Tracerco, a pioneer in industrial tracer technology and reservoir diagnostics, has deployed its proprietary chemical tracer technology in support of a US-based carbon capture and storage (CCS) project for the first time.
This milestone marks a significant expansion of Tracerco’s carbon authentication capabilities, enabling the tracking, monitoring, and long-term independent verification of CO2 containment in CCS projects.
Tracers, alongside other complementary measurement, monitoring, and verification (MRV) technologies that are part of Tracerco’s solutions portfolio, enable operators to tackle greenhouse gas emissions through the application of CCS, permitting safe and permanent underground CO2 storage.
Tracerco has developed a family of unique chemical tracers that provide conclusive early warning of presence of CO2 should it be detected by various detection methods. Additionally, and due to its inherent application, tracer technology provides measurable evidence, crucial to quantifying any potential leaks.
The company’s tracers deliver leak detection down to parts-per-trillion sensitivity, map CO2 migration patterns through strategic sampling, and fingerprint the CO2 to distinguish between naturally occurring, recycled, and newly injected sources. This non-intrusive approach ensures continuous injection, without the need to disrupt operations, leading to greater and faster capture of 45Q tax credits.
Fredrick Tyler, Sales Executive – Carbon Authentication for Tracerco, explained: “Chemical tracers give operators a powerful way to complement traditional monitoring in CO2 storage projects. These tracers can detect CO2 in water and gas at ultra-low concentrations, providing the earliest possible leak detection with scientific accuracy. We are proud that this project marks the first time our tracer technology has been deployed in a US Carbon Capture and Storage project, setting a benchmark for future deployments.
From an operations perspective, more operators are now building tracers into their MRV plans to create an independent source of truth that bridges interpretive data with actual sample results. This verifies seal integrity over the life of the project, independently of the challenges generally found through seismic interpretation. From a risk management standpoint, tracers add a critical layer of protection by offering undeniable evidence of containment and plume migration in Class II EOR sequestration projects.