Underground hydrogen storage (UHS) is an emerging method to mitigate energy waste caused by the intermittency of renewable energy sources. Currently, the practical application of UHS in real sites remains limited. Numerical simulation has become a commonly adopted approach to simulate and predict the UHS process under complex geological conditions of the target reservoir, thereby enabling comprehensive evaluation and optimization of storage operation strategies. In this study, a three-dimensional numerical model of hydrogen injection and production in underground reservoirs was established to analyze the spatiotemporal migration and distribution of hydrogen, reservoir pressure evolution, and hydrogen production rate during storage and production. Various simulation cases were constructed to quantitatively investigate the influence of key operational parameters, including hydrogen injection rate, production pressure, duration of shut-in period, and the location and length of injection and production wells. The objective was to systematically evaluate the impact of controllable parameters on hydrogen migration and recovery behavior in the reservoir. Simulation results revealed that hydrogen injection rate and the location of injection and production intervals had the most significant effects on production efficiency. A nonlinear relationship was observed between hydrogen production rate and hydrogen injection rate. Additionally, the enhancement effect of increasing production well length and production pressure on hydrogen recovery gradually diminished. These findings provided valuable references for guiding the practical implementation of UHS.
Du et al. (Fri,) studied this question.