Análise de Sustentabilidade em Projetos de Instalações de Produção de Petróleo

A proposal for a global analysis of sustainability in projects related in oil facilities is presented. By considering economic, environmental and social aspects in the early stages of design, the suggested method is more comprehensive and can be used to complement the analysis commonly applied in the petroleum industry, such as: Study of Technical and Economic Feasibility; Environmental Impact Assessment and Risk Analysis. Several authors, associations, certification bodies and oil companies suggest different approaches to study sustainability in some specific activities (or industries). In this study, a checklist of significant sustainability aspects for the oil industry (surface facilities) was assembled. In addition, a matrix was developed to assess the sustainability items relevant to these projects. In this work, the checklist interacts with the matrix to perform a "Preliminary Analysis of Sustainability of the Enterprise" (APSE). This method allows the identification of aspects that contribute significantly to global sustainability. From this analysis, which includes economic, social and environmental aspects, is built a report that is used to analyze qualitatively and quantitatively the impact of the sustainability aspects of the project. In this analysis are identified items that strongly influence the economic, social or environmental aspects and evaluated alternatives that can increase the overall sustainability of the project. Finally, the alternatives that can be used to indicate the most sustainable option are identified. This method was applied in a project (design) of a small offshore platform. This case study shows how the APSE can contribute to the identification of sustainability initiatives for the enterprise. The results showed that relevant aspects can contribute decisively to global sustainability. Finally, it was observed that the proposed method can contribute to increased rates of sustainability, even after application of analysis commonly used in these projects

Degradacao termica e catalitica da borra oleosa de Petroleo com materiais nanoestruturados al-mcm-41 e AL-SBA-15

Aiming to reduce and reuse waste oil from oily sludge generated in large volumes by the oil industry, types of nanostructured materials Al-MCM-41 and Al-SBA-15, with ratios of Si / Al = 50, were synthesized , and calcined solids used as catalysts in the degradation of oily sludge thermocatalytic oil from oilfield Canto do Amaro, in the state of Rio Grande do Norte. Samples of nanostructured materials were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis (TG / DTG), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), absorption spectroscopy in the infrared Fourier transform (FT-IR) and adsorption nitrogen (BET). The characterization showed that the synthesized materials resulted in a catalyst nanostructure, and ordered pore diameter and surface area according to existing literature. The oily sludge sample was characterized by determining the API gravity and sulfur content and SARA analysis (saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes). The results showed a material equivalent to the average oil with API gravity of 26.1, a low sulfur content and considerable amount of resins and asphaltenes, presented above in the literature. The thermal and catalytic degradation of the oily sludge oil was performed from room temperature to 870 ° C in the ratios of heating of 5, 10 and 20 ° C min-1. The curves generated by TG / DTG showed a more accelerated degradation of oily sludge when it introduced the nanostructured materials. These results were confirmed by activation energy calculated by the method of Flynn-Wall, in the presence of catalysts reduced energy, in particular in the range of cracking, showing the process efficiency, mainly for extraction of lightweight materials of composition of oily sludge, such as diesel and gasoline

Análise de viabilidade de injeção de fluidos alternativos ao vapor em reservatórios de óleo pesado

Many of hydrocarbon reserves existing in the world are formed by heavy oils (°API between 10 and 20). Moreover, several heavy oil fields are mature and, thus, offer great challenges for oil industry. Among the thermal methods used to recover these resources, steamflooding has been the main economically viable alternative. Latent heat carried by steam heats the reservoir, reducing oil viscosity and facilitating the production. This method has many variations and has been studied both theoretically and experimentally (in pilot projects and in full field applications). In order to increase oil recovery and reduce steam injection costs, the injection of alternative fluid has been used on three main ways: alternately, co-injected with steam and after steam injection interruption. The main objective of these injection systems is to reduce the amount of heat supplied to the reservoir, using cheaper fluids and maintaining the same oil production levels. This works discusses the use of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, methane and water as an alternative fluid to the steam. The analyzed parameters were oil recoveries and net cumulative oil productions. The reservoir simulation model corresponds to an oil reservoir of 100 m x 100 m x 28 m size, on a Cartesian coordinates system (x, y and z directions). It is a semi synthetic model with some reservoir data similar to those found in Brazilian Potiguar Basin. All studied cases were done using the simulator STARS from CMG (Computer Modelling Group, version 2009.10). It was found that waterflood after steam injection interruption achieved the highest net cumulative oil compared to other fluids injection. Moreover, it was observed that steam and alternative fluids, co-injected and alternately, did not present increase on profitability project compared with steamflooding

