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Abstract: In this paper, we present the results of geophysical and geochemical observations at the Nagaoka site, where the first Japanese project on CO2 geological storage is currently underway. We collected formation water and rock samples from the reservoir, and conducted laboratory experiments to investigate the seismic wave response and geochemical reactions due to the CO2 injection under simulated in situ conditions. The results of time-lapse crosswell seismic tomography indicate an area of P-wave velocity decrease due to CO2 saturation, and the CO2-bearing zone near the injection well expanded clearly along the formation up dip direction during CO2 injection. The presence of CO2 was also identified by induction, sonic and neutron logging at the observation wells. The results of geochemical reactions demonstrated the potential of reservoir sandstones at the Nagaoka site for the effective solubility, ionic, and mineral trapping of CO2. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Monitoring is essential to assess whether sequestered carbon dioxide (CO2) behaves as expected and whether unexpected migration or leakage occurs. A variety of monitoring techniques have been proposed and examined. Although those techniques provide useful information, such as CO2 migration and distribution, individual information yields only limited insight into CO2 behavior in geological reservoirs. To deepen our understanding of migration and containment of sequestered CO2, a monitoring framework must be established to comprehend the individual sources of information. This paper describes the monitoring framework that was applied to a test field of CO2 sequestration conducted at an onshore site in Nagaoka, Japan. The target aquifer was the early Pleistocene sandstone bed, around 60m thick and 1,100 m below the ground surface. During the 550-day injection period, around 10,000 tonnes of CO2 were sequestered. Three monitoring wells were completed around an injection well and several monitoring schemes, including pressure and temperature measurements, well logging, crosswell tomography, in-situ fluid sampling, were applied. Based on the monitoring results, meso-scale as well as macro-scale migration is examined and discussed. This study addresses monitoring issues in an integrated framework, with emphasis on the importance of comprehensive analyses, since they can bridge the gap between the individual monitoring results. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: To construct an investigation guideline, RITE estimated storage capacities of CO2 in deep saline aquifers in sedimentary rocks inland and offshore Japan. This paper proposes a method to quantitatively and qualitatively assess geological data available from seismic, gravity and borehole investigations. By technically evaluating aquifer volume and storage and sealing effectiveness, the accuracy of calculated storage potential is examined. It seems capable of increasing estimation accuracy, provided the geological data are carefully examined. This method may be used as a stepping-stone for evaluation methods to be used in the investigations for future site selection of pilot and actual operation plants. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper reports the results of laboratory and field experiments of CO2 sequestration into the Ogachi hot dry rock(HDR; the temperature is 200 degree C) site, where a part of CO2 will be expected to be fixed as carbonates by interaction with rocks (Georeactor; Ca extraction from rocks and carbonate fixation). In 2007, CO2 dissolved water (river water with dry ice) was directly injected into OGC-2 (from September 2nd to 9th) and Run #2(from September 11th to 16th). Several tracers were also injected at the same time. Water samples are collected at the depth of ca. 800 m by a sampler (500 ml in volume) and monitored for their chemical and isotopic compositions. During the Run #2 experiment, river water was injected into OGC-1 at 2 days after injection of CO2 water into OGC-2. During the field experiments, dissolution or precipitation rates of calcite were determined by using a technique of ”in site analyses”. Calcite crystals covered with Ti rod or Au film is hold in a crystal cell and set in a crystal sonde. The crystal sonde is then put into OGC-2 and water samples at the certain depth is introduced into the sonde. After 1 hour, the sonde is recovered and the calcite crystal is observed by a newly developed phase shift interferometer to analyze the dissolution or precipitation rates of calcite from the reservoir fluids. The “in situ analyses” show that calcite precipitation was observed within 2 day after the injection. This supports the view that most of CO2 injected might be fixed as carbonate. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A public survey was conducted concerning carbon capture and storage technology (CCS) in the months of February and April 2007 in Japan, Previously another CCS survey took place in December 2003, and a set of the questions asked in the 2007 survey were purposely the same as that used in the 2003 survey, Japanese adults were randomly selected to answer a questionnaire either in printed format or in online format. Several versions of the questionnaire were used, and each contained a different educational part, imparting relevant CCS information. 