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DESIGN OF UNDERGROUND STORAGE CAVERNS

Conference Paper · November 2009

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INDOROCK 2009: Second Indian Rock Conference by ISRMTT12 – 13 November 2009

DESIGN OF UNDERGROUND STORAGE CAVERNS

C. P. Chakravarthy#, G.Kannan, Dr. R. Rath, Dr. A. Nanda, S. Malkani

Sub Surface Projects Division, Engineers India Ltd., New Delhi 110 066
(#e-mail of corresponding author: pavan.chakravarthy@eil.co.in)

ABSTRACT: Owing to the present geo-political scenario of the world, energy security of a nation has become
very important. In order to ensure energy security, federally owned oil stocks are stored in huge underground
storage caverns. Strategic locations are selected with an option of providing the most flexible means of oil and
gas transport network. Storage in Underground Unlined Rock Caverns are currently under implementation in
India. An established technology successfully adopted in many countries, the principle of storage essentially
employs ground water pressure for containing the product within an unlined rock cavern. Based on a site
campaign involving geological, geo-physical, geo-technical and geo-hydrological investigations, it is established
that rock formations in conjunction with ground water conditions are competent for construction of caverns and
suitable to store the hydrocarbons. The present paper outlines the design aspects of unlined underground mined
rock caverns.
1 INTRODUCTION
Storage of hydrocarbon in unlined rock caverns is the most economical solution for storage of large volumes.
The basic principle of storage in unlined rock caverns is the hydraulic confinement. Thus the rock caverns are
planned at a depth such that there is sufficient hydrostatic pressure to counter the vapour pressure or liquid
pressure of the stored product on the walls of the cavern (See Figure 1).
These caverns are created where permanent ground water table is high. In order to further secure the water
flow from the rock mass towards the cavern, a water curtain system is provided consisting of galleries located
above the crown of the cavern. A saturated rock mass and ground water flowing into caverns, ensures proper
sealing of the stored product from leakage. For ensuring stability of the caverns, a support system of shotcreting
and rock bolting is commonly used.
The facility is designed to handle the product stored and to control the entire process for receipt and
evacuation of the product from the cavern while ensuring secure inventory of the product.
The layout, cross-section and elevation of the caverns are designed considering the product to be stored and
operational requirements as well as the geotechnical conditions and geological setting at site. The overall layout
and the cross-section of the cavern is selected so as to achieve a favourable stress condition vis-à-vis the in-situ
stress regime of the site which also take into account any major geological structures. The caverns are oriented in
a direction so as to come across minimum geological problems such as joints, shear zones and principal planes of
horizontal stresses in the rock while excavating the caverns. The caverns, in general have a D shaped cross
section (Rath et al, 2008).
Estimation of the rock mass properties and rock support are initially performed using the empirical rock
mass classification schemes proposed by Bieniawski (RMR), Barton (Q-system) and / or Hoek-Brown (GSI).
The rock caverns are then numerically analysed for stresses and wedge stability.
Depending on the site conditions, while the size and shape of the caverns could vary, the crown level of the
caverns is designed adequately below the ground water level so as to ensure the hydro static pressure requirement
for containment of the product. Hydrodynamic containment is further reinforced by provision of a water curtain
system above the cavern. This is then further confirmed through numerical modelling.
For the storage purpose, in general ‘U’ shaped caverns are planned, having leg lengths proportional to
volume of the type of crude to be stored and number of caverns depending on the suitability of the site.
While the cavern geometry is dependent on the geological setting of the selected area, in general the typical
dimension of a cavern cross section is about 20m to 35m in height and 15m to 20m in width. However, the
length of the cavern is designed to accommodate the requisite volume of storage and the extent of suitable rock
quality at required depth is available. In general approach, the caverns are laid out parallelly with minimum
separation of 30m.
Water infiltration gallery and water curtains, above the crown level of the cavern are provided to ensure a
constant water pressure towards the caverns. Boreholes are drilled from the water curtain tunnel to intersect all
the joints of rock mass. The water curtain gallery and boreholes are required to be pressurised at-least 50m ahead
of the main cavern to ensure saturation during the construction phase (Tilak and Nanda, 2006).
The submersible pumps in the caverns are designed to deliver the crude oil either to the nearest refineries or
back loading in the tankers for despatch to other refineries, through new pipelines to be connected to the existing
pipelines.

