AndreaBozzo/ceres-open-data-index huggingface dataset:
Thermal decomposition of Colorado and Kentucky reference oil shales

Isothermal pyrolysis studies have been conducted on a Green River Formation oil shale from Colorado and a New Albany oil shale from Kentucky. The conversion of kerogen to bitumen, oil, gas, and residue products was obtained for different isothermal reaction times in the temperature range of 375/degree/C to 440/degree/C (707/degree/ to 824/degree/F) using a heated sand bath reactor system. Particular attention was paid to the formation of the bitumen intermediate during decomposition of the two shales. The maximum amount of extractable bitumen in the New Albany shale was 14% or less of the original kerogen at any given temperature, indicating that direct conversion of kerogen to oil, gas, and residue products is a major pathway of conversion of this shale during pyrolysis. In contrast, a significant fraction of the Colorado oil shale kerogen was converted to the intermediate bitumen during pyrolysis. The bitumen data imply that the formation of soluble intermediates may depend on original kerogen structure and may be necessary for producing high yields by pyrolysis. 24 refs., 14 figs., 8 tabs.

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Analysis and interpretation of laboratory coal gasification simulation data

The Morgantown Energy Research Center (MERC) is conducting a combined program of field tests, laboratory experiments and mathematical modeling on the subject of underground coal gsification. An Underground Coal Conversion Simulation Laboratory was constructed and a total of nineteen tests have been conducted to investigate, qualitatively and quantitatively, ignition, carbonization, and gasification phenomena of the Longwall Generator (LWG) concept. The LWG concept is specifically designed for use in thin seams of eastern bituminous coals. This report describes the analyses and interpretations of the experimental data collected in the Underground Coal Gasification Simulation Laboratory at the Morgantown Energy Research Center. The objective of this study is to identify and quantify parametric relationships in the test results through a well-organized effot of modeling and correlation to help guide field tests and plan future laboratory simulation experiments.

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Potential methods for resource recovery from black water of the Northern Green River Basin of Wyoming

Black water is associated with interbedded lean and rich oil shales of the Northern Green River Basin of Wyoming. Oil shale development in the area would require that the black water be removed and processed in some manner. Black water consists primarily of 5 to 8 percent organic acids and 4 to 6 percent sodium carbonate and bicaronate dissolved in water. The solution has a pH of 10. A variety of methods were examined for the separation of organic matter and inorganic salts from black water. Acidifying the black water solution precipitates most of the organic acids. The black water solutes can be concentrated by evaporation of the water or by freezing. Neither liquid-liquid extraction of the black water nor leaching of the black water residue with a variety of solvents appear to be effective methods of separating the organic acids from the salts. Adsorption, coagulation, and ultrafiltration techniques used were inadequate for commercial separation. Reacting the black water under a carbon monoxide atmosphere at elevated temperature and pressure converts the carbonate to bicarbonate and converts 44 percent of the original organic acids to a benzene soluble oil. Due to the economics of the processes and the lack of information on the volume of black water available, removal of the black water from the ground and processing appears unreasonable at this time.

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Partitioning of As, Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb, and Zn during simulated in-situ oil shale retorting

In a study concerning the control of potential environmental residuals, the effect of retorting variables on the partitioning of the title elements was investigated by completing mass balances for four runs in both the U.S. Department of Energy, Laramie Energy Research Center 20 kg controlled-state, simulated, in-situ retort and Lawrence Livermore Laboratory's 125 kg simulated in-situ retort. Samples of raw oil shale, spent oil shale, shale oil, and retort water were analyzed. The data revealed sample contamination and inhomogeneities and element partitioning due to retort operating conditions. Each trend is discussed for the six elements.

