Implications Of Heterogeneity In The Enhanced Oil Recovery Process

With the age of constant industrial and technological growth has come the necessity for not only cost effective and efficient methods for industry, but also the need for obtaining fuel for the machines that make the modern world possible. Oil has become as precious a commodity as gold, if not more so; its attainments constantly driving the world's largest businesses and governments across the world into action. Naturally, a "quick-fix" solution to this problem is constantly sought after by oil companies wishing to provide oil on a massive scale. One of these drilling methods is known as induced hydraulic fracturing (also known as fracking).

Morris, J., & Song, L. (2013, September 16). Study Delivers Good News, Bad News on

Saturation trends in the Pronghorn and the upper Three Forks (Figure 21), indicates that hydrocarbons are being occluded from the lower Bakken into the Three Forks, but not entirely. Oil saturation gradually decreases from the top of the Pronghorn to the base indicating less hydrocarbons are being pushed into the upper Three Forks. However, the oil saturation never reach 0% and only decreases to approximately 60 to 70 % water saturation. The oil saturation then gradually increases from the top of the Three Forks to the top of the first claystone. This trend is observed throughout all the wells within Painted Woods, independent to the thickness of the Pronghorn. Even though there is less volume of generated lower Bakken hydrocarbons, oil is still able to be transmitted through the Pronghorn across Painted Woods. However, the quantities transmitted are likely less compared to other

The process of making synthetic crude oil requires an enormous amount of water, especially in the separation process. Each barrel of oil requires two tons of oil sands and up to five barrels of hot water. Water is also needed along with electricity to convert it steam. The steam is pushed by steam injections making bitumen less viscous. It is quite evident that oil sands are not practical in terms of its process. Also three-quarters of the bitumen can be recovered from the sands, leaving behind 25% as waste. With the technology in our present society, oil sands are not entirely practical in terms of efficiency; however, in the future, this may change. To reflect, there are many disadvantages associated with oil sands, especially in the way it is processed.

Over the years vertical hydraulic fracturing has become outdated and new techniques are now used. Technology now allows mechanics to drill horizontally up to 10,000 feet. This new technique only takes a single drill and it can hold multiple piping lines and have them extending out in all directions at once. This allows more area of production to be covered in less surface area. With horizontal fracking, theoretically, the amount of area that can be covered is indefinite because more and more piping can be added if needed in the making of just one

Oil and Gas exploration has been an ongoing project in the Raton Basin, but a quite unsuccessful one at best. The Raton Basin is primarily a flood plain paludal deposit which is not ordinarily an ideal unit to recover oil or gas from (Speer, 1976). The sandstones within the Raton are predominantly coarse grained, poorly sorted, fluvial sandstones which have been shown

from shale must be understood. First, there is a 2 directional, single pipeline. The vertical drilling

Worries with the earth have been up front in the United States. Particularly during the presidential race, numerous natural issues are at the bleeding edge of endless discussions. There is an accord between gatherings that residential vitality creation must keep on expanding, yet there are clashing assessments as to where that vitality generation ought to originate from. Should we utilize non-renewable assets or put resources into new and imaginative renewable vitality sources? Our reliance on outside oil puts the U.S. in an exceptionally powerless position on both the political and sparing fronts. Incalculable studies have been led supporting both contentions. While our surroundings is a noteworthy thought for figuring out which sources to use, the monetary ramifications should likewise be weighed. Renewable vitality sources could last uncertainly, however should be repaired and/or supplanted sooner or later. One distinct option for renewable vitality is a practice called "Fracking". Fracking is slang for pressure driven breaking. It is regularly depicted as a strategy used to discharge petroleum, characteristic gas (counting shale gas, tight gas and coal crease gas), or different substances for extraction (Philippe Charlez, 1997).

