Geological Engineering Commons^™

The Use Of Ceramic Water Filters Under Pressure In An In-Line Water Pumping System, Travis Dean Gardner

Masters Theses

"Ceramic pot filters (CPFs) have proven an effective point of use (POU) filter due to their relative low cost, ease to manufacture, and effectiveness at treating contaminated water. These filters are used by individual homes, and sometimes multiple filters are needed for each home in order to produce enough water for the family's household. If these filters could be used in-line with a pumping system or elevated storage tank, water could be filtered and used on demand for a community in an economically feasible way. However, CPFs are too fragile to use under pressure due to the weak points where …

Development Of A Variogram Approach To Spatial Outlier Detection Using A Supplemental Digital Elevation Model Dataset, Zane Daniel Helwig

Masters Theses

"When developing a ground water model, the quality of the dataset should first be evaluated. Spatial outliers can lead to predictions which are not representative of actual conditions. In order to isolate misrepresentative points, a method is presented which examines the experimental variogram of a ground water elevation dataset. To define a threshold variance between pairs of ground water elevation measures, ground elevation values from a digital elevation model (DEM) are used to determine a maximum reasonable variance expected to occur on the experimental variogram. To determine appropriate DEM parameters, a separate study was also done which observed characteristic behavior …

Imaging In Karst Terrain Using The Electrical Resistivity And Multichannel Analyses Of Surface Wave Methods, Ragab W. Jaafar

Masters Theses

"Electrical resistivity tomography and multi-channel analyses of surface waves data were acquired at a study area in Phelps County in the south-central part of Missouri. The objectives of the investigation were fourfold: 1) to image the subsurface in the study area to a depth of 70 feet; 2) to compare the ERT images generated using both the dipole-dipole and Wenner-Schlumberger arrays; and 3) to assess how variations in the MASW array configuration affected MASW data quality; and 4) to compare the ERT-estimated depth to top-of-rock and the MASW-generated depth to top-of-rock.

The subsurface in the study area was imaged to …

Quantitating Active Photosystem Ii Reaction Center Content From Fluorescence Induction Transients, Cole D. Murphy, Guangyan Ni, Gang Li, Audrey Barnett, Kui Xu, Jessica Grant-Burt, Justin D. Liefer, David J. Suggett, Douglas A. Campbell

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Photosystem II (PSII) is a pigment-protein complex that photochemically extracts electrons from water, generating the reductant that supports biological productivity in all biomes. Estimating the content of active PSII reaction centers in a liquid sample is a key input for estimating aquatic photosynthesis rates, as well as for analyzing phytoplankton stress responses. Established procedures for PSII content quantification based on oxygen evolution are slow, imprecise and require dense cell suspensions, and are thus inapplicable to many laboratory or field studies. A new approach uses baseline chlorophyll fluorescence emission divided by the effective absorbance cross section for PSII photochemistry, with both …

Evaluation Of Combined Low-Salinity Water And Microgel Treatments To Improve Oil Recovery Using Partial Fractured Carbonate Models, Ali K. Alhuraishawy, Baojun Bai

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Combining two methods in one process to enhance oil recovery represents a needed cost savings in the oil industry. Microgels are used as conformance control agents to improve oil sweep efficiency and control excess water production. Low-salinity waterflooding (LSWF) is used as a wettability alteration agent in carbonate reservoirs and improves displacement efficiency. This paper offers a comprehensive understanding of the combined technology through laboratory experiments. The focus of this study is to see how microgels and low water salinity perform in porous media by creating flow resistance to injected fluid thereby changing the wettability and enhancing the sweep and …

Ior Methods In Unconventional Reservoirs Of North America: Comprehensive Review, Dheiaa Alfarge, Mingzhen Wei, Baojun Bai

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Unconventional resources have played a significant role in changing oil industry plans recently. Shale formations in North America have huge oil in place, 900 billion barrels of recoverable oil in Bakken only. However, the predicted primary recovery is still low as less than 10%. Therefore, seeking for improved oil techniques to increase oil recovery in these complex plays is inevitable. In this paper, three stages of review have been combined to find out the applicability of the most feasible IOR methods in these unconventional reservoirs. Firstly, the most common fluid and rock properties of these reservoirs have been investigated and …

Selection Criteria For Miscible-Gases To Enhance Oil Recovery In Unconventional Reservoirs Of North America, Dheiaa Alfarge, Mingzhen Wei, Baojun Bai, Mortadha Alsaba

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Unconventional resources have played a significant role in changing oil industry plans recently. Shale formations in North America such as Bakken, Niobrara, and Eagle Ford have huge oil in place, 100-900 billion barrels of oil in Bakken only. However, the predicted primary recovery is still low as 5-10%. Therefore, seeking for techniques to enhance oil recovery in these complex plays is inevitable. In this paper, two different approaches have been integrated to investigate the feasibility of three different miscible gases which are CO₂, lean gases, and rich gases. Firstly, numerical simulation methods of compositional models have been incorporated …