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Removal of ammonia and alkalinity from oil shale retort waters by the use of weak acid cation exchange resins

Water produced as a byproduct during in situ and modified in situ retorting of oil shale was characterized and found to contain 3 to 5% inorganic solids, the majority of which is comprised of the ammonium and bicarbonate (alkalinity) ions. The potential for removal and recovery of ammonia from retort waters with weak acid cation exchange resins was investigated. In the first stage of the work, several different weak acid resins were screened on a bench-scale basis to identify those most effective for this application. Following initial resin screening, more detailed studies were undertaken to develop information concerning the resin performance in treating retort waters. Data on capacities, rates of exchange, resin fouling, and regeneration were developed and presented. Regeneration with dissolved CO..delta..2upsilon gas was found to be crucial to the feasibility of the process and was demonstrated in bench scale.

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Oil shales and their economic importance

The twentieth century has often been spoken of as the age of petroleum and from many viewpoints it can be justly considered so. Certainly the petroleum industry is one of enormous importance to this country, industrially, finically, and economically, the United States, however, at present producing over 60 percent of the world's total output of petroleum, is not producing petroleum at a sufficient rate to provide for its own domestic consumption. For several years this country has been importing increasing quantities of crude and partly refined oils from Mexico, and has been drawing heavily on domestic stocks of petroleum. Production in the United States is increasing, but it is not increasing at the same average rate as domestic consumption, nor is it probable that in the future domestic production will increase sufficiently to satisfy the demands of domestic consumption, but on the contrary, in the opinion of those best qualified to know, the peak in the curve of domestic production of crude petroleum will be reached in a comparatively few years, whereas the consumption of petroleum and its products will increase at a continually growing rate: This country, then, must turn and as the increasing imports from Mexico indicate, is turning to other sources then the crude petroleum produced in this country to make up the deficit between domestic production and domestic consumption of petroleum and its products.

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Process simulation model for a staged, fluidized-bed oil-shale retort with lift-pipe combustor

We have developed a computer model to simulate an aboveground oil-shale retorting process that utilizes two reactors (a staged, fluidized-bed retort and a lift-pipe combustor). This model calculates the steady-state operating conditions for the retorting system, taking into acount the chemical and physical processes occurring in the two reactors and auxiliary equipment. The release of mineral water and the pyrolysis of kerogen take place in the retort when raw shale is mixed with hot partially-burned shale, and the partial combustion of residual char and sulfur takes place in the combustor as the shale particles are transported pneumatically by preheated air. The retort is modeled as a series of stirred-batch reactors, and the combustor is simulated using a lumped-parameter model of finite-difference elements. Simulation results include stream flow rates, temperatures and pressures, bed dimensions, and heater, cooling, and compressor power requirements. We have already used the model to simulate a hypothetical commercial operation to produce an oil-plus-gas equivalent of 50,000 bbl/day, using 30-gal/ton shale. Although data for model validation are not yet available, the calculated results of the simulation appear reasonable. 23 references, 2 figures, 4 tables.

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Oil shale:  an historical, technical, and economic study

"Only within the last few years have the American public, the Government and the American oil companies appreciated the gravity of the situation that will result from our oil supply becoming so depleted as to be inadequate to meet demands. The situation as regards petroleum is nowise different from that of any other natural resource. When the supply of any resource is  plentiful and easily obtainable, little attention is paid to consideration or efficient utilization, but when the supply begins to fail, conservation begins to be applied and possible substitutes are sought."

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Laboratory modeling of in-situ retorting of oil shale by superheated-steam injection. BX in-situ oil shale project

The laboratory study has shown that retorting of oil shale by a superheated steam is practical; yield of evolved product is given by 1-X = 1-e/sup Kt/, where K = -4.83 x 10/sup 14/e/sup -//sup 22,900/T/. Evolved oil has a high pour point 70 to 82/sup 0/F low API gravity approx. 21, but it is cracked in steam above 525/sup 0/F, resulting in in-situ recovered oil with low pour point below 30/sup 0/F. The Parachute Creek formation contains carbonates and bicarbonates which accounts for nearly all the CO/sub 2/ in the off-gases; thus no water-shift or water-gas reaction probably is taking place. The oils have lower molecular weight and larger fractions of naptha, light distillate and light gas oil than ordinary shale oils. The nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygen are lowered. The steam cracking leads to a less polar product. 48 figures. (DLC)

