AndreaBozzo/ceres-open-data-index huggingface dataset:
Assessment and control of water contamination associated with shale oil extraction and processing. Progress report, October 1, 1980-September 30, 1982

Los Alamos National Laboratory's research on the assessment and control of water contamination from commercial oil shale operations is concerned with the elucidation of water contamination problems and the subsequent evaluation of alternative control strategies for mitigating oil-shale-related water degradation. Laboratory assessment activities have focused on the interaction of the raw material and the process variables and their influence on the ultimate identity and behavior of the spent shale, the resultant leachates, and the chemistry of other aqueous effluents. To develop a perspective of the health and environmental consequences of oil shale processing, we must understand the identity and behavior of the raw material, the fundamental chemical principles operative during processing, and the interaction of the raw material and the process to yield products, effluents, and wastes. This report summarizes experimental results, including the mineralogy, trace element concentrations in solids and leaching characteristics of raw and spent shales from field- and laboratory-generated materials; the implications for water quality also are discussed. Control technology research activities involve the identification and research of alternative control strategies based on control technology requirements defined by assessment activities. The chemistry elucidated during the assessment activities is used to formulate appropriate strategies to mitigate identified problems. Experimental activities focus on two inexpensive control measures, process control and multistage leaching, to prevent adverse impacts on ground water quality after retort abandonment. Although conservative control strategies may be necessary for some situations, they probably do not need to be used routinely. The current state of process water treatment, reuse options, and codisposal options also are addressed.

Tags: kmd
Use of the finite element method to predict roof collapse and subsidence resulting from the underground gasification of coal

The plane strain two-dimensional finite element model employing the method of negative reaction loading was used to model roof collapse and subsidence that result from underground coal gasification. Subsidence results from a preliminary finite element model were compared with those from a theoretical model having identical assumptions. The finite element model was extended to include dry zones of rock around the cavity resulting from the underground gasification. The model was further extended to include thermal loading, thermal softening and roof collapse. Roof collapse initiation and growth were modelled by examining the portion of the roof immediately above the cavity. A creep program utilizing the method incremental strains was developed and run in conjunction with the Pafec 70   program. The overburden rock was treated as a linear viscoelastic material having deformation parameters of the generalized Kelvin model. Finally, the finite element model was used to carry out a case history study of subsidence and roof collapse of an underground gasification field experiment in Wyoming.

Tags: kmd
Underground Coal Gasification Program: FY85 annual report

As part of the Department of Energy's Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) research program, activities at Sandia National Laboratories during FY85 have included laboratory and modeling studies of UCG in Eastern bituminous coals, planning and subsidence studies in support of upcoming Eastern field tests, and post-burn roof stability analyses of the Tono CRIP test. Accomplishments for the year include completion of a preliminary series of laboratory gasification experiments in an Eastern bituminous coal demonstrating that high mechanical strength and low char consumption effects dominate the gasification process in these coals; designing a series of small-scale field tests intended to determine the feasibility of UCG in Eastern coals; evaluating the suitability of proposed field test sites in terms of roof stability/cavity size relationships as a function of overburden strength and thickness; and roof stability calculations (using field measurements as input) for the Tono CRIP test, results of which bracket the observed roof fall. 20 refs., 33 figs., 8 tabs.

Tags: kmd
Supporting technology for enhanced oil recovery: Third ammendment and extension to Annex IV enhanced oil recovery thermal processes

This report contains the results of efforts under the seven tasks of the Third Amendment and Extension of Annex IV, Enhanced Oil Recovery Thermal Processes of the Venezuela/USA Agreement. The report is presented in sections (for each of the tasks) and each section contains one or more reports prepared by various individuals or groups describing the results of effort under each of the tasks. A statement of each task, taken from the agreement, is presented on the first page of each section. The tasks are numbered 25 through 31. The first, second, and third reports on Annex IV, ((Venezuela-MEM/USA-DOE Fossil Energy Report IV-1, IV-2, and IV-3 (DOE/BETC/SP-83/15, DOE/BC-84/6/SP, and DOE/BC-86/2/SP)) contain the results from the first 24 tasks. Those reports are dated April 1983, August 1984, and March 1986. Selected papers have been processed for inclusion in the Energy Data Base.

