PSI - Issue 47

Amani J. Majeed / Procedia Structural Integrity 47 (2023) 919–931 Amani J. Majeed / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000

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addition, the capital costs of solar thermal EOR are much lower than those of CSP because steam is not converted to electricity via a turbine, which leads to a reduction in project complexity (Sandler et al., 2012). Nearly half of the world's improved oil recovery is managed by Thermal Enhanced Oil Recovery (TEOR) techniques. The problem arises when dealing with large viscous oils with API gravity below 20 degrees and viscosities between 100-1000 centipoise. This results in a fluid with very low mobility. In such cases, a most common method of reducing viscosity is by heating the reservoir, which raises the temperature of the liquid, allowing the fluid (oil) to partially vaporize or expand. As a result, it should be able to flow into production more quickly (Avaritsiotis, 2018). 2. Recovering oil by using solar steam In this process, solar energy is used to produce heat, as this system consists of two components, which are a reflector that captures sunlight and focuses it on the receiver that contains a fluid which will be converted into steam (Alvarado & Manrique, 2010). Also, in some systems, thermal energy is stored in enhanced oil recovery processes, where it absorbs thermal energy from the sun during the day and generates steam at night or on non-sunny days (Donaldson et al., 1989). Nevertheless, upstream operations can reduce fuel consumption and maintenance costs by using renewable energy. Aside from reducing noise and emissions, renewable energy can also improve safety. Thermal recovery of heavy oil is an energy-intensive process. This offers opportunities to use renewable energy. Steam is traditionally generated using once-through steam generators (OTSG) for thermal recovery projects. As the name implies, they heat water to superheated steam in one pass. The use of OTSGs for thermal recovery is limited by two major drawbacks; first, the use of hydrocarbon fuel to generate steam is an expensive process. Burning hydrocarbon fuel generates CO2, which is the second factor (Saadawi, 2019). Nearly half of the world's improved oil recovery comes from thermal enhanced oil recovery techniques (TEOR). Oils with API gravity of less than 20 degrees and viscosities between 100 and 1000 centipoise are particularly difficult to generate because of their low mobility. Therefore, heat is frequently supplied through thermal methods, which raise the temperature of the liquid, allowing the oil to partially vaporize or expand, resulting in a decrease in viscosity. Thus, improve its capacity to flow into production.

Fig. 1. Phase1 blocks arrangement (Nellist & Solar, 2018).