Curtis M. Oldenburg

Senior Scientist

Rehired Retiree

Building 074, Room 0313

M/S 74R316C

cmoldenburg@lbl.gov

Curriculum Vitae

Biography

Curtis Oldenburg is a Senior Scientist and Editor in Chief of Greenhouse Gases: Science and Technology. Curt’s area of expertise is numerical model development and applications for coupled subsurface flow and transport processes. He has worked in geothermal reservoir modeling, vadose zone hydrology, and compressed gas energy storage. Curt’s focus for the last twenty years has been on geologic carbon sequestration with emphasis on CO₂ injection for enhanced gas recovery, and near-surface leakage and seepage including monitoring, detection, and risk-based frameworks for site selection and certification. Curt Oldenburg is a co-author of the textbook entitled Introduction to Carbon Capture and Sequestration. Curt officially retired July 1, 2021, but works part time as a rehired retiree.

Experience

Rehired Retiree, LBNL, 2021-Present
Geological Senior Scientist, LBNL, 2013-2021
Energy Resources Program Domain Lead, LBNL, 2015-2019
Geologic Carbon Sequestration Program Lead, LBNL, 2008-2021
Geologic Carbon Sequestration Program Deputy Lead, LBNL, 2007-2008
Hydrogeology Department Head, LBNL, 2002-2006
Staff Geological Scientist, LBNL, 1994-2013
Geological Scientist, LBNL, 1992-1994
Post-Doctoral Fellow, LBNL, 1990-1992
Post-Doctoral Researcher, U.C. Santa Barbara, 1989-1990
Research Assistant, U.C. Santa Barbara, 1986-1989
Teaching Assistant, U.C. Santa Barbara, 1985-1986
Assistant in Instruction, Princeton University, 1985
Assistant in Research, Princeton University, 1984
Assistant Field Geologist, Chevron Resources, 1984

Awards

R&D 100 Award to the 56 developers of the National Risk Assessment Partnership (NRAP) project’s computational tools for assessing and managing risk of geologic carbon sequestration, 2017
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 2016 Director’s Award for Exceptional Achievement (for Societal Impact related to work at the Aliso Canyon natural gas blowout with colleagues Barry Freifeld, Preston Jordan, and Lehua Pan), 2016
2012 Editors’ Citation for Excellence in Refereeing for Water Resources Research, 2013
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 2012 Director’s Award for Exceptional Achievement (for Tech Transfer related to the TOUGH codes), 2012
DOE Secretary’s Achievement Award 2011 for Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Flow Rate Technical Group work, 2011
Geothermal Resources Council, Best paper award to Rutqvist, Oldenburg, Dobson, Garcia, and Walters, for “The northwest Geysers EGS demonstration project Phase 1: Pre-stimulation prediction coupled geomechanical modeling to guide stimulation and monitoring plans, 2010 GRC Annual Meeting, Sacramento, CA, 2010
USGS Director’s Award for Exemplary Service to the Nation, 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Response, 2010
Global Citizens Group Award at UN East Bay banquet on 10/24/08 at I-House. Honored for contribution to IPCC Special Report on Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage, 2008
Nobel Peace Prize 2007, IPCC shared with Al Gore, Jr., Contributing Author of the IPCC Special Report on Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage, 2007

Advisory Boards, Committees, and Councils

Energy Geosciences/Earth Sciences Division Professional Staff Committee, LBNL, 2014-2021
Staff Committee, LBNL, 2014-Present
Conference Advisor, Annual Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage Conference, Pittsburgh, PA, 2011-2018
Center for Nanoscale Control of Geologic Carbon (NCGC) Advisory Committee, Energy Geosciences/Earth Sciences Division, LBNL, 2011-2018
Carbon Cycle 2.0 Steering Committee, LBNL, 2011-2015
TOUGH Steering Committee, Energy Geosciences/Earth Sciences Division, LBNL, 2011-Present
Advisory Board, ULTimateCO₂ Project, “Understanding the Long-Term fate of geologically stored CO₂,” BRGM, France, 2011-2013
Faculty Affiliate, Energy Resources Group, U.C. Berkeley, 2010-2021
Panel Member, Job Hunting at National Labs, LBNL, 2012
Expert Review Panel, GHGT-11, Kyoto, Japan, 2012
Materials for Energy Applications (MEA) workshop, Claremont Hotel [led development of two posters on CCS research conducted at eight National Laboratories], LBNL, 2012
Co-Chair, Organizing Committee (with Hui-Hai Liu), Philmathia Forum on Energy and Environment, Berkeley-Stanford-Beijing Workshop on CCS, held in Beijing, China, 2009
Member, Organizing Committee, TOUGH Symposium, 2006, 2012
Information Technology Advisory Committee (ITAC), ESD representative, LBNL, 2006-2009