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INDOROCK 2009: Second Indian Rock Conference by ISRMTT12 – 13 November 2009

Figure 2 illustrates a typical oil storage facility. Each U-shaped cavern unit is designed to have a shaft with
pump installations and pump pit, located at the end of one leg of the cavern, while the inlet shaft is located at the
end of the other leg. The cavern roof is horizontal along the full length of the cavern. To facilitate the flow of
crude as well as de-waxing / de-sludging during operation, flushing and cleaning of the floor, the cavern bottom
is given a longitudinal & transverse slope and covered by floor concrete laid in slope.
The section of the water curtain tunnels has been designed with a dimension of 6.5m x 6.5m (w x h). The
boreholes are to be drilled from the water curtain tunnel with an initial typical spacing of 10 m, with an extension
of 20 meters outside the storage caverns. During detail design and construction, the size of the tunnel shall be
adapted for the selected type of drilling equipment, bore-hole direction etc. The bore hole details such as length,
spacing, orientation and inclination are to be finalised after excavation of the water curtain tunnel.
2 INVESTIGATIONS
Through a pre-feasibility study and reconnaissance survey of the region the proposed location is selected.
Thereafter, a specific area is selected for under taking the investigations during the DFR stage (Rath Et al, 2002).
For the purpose of geological mapping traverses are made across the selected site and the open rock quarries
so as to map the exposures/ out crops, litho-units and large scale structural features such as faults, and small scale
discontinuities including the joint sets associated with the outcrops. The observed details are plotted and later on
translated on to the detailed topographic maps prepared at a scale of 1: 2000, using total station. Having mapped
the geological setting of the site, investigation scheme for electrical resistivity and seismic refraction survey are
finalised. Further, based on the geological mapping core drilling locations are selected so as to have a
representative coverage of the entire area. During the core drilling, geological logging and petrographic analysis
of the cores are undertaken so as to corroborate the surface geological interpretations. Geophysical logging is
also carried out in the core-holes for interpretation of the structural discontinuities. Since, containment of the
storage facilities are controlled by the hydro-geological regime of the site, site specific hydro-geological tests are
performed in the core-drills.
However, prior to commencement of the project it is recommended that a supplementary investigation
campaign be carried out. This would involve a focused approach for the selected location and collection of
geological, geotechnical and hydro-geological data so as to minimise the technical uncertainties.
As a typical case in study, during the Detailed Feasibility Studies based on the geological mapping 6 core
drilling ( 3 Inclined & 3 vertical) locations were selected so as to have a representative coverage of the entire
area including geological logging, laboratory tests of rock samples and petro-graphic analysis of the cores were
undertaken. The project site was covered through six seismic refraction survey lines totaling about 2.5 km length
and six lines of electrical resistivity surveys lines totaling about 5.0 km. Subsequent to coring, hydro-geological
tests such as short duration and long duration pressure tests are performed.
As part of the supplementary investigations, for the purpose of development of the project specific
geological model activities such as Engineering geological mapping of the site ( an approx. area of one sq.km.)
and geophysical investigations comprising of seismic refraction surveys of 2500m line meter and electrical
resistivity surveys of 2500m line meter covering the selected location were carried out. In addition, six core holes
were drilled in the project site which includes four vertical coreholes and two inclined coreholes, however, due
care was taken in selecting the corehole locations so as not to interfere with the over all scheme of cavern layout.
Geological core logging and Geophysical logging of the coreholes for the selected location were also carried out.
Laboratory tests of rock samples were also carried out to arrive at the geotechnical design parameters for
numerical modeling. This followed hydro-geological tests such as short duration and long duration pressure
tests under taken for the core holes.
3.0 GEOLOGICAL MODEL
Based on the review of available literature, maps and results of the site specific investigations carried out
during the DFR stage and during the supplementary investigations stage, prior to implementation of the project,
an assessment is made is made to develop the geological model of the project site.
Broadly the model needs to cover the regional geological settings so as to further focus on the project
geological setting. The later encompass the following key aspects.