334 people successfully responded to our paper survey in Tokyo and Sapporo while 2156 people completed our online survey across the nation. The questionnaire for the survey contained 5 sets of different information package on CCS and questions asking pros and cons on CCS implementation to analyze influence of information provided on CCS. Based on the results of survey we found: that not many people still know about CCS. Those who have knowledge on CCS show a preference for CCS implementation, however; preference was decreased after obtaining information which we considered was neutral on CCS. These results suggest a possibility that information on negative aspects of CCS (risks, etc.) would not be well known in the general public. We also found that preference for CSS decreased slightly after providing different information on CCS to respondents in the group with the newspaper articles which we considered neutral in comparison with other groups. The newspaper articles contained the information on negative opinions against CCS besides risk-related information as well as information based on an IPCC Special Report: it is assumed that such negative opinions may have influenced opinion formation of respondents. Since CCS is new technology, information about how other people or entities evaluate CCS would influence public opinion. In the sub-sample provided with industrial and natural analogues of preference on geological storage, the views were slightly more positive about CSS in comparison with reported opinions of other groups. This implies information on natural or industrial analogue would help manage perception of risk in a positive way. The result of path analysis to data of a public survey identified four factors, (1) risks and leakage, (2) effectiveness of CCS, (3) responsibility, and (4) fossil fuel use. We found that the factor of understanding the effectiveness of CCS is most positively influential for general acceptance of CCS. I Implementation of geological storage and the factor of risks and leakage become much more influential negatively in the implementation of geological storage compared to general acceptance of CCS, implying that implementation of CC2 geological storage also needs careful communication of risk. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper presents results from a survey on stakeholder attitudes towards Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). The survey is the first to make a global comparison across three major regions; USA, Japan, and Europe. The 30-question survey targeted individuals working at stakeholder organizations that seek to shape, and will need to respond to, policy on CCS, including electric utilities, oil & gas companies, CO2-intensive industries and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The results show generally small differences across the regions and between the different groups of stakeholders. All believed that the challenge of significant reductions in emissions using only current technologies was severe. There is a widespread belief both that renewable technologies such as solar power and CCS will achieve major market entry into the electricity sector within the next 10 to 20 years, whereas there is more skepticism about the role of hydrogen and especially nuclear fusion in the next 50 years. All groups were generally positive towards renewable energy. Yet, there were some notable areas of disagreement in the responses, for example, as expected, NGOs considered the threat of climate change to be more serious than the other groups. North Americans respondents were more likely to downplay the threat compared to those of the other regions. The Japanese were more concerned about the burden that would be placed on industry in the coming decade as a result of emissions constraints and NGOs were more likely to believe that the burden would be light or very light. NGOs believed CCS to be far more attractive than nuclear fusion power but much less than renewables. As expected, the risk for leakage from reservoirs was ranked number one of the risk options given. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage (CCS) is a technology for reducing the amount of CO2 to be emitted into the air, by storing the CO2. However, a CCS project itself emits some CO2. Therefore, to estimate CCS’s net CO2 reduction effect, it is effective to apply life cycle assessment (LCA) to CCS projects. In this paper, we assumed a number of CCS project models to be feasible in Japan, and estimated the amount of CO2 emissions to store one ton of CO2 by applying LCA to the CCS projects. As a result, depending on the model case, 50% or more of the CO2 amount to be stored was emitted. The study also revealed that approximately 80% of the CO2 emissions at CCS-applied facilities derived from the energy consumed to re-heat the liquid absorbent that absorbed CO2. The study also indicated that a substantial amount of CO2 emissions can be reduced if heat integration is conducted between the production equipment and the CCS equipment for energy utilization, such as bleeding CO2 from a power station and other production equipment. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Monitoring is the major challenge in CO2 geological sequestration. At the first Japanese pilot CO2 injection site (Nagaoka), CO2 was injected into a thin permeable zone at a depth of 1100 m and the total amount of injected CO2 was 10,400 tons during the injection period from July 2003 to January 2005. After ceasing of CO2 injection, well loggings which mainly consist of neutron logging, sonic logging and induction logging have been continued for 5 years. The Nagaoka site may provide the first field data set of post-injection monitoring and essential information on long-term CO2 behaviour in a saline aquifer. In this paper reports the results of formation pressure, well logging and fluid sampling aiming to improve understanding of CO2 long term behaviour in the reservoir. The results of time-laps well logging provide the evidences of the solubility trap and residual trap in progress at Nagaoka, suggesting CO2 is stored safely in a complex sandstone reservoir. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: To evaluate the probable storage volume of CO2 in Japan, the Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth (RITE) and the Engineering Advancement Association of Japan (ENAA) collected and organized a wide range of geological information on Japanese sedimentary basins, and estimated a CO2 storage capacity during a period between 2006 and 2009 . In an attempt to optimize the investigation efforts and to share the information, the vast amount of geological data collected were then reorganized into a database system where the investigation results could be readily accessed and browsed. This paper represents the outline of the database system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper presents the results of careful considerations on the surface facilities at one of the most promising CCS (Carbon dioxide Capture and Storage) candidate sites in Japan in regards to process, economy and energy consumption. This site has been selected to demonstrate the feasibility of CCS total system in which CO2 is captured from natural gas processing plants, transported to the injection site (100 km away from the plants), and then stored in the saline aquifers underneath the seabed of the Japan Sea. Four technical issues have been reviewed for the surface facilities, namely CO2 transportation, removal of impurities in the CO2 gas, the liquefied CO2 heater models and the shaft seal system for CO2 pumps. As for the CO2 transportation method, tanker trucks transportation is selected compared to pipelines because of the merits in a construction period, economy, and local citizen’s understanding and acceptance which are crucial for the realization of the project. Concerning process building, removal of impurities contained in the CO2 gas has been considered first. CO2 gas separated from natural gas contains hydrogen sulfide, mercury, and BTX in addition to water. These impurities must be eliminated prior to liquefaction of CO2 because they could interfere with the process as well as for environmental considerations. The adsorption method is found to be effective for removing all these impurities. However, it is also found that adsorbent consumption rate depends largely on the process sequence with which the impurities are eliminated. After reviewing the results, it is found that the most economical sequence to eliminate these impurities is in the order of mercury, hydrogen sulfide, BTX, then water. Liquefied CO2 heater models have been considered to reduce CO2 emission. After transportation to the injection site, the liquefied CO2 is pressurized and heated from −10 °C to a super critical state of 40 °C in order to avoid phase transition inside the injection tube. Using a heat pump to utilize the heat in the air to improve the energy efficiency, CO2 emission is substantially reduced by approximately 70% compared to the conventional method using hot water from a boiler that uses heavy fuel oil. A centrifugal pump will be selected for CO2 pumps because it can handle large volumes. An effective shaft seal system is the tandem formation using vapor-liquid seal and dry gas seal for the first and the second stages respectively. However, since we have limited experience of this formation at CO2 pumps in Japan, it is identified as a critical item in the demonstration project. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Prime Minister of Japan declared: Japan should positively commit itself to setting a long-term reduction target. For its mid-term goal, Japan will aim to reduce its emissions by 25% by 2020, if compared to the 1990 level, consistent with what the science calls for in order to halt global warming. In order to achieve this target, the government considers CCS (Carbon dioxide Capture and Storage) as an essential method and aims to improve CCS technology to practical levels. Japan CCS Co., Ltd. (JCCS) was established in May, 2008 in order to study the potential and feasibility of CCS demonstration projects in Japan. The company was commissioned by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in Japan. Major shareholders of JCCS include electric power companies, upstream to downstream petroleum companies, material companies, engineering companies, etc.. In 2008, an investigation of candidate sites for the CCS demonstration was done over Japan and several promising offshore sites were selected. One of the selected candidate sites is the Tomakomai offshore site in Hokkaido prefecture, located in the northern part of Japan where there are petroleum refineries, paper mills and power plants close to the site. The Yufutsu oil and gas field is located in the eastern part of Tomakomai city where much geological data has been obtained through oil and gas exploration. Basic geological modes were constructed and CO2 reservoir simulation was performed to predict the movement of the stored CO2. Simulation results show us that a sufficient volume of CO2 could be safely stored in the saline aquifers at the Tomakomai site for a demonstration period and afterward. From October to November in 2009, a 3D seismic survey was implemented to confirm the geological potential of the site. Ocean bottom cables enabled us to survey in front of the Tomakomai Port. The survey area (full-stacked area) was 3.0 km (N-S) by 2.7 km (W-E) and about 2 km from the shoreline with several target formations at a depth of about 1,100–3,000 m. This survey was conducted in 4 patches using 2 to 3 sets of ocean bottom cables with the total number of receiver and shot lines being 10 and 26, respectively. Results of this survey were utilized in building the detailed 3D geological model for the CO2 reservoir simulation. Basic plant designing to capture CO2 at the hydrogen process in the petroleum refineries is currently ongoing. The captured CO2 will be injected at 250,000 ton/year for 4–5 years in the demonstration project. Many local organizations, such as the Tomakomai city government and the fisheries cooperative, cooperated to carry out the 3D seismic survey. The Tomakomai government has been strongly willing to invite the CCS demonstration project to the city. By their continuous cooperation is possible to carry forward the feasibility study in order to start the CO2 injection in 3–4 years. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Since Kyoto Protocol is going to be expired in 2012, all the develop ed and developing countries are very concerned about the future of clean development mechanism. By using the game theory the paper analyzes the market of clean development mechanism, especially the projects of CDM between the U.S., EU, Japan and China. Based on this, the prospects of Chinese CDM market are provided. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: JAEA has been implementingthe FaCTproject in cooperation with electric utilities toward the commercialization of fast reactorcycle system before2050.In this FaCTproject,many innovative technologies with technical challenges are actively used in order to provide significant improvements in economic competitiveness, enhancement of safety & reliability, sustainability, and nonproliferation.The workofdecidingon the adoption of innovative technologiesby the end of JFY2010 is in progress.This paper describes current preliminaryassessment results. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: There happen a variety of disasters in the world such as a Nuclear exposed from a nuclear power-station due to earthquake and Tsunami in Japan, a tornado in Alabama in the US, a volcano explosion in Puyehue in Chile, an earthquake in Sichuan in China, and so on. Disasters can happen anytime anywhere without notification and they could have different ripple effects on society and could be very serious as well. A disaster alerts system in IT-based society should effectively react against disasters happened. Therefore, we in this paper proposed a context-aware mobile platform for intellectual disaster alerts system that transmits disaster information through mobile devices. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In the mainland of China, the constraints of environments, resources, especially energy resources, has increasingly become the bottleneck of economic development after reform policy for more than thirty years. In this paper, we illustrate the basic structure of energy conservation and emission reduction from historic, institutional and comparative analysis based on Japan''s case as an example of energy conservation. Our investigation shows the evolution of Japan''s energy conservation policies from a view of energy security to the view of environment protection and low carbon economy. We also analyze the tools that Japan adopted to remove energy conservation barriers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper, we tried to estimate the effect of control method on floating offshore wind turbine. The experiment in the water basin revealed that traditional blade pitch control can amplify the platform pitch oscillation of floating wind turbine. In order to understand the physical phenomenon, we used aeroelastic simulation using GH Bladed. Turbine model is based on the turbine used in wind tunnel test. To simulate the pitching motion of floating platform, we used onshore wind turbine model with inflow with oscillating wind speed that simulates relative wind speed change from wind turbine''s fore-aft pitching motion. Two types of control method are used; fixed pitch variable speed control which represents before rated state of large wind turbines and variable pitch variable speed control which represents over rated state of large wind turbines. Comparing the relation between wind speed change and rotor thrust force change of two control methods, we made it clear that traditional blade pitch control method make thrust force change almost the inverse of wind speed increase and decrease. From thrust force inverse to wind speed change, tower pitching motion can be amplified. That is, blade pitch control can induce negative damping on tower pitching motion. As a conclusion pitch control can increase larger blade load although pitch control aims to reduce the blade load. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Thermochemical hydrogen production process is one of the candidates of industrial fossil fuel free hydrogen production. Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) has been conducting R&D of the thermochemical water splitting iodine-sulfur (IS) process since the end of 1980s. This paper presents the recent study on the IS process in JAEA. In 2005-2009, test-fabrication of components, collection of design database, improvement of process components for higher thermal efficiency, and proposition of composition measurement method were carried out. On the basis of them, the integrity test of process components is carried out in 2010-2014 to examine their integrities in severe process environments. At present, a Bunsen reactor, which produces acids, and incidental equipments has been already manufactured using corrosion resistant materials such as glass lining steel and fluoroplastic lining steel. Flow tests to examine the functionality and integrity of the materials are planned in 2012. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]