Chemical Engineering Commons^™

A Proactive Drilling System To Prevent Stuck Pipe And Differential Sticking, Ethar H. K. Alkamil

Doctoral Dissertations

"During drilling operations for the E oilfield in the Mishrif formation in southern Iraq, stuck pipe and differential sticking have been identified as significant geomechanical and drilling problems for several deviated wells. In this work, an integrated approach with three phases is presented to serve as a proactive geo-drilling system to prevent wellbore instability. In the first phase, a comprehensive geomechanical assessment of the Mishrif formation has been carried out to evaluate the in-situ stresses, maximum horizontal stress orientation, pore pressure, rock properties, and rock strength parameters. Moreover, the geomechanical evaluation has been incorporated into the mud design using three …

Engineering Zeolite Catalysts Through Porosity And Surface Acidity Control For Selective Production Of Light Olefins, Xin Li

Doctoral Dissertations

"Zeolites are broadly used as heterogeneous catalysts in various chemical and petrochemical industries to produce value-added chemicals and fuels, mainly due to their large surface area, acid-base properties, high thermal stability, and excellent shape-selectivity. In this dissertation, various zeolite catalysts were engineered through fine-tuning micro-meso-macro-porosity and surface acidity. The engineered zeolites were used as heterogeneous catalysts for production of light olefins such as ethylene and propylene through alcohol dehydration and hydrocarbon cracking reactions.

To control the zeolite porosity and acidity, SAPO-34@ZSM-5 and SAPO-34@Silicalite-1 composites with core-shell structure were synthesized and evaluated in ethanol dehydration reaction. Analysis of catalytic performance revealed …

Atomic Layer Deposition Prepared Nanostructured Materials For Various Catalytic Reactions, Xiaofeng Wang

Doctoral Dissertations

"Atomic layer deposition (ALD) has been widely used for thin film coating and metal nanoparticles (NPs) preparation. In this report, the applications of ALD prepared nanostructured materials in catalysis were examined.

Highly dispersed Pt monometallic catalysts with different substrates and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) supported Pt-Co bimetallic catalysts were synthesized by ALD for selective hydrogenation of α, β-unsaturated aldehydes to unsaturated alcohols (UA). Pt/MWCNTs showed the highest selectivity of UA in selective hydrogenation of citral, as compared to Pt/SiO₂, Pt/ALD-Al₂O₃, and Pt/γ-Al₂O₃. After adding Co, the highest selectivity was achieved …

Reduced Exhaust Emissions Through Blending N-Butanol With Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel And Synthetic Paraffinic Kerosene In Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition Combustion, Remi Gaubert

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Increasing restrictions on the emitted exhaust emissions in diesel engines are becoming a more challenging task than in previous years. An electronic common rail fuel injection system and a port fuel injection (PFI) system were developed for an experimental engine to research dual fuel combustion. The experimental research was conducted at 1500 rpm and 4, 5, and 6 bar indicated mean effective pressure (IMEP). n-Butanol was port fuel injected at a 60% by mass fraction coupled with direct injection (DI) of three fuels, including ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD RCCI), a 50-50 wt-% blend of ULSD and butanol (ULSD-Bu RCCI), and …

Synthesis And Comprehensive Studies Of Nanogels For Enhanced Oil Recovery, Jiaming Geng

Doctoral Dissertations

“Nanomaterials have been developed and applied for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) in oil industry. Among the developed nanomaterials, nano-sized crosslinked polymeric gel particles (nanogels) have shown the potential in improving both the macro- and micro-displacing efficiency. This dissertation focuses on the synthesis and the potential EOR mechanisms of nanogels. Nanogels with positive, negative, and neutral charges were synthesized through suspension polymerization. The morphology, size distribution, and zeta potential of nanogels were elucidated by corresponding technologies, such as scanning electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering. The ability of nanogels in oil-water interfacial tension (IFT) reduction and oil-in-water (o/w) emulsion stabilization was …

