TYPE Review

PUBLISHED 14 March 2024

DOI 10.3389/fenrg.2024.1348375

Promotion of CO2 fracturing for

OPEN ACCESS CCUS—the technical gap
EDITED BY
Xindi Sun,
Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania,
between theory and practice
United States

REVIEWED BY Lei Hou 1, Jiangfeng Luo 1, Peibin Gong 2*, Ya Ji 1* and Lei Zhang 3
Gang Lei, 1
China University of Geosciences Wuhan, China China-UK Low Carbon College, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China, 2Drilling Technology
Timothy A. Barckholtz, Research Institute of SINOPEC, Shengli Oilfield Service Corporation, Dongying, China, 3School of
ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering, Petroleum Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao, China
United States
Daigang Wang,
China University of Petroleum, Beijing, China

*CORRESPONDENCE CO2, used as an environmentally friendly fracturing fluid, has encountered a

Peibin Gong,
peibingong@163.com
bottleneck in development in recent years. Despite great efforts in research work,
Ya Ji, limited progress has been made in field applications. In this study, an extensive
jiya@sjtu.edu.cn literature review of research work and field cases was performed to summarize
RECEIVED 02 December 2023 the technical issues and challenges of CO2 fracturing. The key issues of CO2
ACCEPTED 01 March 2024 fracturing were analyzed to reveal the gap between fundamental research and
PUBLISHED 14 March 2024
field operations. The effects of CO2 properties on fracture creation and proppant
CITATION transport were synthetically analyzed to extract new common research
Hou L, Luo J, Gong P, Ji Y and Zhang L (2024),
Promotion of CO2 fracturing for CCUS—the orientations, with the aim of improving the efficiency of CO2 injection. The
technical gap between theory and practice. hydraulic parameters of CO2 fracturing were compared with those of water-
Front. Energy Res. 12:1348375. based fracturing fluids, which revealed a theory-practice gap. By studying the
doi: 10.3389/fenrg.2024.1348375
developing trends and successful experiences of conventional fluids, new
COPYRIGHT
strategies for CO2 fracturing were proposed. We identified that the major
© 2024 Hou, Luo, Gong, Ji and Zhang. This is an
open-access article distributed under the terms theory-practice gap in CO2 fracturing exists in pump rate and operation scale.
of the Creative Commons Attribution License Consequently, the friction reducer, effects of flow loss (due to leak-off) and
(CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in distribution (within fracture networks), and shear viscosity of thickened CO2 are
other forums is permitted, provided the original
author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are key factors in improving both fracture propagation and proppant transport. By
credited and that the original publication in this increasing the scale of injected CO2, the CO2 fracturing technique can be
journal is cited, in accordance with accepted enhanced, making it an essential option for carbon capture, utilization, and
academic practice. No use, distribution or
reproduction is permitted which does not storage (CCUS) to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate climate change.
comply with these terms.
KEYWORDS

CCUS, CO2 fracturing, case study, fracture propagation, proppant transport

1 Introduction
Carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) is an essential technique for achieving
the goals set forth in the Paris Agreement, particularly the target of limiting global warming
to 1.5°C (Zheng et al., 2022a; Shen et al., 2022; Zhao et al., 2022; Zhu et al., 2022). It plays a
crucial role in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and reducing the concentration of
carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere (Lab, 2022; Hou et al., 2024a). CCUS enables the
capture of CO2 emissions from various industrial processes, such as power generation,
cement production, and steel manufacturing, and then stores the CO2 underground or
utilizes it in other applications (Sharifzadeh et al., 2019; Zhang et al., 2020). This allows for
the continued utilization of these traditional assets while simultaneously reducing their
carbon footprint. Among all the approaches to carbon sinks, geological storage of CO2 can
permanently remove the largest amount of carbon in a short time compared to other
methods such as afforestation, agricultural practices, and chemical applications, among
others (Busch et al., 2008; Tao and Clarens, 2013; Godec et al., 2014; Levine et al., 2016).

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TABLE 1 Representative CCUS projects worldwide.