Tags: kmd
1987 Eastern oil shale symposium: Proceedings

The theme of the 1987 Eastern Oil Shale Symposium was primarily based on research and development activities to obtain a sound oil shale data base for understanding the fundamental technology aspects relating to future process applications. Attendance remained about the same as in 1986 with 101 individuals registering for the meeting and 44 oil shale papers presented in three sessions. Contributors to the oil shale sessions were: two from industry, nine from government, 30 from universities and three from other sources. The tar sand session with seven papers continued to be a positive addition to the symposium. The uncertainty of the world oil situation and fluctuating crude prices leave the energy situation volatile. However, in any case, the strong foreign influence of US energy policy will be with us in the foreseeable future. Although the commercial scale oil shale demonstration plants are at best only holding on and no new ventures are being considered, research is ongoing. The federal government, with some state and industry support, are continuing to fund research. These efforts will provide an important data base for the eastern US oil shale industry in the future. Topics included environmental impacts, reclamation research, work in tar sands research, geology, geochemistry, processing, and technology. Individual papers have been cataloged separately. (SM)

Tags: kmd
An evaluation of baseline conditions at lease tract C-a, Rio Blanco County, Colorado

An analysis was made of baseline groundwater quality data from oil shale lease tract C-a, managed by Rio Blanco Oil Shale Company. The data are limited in several respects. All conclusions drawn from the data must be qualified with these limitations. Baseline conditions were determined by analyzing data from wells in the upper bedrock and lower bedrock aquifers and from the alluvial wells. Baseline data were considered all data collected before mining operations began. The water quality was then evaluated using the 1987 Colorado State Basic Standards for Ground Water as a basis. The maximum baseline values for several parameters in each aquifer exceed the standard values. The quality of the upper lower bedrock aquifers varies from region to region within the site. Data on the lower bedrock aquifer are insufficient for speculation on the cause of the variations. Variations in the upper bedrock aquifer are possibly caused by leakage of the lower bedrock aquifer. 16 refs., 9 figs., 9 tabs.

Tags: kmd
Application of the LO-CAT Hydrogen Sulfied Oxidation Process to geokinetics in-situ oil shale retorting

A commercially feasible process for in-situ retorting of shale to produce shale oil and fuel gas is described. The LOFRECO process has been under development since 1975 and is currently producing approximately 40,000 barrels of shale oil per retort. The present operation in Southeastern Utah involves two 300 x 300 ft. areas, each containing a 30 foot thickness of oil shale at a depth of 100 feet, and producing approximately 400 BBL/day. The by-product gas produced by the retorting process is burned in an incineration unit. The gas composition varies during the burn period which lasts as long as one year. In order to meet the State of Utah requirements limiting sulfur dioxide emission, Geokinetics elected to install a LO-CAT Hydrogen Sulfide Oxidation process. The LO-CAT process has successfully met the State requirements and has demonstrated substantial advantages over the Stretford process tested on a limited scale. The LO-CAT process is described in detail and the operating experience of the commercial LO-CAT unit with the Stretford results is compared.

Tags: kmd
NMR studies of fossil fuels. Final technical report

This report has been based on a highly productive research effort involving collaboration between Colorado State University and the former Laramie Energy Technology Center. The CSU-LETC combination played a unique role in bringing NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) to bear on certain types of fossil fuel problems that were previously not amenable to NMR study, i.e., those involving solid samples (coal, oil shale). The work drew heavily on fundamental solid-state NMR developments that had been previously reported from other laboratories, primarily in the MIT and Monsanto laboratories, and built upon these early developments to adapt and further develop new approaches for solid fossil fuel samples. For purposes of the present summary, work is separated into the following three categories: (1) Fossil Fuel Studies, (2) NMR Technique Development, and (3) NMR Instrumentation Development. Of course, there is a substantial amount of overlap between these categories; nevertheless, for convenience of organization each portion of our work has been placed into only one of these three frameworks for the present purposes. Numerous figures (spectra and plots) and tables summarize the voluminous data that have been generated.