• Geomorphology
• Litho stratigraphy
• Litho limits
• Tectonics and
• Discontinuities

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INDOROCK 2009: Second Indian Rock Conference by ISRMTT12 – 13 November 2009

In a typical case in study, the project site is located within the peninsular gnessic complex, with the banded
gneisses as the predominant litho unit. Being located in the peninsular region, the site belongs to a stable regional
zone, classified as zone III as per seismic zone map of India.
The topography of the area exhibits an undulatory hilly terrain traversed by a narrow central valley oriented
roughly east-west. The fringing plateaus on either side have an elevation difference of about 20 m. The plateau
and the flanks towards the valley are characterised by a number of gneissic hilly outcrops orientated North–South
with an elevation of about 30 m. The central valley and the valley flanking the northern part of the site is
characterised by vegetation and paddy fields.
The gneissic rocks belonging to this area include granites, granodiorites, gneissic granites and banded or
composite gneisses, the granitic constituents of which show distinct signs of intrusion. The banded gneisses
consist of white bands of quartz-feldspar alternating with dark bands containing hornblende, biotite and minor
accessories. Two types of alterations were observed during surface mapping and core logging namely weathering
and hydrothermal alteration.
As part of the geophysical investigation, interpretation of the seismic refraction survey data has been carried
out with special attention to find out any low velocity zone within the basement rock along the seismic lines.
A reasonable correlations of seismic results have been reported when compared with the available drill hole
data. No distinct low velocity media or anomalous features are reported from the study.
In addition to the above, 2D resistivity imaging survey was carried out along the seismic lines to
supplement/compliment the findings inferred from seismic survey and detailed geological mapping. The
interpretation of the Resistivity data has been carried out with special attention to find out any low resistivity
zones within the basement rock having very high resistivity along the resistivity lines.
As has been reported from the Resistivity images, at some places very low resistivity zones have been
identified below high resistivity zones. These low resistivity zones indicate highly jointed or fractured rock mass
of Granite / Gneissose Granite under saturated condition.
These low resistivity zones are found to be having a reasonable correlation with the geological logging of
cores with joint sets. However, having adopted an integrated approach of analyzing the data along with surface
geological mapping, no major structural weakness zone is expected at the site

Three main striking features were observed during the geological mapping:

• N010 °E oriented depressed areas, essentially in the NW part of the site

• N160 °E oriented ridges and depressed zones of gneiss
• N110 °E central valley.

The undulating topographic surface is attributable to the ridges and the associated depressions / valleys.
The ridges are basically outcrops of fresh gneiss and represent roughly 50 % of the covered area with a typical
shape of an elephant’s back. The study through satellite images of the area confirms the terrain configuration. In
general, the depression / valley areas are represented by lateritic soil and paddy fields.

Structural discontinuities such as dykes, lineaments and joints are reported considering the over all area
covered during DFR studies, however at the site area of the underground facilities, no major structural weakness
zone is expected.
4.0 HYDROGEOLOGICAL MODEL
Owing to the containment principle of storage, the hydrogeological regime of the project site forms an
important aspect, which encompasses the following aspects.

• Topography
• Annual rainfall, recharge
• Geological setting
• Hydrogeological properties

In a typical case in study, the project is characterised by an undulatory hilly terrain traversed by a narrow
central valley oriented roughly east-west.
The undulating topographic surface is attributable to the ridges and the associated depressions / valleys.
The ridges are basically outcrops of fresh gneiss and represent roughly 50 % of the covered area in general; the
depression / valley areas are represented by lateritic soils and paddy fields.
The average rainfall in this region is about 4000 mm per year. The evaporation data for this region is
reported to be about more than 50%. The topography of the site area leads to heavy surface runoff towards the

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INDOROCK 2009: Second Indian Rock Conference by ISRMTT12 – 13 November 2009