Project Location Resource Utilization/Storage Scale (million tons/year) Notes

CNOOC CCUS Project China — Oil reservoir 3.0~10.0 Planning

Shengli Oil Field China Power plant Oil reservoir 2.0 Upgrading

Sinopec Qilu Petrochemical China Coal-to-gas Oil reservoir 1.0 In process

Snohvit and Sleipner Norway Reservoirs Saline/reservoir 1.7 Since 1992

Longship (Northern Lights) Norway Power plant Saline 5.0 In process

Weyburn (Boundary Dam) CA and United States Power plant Oil reservoir 1.0 Since 1998

The ideal underground reservoirs for CO2 storage primarily enhance the performance of CO2. Field trials have indicated that
include oil and gas reservoirs, saline formations, and salt caverns the flowback rate of CO2 after hydraulic injection is significantly
(Rutqvist et al., 2008; Gilfillan et al., 2009; Jia et al., 2019). In this lower compared to that after EOR (Yiyu et al., 2021; Honglei et al.,
study, we specifically focus on oil and gas reservoirs due to their well- 2022). However, the CO2 fracturing technique is still in the field-trial
known geological conditions and well-constructed infrastructures. stage compared to CO2 EOR. It injects CO2 at much higher
These factors significantly improve the efficiency, economy, and pressures and rates than in EOR injections, resulting in increased
safety of CO2 injection and storage (Tayari et al., 2015). The investment and challenges (Jing et al., 2022). Furthermore, there
utilization of CO2 in oil fields has a long history, particularly in exists a gap between previous laboratory-scale efforts and practical
the context of enhanced oil recovery (EOR) techniques since the field applications at a larger scale.
1950s (Crawford et al., 1963; Lillies and King, 1982). The injection of This study focuses on identifying the disparity and
CO2 drives and displaces in situ oil and gas, especially the heavier deficiencies between the theory and practice of CO2 fracturing,
components, by reducing their viscosity and increasing their with the aim of bridging this gap. Firstly, CO2 fracturing is
mobility. This process enhances the ultimate recovery of oil and redefined and limited to supercritical CO2 (SC-CO2)
gas. The remarkable performance of CO2 injection in both the oil fracturing, which presents a more environmentally friendly
and gas industry and as a carbon sink has drawn worldwide solution for CCUS in the oil and gas industry. Secondly, an
attention. Currently, approximately 80% of the CCUS projects extensive literature review is carried out to summarize the
worldwide inject CO2 into oil and gas formations for EOR, as performances of fracture creation and proppant transport by
illustrated in Table 1 (Institute, 2021). CO2—the major tasks of a hydraulic fracturing fluid. By
However, CCUS in oil fields is facing several technical and conducting a systematic analysis of research findings and field
environmental challenges. One of the most significant issues is the trials related to CO2 fracturing, we propose several promising
efficiency of CO2 storage through the EOR process, which has been research directions that can advance the field and enhance the
reported as low as 20% in previous studies (Zhang R.-H. et al., 2021). efficiency of CO2 fracturing in practical applications. Through
In other words, approximately 80% of the injected CO2 is these efforts, we anticipate the CO2 fracturing technique to
reproduced along with the extracted oil and gas, necessitating the become an essential supplement and approach for CCUS in oil
separation and reinjection of CO2. Additionally, the migration of and gas reservoirs.
CO2 over geological timescales is currently difficult to predict.
Extensive monitoring devices are installed from the surface to
track the movement of injected CO2 in representative CCUS 2 History and restricted definition of
sites, such as the Weyburn project. The continuous movement of CO2 fracturing
CO2 is monitored over time and injections. This is primarily due to
the interconnected pore system in the rock matrix, which provides a The history of CO2 fracturing can be traced back to the 1970s
pathway through which the mature oil and gas migrate from the when it was first experimented with as a method for enhancing oil
source rock into the geological structure, reflecting the nature of a recovery. Initial trials focused on using CO2 as a miscible fluid to
conventional oil and gas reservoir (Goodman et al., 2020). displace oil from reservoirs, with CO2 being injected as a liquid from
The CO2 fracturing technique is an alternative approach to CO2 the wellhead. In order to enhance the performance of CO2 fracturing
storage, distinct from EOR, and is typically employed in and flooding, CO2 was combined with foam-based fracturing
unconventional formations characterized by extremely low techniques, leading to the development of CO2 foam fracturing
permeability and water sensitivity (Hou et al., 2024b). As a in the early 2000s (Martin and Taber, 1992; Yost et al., 1993). The
relatively new technique, CO2 has demonstrated its efficiency as use of foam in CO2 fracturing offers several advantages over
a working fluid in reducing the breakdown pressure of the formation traditional hydraulic fracturing methods. Firstly, the foam acts as
and increasing the stimulated volume following hydraulic injection a carrier for the CO2, reducing the amount of CO2 required to
(Hou et al., 2021). Extensive laboratory research has been conducted achieve the desired fracturing effect. Secondly, the viscosity of CO2
to elucidate the rock-mechanical and flow-dynamical characteristics foam is significantly improved, enhancing the transport capacity of
of CO2 fracturing (Xiangzeng et al., 2014; Wang H. et al., 2019). proppants (Lv et al., 2017). However, the behavior and stability of
Corresponding chemical additives have also been developed to CO2 foam under formation conditions present challenges due to the