Tags: kmd
Detection of water-filled and air-filled underground cavities

Tunnel and cavern detection methods were tested at two experimental sites in Florida. Cross-borehole methods using high-frequency electromagnetic wave diffraction techniques were used over a frequency range of 1 to 100 MHz. A new cross-borehole method using direct current was also used. The experimental sites are karstic. The caverns and tunnels were water-filled at one site and dry at the other site.

Tags: kmd
Explosibility of oil-shale dust

The explosibility of coal dust has long been recognized by competent investigators as constituting one of the dangers of mining coal and in the use of pulverized coal as a fuel in industrial plants. The Bureau of Mines has carried on extensive series of experiments dealing with this subject, and has not only developed methods for the practical prevention of this danger, but in the course of these experiments has developed a standard method of determining the relative explosibility of coal dust and other organic dusts.

Tags: kmd
Polycondensed aromatic compounds (PCA) and carcinogens in the shale ash of carbonaceous spent shale from retorting of oil shale of the Green River formation. [Preliminary results of studies on soil, water, vegetation, and air from pristine areas of potential oil shale operations, spent shales from various retorting processes]

The projected formidable amounts of carbonaceous solid waste from potential future commercial oil shale operations are of great interest because of the potential chronic environmental impact due to trace quantities of polycondensed aromatic compounds and possible carcinogenic and mutagenic compounds present. The objectives of the research reported were: (a) to determine experimentally the presence or absence of such compounds from the shale waste and process water to vegetation, groundwater and runoff water, (b) the solubilization of these organic materials by the presence of water soluble inorganic salts and their transport into ground and surface water. The results show that PCA and carcinogen type compounds were identified qualitatively and quantitatively in carbonaceous spent shale. These results are compared with similar or identical compounds found in pristine environment of the oil shale land designated to become leased for oil shale exploration and dumping of shale ash. The potential environmental impact of these compounds is discussed.

Tags: kmd
Composition of Colorado shale-oil naphtha

Naphthas distilled from crude shale oils produced by several methods of retorting Colorado oil shale were analyzed and found to be remarkably similar. Consequently, only one was selected for a detailed composition study. The results indicate that the approximate composition of raw shale oil naphtha is: paraffins and maphthenes 30%; olefins 40%; aromatics 20%; sulfur, nitrogen, and oxygen compounds 10%. Paraffins and aliphatic olefins, which comprise about two thirds of their respective groups, are predominantly straight chain compounds. The sulfur, nitrogen, and oxygen are present principally in the form of thiophenes, pyridines, and phenols, respectively.

Tags: kmd
Mineral profile of Wyoming's Green River Formation:  oil shales sampled by Blacks Fork Core. [X-ray diffraction studies on 17 minerals]

Stratigraphic relationships of minerals and organic matter in the trona-bearing lower Wilkins Peak Member and the Tipton Shale Member of Wyoming's Green River Formation are presented as histogram plots with depth. Oil yields and x-ray diffraction peak heights of 17 minerals are presented for samples from an oil-shale core drilled near the depositional axis of the Green River Basin. The mineral and oil-yield profiles picture graphically a remarkable lacustrine sedimentary sequence involving the deposition of hydrogen-rich organic matter in oil shale and the development of sodium carbonate minerals. The emphatic difference in mineralogy between the Tipton Shale and the Wilkins Peak Members is evaluated. In addition, the major occurrence of the mineral nahcolite (NaHCO/sub 3/) heretofore noted only as a single trace in Wyoming's Green River Formation is reported.

