Running on empty?Is Saskatchewan's oil supply running out? Everyone recognizes that petroleum is one of Saskatchewan's most important resources, but is our oil gauge oil gauge n → indicador m del aceite oil gauge n → jauge f de niveau d'huile oil gauge oil n → on low? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Oil is a non-renewable resource and the supply is ultimately limited. In Saskatchewan, and in the rest of the world for that matter, the days of relatively inexpensive, easy-to-extract oil are coming to an end. In the case of heavy oil, although Saskatchewan's production has doubled over the last decade, we are now in a state of rapid decline. As the accompanying graph indicates, heavy oil production is expected to be about half the current rate 10 years from now. Note that the amount of production is expressed in thousands of cubic metres Noun 1. cubic metre - a metric unit of volume or capacity equal to 1000 liters cubic meter, kiloliter, kilolitre metric capacity unit - a capacity unit defined in metric terms per day. Conventional methods of extracting oil leave most of the oil underground. Typically, about 50 to 70 per cent of the oil is left behind when a well is abandoned. When it comes to heavy oil, almost 90 per cent of the resource--approximately 26 billion barrels to date in Saskatchewan and Alberta--is still underground. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] Saskatchewan's research community and its industry partners are fully engaged in the search for improved oil recovery techniques. Four areas are currently being studied. Conventional "cold flow" production accounts for a significant portion of the heavy oil produced in Saskatchewan. The oil industry is seeking ways to optimize this process based on the development of computer models that address issues such the appropriate spacing of wells. Better models will help reservoir engineers determine the best way to exploit a cold production field and lead to the development of post-cold production techniques. A second research priority is the use of solvents to increase oil recovery. Solvents of various kinds can be injected into the reservoir to increase the flow of light, medium, and also heavy oils. The potential to sequester sequester v. to keep separate or apart. In so-called "high-profile" criminal prosecutions (involving major crimes, events, or persons given wide publicity) the jury is sometimes "sequestered" in a hotel without access to news media, the general public or their greenhouse gases greenhouse gas n. Any of the atmospheric gases that contribute to the greenhouse effect. greenhouse gas in oil reservoirs An oil reservoir, petroleum system or petroleum reservoir is often thought of as being an underground "lake" of oil, but it is actually composed of hydrocarbons contained in porous rock formations. provides an additional incentive to develop this technology. Industry is currently operating a major project involving the injection of carbon dioxide carbon dioxide, chemical compound, CO2, a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is about one and one-half times as dense as air under ordinary conditions of temperature and pressure. , the most significant greenhouse gas, in the Weyburn reservoir in southeast Saskatchewan. This billion-dollar venture is expected to recover an additional 130 million barrels of oil over a 25-year period. Carbon dioxide can be obtained as a waste product in the flue gases Flue gas is gas that exits to the atmosphere via a flue, which is a pipe or channel for conveying exhaust gases from a fireplace, oven, furnace, boiler or steam generator. Quite often, it refers to the combustion exhaust gas produced at power plants. from power plants and other industrial sources. Vapex (vapor extraction), another form of solvent injection for heavy oil recovery, could increase production by several billion barrels. The Vapex process also reduces the carbon dioxide emissions and fresh water use associated with steam injection, a standard method of producing heavy oil. A third area of study involves the control of the unwanted production of large volumes of water which limits the productive life of mature oil wells. Control of excess water production improves profitability by curbing the cost of disposing of this water in an environmentally safe way and by allowing additional oil to be recovered economically. A fourth research area is enhanced waterflooding. Waterflooding is used to aid oil production mainly for light and medium oils, although it is also finding application in heavy oil reservoirs. Use of this method is hampered by knowledge gaps and inconsistent application. Research will help determine optimum applications of existing methods, but will also look at the use of a variety of chemicals, such as aphron (microbubble mi·cro·bub·ble n. An extremely small bubble, usually only a few hundred micrometers in diameter, that can be uniformly suspended in a liquid such as blood. ) solutions and surfactants to enhance recovery. Industry and researchers are now aggressively pursuing field activities in many of these research areas in order to develop, demonstrate and market enhanced oil recovery Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) is a generic term for techniques for increasing the amount of oil that can be extracted from an oil field. Using EOR, 30-60 %, or more, of the reservoir's original oil can be extracted [1] compared with 20-40% [2] techniques. Are we running on empty? The tank is three-quarters full, but access is restricted. With continuing technological advancements, innovative industry application, and an attractive economic environment, the production of oil in Saskatchewan is likely to continue for several decades. Brian Kristoff is Manager for EOR EOR - exclusive or Field Development at the Saskatchewan Research Council The Saskatchewan Research Council is a Saskatchewan, Canada technology corporation, owned by the province. It provides contract research, technology transfer and analytical services to companies in Saskatchewan and around the world. . |
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