INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, NIRMA UNIVERSITY, AHMEDABAD 382 481, 08-10 DECEMBER, 2011

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Abstract Coal Bed Natural Gas (CBNG) also referred to as
Coal Bed Methane (CBM) is an unconventional natural gas
resource of energy. Coal plays the role of source rock as well as
reservoir for coal bed methane. CBNG is the gas found in coal
deposits. It consists mostly of methane but may also contain
trace amounts of carbon dioxide and/or nitrogen. Most coalbeds
are permeated with methane, and a cubic foot of coal can
contain six or seven times the volume of natural gas that exists
in a cubic foot of a conventional sandstone reservoir. Within
coal seams, methane is present on the surface of the solid
material. Hydrostatic pressure causes the methane to adhere to
the coal surface via a phenomenon termed adsorption.
Whenever reservoir pressure is reduced, the methane desorbs
off of coal surfaces, diffuses through the matrix material, and
then flows through a system of natural fractures (cleats) and
into a well for delivery to the surface. Coalbed natural gas is
either biogenic or thermogenic in origin. Biogenic methane is
generated from bacteria in organic matter and is typically a dry
gas. Thermogenic methane forms when heat and pressure
transform organic matter in coal into methane. This type of
methane is typically a wet gas. CBNG-related research focuses
on the potential for enhanced gas recovery and carbon
sequestration as an integrated operation. CO
2
storage is feasible
because coal preferentially adsorbs CO
2
at twice the volume that
it stores methane. The net result would be less CO
2
in the
atmosphere and additional recovery of sorely needed natural
gas.

Keywords- Coal bed methane, coal bed reservoir, CO
2

sequestration.
I. INTRODUCTION
OAL bed methane(CBM) is the gas that is retained by
coal beds. For natural gas, the primary source of energy
is Methane. So Coal Bed Methane is simply methane found
in coal seams. Recent development has recognized that coal
bed gas, mainly coal bed methane, as an alternative energy
source, providing a supplement for conventional energy such
as coal itself and natural gas [1]. Now a day, countries like
USA, Australia, China, Russia, Germany, Great Britain,
Poland, etc. including India have paid attention on this
unconventional source of energy. In USA natural gas from
coal beds accounts approximately 8 % of its total production
of natural gases.
Coal bed gas has been considered a major mine hazard since
the early to mid 19
th
century when the first documented coal
mine gas explosions occurred in the United States in 1810
and in France in 1845 [2]. Coal bed methane was vented to
conduct safe mining operations in order to increase mine
productivity. Coal bed methane was not a problem when coal
was mined from outcrops by stripping and shallow shafting in
the United Kingdom and other European countries. As
shallow coal resources were slowly exhausted at the end of
the 18th century and technology was improved to permit
construction of large deep mines, coal bed methane in these
mines was observed. In the early 19th century, coal mine
explosions were recorded in Britain, France, and United
States. In the late 19th and early 20th century minor to major
disastrous explosions were reported in deep underground coal
mines in Australia, Canada, Belgium, Germany, Japan,
Poland, Russia, and United States. In all these cases, poor gas
ventilation or no gas drainage allowed coal bed methane to
accumulate in amounts which could be ignited either by open
lights, smoking or improper use of black blasting powder,
and sparking from mining equipment. Outbursts are caused
by high coal bed gas pressure and structural stress created by
the load on the mine [2]. During the period of 19001940, the
first application of rock dusting, permissible use of electrical
equipment, and improved ventilation were enforced. During
the period from 19401980 the coal mine health safety, rock
dust-coal analyzer, methane degasification, and explosion
proof bulkheads were enforced (modified from Deul and
Kim, 1986).[2]

Fig. 1. A diagram showing the relationship of annual fatalities from coal-
mine explosions and the influence of mine safety research.

