Underground steam for deep-oil recovery
Within the next few months, Sandia Laboratories (Albuquerque, N.M.) plans to make preliminary lab tests of a system for underground steam generation. Under a 5-yr $23-million contract with DOE, Sandia is investigating methods for producing steam at a depth of 3,000 ft to recover heavy crude oil. Success of such technology would, according to Sandia, allow the extraction of more than one billion barrels of deep-lying oil in the continental U.S. Sandia's target is heavy crude (less than 17 API gravity) that lies too deep for conventional steam flooding. Sandia's system consists of a 20-ft long generator that is lowered down a 7-in.-diameter borehole. Liquid or gaseous fuel is pumped into the generator's combustion chamber and atomized with air. The mix is ignited, and the combustion gases heat water injected below the chamber, producing steam in abundance. Steam and offgases exit from the generator at about 700/sup 0/F, and rise about 500 ft into adjacent oil formations.
- OSTI ID:
- 6681375
- Journal Information:
- Chem. Eng. (N.Y.); (United States), Journal Name: Chem. Eng. (N.Y.); (United States) Vol. 85:11; ISSN CHEEA
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
020300* -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
COMBUSTION
ENERGY SOURCES
ENHANCED RECOVERY
FLUID INJECTION
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
IN-SITU COMBUSTION
IN-SITU PROCESSING
OIL WELLS
OXIDATION
PETROLEUM
PROCESSING
RECOVERY
STEAM INJECTION
STIMULATION
THERMAL RECOVERY
THERMOCHEMICAL PROCESSES
WELL STIMULATION
WELLS