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TABLE 2 Comparisons between the fractures created by SC-CO2 and water-based fluids (Zhang et al., 2017a; Li et al., 2019; Zhang et al., 2021; Feng and
Firoozabadi, 2023).

Fluid Rock Research condition Fracturing behaviors Method References

type type
Confining Fluid Breakdown Fracture
Pressure/MPa Temperature/ Pressure/MPa geometry
°C

SC-CO2 Granite 40 40 53.4 Main fracture and Experiment Feng and

branches Firoozabadi (2023)
60 52.3

80 50.1

Sandstone 15/15/7 (Triaxial 80 8.8 Li et al. (2019)

stress)

Shale 12/10/8 (Triaxial 60 15.16 Irregular multiple fractures Zhang et al. (2017a)
stress) of different lengths and
widths
Hot Dry 10/7.5/5 (Triaxial 32 ~20.3 Zhang et al. (2021a)
Rock stress)

Water Granite 40 20 61.1 Single main fracture Simulation Feng and

Firoozabadi (2023)
20 59.0

Slickwater Sandstone 15/15/7 (Triaxial 20 12.8 Experiment Li et al. (2019)

stress)

Water Shale 12/10/8 (Triaxial 60 31.79 Zhang et al. (2017b)

stress)

Water Hot Dry 10/7.5/5 (Triaxial 32 ~37.5 Simulation Zhang et al. (2021b)
Rock stress)

phase change of CO2 from a gaseous to a supercritical phase. The is distinct from other forms of CO2 fracturing such as CO2 foam. For
quality of the foam plays a crucial role in fracture generation, one reason, the focus on supercritical CO2 fracturing is justified by its
propagation, and production enhancement. Moreover, the use of similarity to the process of CO2 storage, as it eliminates the use of
water in CO2 foam is inevitable, which can lead to permeability and water and demonstrates higher efficiency in CO2 storage (Hou et al.,
conductivity losses in water-sensitive formations. 2020; Hou and Elsworth, 2021). The flowback rate of fracturing
With the revolution of unconventional oil and gas, a more specific injected CO2 is lower than other forms of CO2 storage, for
definition of CO2 fracturing has emerged - supercritical CO2 (SC-CO2) instance, CO2-EOR (Hou et al., 2024b). This indicates a higher
fracturing, also known as water-free fracturing (Middleton et al., 2015; efficiency of permanent CO2 storage. This approach presents a
Sanguinito et al., 2018; Wang et al., 2019). This technique utilizes 100% more environmentally friendly solution for CCUS in the oil and
CO2 as the primary fracturing fluid to prevent damage caused by water gas field. For the other reason, CO2 fracturing represents one of the
in unconventional formations. In reservoirs buried approximately most promising approaches to large-scale carbon sinks. If water-based
800 m deeper, the injected CO2 undergoes a transition into a fracturing operations could be replaced by CO2 fracturing, one single
supercritical phase state, characterized by temperatures and pressures horizontal well may store more than ten thousand tons of CO2.
above the critical point (7.3 MPa, 31°C). The phase state transition of Considering that thousands of wells may be fractured in a single oil or
CO2 (from supercritical state to liquid state) has been observed and gas field, the CO2 storage capacity by CO2 fracturing shows enormous
illustrated in Figure 1. In the process of supercritical CO2 fracturing, potential. Therefore, the promotion of CO2 fracturing for CCUS
CO2 is initially pressurized and heated to reach its supercritical state at represents a critical approach to carbon sinks and carbon neutrality.
the surface. This supercritical CO2 is then mixed with proppant and
injected into the wellbore to fracture the targeted reservoir zone.
Supercritical CO2 exhibits high density, low viscosity, low surface 3 Results
tension, high diffusion coefficient, and excellent heat and mass
transfer properties (Hou et al., 2021). As a fracturing fluid, it does 3.1 Fracture creation by CO2
not harm the reservoir, effectively avoiding near-wellbore formation
damage, protecting the oil and gas reservoir, improving reservoir Fractures formed through supercritical CO2 fracturing exhibit
permeability, and facilitating easy flowback, compared with the distinct characteristics that are influenced by the properties of
traditional water-based fracturing fluids. Moreover, supercritical CO2 supercritical CO2. One notable effect is the reduction in the
fracturing fluid can dehydrate tight clay formations, open up sandstone breakdown pressure of the formation, allowing for easier penetration
pore channels, and reduce the skin factor of the wellbore. into the rock matrix due to its low viscosity, high diffusivity, and absence
In this study, we adopt a specific definition of CO2 fracturing, of surface tension. Supercritical CO2 exhibits a lower viscosity (three
specifically referring to supercritical CO2 (SC-CO2) fracturing, which magnitudes or even smaller) compared to alternative fracturing fluids

