Biogenic Methane Stimulation via Chemical Amendments
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for recovering energy from abandoned oil and coal reservoirs are inefficient due to environmental inhibitors and nutrient deficiencies, leading to suboptimal biogenic production of hydrocarbons like methane, making traditional recovery mechanisms uneconomical.
Innovation Solution
Providing hydrogen and phosphorous compounds, or carboxylate compounds, to microorganisms in geologic formations to stimulate the biogenic production of metabolic products with enhanced hydrogen content, such as methane, by accessing and activating microorganism consortia within these formations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If conventional drilling and mining techniques are used to extract resources from abandoned reservoirs, then energy recovery is possible, but energy expenditure and costs become excessively high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional mechanical drilling and mining techniques with a biological process system. Microorganisms are introduced to metabolize carbonaceous materials biogenically, producing hydrocarbons and methane. This biological substitution eliminates the need for energy-intensive mechanical extraction methods while still achieving energy recovery from the reservoirs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent modifies the environmental parameters within the reservoir by introducing chemical amendments (nutrients, hydrogen, phosphorous compounds) to optimize microbial metabolism. These parameter changes enable the microorganisms to efficiently convert carbonaceous materials into energy-rich products, achieving high energy recovery with low energy expenditure.
2Productivity
If chemical amendments are introduced to stimulate biogenic production, then methane production rate increases, but production plateaus occur due to environmental inhibitors and nutrient deficiencies
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism by continuously monitoring and adjusting chemical amendments based on production levels. When production plateaus occur due to inhibitor accumulation or nutrient depletion, the system modifies the chemical environment to restore optimal microbial activity, maintaining stable and reliable methane production over time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent systematically adjusts environmental parameters (pH, nutrient concentrations, hydrogen levels, phosphorous compounds) to overcome production plateaus. By dynamically changing these parameters, the system maintains high productivity while preventing environmental inhibitors from limiting further production.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The introduction of these chemical amendments significantly increases the rate and extent of methane production, overcoming production plateaus and environmental limitations, thereby enhancing energy recovery from carbonaceous materials with lower energy expenditure.
Implementation Method 1
biogenic conversion of carbonaceous materials in geologic formations into methane. In biogenic conversion, microorganisms in the formation treat these carbonaceous materials as a food source and metabolize them into metabolic intermediates and products, such as alcohols, organic acids, aromatic compounds, hydrogen and methane
Implementation Method 2
providing hydrogen and one or more phosphorous compounds to the microorganisms. The combination of the hydrogen and phosphorous compound stimulates the consortium to metabolize the carbonaceous material into a metabolic product with enhanced hydrogen content
Implementation Method 3
providing a carboxylate compound to the microorganisms. The carboxylate compound stimulates the consortium to metabolize carbonaceous material in the formation into the metabolic product with enhanced hydrogen content
Data Source
AI summary
Methods of stimulating biogenic production of a metabolic product with enhanced hydrogen content are described. The methods may include accessing a consortium of microorganisms in a geologic formation that includes a carbonaceous material. They may also include providing hydrogen and one or more phosphorous compounds to the microorganisms. The combination of the hydrogen and phosphorous compounds stimulates the consortium to metabolize the carbonaceous material into the metabolic product with enhanced hydrogen content. Also, methods of stimulating biogenic production of a metabolic product with enhanced hydrogen content by providing a carboxylate compound, such as acetate, to a consortium of microorganisms is described. The carboxylate compound stimulates the consortium to metabolize carbonaceous material in the formation into the metabolic product with enhanced hydrogen content.