INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, NIRMA UNIVERSITY, AHMEDABAD 382 481, 08-10 DECEMBER, 2011

Review on Coal Bed Methane as Natural Gas

J Patel, P Patel, P Saxena

Abstract Coal Bed Natural Gas (CBNG) also referred to as Coal Bed Methane (CBM) is an unconventional natural gas resource of energy. Coal plays the role of source rock as well as reservoir for coal bed methane. CBNG is the gas found in coal deposits. It consists mostly of methane but may also contain trace amounts of carbon dioxide and/or nitrogen. Most coalbeds are permeated with methane, and a cubic foot of coal can contain six or seven times the volume of natural gas that exists in a cubic foot of a conventional sandstone reservoir. Within coal seams, methane is present on the surface of the solid material. Hydrostatic pressure causes the methane to adhere to the coal surface via a phenomenon termed adsorption. Whenever reservoir pressure is reduced, the methane desorbs off of coal surfaces, diffuses through the matrix material, and then flows through a system of natural fractures (cleats) and into a well for delivery to the surface. Coalbed natural gas is either biogenic or thermogenic in origin. Biogenic methane is generated from bacteria in organic matter and is typically a dry gas. Thermogenic methane forms when heat and pressure transform organic matter in coal into methane. This type of methane is typically a wet gas. CBNG-related research focuses on the potential for enhanced gas recovery and carbon sequestration as an integrated operation. CO2 storage is feasible because coal preferentially adsorbs CO2 at twice the volume that it stores methane. The net result would be less CO2 in the atmosphere and additional recovery of sorely needed natural gas. Keywords- Coal bed methane, coal bed reservoir, CO2 sequestration.
I.

shallow coal resources were slowly exhausted at the end of the 18th century and technology was improved to permit construction of large deep mines, coal bed methane in these mines was observed. In the early 19th century, coal mine explosions were recorded in Britain, France, and United States. In the late 19th and early 20th century minor to major disastrous explosions were reported in deep underground coal mines in Australia, Canada, Belgium, Germany, Japan, Poland, Russia, and United States. In all these cases, poor gas ventilation or no gas drainage allowed coal bed methane to accumulate in amounts which could be ignited either by open lights, smoking or improper use of black blasting powder, and sparking from mining equipment. Outbursts are caused by high coal bed gas pressure and structural stress created by the load on the mine [2]. During the period of 19001940, the first application of rock dusting, permissible use of electrical equipment, and improved ventilation were enforced. During the period from 19401980 the coal mine health safety, rock dust-coal analyzer, methane degasification, and explosion proof bulkheads were enforced (modified from Deul and Kim, 1986).[2]

INTRODUCTION

bed methane(CBM) is the gas that is retained by coal beds. For natural gas, the primary source of energy is Methane. So Coal Bed Methane is simply methane found in coal seams. Recent development has recognized that coal bed gas, mainly coal bed methane, as an alternative energy source, providing a supplement for conventional energy such as coal itself and natural gas [1]. Now a day, countries like USA, Australia, China, Russia, Germany, Great Britain, Poland, etc. including India have paid attention on this unconventional source of energy. In USA natural gas from coal beds accounts approximately 8 % of its total production of natural gases. Coal bed gas has been considered a major mine hazard since the early to mid 19th century when the first documented coal mine gas explosions occurred in the United States in 1810 and in France in 1845 [2]. Coal bed methane was vented to conduct safe mining operations in order to increase mine productivity. Coal bed methane was not a problem when coal was mined from outcrops by stripping and shallow shafting in the United Kingdom and other European countries. As
OAL

Fig. 1. A diagram showing the relationship of annual fatalities from coalmine explosions and the influence of mine safety research.

But today, coal bed methane (CBM) is an increasingly important source of the worlds natural gas production with many countries, including Canada, actively developing this unconventional energy source. In general, coal is classified into four main types depending on the quantity and types of carbon it contains as well as the amount of heat energy it can produce. These are: 1. Lignite (brown coal) the lowest rank of coal; used as fuel for electric power generation. 2. Sub-bituminous coal properties range between lignite and bituminous coal.