Tags: kmd
Influence of the properties of coals on their conversion into clean fuels. [19 refs]

Two fundamental controlling factors in the geological histories of coals have determined their physical and chemical characteristics and, consequently, the industrial uses to which they can be put. The first of these is the set of conditions that existed in the original peat swamp, involving the type of vegetation, the nature and extent of the degradative, preservational, and sedimentary processes, and resulting in varying assemblages of organic macerals and inorganic minerals. Certain of these ingredients are beneficial in conversion processes. The second factor is the nature and degree of the metamorphic changes that the peat deposit underwent during burial within the earth's crust. Although coals of lower rank are readily converted into liquid fuels, the highest yields are obtained from coals of high volatile bituminous rank. Microscopic methods of measuring the contribution made by both of the controlling factors (petrographic type and rank) enable workers to compare the conversion potential of American coals.

Tags: kmd
Production and refining of crude shale oil into military fuels. Final report

The technical objectives of the program were to demonstrate that a wide spectrum of military operational fuels derived from shale oil crude could be obtained in a commercial industrial facility with minimum or minor modification, and to provide incentives to industry in oil shale development and technology. Shale oil crude was processed into gasoline, heavy fuel oil, and JP-4 in small laboratory quantities in the United States by the Bureau of Mines (ERDA) and private industry, however, no large scale commercial refining of the shale oil crude into a wide variety of products had been attempted up until this program. The various fuels produced met a majority of the military, federal, and commercial specifications requirements. However, these fuels tended to exhibit storage and thermal instabilities. In addition, the fuels contained a high wax content, high particulate matter, and high gum content. It is concluded that it is feasible to obtain military and civilian operational fuels from shale oil crude using a commercial refinery. However, additional effort has to be extended to overcome some refinery and operational problems to obtain maximum yields and improved properties. (GRA)

Tags: kmd
Fracturing oil shale with electricity

Laboratory studies to evaluate the use of electricity for fracturing various grades of Colorado oil shale were started in 1964. Breakdown voltages varied greatly from one grade of shale to another, ranging from a minimum of 300 V to a maximum of 15,000 V. With few exceptions, the shale samples were readily fractured at relatively low current levels. On the basis of encouraging results obtained in the laboratory, experiments were expanded to field tests to study electrical characteristics of oil shale when subjected to overburden pressure. These tests generally confirmed the laboratory experiments. Fracturing was accomplished at all electrode spacings used. The spacings varied from 3 to 129 ft. Based upon results obtained in these field experiments, additional fracturing tests were conducted in four shallow wells drilled in an oil shale formation. Some new permeable zones were created between wells. The induced permeability was improved by detonating two conventional nitroglycerin wellbore shots in one of the wells.

Tags: kmd
Mining and conversion of oil shale in a gas combustion retort. Technical progress report No. 44

The conversion of oil shale to a synthetic crude oil, which can be accomplished by various systems under consideration, is one of the several alternative ways to supplement petroleum requirements. An oil shale processing complex consisting of three mines, three retorting plants, and a prerefinery has been proposed for the production of 100,000 barrels per calendar day of semirefined oil. An economic analysis of this system is presented. The cost factors are given.

Tags: kmd
Pilot-plant operation of gas-flow oil-shale retort

A gas-flow retort for thermal processing of oil shale to recover shale oil was developed by the Bureau of Mines at its Oil-Shale Demonstration Plant, Rifle, Colorado, from 1948 to 1952. The retort is a crossflow gas-to-broken-solids heat exchanger. The heating medium is the gas produced in the shale retorting process. The gas is heated in specially designed stoves outside the retort and recycled to the retort. Oil shale from the Mahogany ledge section of the Green River formation in northwestern Colorado was the material processed. Indicated maximum oil recoveries for 20- to 25-gallon-per-ton shale in a 12-inch-thick shale bed and a 20-inch bed are 96 and 91 weight-percent of Fischer assay, respectively. Heat requirements for maximum recovery are 600 to 750 B.t.u. per pound of shale. Properties of the recovered shale oil are affected slightly by shale-bed thickness and extent of retorting. Oil recovery from oil shales assaying over 30 gallons per ton is lower than that from leaner shales. The retort heat-transfer mechanism, although continuous, is equivalent to a gas-to-broken-solids batch system. Operation of the retort is hindered by deposition of cokelike material in the retort off-gas system and by stoppage of the shale bed when rich shales assaying over 40 gallons per ton are retorted.