In today’s society the issues of producing energy is becoming more and more scare which, constantly posses the question, “How will energy be obtained in order to sustain future generations?” Hydraulic fracturing, informally known as fracking is believed to be an effective alternative to provide us with the energy we need to fuel tomorrow. Hydraulic fracking was first used at Texas Stanolind Oil and Gas Cooperations in 1947. However, it was not until 1949 that The Halliburton Oil Well Cementing Cooperation was given a licensee to use hydraulic fracturing. Since then a combination of two advanced methods have been introduced and incorporated (4). These methods are slick-water hydraulic fracturing and precision drilling of wells. Nevertheless,

Water and Oil, They don't mix no matter how hard you try, your not going to get them to mix. Just like America. In America every citizen is supposed to be treated equally right ? That's how it may seem but is it really take a look around next time you're out shopping or just out walking. There are going to be people from different cultures, but we are all separated. Just like water and oil we act like we’re all happy and live in a world of no racial difficulties. But the fact is people are ignorant that's why the world is like this people are too ignorant to take a look around them they just want what's best for them. Then once people know what they want, then they begin to separate based on differences.

The process of the collection of an underground fluid would not be possible without the use of hydraulic fracturing. In the Shale reserves, located about 5,000 feet underground, suffer an extremely low permeability rate. Permeability is the measure of how well a fluid flows through an absorbent material at the depth, and within such nonporous rock, the ability of fluids to travel to the well is greatly limited. Fracturing increases the area of the fluid that is exposed to porous materials and thus greatly increases production. The method of fracturing utilizes a few key components which allow for an economical extraction of resources.

Hydraulic Fracturing (also commonly known as fracking) is a process used to extract natural gasses deep within the earth. This is done by drilling vertically into the ground until the desired depth; then drilling horizontally; and pumping millions of gallons of water, sand, and other chemicals into the drill at a high pressure to create fissures through which the gas can escape. Currently, hydraulic fracturing is extensively used in the United States in order to access fossil fuel energy deposits which were previously inaccessible. Although fossil fuels can now be accessed easily through this process, there are many health and environmental risks associated with fracking that may make it less than ideal. For instance, fracking can contaminate drinking water, increase air pollution, and leave workers and near-by residents open to many health risks. Although there have been laws and regulations passed to help minimize the risks involved with fracking, an in-depth analysis of the opinions of supporters of fracking and the research behind it will show how fracking needs to be further regulated in order to be safe and effective for everyone. While we do not have to completely stop the use of fracking, improving the fracking process or reforming the current laws and regulations can allow us to receive the economic benefits of fracking, while also being environmentally and health conscious.

After scientists have tested the oil and the rocks, oil companies will begin drilling in the wells and rock samples will be brought to the surface. After the scientists have studied the rock samples from above ground and are convinced that they have found the right type of rock, companies begin drilling production wells. “When the wells first hit the reservoir, some of the oil begins coming to the surface immediately” (“Fossil Energy: How Fossil Fuels Were Formed,” n.d.). However, with today’s technology, oil companies are able to install special equipment to help the oil from spurting hundreds and hundreds of feet from the ground.

Hydraulic fracturing or “fracking” is a process that fractures rock formations in the earth’s surface in order to release hydrocarbons. When these hydrocarbons are released, they flow more freely through the rocks and up to the wellbore, were oil and gas are extracted to (Suchy, 2012). Not all rock formations require a hydraulic fracturing operation to be done because the fluids move freely through rocks that have been naturally fractured. Shale gas reservoirs on the other hand are not permeable and have very few natural fractures; therefore the trapped gas and oil must be extracted by fracking only.

The oil and gas industries involve a high amount of documentation for both transportation as well as extraction and field services. Activities are highly regulated, and subject to oversight from Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Department of Transportation (DoT), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Department of the Interior (DoI). That said, the process of regulation is trending toward a more digitized system, with organizations like FERC having their own submission portals that implement a “fill-in-the-blank” platform to complete forms. However, not all forms have yet been converted to digital submission even in agencies with online portals, and other agencies still remain reliant on