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CURRENT TRENDS IN TECHNOLOGY, NUiCONE 2011

3. Bituminous coal a dark brown to black, dense mineral; used primarily as fuel in steam-electric power generation. 4. Anthracite the highest rank; a harder, glossy, black coal used primarily for residential and commercial space heating; it may be divided further into petrified oil, as from the deposits in Pennsylvania. Coals are recognized on geophysical logs because of several unique physical properties. The coals typically have very low gamma, low density, and high resistivity values[3]. The procedure for determination of coalbed gas content consists of four steps, i.e. estimation of lost gas, field desorption, indoor desorption and measurement of residual gas. The U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) method was used for estimation of lost gas from coal samples and field desorption test. Based on this method, the volume of lost gas can be obtained by plotting the square-root of time against cumulative gas desorbed for the first few measurements from the field desorption test. The field desorption test was performed at temporal water temperature using a volumenometer. Note that the field test in this study stops within 2 h, which differs from the USBM method where the desorption test is continued until the average desorbed gas rate is less than 0.05 ml/g per day in one week. In our protocol, the resealed coal sample following the 2 h field test was promptly transported to a laboratory for measurement of residual gas by desorption tests. The desorption tests in laboratory were carried out by heating the core sample in water to 368.15 K and measuring the desorbed gas until the volume of gas output is less than 10 ml within 30 min. This process usually takes about 5 h. The core sample was then broken into less than 0.25 mm using a sealing ball mill over 4 h. Finally repeating the indoor desorption test for additional 5 h to measure the volume of residual gas. The cumulative gas content is usually expressed in terms of a dry ash-free base at standard temperature and pressure (STP). The value is converted into the received basis, i.e. volume under the given coalbed gas reservoir conditions, for convenience to incorporate with the particular reservoir geophysical logs for coalbed gas reservoir evaluation. The gas content on the received basis is calculated as follows:

Fig 2. Plan view of coal seam showing cleat structure and matrix blocks.

Fig 3. Schematic of methane flow dynamics in coal seams. CH4 desorbs from the solid coal, diffuses through the bulk matrix, and flows into and through the cleats. The pathway for CO2 sorption is exactly reversed [4].

Figure 2 illustrates the conceptual structure of a coal seam and Figure 3 is the model for the methane flow in the simulator used for this study. Although the fractures comprise only a very small portion of the coal (typical values on the order of 0.2-2%), they contain the largest permeability, and therefore control the flow. During primary production methane desorbs (quickly) to the gaseous state, diffuses (slowly) through pores to the cleats, and undergoes convective flow through the cleats to the production wells. During sequestration carbon dioxide follows a reverse path: convective flow transports it from the injection well through the cleats, from which it slowly diffuses into the coal matrix and then is quickly sorbed by the coal. If this transport is slow compared to the rate of flow through the cleats, the time required for can become important both for sequestration and production [4]. II. SEQUESTRATION OF CO2 The amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the earth's atmosphere has risen from pre-industrial levels of 280 ppm to more than 365 ppm, and most of this increase has been within the last 60 years (Keeling and Whorf, 1998). This increase is attributed widely to the burning of fossil fuels, and if current trends in resource utilization continue, anthropogenic CO2 emissions will triple during the 21st Century (IPCC, 1996). Among the principal ways CO2 emissions may be reduced is by sequestration in geologic formations, including coal. Coal is an especially attractive target for sequestration not only because it can store large quantities of gas, but because CO2 can be used to enhance recovery of coal bed methane, thereby providing the basis for a market-based environmental solution [5]. Sequestration of CO2 in coal is a market-based environmental solution with potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while increasing coal bed methane recovery.

where V is the coalbed gas content (cm3/g); A, M are ash content and moisture content (%); P and T are pressure (MPa) and temperature (K), respectively; and the subscripts ar and daf stand for received basis and dry ash-free basis and c and st represent coalbed and standard conditions, respectively[1].

INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, NIRMA UNIVERSITY, AHMEDABAD 382 481, 08-10 DECEMBER, 2011

Producing coal bed methane through injection of CO2 is also more efficient than current techniques requiring production and disposal of large quantities of formation water. However, the sequestration capacity of coal basins has yet to be quantified, and screening criteria need to be established to select sites for demonstration of sequestration technology. Bachu defines geological sequestration as the capture of CO2 directly from anthropogenic sources and disposing of it deep into the ground for geologically significant periods of time.6 Sequestration of CO2 in geological formations is a storage process. Here, coal seam sequestration is defined as the storage of CO2 from anthropogenic sources into deep, unmineable coal seams for geologically significant times with or without the concomitant recovery of natural gas [6]. Technology and infrastructure must also be considered when screening areas for the demonstration and implementation of carbon sequestration technology. Emerging technologies to be considered include CO2 separators for flue gas and enhanced gas recovery technology. A vital goal of sequestration is to deliver CO2 at low enough cost so that coal bed methane remains economically viable on the open market. Once enhanced coal bed methane recovery is established, the groundwork can be laid for more intensive carbon sequestration efforts independent of the natural gas industry. Carbon sequestration further has potential to improve safety in underground coal mines, and abandoned mines can play a role in the separation of CO2 from flue gas. Infrastructure plays a critical role in the ways that carbon sequestration programs can proceed. In a maturely developed basin like the Black Warrior, sequestration efforts will take advantage of the existing power generation, pipeline, and coal bed methane field facilities. Although a lack of infrastructure in many undeveloped basins may limit the applicability of carbon sequestration technology, a high degree of flexibility also exists. For example, flooding coal with CO2 has potential for use as a primary production procedure that will eliminate concerns associated with water disposal and foster unprecedented recovery of the coal bed methane resource[5],[6].
III.

