Cybera data science consultation opens up opportunities for carbon capture and storage

Earlier this year, Cybera’s data science team ran a month-long partnership with carbon, capture, storage and utilization company, CMC Research Institutes. Our objective was to help investigate their carbon injection data, which they had been collecting for about a year. The overall goal was to improve the efficiency of their facility, and mitigate any well shut downs.

CMC Research Institutes operates a carbon capture and storage facility in Newell County, Alberta (near Brooks). Their mission is to capture carbon dioxide (CO2) that would otherwise go into the atmosphere, and inject it into the underground bedrock. Technologies such as carbon capture and storage show great potential in reducing the impacts of large-scale industry on the environment.

Many challenges can occur when working on a project of this scope in Alberta, including the drastic changes in weather (including dramatic temperature and air pressure shifts). This is why CMC Research Institute approached Cybera’s data scientists during our “call for proposals” last winter. They specifically want to look for a way to better identify, organize, and analyze the data collected at their Newell County site while CO2 is being injected into the bedrock. This data can help them improve the well’s efficiency.

Over the course of a month, our team sifted through the well site data looking for specific trends. As is important with any data science project, CMC worked closely with the data scientists to provide technical context for the information being reviewed. This included frequent team briefings, as well as a visit to the site by Cybera.

At the completion of the project, Cybera’s data scientists provided CMC Research Institute with a script (code) that would help them identify specific points in time of when they were injecting the well and significant events were occurring (like changes in weather or pressure). This script will help them narrow years’ worth of data into a few critical hours of injecting to focus on.

“One of the biggest things we have been able to gain [from working with Cybera] is an understanding of what we are missing and how to better identify our own events on a go-forward basis,” says Greg Maidment, Project Manager at CMC Research Institutes.

“We didn’t know what we didn’t know,” adds Shamez Kotadia, Business Manager at CMC Research Institutes. “This opened up possibilities [for] how we can leverage machine learning to do some of the data processing, and pointed us to where the gaps are.” 

“The goal of projects like this is for organizations to adopt data science practices,” says Barb Carra, CEO of Cybera. “In doing so, we believe organizations can improve their overall efficiency — whether economic or environmental — while creating jobs for emerging data scientists in Alberta.” 

This project ties in with the work Cybera has been doing over the past two years to encourage the adoption of data science in the Alberta ecosystem. The team offers a program of consultations, fellowships, and workshops. If you’d like to learn more about the Data Science for Albertans program, visit Cybera’s website.

BACKGROUND

About CMC Research Institutes:

CMC Research Institutes operates with support from the Government of Alberta, Western Diversification, the University of Calgary and industry support from oil and gas including Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance.

About Cybera:

Cybera is Alberta’s not-for-profit organization responsible for driving economic growth through the use of digital technology. Our core role is to oversee the development and operations of Alberta’s cyberinfrastructure – the advanced system of networks and computers that keep government, educators, not-for-profits, and entrepreneurs at the forefront of technological change. We work with our members to ensure a connected future for all Albertans.

About Data Science For Albertans:

Cybera’s Data Science For Albertans program is focused on encouraging the adoption of data science in the province through introductory workshops, consultations, providing proof of concepts and industry fellowships.