Wellbore Stability Evaluation For Mishrif Formation, Ethar H.K. Alkamil, Husam R. Abbood, Ralph E. Flori, Andreas Eckert

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

During drilling operations for the E oilfield in the Mishrif formation in southern Iraq, stuck pipe has been identified as a significant geomechanical problem for several wells. In this study, a 1-D mechanical earth model (MEM) of the Mishrif formation is compiled based on its state of stress and rock strength parameters and is utilized to assess the contribution of borehole collapse leading to the stuck pipe problems. The MEM model is based on the principal in situ stresses and their orientation obtained from wireline logs measurements, measuring while drilling (MWD), and leak off test (LOT). Rock strength properties are …

Effect Of Molecular-Diffusion Mechanisim On Co2 Huff-N-Puff Process In Shale-Oil Reservoirs, Dheiaa Alfarge, Mingzhen Wei, Baojun Bai, Abdullah Almansour

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Unconventional resources have played a significant role in changing oil industry plans recently. Shale formations in North America such as Bakken, Niobrara, and Eagle Ford have huge oil in place, 100-900 billion barrels of recoverable oil in Bakken only. However, the predicted primary recovery is still low as less than 10%. Therefore, seeking for techniques to increase oil recovery in these complex plays is inevitable. In this paper, three different approaches have been combined to investigate the effect of molecular-diffusion mechanism on CO₂ huff-n-puff process in Bakken formation. Firstly, comprehensive review has been conducted on the reported experimental studies …

Optimizing Injector-Producer Spacing For Co2 Injection In Unconventional Reservoirs Of North America, Dheiaa Alfarge, Mingzhen Wei, Baojun Bai, Abdullah Almansour

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Shale oil reservoirs such as Bakken, Niobrara, and Eagle Ford have become the main target for oil and gas investors as conventional formations started to deplete and diminish in number. These reservoirs have a huge oil potential; however, the predicted primary oil recovery is still low as average of 7.5 %. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) flooding has been a controversial approach to increase oil recovery in these poor-quality formations. This study investigated the effect of injector-producer spacing, in range of 925-1664 ft, on CO₂ performance in these plays by using numerical simulation methods. CO₂ utilization value under …

Novel Environmentally Benign Hydrogel: Nano-Silica Hybrid Hydrolyzed Polyacrylamide/ Polyethyleneimine Gel System For Conformance Improvement In High Temperature High Salinity Reservoir, Liping Ma, Shitou Wang, Yifu Long, Changqian Zhu, Hongbin Yang, Tangying Yang, Xiaochun Liu, Xiaorong Li, Baojun Bai, Wanli Kang

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In order to address the conformance problem in high temperature and high salinity/hardness reservoir, an environmentally benign in-situ gel was developed based on hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (HPAM) and polyethyleneimine (PEI). Moreover, silica nanoparticle (SNP) was embedded to improve the performance of HPAM/PEI gel. To achieve the optimum formulation of HPAM/PEI-SNP gel, a comprehensive investigation was first conducted with the respect of gelation time, gel strength, and thermal stability. In addition, the particle size of SNP was determined by Dynamic Light Scatter (DLS) and the microstructure of HPAM/ PEI-SNP gel was characterized via Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The optimum formulation, containing the …

Underground Structures, Rock Structures And Rock Mechanics From Ancient Era To The Modern Age, Ebru Akiş, Özgür Satici

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Usage of underground space is an old habit for human beings since ancient era. Our ancestors have used caves as a shelter for protection from the wildlife and nature, and they excavated caves to extract valuable minerals. They also used them as sanctuaries, tombs or for storage of goods. In addition, they built tunnels to be used as assault systems or to underpass fortifications during ancient warfare. Later on, tunnels were driven to supply water to the towns or to protect the towns from floods. They also built them for communication purposes. Though not knowing the exact time when they …

Semi-Analytical Approach For Time-Dependent Load-Settlement Response Of A Jacked Pile In Clay Strata, Lin Li, Jingpei Li, De'an Sun, Weibing Gong

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Mechanical behavior of the soil around a jacked pile changes significantly during pile installation and subsequent consolidation. Hence, an axially loaded jacked pile exhibits apparent time-dependent bearing performance after pile installation. This paper presents a semi-analytical approach to predict the time-dependent bearing performance of an axially loaded jacked pile in saturated clay strata. The effects of pile installation and subsequent consolidation on the changes in mechanical properties of the surrounding soil are modeled by the cavity expansion theory and the radial consolidation theory, respectively. An exponential function-based load-transfer (t-z) curve is employed to describe the nonlinear behavior of the pile-soil …

Well Integrity Assessment Of Monitoring Wells At An Active Co2-Eor Flood, Andrew Duguid, Boyun Guo, Runar Nygaard

