Hoe Creek No. 2: underground coal gasification experiment with air and oxygen/steam injection periods

Conference · Sun Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1978 · Soc. Pet. Eng. AIME, Pap.; (United States)

OSTI ID:6695134

Thorsness, C B; Cena, R J; Aiman, W R; Hill, R W; Stephens, D R

This study presents results from the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory Hoe Creek No. 2 underground coal-gasification experiment. The experiment used an injection well and a production well 18.7 m apart and alternating periods of air and oxygen/steam injection. Both low- and medium-heating-value gas was produced. Fourteen days of reverse combustion linked the injection and production wells and was followed by 58 days of forward-combustion gasification. The first 5 days of gasification produced good-quality gas, with the higher heating value averaging 125 kg/mol (140 btu/scf). After this period, the burn was along the top of the coal seam, which sharply lowered the gas quality. The high burn probably resulted from the injection-well casing being broken or burned off at the top of the coal seam. Switching injection to the bottom of the seam resulted in good-quality gas until the end of the experiment. Forward gasification consumed 1,310 cu m (1,952 tons) of coal. Air injection produced gas that averaged 94 kg/mol (105 btu/scf), and a 2-day oxygen/steam burn produced gas of medium heating value, 225 to 270 kg/mol (250 to 300 btu/scf), with no operational or safety problems. The same geometry that produced poor-quality gas with air produced good-quality gas with oxygen/steam. (10 refs.)

• Research Organization: Calif. Univ, Livermore
• OSTI ID: 6695134
• Report Number(s): CONF-781003-
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Soc. Pet. Eng. AIME, Pap.; (United States) Journal Volume: SPE-7512
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT
010404* -- Coal
Lignite
& Peat-- Gasification
CARBONACEOUS MATERIALS
COAL
COAL GASIFICATION
ENERGY SOURCES
ENHANCED RECOVERY
FIELD TESTS
FLUID INJECTION
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
GASIFICATION
IN-SITU GASIFICATION
IN-SITU PROCESSING
INJECTION WELLS
LAWRENCE LIVERMORE LABORATORY
MATERIALS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
PROCESSING
RECOVERY
STEAM INJECTION
TESTING
THERMAL RECOVERY
THERMOCHEMICAL PROCESSES
US AEC
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
WELL CASINGS
WELLS