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based fluids (Wang and Sharma, 2023). This characteristic enhances

the fracture surface area and the volume of the reservoir that is
stimulated. The increased fracture surface area provides more flowing
pathways for in situ hydrocarbons during production operations, thus
improving well productivity and enhanced recovery rates from
unconventional formations.
However, a significant challenge associated with CO2-created
fractures is their underdeveloped width, primarily due to the high
rate of CO2 leak-off and the net stress loss within the fracture. This
loss of driving force leads to narrower and shorter fractures (Zhou and
Burbey, 2014; Wang et al., 2017; Ranjith et al., 2019). The average
fracture aperture of water, N2, L-CO2 and SC-CO2 shows relatively small
variances falling in the range between 0.304 mm and 0.317 mm, as
presented in Figure 3. However, the largest standard deviation (0.201) of
the aperture formed by SC-CO2 fracturing is obtained, followed by water
fracturing (0.171), L-CO2 fracturing (0.123), and N2 fracturing (0.091).
This suggests the maximum roughness of the fractures created by SC-
CO2 (Yang et al., 2021). Furthermore, given the higher complexity and
tortuosity of CO2-created fractures, the injection of proppants afterward
FIGURE 1 becomes more challenging, resulting in elevated operation wellhead
CO2 phase transitions (from the supercritical state to CO2 liquid)
pressures. More careful planning and innovative solutions tailored
observed through a pressure-resistent window during a
depressurization and cooling process, from 8.10 MPa to 42.5°C (I) to specifically for CO2 fracturing techniques are essential to overcome
5.80 MPa and 12.6°C (IV). these challenges posed by narrow and short CO2-created fractures with
complex geometries.

like water-based fluids (Kuang et al., 2023). This attribute allows for
smoother flow through minuscule pores and fractures within the 3.2 Proppant transport by CO2
reservoir rock, enabling deeper penetration into the rock matrix and
generating fractures with enhanced tortuosity. This characteristic allows In addition to the more challenging conditions for proppant
the injected fluid to effectively access the pre-existing fracture, and as the transport, a significant hurdle in CO2 fracturing is the low viscosity
induced fracture propagates along its path, there is a significant of supercritical CO2, which is similar to gaseous CO2. As a result,
reduction (~50%) in breakdown pressure (Zhang et al., 2017a; Li proppant particles settle rapidly, leading to the formation of
et al., 2019; Zhang et al., 2021; Feng and Firoozabadi, 2023), as accumulations known as dunes (Hou et al., 2015). These dunes
summarized in Table 2. vary in shape and size as continuous injections progress. Within
Laboratory tests have indicated that fractures created by CO2 have fractures, the proppant is then transported in the form of these
higher tortuosity, as illustrated in Figure 2 (Song et al., 2019). dunes, creating a dynamic and complex process, unlike water-based
Tortuosity pertains to the extent of deviation from a linear high-viscosity fluids that evenly suspend the proppant (Hou et al.,
trajectory observed in fractures. The higher degree of fracture 2022a; Hou et al., 2022b). When the mass flow remains constant,
tortuosity indicates that CO2 follow intricate routes within the altering the injection temperature to a higher value or reducing the
reservoir rock, thereby augmenting their interaction surface. injection pressure will lead to a decrease in both viscosity and
Additionally, CO2 fracturing holds the potential to generate a density of supercritical CO2, resulting in evolutions of
more intricate network of interconnected fractures within the equilibrium height and distance for dune transport, as presented
reservoir, surpassing the complexity of fractures induced by water- in Figure 4 (Zheng et al., 2022b).

