On the application of silica gel for mitigating CO<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline" id="d1e927" altimg="si129.svg"><mml:msub><mml:mrow /><mml:mrow><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:mrow></mml:msub></mml:math> leakage in CCS projects: Rheological properties and chemical stability

Silica sol gels have the potential to act as sealing agents to reduce leakage risks associated with long-term CO2 storage. This study considers the effects of brines of varying chemical composition on the formation of sol gels, their viscosity, and their long term stability. The gelation times of sol–gel solutions were measured for different concentrations of SiO2, Na+, K+, Ca2＋, and Mg2+ as well as pH levels. Individually, increased...