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Indiana Shale Oil Development Project: Program for design and operation of a 500 BPD demonstration plant: Final report, Volume 1

The purpose of this engineering study is to develop preliminary design and cost data ( -30%) pertinent to construction and operation of a 500 barrels per day, demonstration-scale oil shale retorting complex utilizing Allis-Chalmers'patented roller grate retort technology. Of primary concern is the minimizing of overall project costs without sacrificing goals det for the planned demonstration facility. These goals are defined as follows: demonstrate the ability and reliability of the roller grate device to process oil shale on a continuous basis; demonstrate the capability of the retorting process configuration to safely, economically, and reliably produce shale oil, high Btu gas, energy from residual carbon and other by-products with minimal environmental impact; and obtain design data and operating experience to be used for scaling up to commercial size shale retorting facilities. Preliminary design and cost data developed in this study will supplement similar information available from other engineering studies which have examined alternate retorting technologies and retorts of varying productive capacities. The new data will be beneficial to both governmental agencies and industry since it fills an information gap (i.e., demonstration-scale plant costs and technologies) not addressed by the other investigations. 19 figs., 14 tabs.

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Effect of underground coal gasification on groundwater. Summary report

The potential effect of underground coal gasification(UCG) on groundwater has been examined in a combined field and laboratory study. The study was directed at Fruitland Formation subbituminous coal of the San Juan Basin and at the groundwater found in this coal seam. A field site for a possible UCG test was selected and two wells were drilled into the coal seam which lies about 500 ft. below the surface. Groundwater samples were collected and used to establish baseline features. Core samples of overburden, underburden and coal were used for baseline characterization of the minerals.

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Low-rank coal study:  national needs for resource development. Volume 3. Technology evaluation

Technologies applicable to the development and use of low-rank coals are analyzed in order to identify specific needs for research, development, and demonstration (RD and D). Major sections of the report address the following technologies: extraction; transportation; preparation, handling and storage; conventional combustion and environmental control technology; gasification; liquefaction; and pyrolysis. Each of these sections contains an introduction and summary of the key issues with regard to subbituminous coal and lignite; description of all relevant technology, both existing and under development; a description of related environmental control technology; an evaluation of the effects of low-rank coal properties on the technology; and summaries of current commercial status of the technology and/or current RD and D projects relevant to low-rank coals.

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Gulf/RTR oil sands extraction process. [Gulf/Rio Tinto TIL Holding S. A]

The activities carried out and the results obtained from a 15 tons/hour oil sands extraction pilot plant operated in Fort McMurray in Northern Alberta are described. The process is the Rio Tinto TIL Holding S.A. (RTR)/Gulf Canada Lt. Oil Sands Extraction Process. It is a modified hot water extraction process. It is used to extract bitumen from Athabasca oil sands. The test ran from July to December 1981 through ambient conditions ranging from plus 38/sup 0/C to minus 30/sup 0/C (100/sup 0/F to -22/sup 0/F). The process, the on-site facilities, the test program, an analysis of plant performance, an appraisal of the process economics, and an evaluation of its potential application are described.

