Engineering Commons^™

Papermaking Factors Affecting Lateral Web Position During Commercial Heat Set Web Offset Printing, George W. Shields

Masters Theses

The interaction of water with paper plays a role in web handling characteristics during commercial heat set web offset printing. Water absorption leads to lower web tension for a given strain.

This research investigates paper properties and their role in preventing lateral web movement from cross machine air flows in the drying section during normal printing operations. Tensile properties of sheets are measured at various moisture contents and then used to determine the equilibrium stress-strain relationship for papers at moisture contents typical of heat set web offset printing. Permeability, fiber orientation and tensile stiffness are evaluated against lateral web movement …

Simulating Microbial Electrolysis For Renewable Hydrogen Production Integrated With Separation In Biorefinery, Christian James Wilson

Masters Theses

Biomass conversion to hydrocarbon fuels requires significant amounts of hydrogen. Fossil resources typically supply hydrogen via steam reforming. A new technology called microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) has emerged which can generate hydrogen from organic sources and biomass. The thermochemical route to fuels via pyrolysis generates bio-oil aqueous phase (BOAP) which can be used to make hydrogen. A process engineering and economic analysis of this technology was conducted for application in biorefineries of the future. Steam methane reforming, bio-oil separation and microbial electrolysis unit operations were simulated in Aspen Plus to derive the mass and energy balance for conversion of biomass. …

A Bug’S Life: Integration Of Anaerobic Digestion And Bioelectrochemical Systems For Enhanced Energy Recovery From Wastewater Solids And Other Waste Substrates, Jeff Ryan Beegle

Masters Theses

Organic waste streams, like domestic wastewater and municipal solid waste, have the potential to be used as feedstocks for biotechnology processes to produce high value products and energy. This thesis investigated the technological, economical, and environmental potential for integrated anaerobic digestion (AD) and bioelectrochemical system (BES) platforms as they were theoretically and physically evaluated for energy recovery from domestic wastewater. The first chapter of this thesis compared the theoretical energy efficiencies of converting waste directly into electricity, using AD and BES alone and in various combinations. This chapter reviewed the experimentally demonstrated energy efficiencies reported in the literature with comparisons …

Evaluation Of Preformed Particle Gels Penetration And Propagation Behavior For A Conformance Control Treatment In Partially Open Conduits, Ahmed Mohamed Aldalfag

Masters Theses

"Preformed particle gels (PPGs) serve as a conformance control agent and have been used widely to control excess water production through conduits, fractures or fracture-like features. This research ranks the parameters that impact PPG resistance to water flow in partially opened conduits. Experiments were conducted to examine the effect of brine concentration, PPG injection pressure, back pressure, reducing water salinity and matrix permeability on PPG resistance to water flow through conduits, PPG penetration to the matrix. PPGs were swelled in different concentration brines and were injected into the conduits at a few designed injection pressures. PPG swollen in high brine …

An Investigation Of Borax For Sealing Inflow From Berea Sandstone, Tri-Tris Bao Nguyen

Masters Theses

"Well inflow control is a major challenge for the oil and gas industry. Erle Haliburton revolutionized well inflow control with his patent for cementing oil wells in 1921. Soon after, cement became the accepted material to establish well integrity and has been ever since. Cement is used in all phases of the well life cycle, and it is expected to hold indefinitely once set. Yet based on the nature of cement and the placement techniques, flow pathways may develop from improper cementing jobs or from cement degradation over time. Well integrity is especially crucial for wellbore plugging and abandonment, since …

Determination Of Significant Parameters That Drive Fracture Optimization In The Glauconite Formation, Southern Chile, Ghassan Saleh Mahdi Alqatrani

Masters Theses

"The Glauconite Formation in the Magallanes Basin of Southern Chile is a clay- and silica-rich formation with low permeability. As with many of the unconventional resources, the Glauconite Formation requires a hydraulic fracturing operation to enhance the productivity of the wells in this area.

Data and pertinent information of fracturing, completion, and reservoir quality parameters along with post-fracture production data were collected to initiate a database of nearly 70 wells, to be used to develop a better understanding of the fracturing behavior, optimize the well stimulation, and overcome the major barriers in the hydraulic fracturing of the Glauconite Formation. The …

Advanced Buffer Materials For Indoor Air Co₂ Control In Commercial Buildings, Pavithra Ethi Rajan

Masters Theses

"The following describes a novel passive approach to control the indoor CO₂ levels in enclosed spaces, primarily focusing on commercial buildings. Amine impregnated silica sorbents were identified as suitable candidates and synthesized; the amine loading ratio was varied to create a range of materials. These samples along with other commercial zeolite candidates have been tested over a range of CO₂ concentrations to determine the CO₂ adsorption capacity in laboratory systems and under simulated room conditions. The research work also focuses on the CO₂ desorption capacity of the candidate adsorbents. The desorption is allowed to occur gradually …

Study Of Surface Complexation And Mineral Dissolution During Water-Rock Interaction In High Salinity Waterflooding At Elevated Temperatures, Sameer Salasakar

Masters Theses

"High salinity waterflooding for carbonate reservoirs is efficient and cheap method used for improved oil recovery. Various mechanisms have been proposed including adsorption/desorption on rock surface, mineral dissolution and precipitation, multicomponent ion exchange, interfacial tension reduction, fine migration and double layer expansion. These all process alter the wettability which leads to improved oil recovery.