But today, coal bed methane (CBM) is an increasingly
important source of the worlds natural gas production with
many countries, including Canada, actively developing this
unconventional energy source.
In general, coal is classified into four main types
depending on the quantity and types of carbon it contains as
well as the amount of heat energy it can produce. These are:
1. Lignite (brown coal) the lowest rank of coal; used as
fuel for electric power generation.
2. Sub-bituminous coal properties range between
lignite and bituminous coal.
3. Bituminous coal a dark brown to black, dense
mineral; used primarily as fuel in steam-electric power
generation.
Review on Coal Bed Methane as Natural Gas
J Patel, P Patel and P Saxena
C
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CURRENT TRENDS IN TECHNOLOGY, NUiCONE 2011
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4. Anthracite the highest rank; a harder, glossy, black
coal used primarily for residential and commercial
space heating; it may be divided further into petrified
oil, as from the deposits in Pennsylvania.
Coals are recognized on geophysical logs because of
several unique physical properties. The coals typically have
very low gamma, low density, and high resistivity values[3].
The procedure for determination of coalbed gas content
consists of four steps, i.e. estimation of lost gas, field
desorption, indoor desorption and measurement of residual
gas. The U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) method was used for
estimation of lost gas from coal samples and field desorption
test. Based on this method, the volume of lost gas can be
obtained by plotting the square-root of time against
cumulative gas desorbed for the first few measurements from
the field desorption test. The field desorption test was
performed at temporal water temperature using a
volumenometer. Note that the field test in this study stops
within 2 h, which differs from the USBM method where the
desorption test is continued until the average desorbed gas
rate is less than 0.05 ml/g per day in one week. In our
protocol, the resealed coal sample following the 2 h field test
was promptly transported to a laboratory for measurement of
residual gas by desorption tests. The desorption tests in
laboratory were carried out by heating the core sample in
water to 368.15 K and measuring the desorbed gas until the
volume of gas output is less than 10 ml within 30 min. This
process usually takes about 5 h. The core sample was then
broken into less than 0.25 mm using a sealing ball mill over 4
h. Finally repeating the indoor desorption test for additional 5
h to measure the volume of residual gas. The cumulative gas
content is usually expressed in terms of a dry ash-free base at
standard temperature and pressure (STP). The value is
converted into the received basis, i.e. volume under the given
coalbed gas reservoir conditions, for convenience to
incorporate with the particular reservoir geophysical logs for
coalbed gas reservoir evaluation. The gas content on the
received basis is calculated as follows:



where V is the coalbed gas content (cm3/g); A, M are ash
content and moisture content (%); P and T are pressure (MPa)
and temperature (K), respectively; and the subscripts ar and
daf stand for received basis and dry ash-free basis and c and
st represent coalbed and standard conditions, respectively[1].


Fig 2. Plan view of coal seam showing cleat structure and matrix blocks.



Fig 3. Schematic of methane flow dynamics in coal seams. CH4 desorbs from
the solid coal, diffuses through the bulk matrix, and flows into and through
the cleats. The pathway for CO2 sorption is exactly reversed [4].

Figure 2 illustrates the conceptual structure of a coal seam
and Figure 3 is the model for the methane flow in the
simulator used for this study. Although the fractures comprise
only a very small portion of the coal (typical values on the
order of 0.2-2%), they contain the largest permeability, and
therefore control the flow. During primary production
methane desorbs (quickly) to the gaseous state, diffuses
(slowly) through pores to the cleats, and undergoes
convective flow through the cleats to the production wells.
During sequestration carbon dioxide follows a reverse path:
convective flow transports it from the injection well through
the cleats, from which it slowly diffuses into the coal matrix
and then is quickly sorbed by the coal. If this transport is
slow compared to the rate of flow through the cleats, the time
required for can become important both for sequestration and
production [4].
II. SEQUESTRATION OF CO
2

The amount of carbon dioxide (CO
2
) in the earth's
atmosphere has risen from pre-industrial levels of 280 ppm to
more than 365 ppm, and most of this increase has been within
the last 60 years (Keeling and Whorf, 1998). This increase is
attributed widely to the burning of fossil fuels, and if current
trends in resource utilization continue, anthropogenic CO2
emissions will triple during the 21st Century (IPCC, 1996).
Among the principal ways CO
2
emissions may be reduced is
by sequestration in geologic formations, including coal. Coal
is an especially attractive target for sequestration not only
because it can store large quantities of gas, but because CO2
can be used to enhance recovery of coal bed methane, thereby
providing the basis for a market-based environmental
solution [5]. Sequestration of CO
2
in coal is a market-based
environmental solution with potential to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions while increasing coal bed methane recovery.
Producing coal bed methane through injection of CO
2
is also
more efficient than current techniques requiring production
and disposal of large quantities of formation water. However,
the sequestration capacity of coal basins has yet to be
quantified, and screening criteria need to be established to
select sites for demonstration of sequestration technology.
Bachu defines geological sequestration as the capture of
CO
2
directly from anthropogenic sources and disposing of it
deep into the ground for geologically significant periods of
time.6 Sequestration of CO
2
in geological formations is a
storage process. Here, coal seam sequestration is defined as
the storage of CO
2
from anthropogenic sources into deep,
unmineable coal seams for geologically significant times with
INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, NIRMA UNIVERSITY, AHMEDABAD 382 481, 08-10 DECEMBER, 2011
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or without the concomitant recovery of natural gas [6].
Technology and infrastructure must also be considered when
screening areas for the demonstration and implementation of
carbon sequestration technology. Emerging technologies to
be considered include CO
2
separators for flue gas and
enhanced gas recovery technology.
A vital goal of sequestration is to deliver CO
2
at low
enough cost so that coal bed methane remains economically
viable on the open market. Once enhanced coal bed methane
recovery is established, the groundwork can be laid for more
intensive carbon sequestration efforts independent of the
natural gas industry. Carbon sequestration further has
potential to improve safety in underground coal mines, and
abandoned mines can play a role in the separation of CO
2