Análise paramétrica da injeção de vapor e solvente em reservatórios de óleo pesado

A significant fraction of the hydrocarbon reserves in the world is formed by heavy oils. From the thermal methods used to recovery these resources, Steamflooding has been one of the main economically viable alternatives. In Brazil, this technology is widely used by Petrobras in Northeast fields. Latent heat carried by steam heats the oil in the reservoir, reducing its viscosity and facilitating the production. In the last years, an alternative more and more used by the oil industry to increase the efficiency of this mechanism has been the addition of solvents. When co-injected with steam, the vaporized solvent condenses in the cooler regions of the reservoir and mixes with the oil, creating a low viscosity zone between the steam and the heavy oil. The mobility of the displaced fluid is then improved, resulting in an increase of oil recovery. To better understand this improved oil recovery method and investigate its applicability in reservoirs with properties similar to those found in Potiguar Basin, a numerical study was done to analyze the influence of some operational parameters (steam injection rate, injected solvent volume and solvent type) on oil recovery. Simulations were performed in STARS ("Steam, Thermal, and Advanced Processes Reservoir Simulator"), a CMG ("Computer Modelling Group") program, version 2009.10. It was found that solvents addition to the injected steam not only anticipated the heated oil bank arrival to the producer well, but also increased the oil recovery. Lower cold water equivalent volumes were required to achieve the same oil recoveries from the models that injected only steam. Furthermore, much of the injected solvent was produced with the oil from the reservoir

Avaliação da espécie vegetal Croton cajucara Benth como inibidor de biocorrosão em aço carbono Aisi 1020

Actually in the oil industry biotechnological approaches represent a challenge. In that, attention to metal structures affected by electrochemical corrosive processes, as well as by the interference of microorganisms (biocorrosion) which affect the kinetics of the environment / metal interface. Regarding to economical and environmental impacts reduction let to the use of natural products as an alternative to toxic synthetic inhibitors. This study aims the employment of green chemistry by evaluating the stem bark extracts (EHC, hydroalcoholic extract) and leaves (ECF, chloroform extract) of plant species Croton cajucara Benth as a corrosion inhibitor. In addition the effectiveness of corrosion inhibition of bioactive trans-clerodane dehydrocrotonin (DCTN) isolated from the stem bark of this Croton was also evaluated. For this purpose, carbon steel AISI 1020 was immersed in saline media (3,5 % NaCl) in the presence and absence of a microorganism recovered from a pipeline oil sample. Corrosion inhibition efficiency and its mechanisms were investigated by linear sweep voltammetry and electrochemical impedance. Culture-dependent and molecular biology techniques were used to characterize and identify bacterial species present in oil samples. The tested natural products EHC, ECF and DCTN (DMSO as solvent) in abiotic environment presented respectively, corrosion inhibition efficiencies of 57.6% (500 ppm), 86.1% (500 ppm) and 54.5% (62.5 ppm). Adsorption phenomena showed that EHC best fit Frumkin isotherm and ECF to Temkin isotherm. EHC extract (250 ppm) dissolved in a polar microemulsion system (MES-EHC) showed significant maximum inhibition efficiency (93.8%) fitting Langmuir isotherm. In the presence of the isolated Pseudomonas sp, EHC and ECF were able to form eco-compatible organic films with anti-corrosive properties