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Assessment of well integrity has become more important for CCS and CO₂-EOR as it has become apparent that wells represent the most likely migration pathway for CO₂ to leave a CCS storage unit or a CO₂-EOR reservoir. Although wells represent a migration pathway, they are also the best vehicle for employing technology monitoring CO₂ injection and storage. This contradiction of being a potential migration path and key monitoring technology leads to a need to understand how monitoring wells may be similar or different in comparison to other types of wells with respect to migration …

Analysis Of Ior Pilots In Bakken Formation By Using Numerical Simulation, Dheiaa Alfarge, Mingzhen Wei, Baojun Bai, Mortadha Alsaba

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Bakken is the most productive formation among unconventional plays in North America. This formation has 7.4 billion barrels of recoverable oil. However, the primary oil recovery is still low as 5-10%. Miscible natural gas and carbon dioxide (CO₂) might be the most two potential strategies to improve oil recovery in such complex play. In this study, some of the IOR pilots which have been conducted in Montana, North Dakota, and South Saskatchewan have been presented. The performance results of these pilots in US-Bakken versus Canadian-Bakken have been compared. Moreover, the reasons beyond the successful IOR pilots in Canadian-Bakken …

Integrating Microgels And Low Salinity Waterflooding To Improve Conformance Control In Fractured Reservoirs, Ali Alhuraishawy, Mingzhen Wei, Baojun Bai, Abdullah Almansour

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The recovery from fractured reservoirs is usually low. The areal heterogeneity is one result of the fractured reservoir. Low salinity waterflooding (LSWF) and preformed particle gel (PPG) have recently investigated by some researchers. The main objective of this study was to determine whether the combining technologies can improve conformance control in fractured sandstone reservoirs. Semi-transparent five-spot models made of sandstone cores and acrylic plates were built. The effect of low salinity waterflooding on oil recovery was studied. Models were designed with three parallel open fractures. Sodium chloride (1.0, 0.1, 0.01, and 0.001 wt. % NaCl) were used for brine flooding …

Updated Criterion To Select Particle Size Distribution Of Lost Circulation Materials For An Effective Fracture Sealing, Mortadha Alsaba, Mohammed F. Al Dushaishi, Runar Nygaard, Olav Magnar Nes, Arild Saasen

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This paper presents a new criterion to select particle size distribution (PSD) for an effective fracture sealing. The method was developed based on a comprehensive laboratory investigation that was conducted to determine the relationship between effectiveness of different lost circulation material (LCM) treatments in terms of the sealing efficiency and PSD. The results were compared with the current selection methods, which were developed to enhance the bridging capabilities for drill-in fluid, to investigate their applicability in designing effective treatments for fracture sealing. A statistical investigation was carried out to develop new criteria that suggest PSD based on the expected fracture …

Surface Ozone And Its Precursors At Summit, Greenland: Comparison Between Observations And Model Simulations, Yaoxian Huang, Shiliang Wu, Louisa J. Kramer, Detlev Helmig, Richard E. Honrath

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Recent studies have shown significant challenges for atmospheric models to simulate tropospheric ozone (O3/and its precursors in the Arctic. In this study, ground-based data were combined with a global 3-D chemical transport model (GEOS-Chem) to examine the abundance and seasonal variations of O3 and its precursors at Summit, Greenland (72.34° N, 38.29° W; 3212 ma.s.l.). Model simulations for atmospheric nitrogen oxides (NOx/, peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN), ethane (C2H6/, propane (C3H8/, carbon monoxide (CO), and O3 for the period July 2008-June 2010 were compared with observations. The model performed well in simulating certain species (such as CO and C3H8/, but some significant …

2-D And 3-D Mapping Of Soil And Rock Structure In Karst Terrain Of Southwestern Missouri Using The Non-Invasive Electrical Resistivity Tomography Method (Ert), Diya Ali Ahmad Alfuqara

Masters Theses

"Electrical resistivity tomography data were acquired in an extensively karstic area of southwestern Missouri. The interpretation of the electrical resistivity tomography data was constrained by multichannel analysis of surface wave data and limited boring control. The objective of the study was to determine if variations in the moisture content of the soil and shallow rock are related to ground surface topography. Analysis of the acquired electrical resistivity tomography data showed that resistivity values of soil and shallow rock beneath and in proximity to identified natural and man-made surface run-off pathways are typically low compared to the resistivity values of soil …

Hydraulic Conductivity Testing Of Cement-Bentonite Mixes For Use In Annular Well Seals, Amy Lynn Norval

Masters Theses

"Grout is the material used in the annulus of water supply and monitoring wells to prevent movement of water from adjacent formations or from the land surface into the well. Grout is critical for preventing cross-contamination of aquifers through a borehole when a single well penetrates multiple aquifers and for protecting aquifers from surface contamination. The composition and emplacement of grout is regulated in most states, with standard mixes of bentonite and cement being the most widely used types of grout. Despite widespread adoption of grout regulations, surprisingly little literature is available to describe the effectiveness of different grout mixtures. …