Invited Talks

Oldenburg, C.M., Mechanistic modeling of CO₂ leakage into the water column from off-shore CO₂ wells or pipelines, GeoScience and GeoEnergy Webinar Series, October 8, 2020.
Oldenburg, C.M., Mechanistic modeling of CO₂ leakage into the water column from off-shore CO₂ wells or pipelines, Water Resources, Environmental, and Coastal Engineering Division, Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, Texas A&M University, March 23, 2020 (via Zoom).
Oldenburg, C.M., Mechanistic modeling of CO₂ leakage into the water column from off-shore CO₂ wells or pipelines, Stanford’s Center for Carbon Storage, Stanford University, November 12, 2019.
American Chemical Society National Meeting and Exposition, Energy and Fuels Division, session on Subsurface Technologies for Recovery of Fossil and Geothermal Energy, April 2-6, 2017, San Francisco, CA. “TOGA: Compositional simulation of three-phase, multi-component, and non-isothermal processes for carbon dioxide utilization and storage in partially depleted oil and gas reservoirs.”
International Energy Agency Greenhouse Gas Control (IEAGHG) Joint Monitoring and Modeling Network Meeting, Edinburgh, Scotland, July 7-9, 2016, three invited talks: (1) Modeling CO₂ in Wellbores (Oldenburg and Pan); (2) Well Blowouts in Geologic Carbon Sequestration: Lessons Learned from Modeling the Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Leak (Oldenburg, Pan, Jordan, and Freifeld); (3) Modeling CO₂ Flow and Dispersion in the Near Surface and Atmosphere (Oldenburg).
Geological Society of America, Pardee Symposium, “Field-scale experiments for developing solutions to subsurface energy challenges,” GSA Annual Meeting, Denver, CO, September 25, 2016.
American Geophysical Union Fall 2015 Meeting, session entitled, Energy Storage in the Subsurface: Challenges and Solution Strategies. “Compressed Air Energy Storage in Depleted Natural Gas Reservoirs: Effects of Porous Media and Gas Mixing,” by Oldenburg and Pan.
Sixth International Environmental Forum on CCS, Korea, July 21-23, 2015, Seoul, Korea.
American Chemical Society National Meeting and Exposition, Geochemistry Section, session on CO₂ Trapping and Enhanced Hydrocarbon Recovery, August 10-14, 2014, San Francisco, CA. “Simulations of porous media compressed air energy storage (PM-CAES) with CO₂ as cushion gas.”
The 1st U.S. – Korea Clean Energy and Clean Tech Forum, Claremont Hotel, Berkeley, November 21, 2013, “Grid-scale porous media compressed air energy storage (PM-CAES).”
TOUGH Short Course, after-dinner speech, September 9, 2013.
IEAGHG Joint Network Meeting on Modeling and Risk Management, Trondheim, Norway, “Process Modeling of Wellbore Leakage for GCS Risk Assessment,” June 11, 2013
Gordon Research Conference, Invited Plenary Speaker, Les Diablerets, Switzerland, “On Carbon Sequestration and Utilization: CO₂ as Cushion Gas for Energy Storage,” June 28, 2012
Big Sky Carbon Sequestration Partnership Annual Meeting, Great Falls, MT, “Geologic Modeling and Flow Simulation,” April 18-19, 2012
Stanford University, Energy Resources Engineering, seminar, "On the Utilization of CO₂ as a Cushion Gas for Compressed Air Energy Storage,” April 10, 2012
U.C. Berkeley, Energy Resources Group, seminar, “Geologic Carbon Dioxide Sequestration: A Direct Approach to Reducing Point-Source CO₂ Emissions,” February 8, 2012
U.S. DOE Saline Formation GCS R&D Needs Workshop, “Simulation,” October 18-21, 2011
U.C. Irvine, ICEPAG (Int. Colloq. on Env. Preferred Adv. Power Gen.), Costa Mesa, CA., “Coupling Geologic Carbon Sequestration and Compressed Air Energy Storage,” February 10-12, 2011
U.C. Berkeley, Civil and Environmental Engineering, seminar, “Reducing Fossil Fuel CO₂ Emissions by Geologic Carbon Sequestration and Compressed Air Energy Storage,” October 15, 2010
Berkeley Lab Science at the Theater, “Just Say No to Carbon Emissions,” Berkeley Repertory Theater, “Understanding Geologic Carbon Sequestration,” April 26, 2010
LBNL Summer Lecture Series, seminar, “Geologic Carbon Sequestration: Mitigating Climate Change by Injecting CO₂ Underground,” July 21, 2009
Stanford University, Environmental Fluid Mechanics and Hydrology, seminar, "Modeling CO₂ Leakage from Geologic Carbon Sequestration (GCS) Sites for Monitoring Design and Impact Assessment,” February 2, 2009
U.C. Berkeley Institute of the Environment, seminar, "Geologic Carbon Sequestration: Near-Surface Challenges,” November 13, 2008
U.C. Berkeley Energy Resources Collaborative (BERC) Conference, seminar, “Challenges of Geologic Carbon Sequestration,” February 2008
Montana State University, Dept. of Chemistry/ZERT Project, seminar, “Near-Surface Dispersion of CO₂ Seepage from Geologic Storage Sites: Processes, Impacts, and Detection,” April 11, 2007
Haas School of Business, “Geologic CO₂ storage: a safe and effective approach to reducing point-source CO₂ emissions,” March 6, 2007
Energy INet Workshop, Calgary, “Migration Mechanisms and Potential Impacts of CO₂ Leakage and Seepage from CCS Projects,” January 26, 2006
U.C. Davis, “Carbon Sequestration with Enhanced Gas Recovery,” 2003
Stanford University, “CO₂ Injection for Carbon Sequestration with Enhanced Gas Recovery,” May 14, 2002