Estudo do acoplamento do poço injetor nas simulações de injeção cíclica de vapor

Steam injection is a method usually applied to very viscous oils and consists of injecting heat to reduce the viscosity and, therefore, increase the oil mobility, improving the oil production. For designing a steam injection project it is necessary to have a reservoir simulation in order to define the various parameters necessary for an efficient heat reservoir management, and with this, improve the recovery factor of the reservoir. The purpose of this work is to show the influence of the coupled wellbore/reservoir on the thermal simulation of reservoirs under cyclic steam stimulation. In this study, the methodology used in the solution of the problem involved the development of a wellbore model for the integration of steam flow model in injection wellbores, VapMec, and a blackoil reservoir model for the injection of cyclic steam in oil reservoirs. Thus, case studies were developed for shallow and deep reservoirs, whereas the usual configurations of injector well existing in the oil industry, i.e., conventional tubing without packer, conventional tubing with packer and insulated tubing with packer. A comparative study of the injection and production parameters was performed, always considering the same operational conditions, for the two simulation models, non-coupled and a coupled model. It was observed that the results are very similar for the specified well injection rate, whereas significant differences for the specified well pressure. Finally, on the basis of computational experiments, it was concluded that the influence of the coupled wellbore/reservoir in thermal simulations using cyclic steam injection as an enhanced oil recovery method is greater for the specified well pressure, while for the specified well injection rate, the steam flow model for the injector well and the reservoir may be simulated in a non- coupled way

Proposta de modelo de interação da Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte e empresas do setor de petróleo

Operational procedures may negatively interfere in negotiation and execution regarding universities and business companies. In some cases it may even derail business interaction. Thus, aiming to overcome this and other barriers a university-industry interaction model was structured. The model enhances the appropriation of technological solutions on behalf of enterprises, as well as aim to improve the quality of teaching and research done at the university. In order to conduct a case study, sampling considering the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) was made as well as the Oil and Gas sector. For data collection questionnaires, classroom observation, document analysis, semi-structured interviews were used. The study describes the companies as well as the internal organization of UFRN in their interaction context. The diagnosis related to past interactions as well as the expectations of the companies and the university s internal subjects regarding the university-industry relationship were also studied. Thus, specific questionnaires were applied for the three types of groups: researchers, managers and business companies. These subjects pointed out that the great deal of barriers they identified were related to issues regarding the university internal management. Given these barriers, the critical factors were then identified in order to overcome this reality. Among the nine critical factors only one belongs to the macro environment, while the remaining factors are related to organizational issues present in the university context. It was possible to formulate a university-business interaction model one the researched focused on the case study results and contribution from a theoretical framework that was enabled trough literature review. The model considers all business collaboration mechanisms; it focuses on a particular strategic productive sector and provides a co-evolution vision over time, according to the sector´s development strategy. The need for institutionalizing the relationship with the companies involved is pointed out. The proposed model considers all the critical factors identified by the research; it aims long-term relationship with the company and integrates teaching, research and extension actions. The model implementation was also considered. It was seen that it must be done in three phases. The phases will be defined by the level of maturity in the relationship between the university and the companies. Thus, a framework was developed in order to assess the interaction level regarding company institutionalization. Whilst structuring the model was a concern with replication came up. It was pointed out that this model should not only serve to this specific case study situation. So the final result is a model of university-industry relationship appropriate in the first instance, for UFRN, but has applicability, in general, to any Brazilian university

Monitoramento da morfologia costeira em setores da bacia potiguar sob influência da indústria petrolífera utilizando geodésia de alta precisão e laser escâner terrestre

