Patent Application
20070281251
Similar numerals are indicative of similar elements.
Referring now to
It is now trite that the cost of using natural gas to generate steam for hydrocarbon value recovery is unattractive from an economic point of view and inherently wasteful in view of the burgeoning activity and developments in alternate fuel synthesis. To this end,
In the example, numeral 40 globally references the circuit for steam generation using MSAR™, an alternate fuel and trademark of Quadrise Fuel Systems Canada. The alternate fuel 42, an aqueous emulsion of heavy oil, bitumen etc. is introduced into generator(s) 14 by an atomizing assembly 44 for generating atomized fuel. The fuel 42 requires an atomizing medium for transport and fluidization. This is shown as steam 46, a portion of which is recovered from generator(s) 14. In this method, atomization may be supplemented with air from compressor or blower 48.
Steam generated from the generator(s) 14, in the usual manner, is introduced into the formation 18. In view of the fact that natural gas is not the principal fuel in this scenario, the circuit requires a flue gas desulfurization circuit 50 to capture flue gas 52 and ensure environmental compliance. The thermal energy in the treated flue gas 54 may be utilized by injection into the formation.
Having regard to the utility of alternate fuels,
In the example, solution gas (waste gas) 56 comprising essentially natural gas is introduced in to the assembly 44 to function as the atomizing medium. Contemporary methods simply disposed of the gas by flashing and thus the valuable commodity wasted. It has been found that the use of the gas augments the effectiveness of MSAR™ fuel by the addition of the heat enthalpy to the emulsified fuel. In this manner, the “composite fuel” takes on the desirable characteristics of natural gas in terms of heat content of the flame, flame temperature, cleanliness of burn and reduced incomplete or partial combustion of the solids in the emulsion. In respect of the latter, more complete burning results in the maximum possible utilization of the available Btu content of the emulsion.
Depending upon the necessities of each situation, the solution gas stream 46 may be complemented with at least one of steam 46 from generator(s) 14 and air 48.
A further aspect of the illustrated embodiment is self containment. This is achieved by incorporating an MSAR™ fuel manufacturing circuit into the overall protocol. The circuit is denoted by numeral 56. The manufacturing may follow the methods established by either of the methods established by Warchol in U.S. Pat. No. 6,530,965 or in patent application Ser. No. 10/369,511, Warchol and Kresnyak, both of which are incorporated herein by reference.
From the references, it is known to provide the produced heavy oil and bitumen 24 as the feedstock for the synthesis of MSAR™ and the produced water 26. The fuel 42 so formed may then be immediately introduced into the assembly 44 to provide a self contained and closed loop method.
The embodiment(s) of the invention described above is (are) intended to be exemplary only. The scope of the invention is therefore intended to be limited solely by the scope of the appended claims.