valley at north and south. About 80% of the surface runoff within the site area is flowing towards north and the
rest towards south.
The site is characterized by a thin layer of lateritic or soil material, followed by a thin layer of weathered
rock and subsequently hard gneiss/granite with a low to very low hydraulic conductivity. In addition there is a
large area of exposed rocks with few joints. The average recharge in hard rocks in Peninsular India is of the order
of 10% of the precipitation. However at the site the rock is massive with few joints and limited soil cover with
large surface runoff. In view of the above the recharge is likely to be between 1-5% of 4000 mm per year.
The top soil is expected to have high permeability while Hydraulic conductivity for the weathered bedrock
ranges between 5 x10-10 to 4 x10-8 m/s seems to average at about 5 x10-9 m/s but the thickness of this zone
varies between 1 and 5m.All the boreholes show a globally low hydraulic conductivity lower than 1 x 10 -10 m/s
for the fresh bed rock with locally high values in the jointed zones The study results also suggest that there is no
difference in hydraulic properties for the rockmass at cavern level compared to the rockmass as a whole. The
average hydraulic conductivity of this jointed rockmass is on the order of 1 x 10-7 m/s. Based on the above
model the hydro-geological design aspects were derived.
Model studies were carried out to check the flow pattern around the caverns so as to confirm hydraulic
containment and estimate seepage rates based on the data collected during the supplementary investigations. The
following design parameters are considered

• Provision of water curtain above the cavern with boreholes charged to a head equivalent to (+0) m.
• Maximum operating gas pressure (1.3 bar g) at the cavern crown.
• The vertical distance between water curtain gallery and Cavern is 20m (requirement of hydraulic
gradient greater than 1 at cavern roof level)

A horizontal water curtain is constructed 20m above the cavern roof. Preliminary borehole spacing is about
10 meters. The borehole extends beyond the cavern wall. The water curtain gallery is oriented parallel to
alignment of cavern. However based on the geological mapping of the water curtain gallery the appropriate
orientation, spacing and length of the boreholes are decided.

Finite element studies were carried out to estimate hydraulic gradient, seepage in the caverns during
construction and water requirement during construction employing a 2D model, The analysis were carried out
under two conditions of operation, i.e. completely empty at atmospheric pressure and another at uniform
maximum normal vapour pressure of 1.3 bar g. The ground water table was located at +0 MSL and the water
curtain gallery at -20 MSL. (See Figure 3)

The water seepage during construction and operation of the two storage units are mainly dependent on the
following parameters:

• overall work progress;

• the characteristics, number, size and hydraulic conductivity of water-bearing joints and zones;
• the efficiency of grouting works performed;
• the water table level fluctuation;
• the pressure applied on the water curtain system
5.0 GEOTECHNICAL MODEL
Support system design and the excavation method is evaluated by the following methods:
• Rock mass Classification
• Stress Analysis
• Wedge analysis

Rock Mass Classification: Rock mass classification has the following general aim in an engineering
application:
• To divide a particular rock mass into groups of similar behaviour;
• To provide a basis for understanding the characteristics of each group;
• To yield quantitative data for engineering design; and
• To provide a common basis for communication.

Generally Q-system according to Barton et al (1974) shall be used for hard rock tunneling, both as prognosis
for detailed design and during excavation mapping.

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INDOROCK 2009: Second Indian Rock Conference by ISRMTT12 – 13 November 2009

Following are the Q parameters are to be evaluated based on the geometry of the opening, core drilling and
laboratory investigations: Rock Quality designation (RQD), Joint set number (Jn), Joint roughness number (Jr),
Joint alteration number (Ja), joint water reduction factor (Jw), Strength reduction factor (SRF), Excavation
support ratio (ESR) and excavation span (De).
Based on the magnitudes of above parameters obtained density of rockbolts and thickness of the shotcrete
are decided from Grimstad and Barton support design charts for various Q-classes. For the design of wall support
modified Q is used.

Stress Analysis: The total stress situation in the vicinity of an excavation depends on the in-situ stress field,
orientation of the excavation with respect to the in situ stress field, geometry of the excavation and excavation
stages (Usmani and Nanda, 2008).

The Stress analysis is carried out to analyze the following

• Stress/Strain situation and distribution in the rock mass

• State and extension of possible yielding zones.
• Pillar stresses
• Rock displacements, internal stresses and forces