FIGURE 2
The fracture morphology created by CO2 and fracturing fluids. Reproduced with permission from Ref. Song et al. (2019), copyright (2019) Elsevier.

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3.3 Improving the research work on CO2

fracturing

The primary objectives of a fracturing fluid are to create

fractures and transport proppants. However, CO2 fracturing faces
significant challenges in both areas, as outlined in Figure 6. In terms
of fracture creation, there are several approaches that can be
employed to improve performance. These include reducing the
leakage of CO2 into the rock matrix and natural fractures,
establishing net stress within the fractures, and then enhancing
the propagation of fracture networks. On the other hand, the
capacity of CO2 to carry proppants can be enhanced by
addressing issues such as particle settling, eliminating slippage
between the particles and CO2, and improving proppant
FIGURE 3 transport within complex fracture networks.
The distribution of fracture apertures induced by CO2 and
fracturing fluids. Reproduced with permission from Ref. Yang et al.
In order to address these challenges, various solutions have been
(2021), copyright (2022) Elsevier. analyzed and summarized in Figure 6. One common approach is the
use of CO2 thickeners, which increase the viscosity of the fluid. This
serves to reduce both proppant settling and CO2 leak-off (Enick et al.,
2012; Al Hinai et al., 2018). Additionally, it has been observed through
Furthermore, the high leak-off of CO2 and the distribution of the numerical and experimental simulations that fracture width and
injected fluid in complex fracture networks exacerbate proppant particle slippage are influenced by the CO2 pump rate. Higher
accumulation and can even cause sand screen-out due to the loss of pump rates facilitate fracture growth and help eliminate slippage
the carrying fluid. Previous studies have demonstrated the influence of (Lei et al., 2016). CO2 leak-off is another prevalent issue that
supercritical CO2 on the settling, restarting, and flowing behaviors of hampers fracture propagation and proppant transport. Therefore,
proppants (Hou et al., 2017a; Chen and Sun, 2023). It has been observed promising research directions for improving CO2 as a fracturing
that the high density of CO2, which is similar to liquid CO2, contributes fluid include the development of friction reducers, investigating the
to an enhanced capacity for proppant transport in supercritical CO2, as effects of flow loss (caused by leak-off) and distribution (within fracture
depicted in Figure 5. Each black point (P1, P2, P3, P4 and P5) represents networks), as well as studying the shear viscosity of thickened CO2 (the
a proppant particle captured by the high-speed camera. The dashed lines performance of the thickener under high pump-rate condition).
derived from the black points represent the moving trajectory of the
proppant particles, which are plotted automatically by the image analysis
software. The terminal settling velocity of proppants in CO2 is slightly 4 Discussion
higher, within the same magnitude, compared to settling velocities in
water (Hou et al., 2015). Additionally, the slippage between the particles 4.1 Case study of CO2 fracturing
and the carrying CO2 can be eliminated by increasing the flow rate of the
slurry (Hou et al., 2017b). Restarting the movement of particles in CO2 is The CO2 fracturing technique is mainly applied in
even easier than in water due to the absence of interfacial tension and the unconventional formations that have extremely tight rock matrix
generation of additional Magnus force through high-speed spinning, and nano-Darcy permeability (decreasing the leak-off of CO2).
facilitating the restarting process (Hou et al., 2019). Three representative cases of CO2 fracturing in tight oil, shale

FIGURE 4
Effects of injection temperature and pressure on dune equilibrium height and length based on experiments. Reproduced with permission from Ref.
Zheng et al. (2022b), copyright (2022) Elsevier.

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volumes), low sand ratio, restricted pump rate, and comparatively

high injection pressure. This could be one of the main reasons, as
well as the high cost of CO2 additives, why recent tests have opted for
a hybrid approach that combines CO2 injection with water-based
fracturing, as illustrated in Cases B and C.

