Multi-scale Discussions on Natura Gas Storage and Transport in Organic-rich Nanoporous Shale

Yucel Akkutlu
Department of Petroleum Engineering, Texas A&M University

It is now well-documented that organic-rich resource shales consist of pores with small volumes contributing to the storage of hydrocarbon fluids. These volumes are not much larger than the fluid molecules they store. This presentation will discuss equilibrium and transport behavior of hydrocarbon fluids confined in small pores using atomistic modeling and molecular simulations and compare to the classical fluid. The behavior is different due to pore-wall dominated inter-molecular forces. The molecular transport effects on flow will be introduced to the audience analyzing steady-state flow of methane at high pressures in single-wall carbon tubes using nonequilibrium molecular dynamics simulations. The presentation will conclude with an expression for apparent shale permeability and a demonstration of the impact of the observed fluid behavior on the hydrocarbon in-place and reserve calculations.