from flue gas.
Infrastructure plays a critical role in the ways that carbon
sequestration programs can proceed. In a maturely developed
basin like the Black Warrior, sequestration efforts will take
advantage of the existing power generation, pipeline, and coal
bed methane field facilities. Although a lack of infrastructure
in many undeveloped basins may limit the applicability of
carbon sequestration technology, a high degree of flexibility
also exists. For example, flooding coal with CO
2
has potential
for use as a primary production procedure that will eliminate
concerns associated with water disposal and foster
unprecedented recovery of the coal bed methane
resource[5],[6].
III. USE OF ADSORPTION/DESORPTION ISOTHERMS IN CH4 PRODUCTION.
The primary recovery of CH
4
from coals is dependent on
several factors, such as desorption pressure, static coalbed
pressure, temperature, nature of the desorption isotherm,
seam thickness, absolute permeability, directional
permeability, relative permeability, porosity, diffusion,
capillary pressure, irreducible water saturation, and pore
compressibility.
When Enhanced Coalbed Methane(ECBM) recovery is
performed, the nature of the mixed gas adsorption/desorption
isotherms are also critically important. When CH
4
production
from low-permeability coalbeds, long, high-conductivity
fractures are needed such fractures can be provided by
drilling laterally into the seam to result in commercially
acceptable CH
4
production rates. If the CH
4
desorption rate
from the coal matrix and diffusion through the butt cleats is
higher than the flow rate in the face cleats, then CH
4

production is flow-limited and is driven by pressure and
can be modeled by Darcys Law.
On the other hand, if the CH
4
diffusion rate from the coal
matrix and into the butt cleats is slower than the rate in the
face cleats, then CH
4
production can be modeled by Ficks
Law and is diffusion-limited and driven by concentration
[6]. The sorption isotherm of a coal is the amount of gas that
can be stored in a coal at a particular temperature, as a
function of reservoir pressure. It is the maximum amount of
gas a coal can sorb, and if the coal is fully saturated, it is also
the maximum possible amount of gas-in-place. The sorption
isotherm is a laboratory measurement that is made on a
representative specimen of the coal seam to ascertain the gas
storage capacity, as a function of pressure at a constant
temperature.
IV. ENHANCED COALBED METHANE (ECBM) PRODUCTION.
ECBM may consist of various gas recovery processes (gas
drive, huff and puff, well stimulation) and could cover many
recovery agents (N
2
, CO
2
, flue gas, compressor gas, and other
industrial off gases). This concept should not restrict ECBM
to a particular phase in the reservoir production recovery
sequence, such as primary, secondary, or tertiary. The two
principal and best documented ECBM processes are N
2

injection and CO
2
injection. A combination of both methods
is also listed as being possibly useful for achieving optimal
economical recovery of CBM and/or economics.
CO2 injection method in laboratory isotherm measurements
demonstrates that medium-rank to high-rank coal can adsorb
approximately twice as much CO2 by volume as methane.
The common assumption is that, for higher-rank coals, the
ECBM process stores 2 moles of CO2 for every mole of CH
4