4.2 Potential of CO2 fracturing for CCUS

Most of the current CO2 fracturing field cases are reported

along with the development of shale oil in China (Hou et al.,
2024a). The field engineers injected CO2 as a pre-fracturing
process, aiming to create more complex fracture networks. The
FIGURE 5 following injected conventional water-based fluids continuously
Proppant particle movements (trajectories in colorized dashes),
from the right side to the left side, in supercritical CO2 captured by the
develop the fracture dimensions and transport the proppant into
high-speed camera. fractures (Yang et al., 2022). Therefore, the usage of CO2 (several
hundred scales for each fracturing stage) is significantly smaller
than the water-based fluids for the main fracturing operation, as
gas, and shale oil formations are summarized in Table 3 (Meng et al., listed in Table 3. However, the flowback rate of fracturing injected
2016; Yiyu et al., 2021; Jing et al., 2022). Case A uses pure CO2 for CO2 is approximately one order of magnitude lower than other
cracking fractures and carrying proppant. Two types of additives are forms of CO2 storage (as shown in Figure 7), indicating a higher
tested to increase the viscosity of CO2 and its proppant-carrying efficiency of permanent CO2 storage (Louk et al., 2017; Hou et al.,
capacity. Cases B and C only use CO2 to crack the formation and 2024a). The usage of CO2 may be improved by increasing its
create complex fracture networks. The high-viscosity gel is applied proportion in the total fracturing fluids. A possible approach is
afterward to further develop the networks and carry the proppant. using CO2 to share the proppant injection task, for instance,
Generally, both the fracturing scale and pump rate are relatively carrying the fine proppant (100 mesh) (Hou et al., 2017a; Hou
small for CO2 fracturing compared with those for water-based et al., 2017b). Meanwhile, the developments of the carbon market
fracturing. and carbon capture techniques may reduce the cost of CO2 sources.
Approximately ~300 m3 of CO2 is injected in each well or stage, The policy incentives are also essential to encourage the operators
with approximately ~180 m3 of CO2 injected in each stage of the to promote the usage of CO2, for instance, the tax preference
horizontal well in Case C. The pump rate may be restricted by the applied in the United States (Ren et al., 2022). The increasing
high friction encountered along the wellbore when using CO2, proportion and decreasing cost may significantly promote the
resulting in a high wellhead pressure of approximately ~65 MPa, potential and contribution of CO2 fracturing to CCUS,
as indicated in Table 3. The sand ratio in Case A is around 5.6%, considering the huge consumption of fracturing fluids.
which is less than half of the sand ratio typically used in water-based The other challenge of CO 2 fracturing for CCUS is the
fracturing. The efficiency of CO2 fracturing in field trials is relatively mismatch between CO 2 sources and fracturing sites
low due to the limited scale of fracturing (both proppant and CO2 (Munkejord et al., 2016), for instance, transporting the

FIGURE 6
Synthetical analyses of fracture creation and proppant transport regarding CO2 fracturing.

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TABLE 3 Summary of CO2 fracturing cases.

No. Case A Case B Case C

Year 2016 2017 2019

Well No. — Yan-2011 Jiye-1

Location Jilin Oilfield Ordos Basin, Shaanxi Jilin Oilfield

Formation Tight oil Yanchang Formation Shale Qingshankou Formation Shale

Depth ~2,000 m ~2,940 m 2,420–2,500 m

In-situ Fluid Oil Gas Oil

Well Completion Vertical well Vertical well Horizontal/18 stages

CO2 Injection Scale 290~601 m3 386 m3 3,265 m3

Sand scale 8.4~11.2 m3 — —

Stimulation Type Fracturing Fracturing Fracturing

Fluid Component Pure CO2 Pure CO2 and gel Pure CO2 and gel

3 3
Injecting Rate 3.8 m /min ~2 m /min ~4 m3/min

Wellhead Pressure ~65 MPa ~20 MPa ~52 MPa

FIGURE 7
Recovery of CO2 after injections in (A) CO2 huff-and-puff case and (B) CO2 fracturing case. Reproduced with permission from Ref. Hou et al.
(2024a), copyright (2024) Elsevier.

captured CO2 from power plants to oil and gas fields. Pipelines 4.3 Gap between theory and practice
may be necessary for the continuous transport of CO2 for huff-
and-puff, EOR or direct storage in relatively fixed sites Although fundamental research has highlighted the advantages
(Onyebuchi et al., 2018). Trucks may be essential for and feasibility of CO2 fracturing, field trials have encountered
fracturing operations to transport CO 2 from one site to significant challenges, as summarized in Table 3. To reveal the
another (Gao et al., 2011). Both pipelines and trucks will disparity between the theory and practice of CO2 fracturing, we
increase the investments in construction and equipment, as compared key injection parameters recorded during field operations
well as the potential for extra CO2 emissions. Therefore, CO2 using different fracturing fluids, as presented in Figure 8. Initially, in
transport has become a common issue for all kinds of CO2 conventional reservoirs, guar gel (referred to as the first generation
storage because of the geographical distance between CO 2 of fracturing fluid) was used to create large bi-wing fractures with a
sources and storage sites. For CO 2 fracturing, a hybrid high concentration of large proppants. Subsequently, slickwater
transport system may be a solution to improve the flexibility (with lower viscosity) was employed at a much higher pump rate
of CO2 transport from site to site. to carry smaller proppants at lower concentrations, achieving a