The objective of this Doctoral Thesis was monitoring, in trimestral scale, the coastal morphology of the Northeastern coast sections of Rio Grande do Norte State, in Brazil, which is an area of Potiguar Basin influenced by the oil industry activities. The studied sections compose coastal areas with intense sedimentary erosion and high environmental sensitivity to the oil spill. In order to achieve the general objective of this study, the work has been systematized in four steps. The first one refers to the evaluation of the geomorphological data acquisition methodologies used on Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of sandy beaches. The data has been obtained from Soledade beach, located on the Northeastern coast of Rio Grande Norte. The second step has been centered on the increasing of the reference geodetic infrastructure to accomplish the geodetic survey of the studied area by implanting a station in Corta Cachorro Barrier Island and by conducting monitoring geodetic surveys to understand the beach system based on the Coastline (CL) and on DEM multitemporal analysis. The third phase has been related to the usage of the methodology developed by Santos; Amaro (2011) and Santos et al. (2012) for the surveying, processing, representation, integration and analysis of Coastlines from sandy coast, which have been obtained through geodetic techniques of positioning, morphological change analysis and sediment transport. The fourth stage represents the innovation of surveys in coastal environment by using the Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS), based on Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), to evaluate a highly eroded section on Soledade beach where the oil industry structures are located. The evaluation has been achieved through high-precision DEM and accuracy during the modeling of the coast morphology changes. The result analysis of the integrated study about the spatial and temporal interrelations of the intense coastal processes in areas of building cycles and destruction of beaches has allowed identifying the causes and consequences of the intense coastal erosion in exposed beach sections and in barrier islands

Las empresas energéticas y la gran estrategia estadounidense hacia Irak : una reflexión sobre el rol de Exxon Mobil y Chevron como grupos económicos y de presión (2001- 2011)

La monografía pretende explicar el rol desempeñado por Exxon Mobil y Chevron en la formulación de la Gran Estrategia del gobierno Bush hacia Irak. Especialmente, se sostiene que las dos compañías multinacionales mencionadas lograron que la intervención militar en Irak, fuera pensada como un objetivo fundamental de la política energética del gobierno Bush. Para lograr este objetivo, Chevron y Exxon aprovecharon principalmente su posición en la economía nacional estadounidense. De hecho, lograron celebrar contratos a largo plazo para la extracción del crudo y de gas en Irak. Fundamentándose en un análisis documental, estas compañías son analizadas como grupos de presión empresarial y grupos económicos, cuyos beneficios derivados de la invasión en Irak pueden encontrarse incluso durante el gobierno Obama.

La seguridad energética de Estados Unidos a inicios del siglo XXI: ¿securitización o politización del acceso a recursos energéticos?

Tradicionalmente, la consolidación de la seguridad energética en Estados Unidos se ha mostrado como un asunto de seguridad nacional. En especial, la escasez de recursos energéticos ha sido vista como un problema existencial que requiere de medidas de emergencia en el marco de un proceso de securitización. Sin embargo, esta investigación surgiere que el tema ha sido mayoritariamente politizado a inicios del siglo XXI. Quizá este proceso de securitización tan solo fue implícitamente planteado con ocasión de la invasión a Irak en 2003, en la medida en que dicha intervención pudo haberse inspirado por la necesidad de derrocar a un régimen que había impedido el acceso estadounidense a recursos petroleros iraquíes. En este orden de ideas, la investigación analiza las políticas de seguridad energética de los gobiernos de George W. Bush y Barack H. Obama con el propósito de entender el grado en el que estas estuvieron vinculadas a sus respectivas agendas de seguridad nacional.

Strategic dalliances as an enabler for discontinuous innovation in slow clockspeed industries: evidence from the oil and gas industry

The concept of ‘strategic dalliances’– defined as non-committal relationships that companies can ‘dip in and out of,’ or dally with, while simultaneously maintaining longer-term strategic partnerships with other firms and suppliers – has emerged as a promising strategy by which organizations can create discontinuous innovations. But does this approach work equally well for every sector? Moreover, how can these links be effectively used to foster the process of discontinuous innovation? Toward assessing the role that industry clockspeed plays in the success or failure of strategic dalliances, we provide case study evidence from Twister BV, an upstream oil and gas technology provider, and show that strategic dalliances can be an enabler for the discontinuous innovation process in slow clockspeed industries. Implications for research and practice are discussed, and conclusions from our findings are drawn.