Solvent And Concentration Effects Governing The Hierarchical Organization Of Asphaltenes: A Small-Angle X-Ray Scattering Study, Hasan Rejoanur Rahman

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Asphaltenes are a group of planar molecules found in crude oil and are prone to aggregation which often causes blockage of pipes along the oil production stream resulting a huge economic downside. In an effort to understand the hierarchical organization of asphaltene in different solvents and concentrations, the solution structure of various asphaltene solutions were studied using small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS). Solvents were chosen based on miscibility maps. Such maps are generated on the critical value of the solubility parameter difference between asphaltenes or asphaltene components, and a range of solvents. The critical factors that affect asphaltene and asphaltene component …

Characterization Of Pyrolysis Products From Fast Pyrolysis Of Live And Dead Vegetation Native To The Southern United States, Mohammad-Saeed Safdari, Mahmood Rahmati, Elham Amini, Joel E. Howarth, Jansen P. Berryhill, Mark Dietenberger, David R. Weise, Thomas H. Fletcher

Faculty Publications

Prescribed burning (controlled burning) is used to decrease accumulation of combustible materials and reduce impact of uncontrolled wildland fires. Prescribed fires are often used to burn undergrowth in Southern forests of the United States. In order to improve prescribed fire application, accomplish desired fire effects, and limit potential runaway fires, an improved understanding of the fundamental processes related to combustion of heterogeneous fuel beds of live and dead fuels is needed. The initial processes of combustion involve pyrolysis and ignition. During this research, fast pyrolysis of 14 live and dead (biomass) plant species which are native to the Southern United …

Fire Behavior In Chaparral–Evaluating Flame Models With Laboratory Data, David R. Weise, Thomas H. Fletcher, Wesley Cole, Shankar Mahalingam, Xiangyang Zhou, Lulu Sun, Jing Li

Faculty Publications

Flame and mass loss data for chaparral, a mixture of shrub plants from the Mediterranean climate zone of southwestern North America, from five previously reported experiments were used to evaluate several published models relating flame characteristics to mass loss and heat release rates. These data are unique with fuel moisture content ranging from 0.36 to 0.94 (dry basis); the study used mass loss rates which included water loss. Fit of the data to Froude number correlations developed by Albini, Byram, Nelson and Thomas and heat release rate—flame length correlations by Heskestad, Zukoski, and Yuan/Cox for axisymmetric and line fires were …

Using Agricultural Wastes To Treat Lead-Contaminated Water In Western Australia, Hanie Hashtroudi

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Aqueous solutions are becoming increasingly contaminated in all parts of the world (2015). Heavy metals are toxic contaminants that are mainly distributed in urban stormwater run-off and industrial wastewaters as a result of some mining operations, electronic assembly planting, battery manufacturing, and etching operations (Kadirvelu et al. 2001). Pb (II) is a heavy metal that causes significant damage in the human body. Drinking lead-contaminated water even at low concentrations may cause lifethreatening conditions such as cancer, kidney damage, brain damage, and liver problems (El-Said 2010). Therefore, it is necessary to remove lead from aqueous solutions.

Several conventional physical, chemical, and …

Study Of Gas Production From Shale Reservoirs With Multi-Stage Hydraulic Fracturing Horizontal Well Considering Multiple Transport Mechanisms, Chaohua Guo, Mingzhen Wei, Hong Liu

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Development of unconventional shale gas reservoirs (SGRs) has been boosted by the advancements in two key technologies: horizontal drilling and multi-stage hydraulic fracturing. A large number of multi-stage fractured horizontal wells (MsFHW) have been drilled to enhance reservoir production performance. Gas flow in SGRs is a multi-mechanism process, including: desorption, diffusion, and non-Darcy flow. The productivity of the SGRs with MsFHW is influenced by both reservoir conditions and hydraulic fracture properties. However, rare simulation work has been conducted for multi-stage hydraulic fractured SGRs. Most of them use well testing methods, which have too many unrealistic simplifications and assumptions. Also, no …

