High-Pressure Gas Storage Tunnels for Faster Deliverability
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current underground gas storage systems face challenges in efficiently managing seasonal load variations, balancing pipeline pressures, and meeting peak demand due to limitations in deliverability and injection capacity, particularly in depleted gas fields and aquifer storage facilities, which are costly and time-consuming to develop.
Innovation Solution
A system of horizontally bored tunnels, suitable for high-pressure natural gas storage, is proposed, where the depth and lining of the tunnels are optimized based on soil strength and mechanical parameters, and interconnected tunnels with partial or full internal lining are used to enhance storage capacity and deliverability, with a surface unit for gas compression and delivery.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional depleted gas fields or aquifer storage facilities are used, then storage capacity is achieved, but deliverability and injection capacity are limited and development is costly and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The storage system is divided into multiple separate horizontal tunnels instead of using a single large depleted field or aquifer. Each tunnel can be independently developed and brought online, allowing phased deployment that reduces overall development time while maintaining total storage capacity. The modular tunnel structure enables parallel construction activities.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the storage function from traditional depleted gas fields and aquifer systems, creating standalone horizontal tunnel storage facilities. This separates the storage capability from the limitations of existing subsurface formations, allowing delivery of storage capacity without inheriting the deliverability constraints and long development timelines of traditional approaches.
2Quantity of substance
If traditional storage systems are used, then storage capacity is provided, but the cost of development is high
Solution Approach 1:
The horizontal tunnel storage system uses relatively simple civil engineering structures compared to the complex drilling and completion operations required for depleted field conversion. The tunnels can be constructed using standard tunneling methods rather than expensive wellbore operations, reducing per-unit storage capacity costs while achieving the required storage volume through multiple parallel tunnels.
3Quantity of substance
If high-pressure gas storage is implemented, then storage density is improved, but tunnel lining and depth optimization are required to maintain structural integrity
Solution Approach 1:
The system optimizes the depth of tunnel placement and the extent of internal lining based on the specific soil strength parameters at each site. By adjusting these parameters, the tunnels can safely contain high-pressure gas while minimizing construction costs. The lining depth and thickness are calculated based on geotechnical conditions to ensure structural integrity under high pressure.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a system for high-pressure natural gas storage comprising at least one underground manmade tunnel, suitable for holding said natural gas under pressure and a process for storing natural gas under pressure.