production is flow-limited and is driven by pressure and can be modeled by Darcys Law. On the other hand, if the CH4 diffusion rate from the coal matrix and into the butt cleats is slower than the rate in the face cleats, then CH4 production can be modeled by Ficks Law and is diffusion-limited and driven by concentration [6]. The sorption isotherm of a coal is the amount of gas that can be stored in a coal at a particular temperature, as a function of reservoir pressure. It is the maximum amount of gas a coal can sorb, and if the coal is fully saturated, it is also the maximum possible amount of gas-in-place. The sorption isotherm is a laboratory measurement that is made on a representative specimen of the coal seam to ascertain the gas storage capacity, as a function of pressure at a constant temperature.
IV.

ENHANCED COALBED METHANE (ECBM) PRODUCTION.

ECBM may consist of various gas recovery processes (gas drive, huff and puff, well stimulation) and could cover many recovery agents (N2, CO2, flue gas, compressor gas, and other industrial off gases). This concept should not restrict ECBM to a particular phase in the reservoir production recovery sequence, such as primary, secondary, or tertiary. The two principal and best documented ECBM processes are N2 injection and CO2 injection. A combination of both methods is also listed as being possibly useful for achieving optimal economical recovery of CBM and/or economics. CO2 injection method in laboratory isotherm measurements demonstrates that medium-rank to high-rank coal can adsorb approximately twice as much CO2 by volume as methane. The common assumption is that, for higher-rank coals, the ECBM process stores 2 moles of CO2 for every mole of CH4 desorbed. Stanton et al determined that some low-rank coals may adsorb as much as 10 moles of CO2 for every mole of CH4. Field applications and laboratory experiments showed that this ratio could be even larger at depths greater than approximately 800 m, where the gaseous CO2 changes to supercritical CO2.
V. RESERVOIR SCREENING CRITERIA FOR ECBM WITH CO2 SEQUESTRATION

USE OF ADSORPTION/DESORPTION ISOTHERMS IN CH4 PRODUCTION.

The primary recovery of CH4 from coals is dependent on several factors, such as desorption pressure, static coalbed pressure, temperature, nature of the desorption isotherm, seam thickness, absolute permeability, directional permeability, relative permeability, porosity, diffusion, capillary pressure, irreducible water saturation, and pore compressibility. When Enhanced Coalbed Methane(ECBM) recovery is performed, the nature of the mixed gas adsorption/desorption isotherms are also critically important. When CH4 production from low-permeability coalbeds, long, high-conductivity fractures are needed such fractures can be provided by drilling laterally into the seam to result in commercially acceptable CH4 production rates. If the CH4 desorption rate from the coal matrix and diffusion through the butt cleats is higher than the flow rate in the face cleats, then CH4

Reservoir screening criteria are needed to locate areas favorable for successful application of CO2-ECBM. Stevens et al. Developed preliminary criteria, similar to those established for Enhance Oil Recovery (EOR) injection-based processes, such as water flood, miscible, and steam flood operations. Some of those criteria were expanded and refined, based on the results of reservoir simulations. Experience with EOR suggests that screening criteria will continue to evolve for some time. These initial criteria are as follows: (a) Homogeneous, isolated reservoir: The coal reservoir(s) should be laterally continuous and vertically isolated from other coal seams. This will help containment of the CO 2 injectant within the reservoir and lead to efficient lateral sweep through the reservoir. Ideally, the coal seam should be encased in impermeable rock, such as shale. (b) Simple structure: Coals should have minimal faults and folding. Open faults and joints provide migration pathways for CO2, whereas sealing faults compartmentalize the reservoir. (c) Adequate permeability: Moderate cleat permeability

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CURRENT TRENDS IN TECHNOLOGY, NUiCONE 2011

is necessary for effective ECBM (1-5 mD). Lower permeability may be acceptable if coal has adequate injectivity and thickness. (d) Optimal depth window: The low reservoir pressures of shallow coal limits the amount of CO2 they can hold. The stresses of deep coals may decrease permeability below acceptable limits. This point is addressed in more detail below. (e) Coal geometry: Few, thick coal deposits are favored over stratigraphically dispersed (multiple, thin seams) settings spread over a large interval. (f) Gas saturation conditions: For ECBM recovery, coals saturated with CH4 are preferred over undersaturated coals. From a sequestration viewpoint, undersaturated coal seams are still effective CO2 disposal zones. For CO2 sequestration, this criterion should be perhaps replaced by a hydrology constraint. Water movement through a coal deposit may displace CO2 and transport it out of the deposit. Thus, the hydrology of candidate coals over geologic time is an important consideration for CO 2 sequestration. (g) Lastly, caution should be exercised in selecting a coal seam for sequestration if a deeper coal seam has been mined previously or is likely to be mined. When a deeper seam has been mined, it causes formations above it to subside, resulting in development of fractures and microfractures, thus compromising the sealing potential of any cap rocks.
VI.

