Kerogen nanoscale structure and CO2 adsorption in shale micropores

Gonciaruk, Aleksandra; Hall, Matthew R; Fay, Michael W.; Parmenter, Christopher D J; Vane, Christopher H; Khlobystov, Andrei N.; Ripepi, Nino

doi:10.1038/s41598-021-83179-z

Kerogen nanoscale structure and CO2 adsorption in shale micropores

Gonciaruk, Aleksandra; Hall, Matthew R; Fay, Michael W.; Parmenter, Christopher D J; Vane, Christopher H; Khlobystov, Andrei N.; Ripepi, Nino

Authors

Aleksandra Gonciaruk

Matthew R Hall

Dr MICHAEL FAY MICHAEL.FAY@NOTTINGHAM.AC.UK
Senior Research Fellow

CHRISTOPHER PARMENTER CHRISTOPHER.PARMENTER@NOTTINGHAM.AC.UK
Senior Research Fellow

Christopher H Vane

ANDREI KHLOBYSTOV ANDREI.KHLOBYSTOV@NOTTINGHAM.AC.UK
Professor of Chemical Nanoscience

Nino Ripepi

Abstract

Gas storage and recovery processes in shales critically depend on nano-scale porosity and chemical composition, but information about the nanoscale pore geometry and connectivity of kerogen, insoluble organic shale matter, is largely unavailable. Using adsorption microcalorimetry, we show that once strong adsorption sites within nanoscale network are taken, gas adsorption even at very low pressure is governed by pore width rather than chemical composition. A combination of focused ion beam with scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy reveal the nanoscale structure of kerogen includes not only the ubiquitous amorphous phase but also highly graphitized sheets, fiber- and onion-like structures creating nanoscale voids accessible for gas sorption. Nanoscale structures bridge the current gap between molecular size and macropore scale in existing models for kerogen, thus allowing accurate prediction of gas sorption, storage and diffusion properties in shales.

Citation

Gonciaruk, A., Hall, M. R., Fay, M. W., Parmenter, C. D. J., Vane, C. H., Khlobystov, A. N., & Ripepi, N. (2021). Kerogen nanoscale structure and CO2 adsorption in shale micropores. Scientific Reports, 11, Article 3920. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-83179-z

Journal Article Type	Article
Acceptance Date	Jan 18, 2021
Online Publication Date	Feb 16, 2021
Publication Date	Feb 16, 2021
Deposit Date	Jan 29, 2021
Publicly Available Date	Feb 16, 2021
Journal	Scientific Reports
Print ISSN	2045-2322
Electronic ISSN	2045-2322
Publisher	Nature Publishing Group
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	11
Article Number	3920
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-83179-z
Public URL	https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/5275490
Publisher URL	https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-83179-z