Project Overview
Technology that monitors small or faint earthquakes–microseismic monitoring technology—is a key tool for long-term surveillance of underground CO2 storage projects, since these microseismic events provide evidence of CO2 migration within a storage reservoir. Funded through ERA’s Accelerating Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCUS) Technologies (ACT) 3 challenge in 2021, the University of Alberta conducted an analysis to progress microseismic monitoring technologies to become a cost-effective and publicly accepted tool for seal integrity verification in large-scale CO2 sequestration.
Leveraging Earthquake Monitoring Technology for Carbon Sequestration Safety
CO2 storage locations must have dense layers of impermeable rock, often referred to as caprock. Caprock provides a seal that prevents the movement of liquids and gases from the storage reservoir. Continued verification of the seal integrity remains a major challenge of CCS technology. Tiny precursor movements in the reservoir and caprock are hypothesized to indicate a potential seal failure, and designing a cost-efficient monitoring system for this purpose is a critical knowledge gap. At the same time, public perception of CCS safety is key to its acceptance, and the team at UofA recognized the need for a more effective communication strategy to establish trust and transparency between CO2 storage operators and the public. To address these gaps, the researchers combined geophysical analysis with social science, assessing the technical performance of microseismic monitoring technology and public perception of CCS. Using advanced data processing and fibre-optic sensing (Distributed Acoustic Sensing, or DAS), the project aimed to enhance event detection, interpret seismic data more accurately, and develop effective communication strategies to build public trust in CCS safety. These activities can help create recommendations for effective communication strategies and cost-effective, fit-for-purpose technology.
Assessing CCS Monitoring Tools and Safety Communication Strategies
The learnings from the project emerged directly from its technical activities, collaborative research structure and the challenges encountered during implementation. During the project, the team collected and analyzed data at the Shell Quest CCS site in Alberta, where new DAS systems were tested and compared to conventional seismic monitoring tools. Additionally, the team developed and tested advanced data processing tools to assess the collected data. Through software development and side-by-side comparisons of independently processed data from Shell and the University of Alberta, researchers discovered that their data processing tools significantly lowered event detection thresholds and improved location accuracy. These results provided a practical understanding of how data processing refinements could increase the volume of usable seismic data and strengthen interpretations of reservoir behaviour, thereby improving CO2 containment assessment. The team generated several publications throughout the project that can be found on their website.
At the same time, the researchers designed and implemented surveys across five countries using scenarios developed from the project’s seismological findings. The responses highlighted a widespread misunderstanding between minor, harmless microseismic events and damaging earthquakes. These insights came directly from analyzing survey data and comparing results across jurisdictions, leading to the conclusion that effective communication, grounded in transparent and independent monitoring, can help differentiate perceived from actual risks and build public trust in CCS technology.
Alongside these successes, the team faced delays in hiring research personnel due to COVID-19, and the team had to expand staffing and redistribute work. This challenge resulted in strengthened coordination between international partners and enhanced data sharing and problem-solving. This collaboration, especially between Shell Canada and the UofA, was critical for comparing and validating independent data processing results, which led to the key technical learning.
What’s next?
By completion in 2025, the project successfully advanced the knowledge surrounding microseismic monitoring technology and public perception of CCUS safety. The detection technology has been made freely available. Additionally, significant information sharing was achieved through public sharing events, comprising eleven conference publications and presentations, four invited speaking events, three journal articles and one master’s thesis. The results and information-sharing activities can help inform operators on integrating microseismic monitoring into long-term strategies.