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FIGURE 8
Comparison of hydraulic parameters for field operations among the three generations of fracturing fluid.

balance between fracturing efficiency and investment-production underground fractures. Correspondingly, the stimulated
ratio (Barati and Liang, 2014; Zhang et al., 2017b). CO2 fracturing, reservoir volume is restricted for enhancing oil/gas production.
known as the third generation of fracturing fluid, is considered Regarding the CO2 storage concern, the low fracturing scale
environmentally friendly. Pump rates and injection scales are both reduces the usage of CO2 during fracturing operations. The
reduced for CO2 fracturing, reflecting its status as a limited artificial fracture volume will further decrease the
developing technique. inventory capacity of CO2 storage in unconventional reservoirs,
Compared to conventional fluids, the disparity between because the artificial fracture may contribute most to the capacity
fundamental research and field application primarily lies in of CO2 storage (Hou et al., 2024a; Hou et al., 2024b). Therefore, the
pump rate and operation scale, as depicted in Figure 8. Current relatively low fracturing scale may represent the other critical gap
efforts to thicken CO2 may draw inspiration from the success of between the theory and practice of CO2 fracturing in accordance
first-generation fluids, characterized by high viscosity gel. However, with the aforementioned rationale.
the second-generation fluid (represented by low-viscosity
slickwater) compensates for the low-viscosity drawback with a
high pump rate, which offers valuable insights. Therefore, the 5 Conclusion
utilization of friction reducers becomes another crucial technique
for CO2 fracturing. Correspondingly, the performance of CO2 (1) The primary disparity between theory and practice in CO2
thickener (enhanced CO2 viscosity after the high-pump-rate fracturing lies in pump rate and operation scale.
shear) becomes an essential criterion for the relevant research, (2) New research directions for improving both fracture
which currently is barely reported. Other valuable insights propagation and proppant transport in CO2 fracturing
include enhancing fracturing scales through the development of include the use of friction reducers, addressing flow loss
low-cost additives, increasing the proportion of fine proppant, and caused by leak-off and distribution in fracture networks,
adopting hybrid approaches that incorporate water-based fluids and enhancing the shear viscosity of thickened CO2.
(inspired by Cases B and C). (3) Field operations of CO2 fracturing can be optimized by
The relatively low pump rate may represent one of the most enhancing scales through the incorporation of low-cost
significant gaps between the theory and practice of CO2 fracturing. additives, increasing the proportion of fine proppant, and
Firstly, the proppant usually settles down rapidly in low-viscosity utilizing a hybrid approach that integrates
fluids (CO2 and slickwater). The horizontal transport distance of conventional fluids.
the proppant before its settlement reduces under a low pump rate
condition due to the lower horizontal dragging force (Hou et al.,
2017b; Hou et al., 2019). This significantly constrains the proppant Author contributions
transport capability of supercritical CO2, and then the scale of
proppant injection in fields (Table 3). Secondly, the high diffusion LH: Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Methodology,
feature of supercritical CO2 induces a high leak-off of fluid from Writing–original draft, Writing–review and editing. JL:
fractures into the formation. The low pump rate may weaken the Writing–review and editing. PG: Data curation, Methodology,
supplementary fluid in fractures, thus constraining the Writing–review and editing. YJ: Conceptualization, Investigation,
propagation of fracture networks. Meanwhile, the relatively low Writing–review and editing. LZ: Data curation, Investigation,
fracturing scale further deteriorates the development of Writing–review and editing.

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Hou et al. 10.3389/fenrg.2024.1348375

Funding The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted
in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that
The authors declare that financial support was received for the could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This research
is funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China
under the grant 42377138. Publisher’s note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and
Conflict of interest do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or
those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that
Author PG was employed by Shengli Oilfield Service may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its
Corporation. manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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