Objective of this study was to understand processes that occur during water-rock interaction when high salinity water is flooded into the reservoir. In this work, effect of temperature on water-rock interaction is studied along with effect of pH and specific surface areas of calcite at normal …

Effect Of Fracture Heterogeneity On Proppant Transport And Settling Mechanism, Dhurgham Abdulameer Kadhim

Masters Theses

"Proppant transport modeling through fractures with slickwater fluid systems assumes uniform and homogeneous fracture widths by implying constant fluid behavior at wall boundaries. Hydraulic fracturing mineback operations have demonstrated that induced fractures are heterogeneous and varying in width. This work investigates the impact of fracture width heterogeneity, roughness, and leak-off on ceramic proppant transport and settling, using proppant distribution concepts of Equilibrium Dune Level (EDL) and equilibrium Dune Length (EDX). Experimental work was conducted to investigate the impact of fracture width heterogeneity by varying fracture width along two plexiglass sheets. To mimic actual hydraulic fractures, the injection side was designed …

Geomechanical Analysis Of The Wellbore Instability Problems In Nahr Umr Formation Southern Iraq, Haider Qasim Mohammed

Masters Theses

"Wellbore instability problems play a major rule of increasing nonproductive time (NPT) during drilling processes. In most cases, the cost of drilling a well can be reduced by designing a suitable operational window using geomechanical models. Several wellbore instability problems have been encountered during drilling Nahr Umr Formation in an oil field in southern Iraq. These problems include but are not limited to, mechanical stuck, caving, and tight holes. Data from twenty vertical wells are investigated to reveal the major factors that control the instability problems and to design an optimum mud window. A geomechanical model is developed to determine …

Preformed Particle Gel Conformance Control Performance In Partially Opened Fracture And Fully Opened Fracture Systems, Ghith Ali Ahmed Biheri

Masters Theses

"Conformance problems, such as reservoir heterogeneity can result in a significant decrease in oil recovery, and an excessive water production. Millimeter particle gels (PPG) have been used as conformance control agents to plug open fractures, however, very little research has been conducted to study their ability to plug partially open fractures. This research studies the ability of the PPG to plug partially open fracture to improve conformance and increase recovery in oil reservoirs. Rectangular Sandstone cores were used to conduct the experiments. Fracture widths used include 2, 3.5, 5 mm. For each fracture width, four gel strengths were used; gel …

Quantifying Ceramic Proppant Transport In Complex Fracture Networks, Vivekvardhan Reddy Kesireddy

Masters Theses

"Water fracs have become an essential part of unconventional reservoirs to create deeper fracture networks. Proppant transport in water fracs is challenging in terms of fluids ability to carry the proppant deeper into these fracture networks. This experimental study investigates the impact of the flow rates, fracture widths and complexity controlling the ability of proppant to flow into complex fracture networks. This research attempts to nullify the knowledge gap in understanding width heterogeneity in primary and secondary fractures. This study speaks for settling pattern and proppant transport through a slot flow model with a unique approach to understand stage wise …

Evaluation Of Preformed Particle Gel As A Diverting Agent For Acidizing, Bo Wei

Masters Theses

"Preformed particle gels (PPGs) have been developed and successfully used to improve conformance in heterogeneous reservoirs. However, no research has been reported to show their potential diverting applications in acidizing because of their unknown performance in this process. This work targets on evaluating the potential of PPGs to be used as diverting agents and factors influencing the diverting performance.

The swelling properties of three types of PPGs (PPG #1, #2, and #3) were first studied in brine and acid, including the swelling kinetics and equilibrium, PPG strength, and deswelling performance. Effects of different brine concentration, acid concentration, and temperature were …

Evaluation Of Swelling And Re-Swelling Of Preformed Particle Gels (Ppg) When Exposed To Co₂, Sujay Suresh

Masters Theses

"Long term water/gas flooding induces high permeability channels in reservoirs. Reservoir heterogeneity becomes the most prominent challenge faced in mature oil fields. Gel treatment has been a proven solution to counter the problem of reservoir heterogeneity, to provide in-depth treatment and improve the sweep efficiency for reservoirs. Preformed particle gels (PPGs) were developed as an alternative to in-situ gels as they preferentially penetrate and shutoff high permeability zones, leaving the low permeability zones undamaged. These gels have been predominantly used in water flooding projects, but have not been employed in carbon dioxide (CO₂) flooding projects. CO₂ Resistant …

Well Log Interpretation And 3d Reservoir Property Modeling Of Maui-B Field, Taranaki Basin, New Zealand, Aziz Mennan

