Characterization and assessment of hydrogen leakage mechanisms in salt caverns
2025
Hydrogen Leakage in Salt Caverns
publication
10 minutes
Evidence: moderate
Author Information
Author(s): Mojtaba Ghaedi, Raoof Gholami
Primary Institution: University of Stavanger
Hypothesis
How does hydrogen leak from salt caverns into surrounding formations?
Conclusion
After 30 years of cyclic storage, only 0.36% of the maximum hydrogen storage capacity leaked into the surrounding formation.
Supporting Evidence
- The cumulative hydrogen leakage after 30 years of cyclic storage was only 0.36% of the maximum storage capacity.
- Most of the leaked hydrogen would flow back into the salt cavern when the pressure in the cavern is lower than the surrounding pressure.
- At low storage pressure, diffusion was the most important mechanism for hydrogen transport, while at high pressure, viscous flow became predominant.
Takeaway
This study looks at how hydrogen can escape from underground salt caverns, and it found that very little actually leaks out over time.
Methodology
The study used a unified gas flow model to evaluate hydrogen flow and leakage mechanisms in salt caverns.
Limitations
The study primarily focused on a single model and did not explore all possible geological variations.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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