An Integrated Method For Forecasting Well Deliverability In Gas Condensate Reservoirs With Bottom Aquifer Drive, Abdulaziz Ellafi, Ralph E. Flori, Shari Dunn-Norman

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Gas condensate reservoirs constitute a significant portion of global hydrocarbon reserves. In these reservoirs, liquids develop in the pore space once bottomhole pressure falls below dew point. This results in the formation of a liquid bank near the wellbore region which decreases gas mobility, which then reduces gas inflow. In such complex reservoirs, it is important to correctly describe PVT impacts, adjustments to well test analysis and inflow performance, and then combine all effects in the reservoir analysis. The literature contains many references to individual adjustments of PVT analysis, well testing, or inflow performance for gas condensate reservoirs, but few …

Testing And Evaluation Of Shale Stability For Zubair Shale Formation, Ahmed K. Abbas, Ralph E. Flori, Ahmed Al-Anssari, Mortadha Alsaba

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Zubair Formation consists of approximately 55% shale, which causes almost 70% of wellbore problems due to incompatibilities of drilling fluids and shale formations. The most common and effective solution to shale instability is through the design and selection of drilling fluids. Understanding the interaction between drilling fluids and shale has been a challenge due to the complexity of both physical and chemical variations in shale formations. This paper presents some of the important laboratory and well-site testing techniques that are often used by mud engineers for characterizing and remediating drilling fluids and shale interaction. Well-preserved shale samples were analyzed to …

Advanced Ion Management To Improve Oil Recovery In Oil-Wet Carbonate-Sandstone Composite Reservoirs, Ali K. Alhuraishawy, Baojun Bai, Mingzhen Wei, Waleed H. Al-Bazzaz

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Waterflooding with different ionic composition called advanced ion management which play a role with ionic composition of injected water to enhance the oil production. In the last decade, many studies pointed out that the composition of injected water could changes rock wettability during waterflooding. The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of SO4 and low salinity water on improving oil recovery in oil-wet carbonate reservoirs. Sulfate ion concentration, low salinity water, rock composition, porosity, and permeability were examined using a designed model. Typical seawater, increase SO₄, two and three times in the seawater, and …

Miscible Gases Based Eor In Unconventional Liquids Rich Reservoirs: What We Can Learn, Dheiaa Alfarge, Mortadha Alsaba, Mingzhen Wei, Baojun Bai

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Over the last decade, Unconventional Liquids Rich Reservoirs (ULR) have become the main target for oil and gas investors as conventional formations started to deplete and diminish in numbers. These unconventional plays have a huge oil reserve; however, the primary oil recovery factor is predicted to be less than 10%. Unconventional Improved Oil Recovery (UIOR) techniques are still a new concept in the oil industry since there is no commercial project reported for any IOR technique yet. Miscible gas based EOR technique might be the most potential strategy to improve oil recovery in such complex plays. In this study, a …

New Insights Of Low Salinity Water Flooding In Low Permeability-Low Porosity Clay Rich Sandstone Reservoir, Ali K. Alhuraishawy, Baojun Bai, Mingzhen Wei, Waleed H. Al-Bazzaz

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

One of the EOR technologies is low-salinity water flooding (LSWF) is an EOR method that operates at a lower cost than other EOR methods, which makes it a preferred area of interest for oil industry economists, who continue to call for EOR costs to come down. The aim is to minimize the possible cost to recover as much oil as possible. The performance of low salinity waterflooding in decreasing residual oil saturation in low permeability-porosity clay-rich sandstone reservoir. Porosity test, core flooding test, XRD and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) tests were achieved in this study. Salinity effect on the porosity, …

Application Of Integrated Reservoir Geomechanics For Well Planning Of High-Angled Wells In A Mature Oil Field, Ahmed K. Abbas, Ralph E. Flori, Yousif M.B. Al-Asadi, Mortadha Alsaba, Nasser A. Al-Hamad