INDIAN SCENARIO The Gondwana coal basins of India are dispersed in four major coal belts of which Damodar Valley Basin located in eastern India is known to contain more mature coals. The Geotectono-thermal setting in the Damodar basin is considered to be causative factor in coal, attaining higher maturity. [9]

VII. CONCLUSION Methane (CH4), the second most significant greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide (CO2) which is mainly responsible for ozone holes and global warming; traps atmospheric heat approximately 24-times more than carbon dioxide is used as unconventional source of energy. This is the big advantage. Consumption of methane, which has the highest heat retaining capacity and the lowest atmospheric life-time span (about 10 years), will mitigate the global warming at a much faster rate. Emergence of methane gas as an additional energy resource warrants rational utilization and preservation of coal deposits, which are both the producer and reservoir of this gas and besides, burning can also be utilized for the exploration of methane gas. These vast energy reserves can be saved by selective utilization of coal. Also Sequestration of CO2 in coal is a promising market-based environmental solution that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions while increasing coal bed methane recovery.

CO2- ENHANCED COALBED METHANE

The case study is discussed where CO2-enhanced coalbed methane pilot was performed. The pilot field test of RECOPOL (Reduction of CO2 emission by means of CO2 storage in coal seams in the Silesian Coal Basin of Poland) project is one of the first of its kind outside North America, and with the preceding research will help in understanding the process and its potential for CO2 reductions in Europe. In Canada, the Alberta Research Council (ARC) consortium has developed a pilot site at the

VIII. REFERENCES
[1] Xuehai Fu, Yong Qin, Geoff G.X. Wang, Victor Rudolph, Evaluation of gas content of coalbed methane reservoirs with the aid of geophysical logging technology, Fuel 88 (2009) 22692277 Romeo M. Flores, Coalbed methane: From hazard to resource, International Journal of Coal Geology 35 _1998. 326 Kamal Morad, P. Eng.; Ray Mireault, P. Eng.; and Lisa Dean, P. Geol. (Fekete Associates Inc.), Coalbed Methane Fundamentals, Reservoir Engineering for Geologists, W. Neal Sams, Grant Bromhal, Sinisha Jikich, Turgay Ertekin, and Duane H. Smith, Field-Project Designs for Carbon Dioxide Sequestration and Enhanced Coalbed Methane Production, Energy & Fuels 2005, 19, 2287-2297 Jack C. Pashin, Richard H. Groshong, Richard E. Carroll, Enhanced Coalbed Methane Recovery Through Sequestration of Carbon Dioxide: Potential for a Market-Based Environmental Solution in the Black Warrior Basin of Alabama. Curt M. White,* Duane H. Smith, Kenneth L. Jones, Angela L. Goodman, Sinisha A. Jikich, Robert B. LaCount, Stephen B. DuBose, Ekrem Ozdemir, Badie I. Morsi, and Karl T. Schroeder, Sequestration of Carbon Dioxide in Coal with Enhanced Coalbed Methane Recoverys A Review. Yuri B. Melnichenko, Lilin He, Richard Sakurovs, Arkady L. Kholodenko , Tomasz Blach ,Maria Mastalerz, Andrzej P. Radlin ski, Gang Cheng, David F.R. Mildner Accessibility of pores in coal to methane and carbon dioxide, FUEL 2011. Grazyna Ceglarska-Stefanska, Katarzyna Zarebska, The competitive sorption of CO2 and CH4 with regard to the release of methane from coal, Fuel Processing Technology 7778 (2002) 423 429 Kotur S. Narasimhan, A.K. Mukherjee, S. Sengupta, S.M. Singh andM.M. Alam, Coal bed methane potential in India, , PII: S00162361(98)00089-1

[2] [3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7] Fig. 4. Schematic of well pattern with internal injectors and outside producers; the quarter of the pattern used in the simulations is shaded differently [4]

[8]

Fenn Big Valley, with the objective to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by subsurface injection of CO 2 into deep coalbeds, and to enhance coalbed methane recovery factors and production rates as a result of CO2 injection. In Japan, a multiwell, micropilot was developed for injecting CO2 in the Ishikari coal basin. The National Energy Technology Laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), with joint industry support, has initiated a demonstration project for CO2 sequestration in an unmineable coal seam in West Virginia[6].

[9]