Public, private, or hybrid? What the upstream oil and gas industry can learn from other sectors about ‘the cloud’

Despite the compelling case for moving towards cloud computing, the upstream oil & gas industry faces several technical challenges—most notably, a pronounced emphasis on data security, a reliance on extremely large data sets, and significant legacy investments in information technology (IT) infrastructure—that make a full migration to the public cloud difficult at present. Private and hybrid cloud solutions have consequently emerged within the industry to yield as much benefit from cloud-based technologies as possible while working within these constraints. This paper argues, however, that the move to private and hybrid clouds will very likely prove only to be a temporary stepping stone in the industry’s technological evolution. By presenting evidence from other market sectors that have faced similar challenges in their journey to the cloud, we propose that enabling technologies and conditions will probably fall into place in a way that makes the public cloud a far more attractive option for the upstream oil & gas industry in the years ahead. The paper concludes with a discussion about the implications of this projected shift towards the public cloud, and calls for more of the industry’s services to be offered through cloud-based “apps.”

Cloud computing in the upstream oil & gas industry : a proposed way forward

Despite the compelling case for moving towards cloud computing, the upstream oil & gas industry faces several technical challenges—most notably, a pronounced emphasis on data security, a reliance on extremely large data sets, and significant legacy investments in information technology infrastructure—that make a full migration to the public cloud difficult at present. Private and hybrid cloud solutions have consequently emerged within the industry to yield as much benefit from cloud-based technologies as possible while working within these constraints. This paper argues, however, that the move to private and hybrid clouds will very likely prove only to be a temporary stepping stone in the industry's technological evolution. By presenting evidence from other market sectors that have faced similar challenges in their journey to the cloud, we propose that enabling technologies and conditions will probably fall into place in a way that makes the public cloud a far more attractive option for the upstream oil & gas industry in the years ahead. The paper concludes with a discussion about the implications of this projected shift towards the public cloud, and calls for more of the industry's services to be offered through cloud-based “apps.”

Applying maintenance strategies from the space and satellite sector to the upstream oil and gas industry : a research agenda

Practitioners from both the upstream oil and gas industry and the space and satellite sector have repeatedly noted several striking similarities between the two industries over the years, which have in turn resulted in many direct comparisons in the media and industry press. The two sectors have previously worked together and shared ideas in ways that have yielded some important breakthroughs, but relatively little sharing or cross-pollination has occurred in the area of asset maintenance. This is somewhat surprising in light of the fact that here, too, the sectors have much in common. This paper accordingly puts forward the viewpoint that the upstream oil and gas industry could potentially make significant improvements in asset maintenance—specifically, with regard to offshore platforms and remote pipelines—by selectively applying some aspects of the maintenance strategies and philosophies that have been learned in the space and satellite sector. The paper then offers a research agenda toward accelerating the rate of learning and sharing between the two industries in this domain, and concludes with policy recommendations that could facilitate this kind of cross-industry learning.

How does innovation happen in the upstream oil & gas industry? Insights from a global survey

Few would argue that the upstream oil & gas industry has become more technology-intensive over the years. But how does innovation happen in the industry? Specifically, what ideas and inputs flow from which parts of the sector’s value network, and where do these inputs go? And how do firms and organizations from different countries contribute differently to this process? This paper puts forward the results of a survey designed to shed light on these issues. A joint research initiative between the Society of Petroleum Engineers and the Queensland University of Technology, the survey was sent to 469 executives and senior managers who played a significant role with regards to R&D and/or technology deployment in their respective business units. A total of 199 responses were received from a broad range of organizations and countries around the world. Several interesting themes and trends emerge from the results, including: (1) service companies tend to file considerably more patents per innovation than other types of organization; (2) over 63% of the deployed innovations reported in the survey originated in service companies; (3) neither universities nor government-led research organizations are considered to be valuable sources of new information and knowledge in the industry’s R&D initiatives; and (4) despite the increasing degree of globalization in the marketplace, the USA still plays an extremely dominant role in the industry’s overall R&D and technology deployment activities. By providing a detailed snapshot of how innovation happens in the upstream oil & gas sector, this paper provides a valuable foundation for future investigations and discussions aimed at improving how R&D and technology deployment are managed within the industry.