Dr. Katherine Duncker Romanak
Since 2007, Dr. Katherine Romanak has been a lead geochemist who has developed environmental monitoring plans for over 6 actively injecting, large-scale CO2 storage projects. Katherine is an academic that works alongside industry to develop, innovate, and apply CO2 storage technology in real-world applications. Katherine pioneered a process-based soil gas monitoring approach, which avoids costly and complex baseline data collection and initiated the paradigm shift of near-surface monitoring. Katherine’s CO2 monitoring method has become a standard approach to environmental monitoring worldwide. She has championed the concept of leakage “attribution” as a critical part of monitoring in the near surface.
Katherine was an independent technical lead assessing the first-ever claim of CO2 leakage by a landowner living on the Kerr Farm near a CO2 injection site. Using attribution techniques, Katherine and her team determined that no leakage had occurred at the Kerr Farm, and the experience outlines the importance of having protocols for responding to stakeholder concerns in place before a project begins.
Katherine is often the scientist-in-the-room providing technical information into global regulations at the UNFCCC COPs and in the USA (Class VI and California Low Carbon Fuel Standard CCS protocol), which has led to an improvement of responsibly injecting CO2 and their regulations that protect both the environment and carbon storage projects. Katherine serves on many international advisory panels, and technical boards, and continues to effectively convey monitoring and environmental safety for geological CO2 storage to wide stakeholder audiences. Katherine provides professional training for subsurface oil and gas professionals who want to repurpose their skills for CCS. Katherine is the co-instructor who helped develop the new online CCS certification program at The University of Texas at Austin.
Research Interests
Geochemistry and isotope systematics of carbon cycling in the vadose zone and in freshwater aquifers.
Soil-gas monitoring at CO2 sequestration sites.
Geochemical behavior of fluids in deep engineered reservoirs
Fate and transport of organic contaminants.
Education
Ph.D. Geology, 1997, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
M.S. Geology, 1988, University of Texas, Arlington, TX
B.S. Geology, 1984, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX
Professional History
Research Professor, Bureau of Economic Geology, The University of Texas at Austin, Present–September 2023
Research Scientist, Bureau of Economic Geology, The University of Texas at Austin, August 2023–September 2015
Research Associate, Bureau of Economic Geology, The University of Texas at Austin, August 2015–June 2008
Consulting Geochemist, Bureau of Economic Geology, The University of Texas at Austin, May 2008–October 2007
Staff Scientist, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Division of Mineral Sciences, Global Volcanism Program, Washington D.C., May 1990–July 1988
Principal Research Accomplishments & Impacts
Tomakomai Offshore CCS Demonstration Project, Hokkaido Japan (2017–2016) Environmental monitoring at Japan’s first full-chain CCS project, the Tomakomai CCS Demonstration Project led by Japan CCS Co. Ltd to implement and demonstrate CCUS projects in Japan, and to investigate associated technologies through international collaboration.
Hastings and West Ranch CO2-EOR sites, Texas USA (2016–2011) Near-surface monitoring design and implementation at the largest (< 1.5MMT/year) U.S. commercial CCS projects (Petra Nova and Air Products), representing the first commercial applications of monitoring techniques developed and tested at the Cranfield site.
Cranfield Project, Mississippi USA (2015–2009) Near-surface monitoring design and implementation at the first project in the US DOE Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership portfolio to reach 1 million metric tons (MMT) of storage, finally reaching 5 MMT.
CTSCo Environmental Baseline Works, Queensland, Australia (2018–2015) Soil-gas monitoring design and implementation to demonstrate the technical viability, integration and safe operation of CCS in the Surat Basin during the feasibility study stage, and to undergo assessments and approvals in environmental, social and technical aspects under relevant government regulation.
Kerr Farm Allegation of Leakage at the Weyburn-Midale CO2 storage site Saskatchewan, Canada (2013–2011) Led a team to respond to the first-ever claim of leakage at a CO2 storage site which provided valuable experience in how to approach public engagement and environmental monitoring.
SACROC Groundwater Quality Study, Permian Basin, USA (2008–2007) Performed a geochemical assessment looking for potential impacts to groundwater from the longest running CO2 injection in the world (50 years) at SACROC Oilfield, Texas, USA.
Selected Publications
Atkinson L., Dankel, D. J., and Romanak, K. D., 2024, The effect of monitoring complexity on stakeholder acceptance of CO2 geological storage projects in the US gulf coast region: Frontiers in Marine Science, v. 10:1154543, p. 1–17, http://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2023.1154543.
Romanak, K. D., and Dixon, T., 2022, CO2 storage guidelines and the science of monitoring: achieving project success under the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard CCS Protocol and other global regulations: International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, v. 113, no. 103523, 10 p., http://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijggc.2021.103523.
Blackford, J., Romanak, K., Huvenne, V. A., Lichtschlag, A., Strong, J. A., Alendal, G., and Dankel, D. J., 2021, Efficient marine environmental characterisation to support monitoring of geological CO2 storage International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, v. 109, no. 103388, p. 1–16, https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.ijggc.2021.103388.
Romanak, K. D., Fridahl, M., and Dixon, T., 2022, Attitudes on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) within the UNFCCC (presentation), 16th Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies Conference, Lyon,23–27 October, 2022 (GHGT-16).
Bakhshian, S., and Romanak, K., 2021, DeepSense: A Physics-Guided Deep Learning Paradigm for Anomaly Detection in Soil Gas Data at Geologic CO2 Storage Sites. Environmental Science & Technology, v. 55, no. 22, p. 15531–15541, https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c04048.
Romanak, K. D., and Bomse, D. S., 2020, Field Assessment of Sensor Technology for Environmental Monitoring Using a Process-Based Soil Gas Method at Geologic CO2 Storage Sites.” International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 96 (May): 103003, 12 p., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijggc.2020.103003.
Romanak, K. D., Bennett, P. C., Yang, C., and Hovorka, S. D., 2012, Process-based approach to CO2 leakage detection by vadose zone gas monitoring at geologic CO2 storage sites: Geophysical Research Letters, v. 39, L15405, https://doi.org/10.1029/2012GL052426
Dixon, T., and Romanak, K. D., 2015, Improving monitoring protocols for CO2 geological storage with technical advances in CO2 attribution monitoring: International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, v. 41, p. 29–40, http://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijggc.2015.05.029.
Romanak, K. D., Wolaver, B., Yang, C., Sherk, G. W., Dale, J., Dobeck, L. M., & Spangler, L. H., 2014. Process-based soil gas leakage assessment at the Kerr Farm: Comparison of results to leakage proxies at ZERT and Mt. Etna. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, v. 30, p. 42–57, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijggc.2014.08.008.
Romanak, K. D., Smyth, R. C., Yang, C., Hovorka, S. D., Rearick, M., and Lu, J., 2012, Sensitivity of groundwater systems to CO2: application of a site-specific analysis of carbonate monitoring parameters at the SACROC CO2-enhanced oil field: International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, v. 5, no. 1, p. 142–152, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijggc.2011.10.011.
Patents
Romanak, K., and Bennett, P. C., 2017, Process-Based Approach for the Detection of CO2 Injectate Leakage (US Patent number: 9816972).
Romanak, K., and Bennett, P.C., 2017, Process-Based Approach for Detection of Deep Gas Invading the Surface (U.S. Patent number: 9645129).
