Oil Sands

Abstract

The article contains sections titled: 1. Introduction 2. Definitions 3. Chemistry 4. Viscous Oil Origins, Geological Setting and Resource Base Estimates 4.1. Viscous Oil Origins 4.2. Geographical Distribution and Resource Base Estimates 4.3. Canadian Oil Sands Deposits 4.3.1. The Athabasca Oil Sands 4.3.2. The Cold Lake Oil Sands 4.3.3. The Peace River Viscous Oil Sands 4.3.4. The Wabiskaw Viscous Oil Sands 4.3.5. The Heavy Oil Belt 4.3.6. Venezuelan Viscous Oil Deposits 4.4. Other Major Viscous Oil Deposits 4.4.1. Russia 4.4.2. Kazakhstan 4.4.3. Kuwait 4.4.4. China 4.4.5. Iran 5. In situ Production Technologies 5.1. Historical Development 5.2. Surface Mining 5.3. New Oil Production Technologies 5.3.1. Technical Screening Criteria for VO Production 5.3.2. VO Production Cost Estimates 5.3.3. Nonthermal Commercialized Methods 5.3.3.1. Cold Production 5.3.3.2. Cold Heavy Oil Production With Sand 5.3.3.3. Pressure Pulse Stimulation Technology 5.3.4. Commercialized Thermal Methods 5.3.4.1. In Situ Combustion 5.3.4.2. Conventional Steam Processes 5.3.4.3. Vertical Well Cyclic Steam Stimulation 5.3.4.4. Horizontal Well Cyclic Steam Stimulation 5.3.4.5. Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage 5.3.5. Emerging Methods 5.3.5.1. Vapor‐Assisted Petroleum Production 5.3.5.2. Toe‐to‐Heel‐Air Injection 5.3.5.3. CAPRI 5.3.5.4. Deep Miscible CO 2 Injection 5.3.6. Hybrid Approaches and Sequencing of Technologies 5.3.7. Geomechanics of Thermal VO Production 5.3.8. Steam Generation 5.3.9. Further Technical Issues 6. Upgrading and Transportation 6.1. Noncatalytic Processes in VO Upgrading 6.1.1. Solvent Deasphaltening 6.1.2. Thermal Conversion 6.1.2.1. Gasification 6.1.2.2. Delayed Coking 6.1.2.3. Fluid Coking and Flexicoking 6.1.2.4. Visbreaking 6.2. Catalytic Processes in VO Upgrading 6.2.1. Fluid Catalytic Cracking 6.2.2. Hydroprocessing/Hydrogenation 6.3. Hydrogen Sources 6.4. Coke 6.5. Sulfur Removal 6.6. Future Developments in Upgrading 6.7. Viscous Oil Transportation 7. Environmental Issues 7.1. Surface Mining Solid Wastes 7.2. Surface Mining Liquid Wastes and Sludges 7.3. In Situ Viscous Oil Recovery Processes 7.4. Sulfur and Coke 7.5. General Waste Management Options 7.6. Zero Emissions Targets 7.7. Greenhouse Gas Emissions 7.8. Water Issues

Natural Fractures Characterization and In Situ Stresses Inference in a Carbonate Reservoir—An Integrated Approach

“…Over 1/5 of the heavy oil, extra heavy oil and bitumen endowment of the world is also found in NFCRs. These later resources are located mainly in the Middle East, Russia and Canada [1,2]. These numbers reinforce the value of understanding geological and geomechanical characteristics of this type of reservoir.…”

Asphaltene Microencapsulation of Bitumen as a Means of Solid-Phase Transport

“…However, these resources are rapidly depleting. As such, considerable recent attention has focused on the discovery, extraction, and refinement of unconventional sources of hydrocarbon fuels such as oil shales, heavy crude oil, and natural bitumen. − In addition to meeting fuel needs, such hydrocarbon resources are of central importance as feedstock for the chemical industry and as essential constituents of infrastructure such as pavements and asphalt. Viscous oil represents a major hydrocarbon reserve with massive deposits concentrated in Alberta and Venezuela.…”

“…Viscous oil represents a major hydrocarbon reserve with massive deposits concentrated in Alberta and Venezuela. The unfavorable rheological properties of heavy crude oil and bitumen greatly constrain their effective utilization, posing a distinctive set of challenges during extraction, midstream transportation from wellhead to geographically distant refineries, and eventual processing to liquid fuels or chemical feedstock. ,− Midstream transportation of these highly viscous fluids relies on an extensive thermal jacketing infrastructure for pipelines and containers and necessitates the addition of diluents, primarily low-molecular-weight hydrocarbons, to improve flow properties. In addition to the potential for environmental contamination resulting from spillage, fluid transport is energy-intensive, requires the unproductive flow of large volumes of expensive diluents across North America, and is plagued by product losses during transportation .…”

Three-Dimensional Inverse Opal TiO2 Coatings to Enable the Gliding of Viscous Oils

“…Fossil fuels continue to play a dominant role in meeting increasing global energy needs and are of central importance as the primary feedstock of the chemical and asphalt industries . An increasing proportion of extracted fuels is sourced from unconventional geological deposits, such as heavy crude oil and natural bitumen. − The high viscosity of heavy crude and bitumen presents a substantial challenge in extractive, midstream transportation, and refinery processing operations. − From the perspective of midstream operations, rheological challenges associated with heavy crude oil exact a heavy toll in terms of energy expenditure and processing costs as a result of the need for thermal jacketing and dilution with low molecular weight hydrocarbons. Furthermore, the maintenance and cleaning of railcars, tankers, and trucks used to transport heavy oils incurs a considerable cost, results in product losses from unrecovered residues, and engenders safety hazards.…”