UNDERGROUND ENERGY SYSTEMS & ENERGY TRANSITION

The research group studies and develops methodologies and technologies dedicated to oil & gas reservoir engineering, underground natural gas storage, CO2 and hydrogen underground storage, fluid flow in porous media and microfluidics, geothermal systems monitoring and energy transition.

Specific competences and skills are:

Regional and reservoir scale geological modeling (C. Benetatos):  regional scale structural and geological modeling; petrophysical and geomechanical characterization for reservoir modeling.

 

Subsidence (V. Rocca, C. Serazio, C. Benetatos, C. Deangeli, A. Raeli): numerical simulation for the analysis of subsidence/rebound due to anthropogenic activities (i.e. fluid injection and production/withdrawal) 

  

Underground exploration safety and efficiency protocols concerning both the environment and the operating personnel domains. Optimization of the involved systems and complexes. (R. Romagnoli) 

Underground Gas Storage: laboratory analyses on rocks and fluids; integrated multidisciplinary, multiphysics and multiscale approaches characterization, static and dynamic modelling, strategy optimization, management and monitoring: 

       

                       

Well Testing and Unconventional Well Testing (F. Verga, D. Viberti, E. Salina Borello, C. Serazio). Well test interpretation (Pressure Transient Analysis, PTA) and development (Harmonic Pulse Testing, HPT, and Injection Testing). Applications to oil & gas reservoirs, Underground Storages and Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage.

Methodologies for reservoir description and dynamics including uncertainty analysis (F. Verga, D. Viberti, E. Salina Borello, C. Peter, C. Serazio, A. Raeli):

  • Implementation of optimization algorithms applied to well and reservoir data
  • Development and implementation of methodologies and algorithms for data analysis and processing
  • Development and implementation of fluid-flow numerical models at different scales (from reservoir to pore scale)
  • Microfluidics & rock-on-a-chip

 

  

Reservoir studies (F. Verga, D. Viberti, V. Rocca, G. Giglio, D. Ferrero, C. Serazio, E. Salina Borello, C. Benetatos, C. Peter, Vasile N.): data quality check, static and dynamic data analysis and integration, well data analysis, well correlation, well testing, grid construction and optimization, lithological and petrophysical characterization, black oil and compositional characterization, dynamic model set-up, history matching and forecast

  

  

The group is very active within the Competence Center SEASTAR - Sustainable Energy Applied Sciences, Technology & Advanced Research established in 2018 to tackle the challenges of energy transition. Please visit www.seastar.center to have an overview of the research lines and modern laboratory infrastructures.