For the case under study, the rock formation is considered as a homogenous and elasto-plastic material. 2D
plane strain analysis was carried out using FEM software.
Design input parameters: Intact Rock parameters - Bulk density is 0.027MN/m3, Uniaxial compressive
strength is 133 MPa, Tensile strength is 4 MPa, Young’s modulus is 50 GPa, Poisson’s ratio is 0.23 and mi is 28(
for gneiss) are obtained from the laboratory tests.
Rockmass parameters - Rock-mass strength is 90 MPa , rockmass Deformation modulus 50 GPa, Hoek and
Brown rock mass Strength Parameters – mb is 17.91, s is 0.2775 and a is 0.500 are obtained from the rock lab
software of rockscience group and correlations.
In-situ stresses: Vertical stress is found from the topographical survey and the horizontal stresses are
determined from hydro-fracturing test conducted at the cavern depth. The ratio of horizontal to vertical stress is
around 4.0.
Results obtained from the stress analysis are used to determine the pillar stability and extent of the yield
zone. (See Figure 4)

Wedge Analysis: After identification of the main joint sets carried out from core geological observation, the
potential unstable wedges formed by the main gallery intersecting the identified joint sets are investigated using
dedicated software namely UNWEDGE (Rocsciences). This software uses the block theory to analyse the
wedges.

The main assumptions for the analysis are given below:

• The rock mass density is taken equal

• The joints are assumed to be planar and continuous. They are characterized by a Mohr-Coulomb
criterion
• Considering the UNWEDGE analysis, the beneficial effects of the in-situ stresses on the wedge stability
are also ignored in the analysis.

The wedges are tetrahedral in nature, and defined by three intersecting discontinuities in UNWEDGE. The
aim of this analysis is the detection of the most unfavourable combination of joint sets. The wedges considered
are the largest wedges which can be formed for the given geometrical conditions. The probability that such huge
wedges occur is very low since the wedge size in actual rock mass is limited by the persistence and spacing of
the discontinuities.
Joint properties, orientation of the cavern and persistence of the joints are given as the basic input parameters
Results obtained from wedge analysis will give the factor of safety of the critical wedges formed, and apex
height of the wedge. Based on these results length of the rockbolt is decided and the spacing of the rock bolts
obtained from empirical methods is evaluated. Figure 5 illustrate typical results of the wedge analysis.

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INDOROCK 2009: Second Indian Rock Conference by ISRMTT12 – 13 November 2009

6.0 CONCLUSION
Advantages in support of under ground storage in unlined rock caverns compared to conventional surface
storage can be listed as under:

• minimal requirement of surface land;

• nearly zero risk of fire hazards;
• almost complete protection against bombing and sabotages;
• Zero risk of ground water contamination through oil seepage.

Unlined storage caverns are normally excavated as large horizontal tunnels. Since confinement of the stored
product is achieved through the existing hydrostatic pressure, in principle, caverns can be designed to a shape
confirming the structural stability and stress regime of the site, provided they are constructed well below the
ground water level. However, the cavern roof is located at such a depth below the water table that the ground
water pressure is higher than the gas pressure in the cavern. And, dimensions of the cavern such as height, width
and layout are decided based on the requisite storage volume, rock quality, excavation methodology to be
adopted and technical requirements.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors wish to thank management of Engineers India Ltd. New Delhi for according permission to
publish the article.

REFERENCES

Rath, R., Nanda, A., Malkani, S., Grover, R. K., (2008) : Under Ground Rock Caverns for Storage of
Hydrocarbons, Tunnels & Underground Structures, Civil Engineering & Construction review, November 2008.

Rath, R., Babu, C. C., Malkani, S., Reddy, V.V., (2002): Site selection for an Unlined Rock Cavern storage
facility- A case study from Gujarat”, Proc. International Society of Rock Mechanics Conference, Delhi.

Tilak, R. and Nanda, A. (2006): “Design Aspects of Underground Rock Caverns for Storage of Hydrocarbons”,
Proc. Indian Geotechnical Conference, Chennai.

Usmani, A. and Nanda, A. (2008): “Numerical Modelling of Underground Structures” Proc. Geo symposium,
Delhi.

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INDOROCK 2009: Second Indian Rock Conference by ISRMTT12 – 13 November 2009

Figure 1: 3-Dimensional Model of a typical unlined underground cavern

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INDOROCK 2009: Second Indian Rock Conference by ISRMTT12 – 13 November 2009

Figure 2: A typical cavern layout along with superimposed water curtain system.

Figure 3: Flow vectors from water curtain system towards cavern

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 INDOROCK 2009: Second Indian Rock Conference by ISRMTT12 – 13 November 2009

Figure 4: Maximum Principal Stress Contours

Figure 5: Critical Wedges formed

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