208results about "Carbon-dioxide storage" patented technology

A hydrocarbon containing formation may be treated using an in situ thermal process. A mixture of hydrocarbons, H.sub.2, and/or other formation fluids may be produced from the formation. Heat may be applied to the formation to raise a temperature of a portion of the formation to a pyrolysis temperature. A heating rate to a selected volume of the formation may be controlled by altering an amount of heating energy per day that is provided to the selected volume.

A low or no pollution engine is provided for delivering power for vehicles or other power applications. The engine has an air inlet which collects air from a surrounding environment. At least a portion of the nitrogen in the air is removed. The remaining gas is primarily oxygen, which is then routed to a gas generator. The gas generator has inputs for the oxygen and a hydrocarbon fuel. The fuel and oxygen are combusted within the gas generator, forming water and carbon dioxide. The combustion products are then expanded through a power generating device, such as a turbine or piston expander to deliver output power for operation of a vehicle or other power uses. The combustion products are then passed through a condenser where the steam is condensed and the carbon dioxide is collected or discharged. A portion of the water is routed back to the gas generator. The carbon dioxide is compressed and delivered to a terrestrial formation from which return of the CO2 into the atmosphere is inhibited.

A method of generating and recovering gas from naturally existing subsurface formations Of coal, carbonaceous shale or organic-rich shales comprising the steps Of: injecting into fracture of the subsurface formation, under substantially anaerobic conditions, a consortia of selected anaerobic, biological microorganisms for in situ conversion of organic compounds in said formation into methane and other compounds; and producing methane through at least one well extending from said subsurface formation to the surfaces.

A method of sequestering carbon dioxide and producing natural gas including: (a) injecting an injectant containing at least some amount of carbon dioxide into a zone containing natural gas hydrates; (b) releasing natural gas from the hydrates by allowing thermal transfer and pressure changes from the injectant to the hydrates; and (c) sequestering the carbon dioxide in the zone that previously contained the natural gas hydrates.

A closed loop system for increasing yield, reducing post process pollution, reducing energy consumed during and after extraction of fuels or contaminants in formations and for sequestering of carbon dioxide C0₂ from various sources is converted to a critical fluid for use as a flushing and cooling medium. Electrical energy heats a hydrocarbon rich formation resulting in the extraction of hot fluids which are fed to heat exchangers, gas/liquid separator, and steam turbine whereby oil, electric power, carbon dioxide and methane are produced for reuse in the system or for external use. Further, a method for sequestering of carbon dioxide in a formation comprises the steps of injecting CO₂ into the reservoir, flushing with cool pressurized CO₂ for heat removal, infiltrating with ultra-fine low density suspended catalyst particles of dry sodium hydroxide in CO₂, pumping water moistened CO₂ into the reservoir to activate the catalysts, binding the CO₂ with reacting materials and capping the reservoir.

The present invention relates to an enhanced oil recovery process that is integrated with a synthesis gas generation process, such as gasification or methane reforming, involving combined capture and recycle of carbon dioxide from both processes.

Methods and systems for low emission power generation in hydrocarbon recovery processes are provided. One system includes integrated pressure maintenance and miscible flood systems with low emission power generation. An alternative system provides for low emission power generation, carbon sequestration, enhanced oil recovery (EOR), or carbon dioxide sales using a hot gas expander and external combustor. Another alternative system provides for low emission power generation using a gas power turbine to compress air in the inlet compressor and generate power using hot carbon dioxide laden gas in the expander. Other efficiencies may be gained by incorporating heat cross-exchange, a desalination plant, co-generation, and other features.

A method and apparatus for use in estimating stress fields in a geological formation are disclosed. The method includes ascertaining a perturbation of stress in the triaxial stress state in a reservoir and in a surrounding rock mass over time; and determining the change in a seismic attribute resulting from the perturbation in the stress. The apparatus includes a program storage medium encoded with instructions that, when executed by a computing device, perform such a method or a computing system programmed to perform such a method.

A method for enhanced production of hydrocarbon fluids from an organic-rich rock formation such as an oil shale formation is provided. The method generally includes completing at least one heater well in the organic-rich rock formation, and also completing a production well in the organic-rich rock formation. The method also includes the steps of hydraulically fracturing the organic-rich rock formation from the production well such that one or more artificial fractures are formed, and heating the organic-rich rock formation from the at least one heater well, thereby pyrolyzing at least a portion of the organic-rich rock into hydrocarbon fluids Pyrolyzing the organic-rich rock formation creates thermal fractures in the formation due to thermal stresses created by heating. The thermal fractures intersect the artificial fractures. As an additional step, hydrocarbon fluids may be produced from the production well. Preferably, the organic-rich rock formation is an oil shale formation.

A technique includes accessing seismic data that is associated with seismic measurements taken from a reservoir and a surrounding rock mass at a given time. Based on a velocity model developed from a predicted change in the reservoir and surrounding rock mass occurring from a prior to the given time, processing the seismic data to generate a survey of the reservoir and surrounding rock mass.

SO₂ and/or NO_x are removed from gaseous CO₂ at elevated pressure(s) in the presence of molecular oxygen and water and, when SO₂ is to be removed, NO_x, to convert SO₂ to sulfuric acid and/or NO_x to nitric acid. The sulfuric acid and/or nitric acid is/are then removed from the gaseous carbon dioxide to produce SO₂-free, NO_x-lean carbon dioxide gas. The invention has particular application in the removal of SO₂ and/or NO_x from carbon dioxide flue gas produced in an oxyfuel combustion process, for example, in a pulverized coal fired power station.

The invention provides methods for the measurement of carbon dioxide leakage from sequestration reservoirs. Tracer moieties are injected along with carbon dioxide into geological formations. Leakage is monitored by gas chromatographic analyses of absorbents. The invention also provides a process for the early leak detection of possible carbon dioxide leakage from sequestration reservoirs by measuring methane (CH₄), ethane (C₂H₆), propane (C₃H₈), and/or radon (Rn) leakage rates from the reservoirs. The invention further provides a method for branding sequestered carbon dioxide using perfluorcarbon tracers (PFTs) to show ownership.

The invention relates to a method of performing a gas operation of an oilfield having a subterranean formation with at least one reservoir positioned therein. The method steps include modeling the gas operation of the oilfield using a multi-domain simulator by coupling a static model of the subterranean formation, a dynamic model of the subterranean formation, and a well model, wherein the multi-domain simulator comprises the static model, the dynamic model, and the well model, defining a development plan for the gas operation based on the modeling, and performing gas injection according to the development plan.

A method for stimulation of gas production from coal seams is described using a permeability modifier, such as a coal swelling agent, injected into the coal seams via a wellbore to reduce the permeability of the coal seams prior to a fracturing treatment.