desorbed. Stanton et al determined that some low-rank coals
may adsorb as much as 10 moles of CO
2
for every mole of
CH
4
. Field applications and laboratory experiments showed
that this ratio could be even larger at depths greater than
approximately 800 m, where the gaseous CO
2
changes to
supercritical CO
2
.
V. RESERVOIR SCREENING CRITERIA FOR ECBM WITH CO2 SEQUESTRATION
Reservoir screening criteria are needed to locate areas favorable
for successful application of CO2-ECBM. Stevens et al.
Developed preliminary criteria, similar to those established for
Enhance Oil Recovery (EOR) injection-based processes, such as
water flood, miscible, and steam flood operations. Some of those
criteria were expanded and refined, based on the results of
reservoir simulations. Experience with EOR suggests that
screening criteria will continue to evolve for some time. These
initial criteria are as follows:
(a) Homogeneous, isolated reservoir: The coal reservoir(s)
should be laterally continuous and vertically isolated from other
coal seams. This will help containment of the CO2 injectant
within the reservoir and lead to efficient lateral sweep through
the reservoir. Ideally, the coal seam should be encased in
impermeable rock, such as shale.
(b) Simple structure: Coals should have minimal faults and
folding. Open faults and joints provide migration pathways for
CO2, whereas sealing faults compartmentalize the reservoir.
(c) Adequate permeability: Moderate cleat permeability
is necessary for effective ECBM (1-5 mD). Lower permeability
may be acceptable if coal has adequate injectivity and thickness.
(d) Optimal depth window: The low reservoir pressures of
shallow coal limits the amount of CO2 they can hold. The
stresses of deep coals may decrease permeability below
acceptable limits. This point is addressed in more detail below.
(e) Coal geometry: Few, thick coal deposits are favored over
stratigraphically dispersed (multiple, thin seams) settings spread
over a large interval.
(f) Gas saturation conditions: For ECBM recovery, coals
saturated with CH4 are preferred over undersaturated coals. From
a sequestration viewpoint, undersaturated coal seams are still
effective CO2 disposal zones. For CO2 sequestration, this
criterion should be perhaps replaced by a hydrology constraint.
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CURRENT TRENDS IN TECHNOLOGY, NUiCONE 2011
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Water movement through a coal deposit may displace CO2 and
transport it out of the deposit. Thus, the hydrology of candidate
coals over geologic time is an important consideration for CO2
sequestration.
(g) Lastly, caution should be exercised in selecting a coal seam
for sequestration if a deeper coal seam has been mined
previously or is likely to be mined. When a deeper seam has
been mined, it causes formations above it to subside, resulting in
development of fractures and microfractures, thus compromising
the sealing potential of any cap rocks.
VI. CO2- ENHANCED COALBED METHANE
The case study is discussed where CO2-enhanced coalbed
methane pilot was performed. The pilot field test of RECOPOL
(Reduction of CO2 emission by means of CO2 storage in coal
seams in the Silesian Coal Basin of Poland) project is one of the
first of its kind outside North America, and with the preceding
research will help in understanding the process and its potential
for CO2 reductions in Europe. In Canada, the Alberta Research
Council (ARC) consortium has developed a pilot site at the


Fig. 4. Schematic of well pattern with internal injectors and outside
producers; the quarter of the pattern used in the simulations is shaded
differently [4]]

Fenn Big Valley, with the objective to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions by subsurface injection of CO2 into deep coalbeds, and
to enhance coalbed methane recovery factors and production
rates as a result of CO2 injection. In Japan, a multiwell,
micropilot was developed for injecting CO2 in the Ishikari coal
basin. The National Energy Technology Laboratory of the U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE), with joint industry support, has
initiated a demonstration project for CO2 sequestration in an
unmineable coal seam in West Virginia[6].

INDIAN SCENARIO
The Gondwana coal basins of India are dispersed in four major
coal belts of which Damodar Valley Basin located in eastern
India is known to contain more mature coals. The Geotectono-
thermal setting in the Damodar basin is considered to be
causative factor in coal, attaining higher maturity. [9]
VII. CONCLUSION
Methane (CH
4
), the second most significant greenhouse
gas after carbon dioxide (CO
2
) which is mainly responsible
for ozone holes and global warming; traps atmospheric heat
approximately 24-times more than carbon dioxide is used as
unconventional source of energy. This is the big advantage.
Consumption of methane, which has the highest heat
retaining capacity and the lowest atmospheric life-time span
(about 10 years), will mitigate the global warming at a much
faster rate. Emergence of methane gas as an additional energy
resource warrants rational utilization and preservation of coal
deposits, which are both the producer and reservoir of this
gas and besides, burning can also be utilized for the
exploration of methane gas. These vast energy reserves can
be saved by selective utilization of coal. Also Sequestration
of CO
2
in coal is a promising market-based environmental
solution that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions while
increasing coal bed methane recovery.

VIII. REFERENCES
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