Deep saline storage

Illinois Basin - Decatur Project
The MGSC is partnering with the Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) and Schlumberger Carbon Services to conduct a large-scale demonstration of deep saline geological storage of 1 million metric tons (1.1 million U.S. tons) of CO2 over a three-year injection period. This integrated CO2 storage project called the Illinois Basin - Decatur Project (IBDP) is occurring at the ADM plant location in Decatur, Illinois.

IBDP is an integrated industrial CCUS system from source to reservoir. Carbon dioxide is being captured from the fermentation process used to produce ethanol at ADM's corn processing complex in Decatur. A dedicated compression and dehydration facility built for this project removes water from the CO2 stream and then compresses the dry CO2 to a liquid-like dense phase. The compressed CO2 then travels through a mile-long pipeline to the wellhead where it is injected deep into the Mount Simon Sandstone saline formation at a depth of 7,000 feet (2,135 meters). The Mount Simon is the thickest and most widespread saline reservoir in the Illinois Basin and one of the most significant potential carbon storage resources in the United States. The project includes deep injection, observation, and geophysical wells, which are instrumented to monitor and further characterize the Mount Simon.

The objectives of the project are to validate the capacity, injectivity, and containment of the Mount Simon, which represents the primary carbon storage resource in the Illinois Basin and the Midwest Region. Operational injection started on November 17, 2011 and was completed successfully on November 26, 2014 with a total volume of 999,215 tonnes.

Throughout the injection process, CO2 is monitored at the near surface and deep subsurface. The IBDP Monitoring, Verification, and Accounting (MVA) Program involves environmental measurements, monitoring, and computer modeling throughout the life of the project and is focused on the 0.25 mi2 (0.65 km2) project site. Near-surface and subsurface monitoring are integral efforts to reach MVA and project goals of (1) establishing pre-injection environmental conditions to evaluate potential impacts from CO2 injection, (2) demonstrating that project activities are protective of human health and the environment, and (3) quantifying and tracking CO2 stored in the Mount Simon Sandstone saline reservoir. Up to 24 months of pre-injection baseline data have been collected since IBDP began.



Near-surface monitoring efforts include near-infrared color aerial imagery acquisition, surface deformation monitoring, net CO2 flux monitoring, soil gas sampling, soil CO2 flux monitoring, high-resolution electrical earth resistivity surveys, and shallow groundwater sampling. Subsurface monitoring efforts include two-dimensional seismic surveying; three-dimensional seismic and vertical seismic profiles; passive microseismic monitoring; injection zone temperature, pressure, and fluid monitoring; above-caprock temperature, pressure, and fluid monitoring; and open and cased-hole logging. Research monitoring was initiated in 2009 and will conclude in 2017, after the three-year injection and three-year post-injection periods. Injection was initiated under a Class I - Non-hazardous Underground Injection Control (UIC) permit issued by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and will be completed under a Class VI UIC permit issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.


Project status:

1 Million Metric Tons of CO2 successfully injected and contained

Project highlights:
  • Permitted Injection Volume: 1 Million Metric Tons
  • Target Reservoir: Mount Simon Sandstone
  • Depth of Reservoir Top: 5,545 ft (1,690.5 m)
  • Thickness of Reservoir: 1,506 ft (459.1 m)
  • Reservoir Seal: Eau Claire Shale
  • Depth to Seal Top: 5,047 ft (1,538.7 m)
  • Injection Initiated: November 17, 2011
  • Injection Completed: November 26, 2014
  • Injection Rate: 1,000 metric tons per day
  • UIC Injection Permit Holder: Archer Daniels Midland Company
  • Carbon Dioxide Source: Fermentation for ethanol production
  • Compression Equipment: Dual four-stage reciprocating with glycol dehydration
  • Wellhead Injection Pressure: 1,350 psi (9.3 MPa)
  • Wellhead Injection Temperature: 95° F (35° C)
  • Delivery Pipeline: 6-inch (15.24 cm) carbon steel, 1.2 mile (1.9 km) length
  • Depth of Injection Interval: 6,985-7,050 ft (2,129.6-2,149.4 m)

  • Monitoring, verification, and accounting:
    • An extensive Monitoring, Verification, and Accounting (MVA) program has been undertaken and is focused on the 0.65 km2 (0.25 mi2) project site.
    • Monitoring near-surface and subsurface conditions are integral efforts to establish pre-injection conditions, evaluate effects from CO2 injection, demonstrate project activities are protective of human health and the environment, and quantify and track CO2 stored in the Mount Simon reservoir.
    • Monitoring of near-surface conditions includes surface deformation monitoring by satellite interferometry and continuous GPS, net CO2 flux monitoring, soil CO2 flux monitoring, soil gas sampling, high-resolution electrical earth resistivity surveys, and shallow groundwater sampling.
    • Monitoring of subsurface conditions includes 2D seismic surveying; 3D seismic and vertical seismic surveying; passive seismic monitoring; injection zone temperature, pressure, and fluid monitoring; above caprock temperature, pressure, and fluid monitoring; and open and cased hole logging.
    • Monitoring was initiated in 2009 and will conclude in 2017 after the three-year injection and three-year post-injection periods.
    • Up to 24 months of pre-injection data were collected and after nearly one year of injection, no effects of injection have been observed outside of the storage reservoir.
    • The IBDP MVA Program is a combined effort of the The IBDP MVA Program is a combined effort of the Illinois State Geological Survey, Archer Daniels Midland Company, Schlumberger Carbon Services, Schlumberger Water Services, Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory, University of Illinois, TRE-Canada and the Carbon Capture Project, Physical Sciences Incorporated, and the Illinois Department of Transportation.




    Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium
    Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium
    Advanced Energy
    Technology Initiative

    University of Illinois
    615 E. Peabody Dr.
    Champaign, IL 61820
    217.244.4068