Scaled-up ocean injection of CO₂-hydrate composite particles

A pilot-scale, three-phase continuous-jet hydrate reactor, developed to produce CO₂ hydrate for ocean sequestration, was tested both in the laboratory and at sea. A 72-L pressure vessel was used for laboratory tests; field experiments were performed with a remotely operated vehicle at depths between 1200 and 2000 m off the coast of Monterey, CA. Rapid production of a consolidated sinking CO₂-hydrate composite paste was achieved in both settings. The vertical and lateral movement of the extruded hydrate was monitored by the high-definition television camera mounted on the vehicle and with a 675-kHz scanning sonar, along with dissolution rates and associated temperature and pH changes during the injection operations. It was observed that globules of unconverted liquid CO2 occluded in the structure of the hydrate composite largely determine the hydrate composite behavior in the ocean by providing sites for accelerated dissolution, thereby affecting the CO₂-hydrate particle orientation, shape, lifetime, and sinking rate. Model calculations predict that large-scale releases of these particles (at a CO₂ injection rate of ∼100 kg/s) should show a descent depth of nearly 1000 m below their release point, as a result of plume dynamics and the increase in density caused by the CO₂ dissolution into the surrounding ocean water.