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Organic solute profile of water from Rio Blanco Retort 1

Two water samples were taken from the Rio Blanco Oil Shale Company's Retort 1 more than three years after shutdown of the retort burn. The retort had received considerable flushing. These water samples were screened and profiled chromatographically to ascertain the character of the 20 to 30 ppM total organic carbon remaining in each. The waters were found to contain only organophilic solutes above the one-part-per-billion level. Special detection methods with part-per-billion detection limits for selected hydrophilic indicators proved negative for those indicators. Selected indicators ranged from the most hydrophilic (alkanoic acids, alkylamines, and amides) to the least (phenol). The principal species readily identified by either gas chromatography or reversed-phase liquid chromatography were the light polyalkylpyridines and the polyalkylphenols. The two principal individual compounds detected in each water were 2,4,6-trimethylpyridine and 2,3,5-trimethylphenol. The approximate concentrations of each were 200 ppb for a sample taken from the retort center and 400 ppb for a sample taken from the bottom level. It appears that there is a residual oil reservoir in the retort serving as a source of organophilic solutes. Any organic material now passing out of the retort would be highly organophilic and predisposed to deposit on even slightly hydrophobic surfaces such as oil shale or retorted oil shale. Based on the observations in this report, hydrophilic organic solutes may be presumed to be the key indicators for the interaction between oil shale in situ retort effluent and the surrounding environment. Timely monitoring of such sites and development of highly sensitive detection techniques for this class of materials would permit accurate description of migration pathways. 9 refs., 5 figs., 1 tab.

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Separation and detection of ammonia, amines, and alkanolamines with single-column ion chromatography. [Alkylamines, ethanolamine and methyldiethanolamine]

A single-column ion chromatographic method was developed for separation and detection of aqueous ammonia, C/sub 1/-, C/sub 2/-, and C/sub 3/- alkylamines, ethanolamine, and methyldiethanolamine. A precolumn concentrator was used to take detection of ammonium ion by electrical conductivity to fractional ppB levels and detection of the organic cations to ppB levels. Analysis of ppM ammonia levels in 3 wt % alkanolamine scrubber-type solutions was possible, but resolution of alkylamines was lost. A post-column reaction system for fluorescence detection of primary amine o-phthalaldehyde derivatives with reversed-phase separation allowed amine separation in the presence of large amounts of ammonia. The same system might be used in place of concentration and conductivity for determination of the alkylamine levels. A large variety of oil shale retort by-product waters and one underground coal gasification condensate were screened for alkylamines, but none were detected. 7 refs., 8 figs., 1 tab.

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Correlation of mineralogy and trace element leaching behavior in modified in situ spent shales from Logan Wash, Colorado

Oil shale retorting induces mineral and chemical reactions to occur on the macroscopic and microscopic levels in the kerogen-bearing marlstone. The nature and extent of the reactions is dependent upon process variables such as maximum temperature, time at temperature, atmosphere, and raw shale composition. This report describes the investigation of the mineral, chemical, and trace element release properties of spent shales retrieved from an experimental in situ retort at Occidental Oil Shale, Inc.'s Logan Wash site in Garfield County, Colorado. Correlation between mineralogy of the spent materials and the mobility of major, minor, and trace elements are indicated, and relationships with important process parameters are discussed. The progress of carbonate decomposition reactions and silication reactions is indicative of the processing conditions experienced by the shale materials and influences the mobility of major, minor, and trace elements when the solids are contacted by water. Shale minerals that are exposed to the extreme conditions reached in underground retorting form high temperature product phases including akermanite-gehlenite and diopside-augite solid solutions, kalsilite, monticellite, and forsterie. The persistence of relatively thermally stable phases, such as quartz, orthoclase, and albite provide insight into the extremes of processing conditions experienced by the spent shales. Leachate compositions suggest that several trace elements, including vanadium, boron, fluoride, and arsenic are not rendered immobile by the formation of the high-temperature silicate product phase akermanite-gehlenite.

