quinn leads the HydroEcological Engineering Advanced Decision Support research group (HEADS) which specializes in the development of environmental decision support systems to improve understanding and find solutions to complex water resources and water quality problems in California and worldwide. In January, Nigel was awarded life membership in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). This…

  • Our People
    • Area Offices
    • Committees
    • Directors
    • Organizational Charts
    • Postdocs
    • Staff Only
    • Search by Expertise
  • Departments
    • Climate Sciences
    • Ecology
    • Geochemistry
    • Geophysics
    • Hydrogeology
  • Research
    • Climate & Ecosystem Sciences Division
    • Energy Geosciences Division
    • Program Domains
      • Programs
    • Projects
  • Contact
    • 510 486 6455
    • [email protected]
    • Our Identity

Earth and Environmental Sciences Area Logo DOE Earth and Environmental Sciences Area Logo UC

A U.S. Department of Energy National Laboratory Managed by the University of California

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory · Earth and Environmental Sciences Area · Privacy & Security Notice