Dataset documenting reaction-induced changes to five fractured foamed wellbore cement cores during CO2 fluid flow

Abstract

The integrity of wellbore cement is vital for the long-term success of applications such as enhanced oil recovery and carbon storage. Intact cemented well casings are crucial to preventing leakage and fluid migration, as well as maintaining safety of operations. To investigate the changes to fractures in foamed wellbore cement in a carbon storage scenario, four cores were fractured lengthwise and injected with deionized water at equilibrium with CO2. The experiment duration was five days for the first core and was increased for each successive test, with the final test lasting 20 days. The fractured cores were periodically imaged with a NorthStar M5000 Industrial Computed Tomography (CT) scanner, documenting the changes to the fracture during dissolution, as well as the reaction zone in the surrounding cement matrix. For two cores with the most robust reactions, the fracture and two reaction zones (proximal and distal to the fracture) were segmented from the raw CT data. They were quantified volumetrically and in the form of fracture aperture maps. A Local Cubic Law (LCL) modeling suite was used to map out localization of flow within the open portions of the fractures.

Keywords

• Wellbore integrity
• Reactive flow
• Foamed cement
• Fracture transmissivity
• Fracture flow
• Computed tomography