Masters Theses

"Maui-B is one of the largest hydrocarbon-producing fields in the Taranaki Basin. Many previous works have estimated reservoir volume. This study uses 3D property modeling, which is one of the most powerful tools to characterize lithology and reservoir fluids distribution through the field. This modeling will help in understanding the reservoir properties and enhancing the production by selecting the best location for future drilling candidates. In this study, 3D seismic, core, and well log data were used to build and define a structural model, facies analysis, and petrophysical parameters. After well log interpretation and petrophysical parameter calculations, each parameter was …

Design And Modeling Of An Aluminum Smelting Process To Analyze Aluminum Smelter And Identify The Alternative Uses Of Nuclear Power Small Modular Reactor, Rajesh Ramkrushna Patharabe

Masters Theses

"This thesis focuses on design and analysis of an Aluminum Smelting process using computer simulation which performs a dynamic state computation. The objective is to develop a Dynamic Simulation Model of an Aluminum Smelter using Mimic Simulator to analyze the dynamic behavior of an Aluminum Smelter to evaluate strategies for alternative design or uses of Nuclear Power Small Modular Reactor to improve the efficiency of the process and to reduce the heat losses.

Increasing energy needs, decrease of the availability of cheap electricity and the need to reduce the greenhouse gases emissions are the biggest hurdles for running Aluminum smelters …

A Comprehensive Analysis Of Lost Circulation Materials And Treatments With Applications In Basra's Oil Fields, Iraq: Guidelines And Recommendations, Husam Hasan Alkinani

Masters Theses

"Lost circulation materials (LCM's) have been widely used to avoid or stop losses. Due to a large number of current available LCM's and their different applications, classification of LCM's is very important. The most recent LCM classification was published around 50 years ago, and this paper intends to fill this gap with an updated classification including conventional and new technologies. Lost circulation materials and treatments are re-classified into various categories based on their appearance, applications, chemical and physical properties.

Wells in Basra's oil fields are highly susceptible to lost circulation problems when drilling through the Dammam, Hartha, and Shuaiba formations. …

Survey And Data Analysis Of Weak Gel Treatments In Injection Wells, Zhuxing Chen

Masters Theses

"Excessive water production is a major concern in mature reservoirs. Weak gels have been applied in injection wells for in-depth profile modification. However, the data range and distribution of each parameter that affects performance of weak gels have not been studied thoroughly.

China has the largest amount of chemical-based conformance control treatments. This paper presents a summary of comprehensive data ranges and distributions for weak gel treatments based on the laboratory experiments and field applications in China from 2001 to 2010. The data set includes 76 cases compiled from China Academic Journals papers. In this study, reservoir properties, gel properties …

Deformation Processes At The Leading Edge Of The Sevier Fold And Thrust Belt, Southwest Utah, William Joseph Michael Chandonia

Masters Theses

"Deformation processes leading to formation and abandonment of 'triangle zones' along the leading edge of the Sevier fold and thrust belt are investigated near Kanarraville, Utah through construction of a detailed geologic map and cross-section along Spring Creek. Here the eastern limb of the Kanarra fold, a Sevier structure, is well exposed along the Hurricane Cliffs due to uplift and erosion of the footwall of the Hurricane Fault. The east-verging Kanarra fold changes from upright to overturned within Spring Creek. Within the fold limb, parasitic folds, minor thrust faults, and duplex structures result in local tectonic overthickening of units and …

Combined Flue Gas Cleanup Process For Simultaneous Removal Of SoX, NoX, And Co₂ -- A Techno-Economic Analysis, Amit Narendrasing Hajari

Masters Theses

"Flue gas cleanup often requires the removal of SO_x, NO_x and CO₂ in separate units before atmospheric emission. The step-wise treatment process currently in place incurs significant cost and energy penalty. A single-step adsorption process based on pressure swing adsorption (PSA) by which these impurities are removed is envisioned as an efficient means of flue gas cleanup that can be applied relatively easily. In this study, the technological and economic feasibility of a single-step separation process in which SO_x, NO_x and CO₂ are simultaneously removed from flue gas streams are assessed. Capital …

Cathodic Protection Measurement Through Inline Inspection Technology Uses And Observations, Briana Ley Ferguson

Masters Theses

"This research supports the evaluation of an impressed current cathodic protection (CP) system of a buried coated steel pipeline through alternative technology and methods, via an inline inspection device (ILI, CP ILI tool, or tool), in order to prevent and mitigate external corrosion. This thesis investigates the ability to measure the current density of a pipeline's CP system from inside of a pipeline rather than manually from outside, and then convert that CP ILI tool reading into a pipe-to-soil potential as required by regulations and standards. This was demonstrated through a mathematical model that utilizes applications of Ohm's Law, circuit …

Overview Of Co₂ Leakage Problems And Sealants For Co₂ Leakage Remediation, Shudai Peng

Masters Theses

"Excessive Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) emission has become a serious issue and caused lots of environmental problems. Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) program has been developed to reduce the CO₂ content in the atmosphere. CO₂ storage has been targeted mainly on depleted oil or gas reservoirs and deep saline aquifers. However, leakage could occur through wellbores, cap rocks, formation faults, and fractures during and after CO₂ injection. To minimize the risk, different types of sealants have been investigated to prevent CO₂ leaks. The aim of this thesis is to provide a comprehensive review of the materials which could be used as …