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Fiber Optic Seismic Vector, Acoustic, Pressure, Strain and Temperature Sensor Combinations Are Setting New Standards for Geothermal, CCUS, and UGS Reservoir Characterization and Monitoring

Description: 

Paulsson is inventing, designing, manufacturing, installing and operating large optical arrays with multiple sensors for the surveying and monitoring of Geothermal Reservoirs, Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage, Underground Gas Storage (UGS), including Hydrogen, and Natural Gas and Hydrogen Pipeline Monitoring. The pipelines we are monitoring include two pipelines that are crossing two major California faults, the Hayward Fault and the Calaveras Fault, a side fault to the San Andreas Fault. The Hayward Fault is now considered the most dangerous fault in North America capable of generating a M7-7.5 earthquake – besides having a constant creep of 1 mm per year which we captured with our fiber optic strain system. The Hayward Fault is dangerous because it is crossing 12 cities in the San Francisco East Bay. These projects are ongoing.

Our Fiber Optic Vector sensors have been tested at 320°C (608°F) for a week. Our 3C seismic vector sensor design can be extended to an operational temperature of 500°C by using metal coated fiber. Our Enhanced Distributed Acoustic Sensors (EDAS) have been installed together with our Distributed Temperature Sensors for the monitoring of an Underground Gas Storage (UGS) for a period of over three years, since 2021. We have recorded over 800 TB of data monitoring wells continuously, with real time processing, at the PG&E McDonald Island using 2,500 optical acoustic sensors and 1,800 optical temperature sensors installed to a depth of 5,500 ft. This project is also ongoing.

Paulsson has performed the largest 3D VSP surveys in the world using our pipe-based deployment system that allows our sensor arrays to be deployed into both vertical and horizontal wells to drilled depths of 23,000 ft. We have recorded over 70 Massive 3D VSP surveys with our sensor systems.

In addition to the instrument manufacturing and installation Paulsson is also processing, imaging and interpreting the optical sensor data. A 3D VSP typically records 5-10X higher frequencies compared with surface seismic and is producing accurate velocity and anisotropic models.

Our work has been funded by DOE, DOT and CEC.

Session: Seismology for the Energy Transition - I

Type: Oral

Date: 4/16/2025

Presentation Time: 04:45 PM (local time)

Presenting Author: Bjorn

Student Presenter: No

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