Summary
The worldwide conventional crude-oil demand is on the rise, and because of
the rising prices, unconventional oils are becoming more economically
attractive to extract and refine. However, technological innovation is needed
if heavier oil supplies are to be exploited further. Toe-to-heel air injection
(THAI) and its catalytic add-on processes (CAPRI) combine in-situ combustion
with catalytic upgrading using an annular catalyst packed around the horizontal
producer well. These techniques offer potentially higher recovery levels and
lower environmental impact than alternative technologies (e.g., steam-based
techniques). An experimental study is reported concerning the optimization of
catalyst type and operating conditions for use in the THAI-CAPRI process. The
feed oil was supplied from the Whitesands THAI-pilot trial. Experiments were
carried out using microreactors containing 10 g of catalyst, with oil flow of 1
mL/min and gas flow of 0.5 L/min, under different temperatures, pressures, and
gas environments. Catalysts tested included alumina-supported CoMo, NiMo, and
ZnO/CuO. It was found that there was a trade-off in operation temperature
between upgrading performance and catalyst lifetime. At a pressure of 20 bar,
operation at 500°C led to an average of 6.1°API upgrading of THAI oil to
18.9°API, but catalyst lifetime was limited to 1.5 hours. Operation at 420°C
was found to be a suitable compromise, with upgrading by an average of 1.6°API,
and sometimes up to 3°API, with catalyst lifetime extended to 77.5 hours. Coke
deposition occurred within the first few hours of the reaction, such that the
catalyst pore space became blocked. However, upgrading continued, suggesting
that thermal reactions or reactions catalysed by hydrogen transfer from the
coke itself play a part in the upgrading reaction mechanism. The CAPRI process
was relatively insensitive to changes in reaction-gas medium, gas-flow rate,
and pressure, suggesting that the dissolution of hydrogen or methane from the
gas phase does not play a key role in the upgrading reactions. By careful
control of the temperature and oil-flow rate in the in-situ CAPRI process,
additional upgrading compared with the THAI process alone may be effected,
resulting in a more-valuable produced oil, which is easier to transport.
© 2011. Society of Petroleum Engineers
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History
- Original manuscript received:
19 August 2010
- Meeting paper published:
20 October 2010
- Revised manuscript received:
30 March 2011
- Manuscript approved:
19 May 2011
- Version of record:
1 November 2011
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