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Retorting of nonuniform oil shale rubble

Nonuniform oil shale rubble beds were retorted using the 10-ton retort at the Western Research Institute. In a series of 10 tests, two different size distributions of oil shale rubble were loaded into separate portions of the retort cross section. This loading procedure provided permeability ratios in the range of 0.019 to 0.97 between the two shale size distributions, and the fractional cross-sectional area of the smaller region ranged from 0.05 to 0.50 of the total retort cross section. In each retorting test, the gas flow distribution was measured at cold flow conditions, and the nonuniform rubble bed was retorted using direct combustion with air or air-and-steam mixtures. The first nine retorting tests demonstrate that the oil yield from the less permeable region decreases in proportion to the square root of the permeability ratio between the two shale size distributions. The measured oil yields correspond to the combined predictions of one-dimensional model calculations for each portion of the rubble bed. The dimensionless response times of gas tracers also correlate with the measured oil yields. A higher oil yield and retort sweep efficiency are demonstrated by burning propane at the top of the more permeable region in the tenth nonuniform retorting test. The propane combustion increases the gas pressure drop in the more permeable region, so more of the injected air is distributed to the less permeable region. For a severe permeability ratio of about 0.02, propane combustion improves retorting sweep efficiency from 50% to 80% of the rubble bed and increases oil yield from 16.5% to 32.2% of Fischer assay. The corresponding incremental energy production as oil and gas is 2.4 times greater than the cumulative energy content of the injected propane. 18 refs., 7 figs., 1 tab.

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Vegetation:  ecoclimatic and soil factors. Final environmental research report

Vegetation studies were begun on the LOFRECO site during the spring of 1978 and continued through the summer of 1979. The principal components of the two year intensive study include collection and analysis of data in the areas of vegetation, ecoclimate, and soils. This report contains the results of the two-year study, presenting data collected from the three main study topics and interpretive analyses of intra-topical correlations. First year (1978) data, including one-time soil studies, have been previously presented in a series of reports (Olgeirson and Martin 1978, Olgeirson 1979a, 1979b, 1979c). Data collected during the second year of study are presented in this report along with first year information (Appendices A through D and Map Pockets). The body of the report combines and correlates data from the permanent sampling sites for both of the years studied. Vegetation, soils, and ecoclimate data are considered separately in these discussions. Correlations and interrelationships between the three main topics are discussed in later sections. Conclusions of the studies are given as a summation of the separate and interrelated findings and as a basis for recommended monitoring programs. An attempt has been made to increase readability by restricting the large amount of data to inclusion into textual areas of the report only as summarized figures and tables. Supporting data have all been placed in the appendices.

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Vegetation:  ecoclimatic and soil factors. Final environmental research report

Vegetation studies were begun on the LOFRECO site during the spring of 1978 and continued through the summer of 1979. The principal components of the two year intensive study include collection and analysis of data in the areas of vegetation, ecoclimate, and soils. This report contains the results of the two-year study, presenting data collected from the three main study topics and interpretive analyses of intra-topical correlations. First year (1978) data, including one-time soil studies, have been previously presented in a series of reports. Data collected during the second year of study are presented in this appendix.

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The effect of metalloporphyrins on asphalt oxidation. 1. Effect of synthetic metal chelates

Two different asphalts were coated on a Fluoropak support and were oxidized at 130   or - 2/sup 0/C for 24 hours using a number of metal chelates as additives. After oxidation the recovered asphalts were analyzed by infrared spectrometry to determine enhancements of keto, acid, and anhydride functions. Vanadyl etioporphyrin 1 was found to be an effective promoter in the oxidation of both asphalts. Vanadyl porphyrins having bulky ring substituents are not as effective as vanadyl etioporphyrin 1 in promoting asphalt oxidations.

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Control of acid mine drainage. Proceedings of a technology-transfer seminar. Information circular/1985

Acid mine drainage can be controlled by water treatment, retardation of the pyrite oxidation reaction system, or enhanced prediction that allows preventive action to be taken. The Bureau of Mines is conducting research in each of these areas; the results of the research are summarized in the eight papers that comprise the volume. Fieldwork to evaluate overburden analysis, alkaline injection, and bactericidal control of acid formation is described, along with two new inexpensive methods to treat acid mine water. These papers were prepared for an acid mine drainage technology transfer meeting held in Pittsburgh, PA, on April 3 and 4, 1985.

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