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Zubair oil reservoir has a significant potential to contribute to the petroleum supply in Iraq. Drilling highly deviated wells is a commonly used approach to enhance the production in mature fields. Drilling these wells in the Zubair Formation has been a challenge due to severe wellbore instability issues. This study presents how integrated reservoir geomechanics was used for efficient well planning and safe drilling of nearly horizontal wells (75° Inclination) through Zubair depleted sandstone oil reservoir. In this study, an integrated workflow was implemented mainly to build a geomechanical model using offset well data. The in-situ principal stresses and their …

Learning From Experience: An Automatic Ph Neutralization System Using Hybrid Fuzzy System And Neural Network, Ethar H.K. Alkamil, Seaar Al-Dabooni, Ahmed K. Abbas, Ralph Flori, Donald C. Wunsch

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In oil and gas industry, the pH level is one of the most important indicators of mud contamination while drilling. Although the process has simple components, the pH neutralization process is complicated in the mud circulation system. This difficulty is due to the high nonlinearity of the process. In this paper, the fuzzy neural network (FNN) is integrated to the fuzzy logic controller (FLC) to create a system which identifies pH fluctuation into a drilling mud system, assesses and signals its severity. And then, it automatically actuates a chemical treating fluids valve (CTFV), such as Caustic Soda (CS), for neutralizing …

Using Managed Pressure Drilling To Reduce Stuck Pipe Problem, Ethar H.K. Alkamil, Husam R. Abbood, Ralph E. Flori, George Medley, Sagar Nauduri, Mortadha Alsaba

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Differences between mud pressure in a wellbore and pore pressure in high permeability rocks can lead to differential sticking, particularly when drilling deviated wells and encountering mud losses. Several solutions, all challenging, can be used to address this problem, where the conventional mitigation method of managing the mud weight (MW) is often used. However, managed pressure drilling (MPD) offers a promising solution with a positive risk-adjusted cost and other benefits. Wells in the E oilfield in southern Iraq are typically drilled overbalanced and therefore often experience a high percentage of non-productive time (NPT) due to differential sticking. This study evaluates …

A Novel Ultra-Low Interfacial Tension Nanofluid For Enhanced Oil Recovery In Super-Low Permeability Reservoirs, Derong Xu, Baojun Bai, Ziyu Meng, Qiong Zhou, Zhe Li, Yao Lu, Hairong Wu, Jirui Hou, Wanli Kang

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The exploration and development of super-low permeability reservoirs have become a global focus in recent years. However, conventional flooding systems commonly face problems of high injection pressure and poor displacement efficiency in super-low permeability reservoirs. Thus, it is imperative to find new flooding agents that tackle such problems. In this study, a novel ultra-low interfacial tension (IFT) nanofluid was formulated, consisting of surfactants to achieve ultra-low IFT and silica nanoparticles to reduce injection pressure. The compatibility test between the surfactants and silica nanoparticles in 10,000 mg/L NaCl solution at 90 °C was conducted to ensure their adaption to harsh reservoir …

A Preliminary Evaluation Of The Ability Of Keratotic Tissue To Act As A Prognostic Indicator Of Hip Fracture Risk, J. Renwick Beattie, Diane Feskanich, M. Clare Caraher, Mark R. Towler

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Studies have shown that Raman spectroscopic analysis of fingernail clippings can help differentiate between post-menopausal women who have and who have not suffered a fracture. However, all studies to date have been retrospective in nature, comparing the proteins in nails sourced from women, post-fracture. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential of a prospective test for hip fracture based on spectroscopic analysis of nail tissue. Archived toenail samples from post-menopausal women aged 50 to 63 years in the Nurses' Health Study were obtained and analysed by Raman spectroscopy. Nails were matched case-controls sourced from 161 women; 82 …