Tags: kmd
In-situ oil shale processing research in the Rock Springs, Wyoming area

Two major field recovery experiments have been conducted by the Laramie Energy Research Center in the Rock Springs, Wyoming, area. The first of these was based on fracturing with desensitized nitroglycerin and proved to be quite successful in that approzimately 200 barrels of oil were produced. The recovery from this first experiment was very low because the 200 barrels of oil represented less than 2 percent of the resource in place. Material and energy balance calculations indicated that some 25 to 30 percent of the oil in place had been retorted but was not obtained aboveground. In an attempt to improve recovery a larger experiment was designed. The fracturing was accomplished by detonating pelletized explosive in wellbores. This experiment was not successful. Combustion on this site was sustained for several months. Oxygen utilization at times was very good, carbon dioxide production was high, but no liquid oil was obtained aboveground. It was decided that insufficient permeability had been created to sustain the high reaction rates required for production of oil from the formation.

Tags: kmd
Experiments in crushing Green River oil shale

"The oil shale from the Mahogany zone of the Green River formation in northwestern Colorado has the greatest potential in the United States for early utilization. A large reserve of adequately rich shale is available to support a sizable industry, and crushing of tremendous tonnages will be required if conventional processing methods are used.  This report presents Bureau of Mines data on crushing experiments, physical properties, and related information for Colorado oil shale. Among the properties important to crushing are slab-forming tendency, resilience, slippery character of the richer grades, and heterogeneous nature of an average charge of Colorado oil shale. The relationships among the mining, crushing, and retorting steps are important in determining the requirements of a crushing plant. This subject is discussed in some detail on the assumption that a room-and-pillar mining method and the gas-combustion retorting process will be used for  exploiting Colorado oil shale. On this basis, the crushing plant should be designed and operated to supply a product with as steep a particle-size distribution curve as possible to obtain a maximum of larger particles in  the desired range with a minimum of fines."

Tags: kmd
Release of gas from heated oil shale and from mixtures of dolomite and quartz

Experiments and calculations were performed to determine the amount of gas released from heated oil shale. It is known that kerogen, a component of oil shale, releases gas when heated. When the temperature is increased, the kerogen yields not only gas but char, a solid that reacts with steam and CO/sub 2/ (by-products of heated shale) to yield H/sub 2/ and CO. It was found that as much as 200 moles of CO and H/sub 2/ could be produced by the reaction of 1 kg of kerogen with steam at 1200/sup 0/C. Another of the gas-releasing components of oil shale, carbonate minerals, begins to decompose at 500/sup 0/C; decomposition is complete at about 700/sup 0/C after 1000 hr. The minerals begin to decompose at a lower temperature in steam. Reactions among carbonates and silicates resulted in the release of CO/sub 2/ even under high CO/sub 2/ pressure.

Tags: kmd
Thermal analysis on oil shale:  determination of potential oil yields and dawsonite, nahcolite, and nordstrandite content

Thermal analysis was applied to Green River Formation oil shales to demonstrate the method's capabilities for estimating oil yields and for determining dawsonite, nahcolite and nordstrandite. A single sample heated in thermal analysis apparatus incorporating differential thermal analysis (DTA) and thermogravimetry (TG) will produce quantitative data on the three oil shale minerals and excellent oil yield estimates. Coefficients of determination (R/sup 2/) ranged from 0.88 for dawsonite and nordstrandite determinations to 0.998 for nahcolite. Requirements to be met by thermal analysis equipment to obtain accurate oil-shale compositional data are outlined. The method is especially useful where minerals are encountered that interfere with other analyticl techniques.

Tags: kmd