DE-FC26-06NT15569

Goal
The goal of the Utah Heavy Oil Program (UHOP) is to provide research support to federal and state constituents for addressing the wide-ranging issues surrounding the creation of an industry for unconventional oil production in the United States.

Performer
University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT

Background
During the 1970s and 1980s, the United States had an active program in oil shale research. Most of that research was scaled back or abandoned because of the subsequent availability of crude oil at much lower costs. With energy security becoming an important priority again, there is an increased interest in advancing an oil shale industry in the United States.

Information obtained on U.S. unconventional oil resources is dated, and economics, markets, and prospects for production have changed. Today, there is a growing awareness of the limitations on conventional petroleum supply, as well as the need for development of energy-efficient unconventional resources.

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT) directed UHOP to complete an update to the 1987 technical and economic assessment of domestic heavy oil resources that was prepared by Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC). The update is to include publicly available information and data already compiled by groups such as NETL, as part of its Unconventional Oil Resources Project, and the Canadian work on oil sands in Alberta. It will also include an analysis of available resources, discussion of the state-of-the-art production and processing technologies, and economics of utilization and environmental impacts. A publicly accessible online repository will be developed that is highly searchable and accessible to the unconventional oil community and other interested parties.

UHOP also supports Center-based research geared toward promoting the economic and environmentally safe development of the Nation’s unconventional oil resources. The center’s research will be broad and interdisciplinary in nature and will involve researchers from many departments and colleges at the University of Utah and elsewhere. It will encompass technical challenges, such as materials processing, fuel extraction, and fuel processing, as well as societal issues such as environmental impacts, water consumption, land use, law, and economics.

Close-up of fractured oil shale specimen from the Uinta Basin, Utah, showing weathered (white) and unweathered (black) surfaces. Photo courtesy of Argonne National Laboratory.

Benefits
New sources of hydrocarbons are needed to meet increasing U.S. demand for oil. Unconventional oil has the potential to increase domestic oil production, thereby filling at least part of America’s growing oil demand. The center’s mission is to provide research support to Federal and State constituents for addressing the issues surrounding the creation of an industry for unconventional oil production in the United States—including heavy oil, tar sands (oil sands), and oil shale. This support will accelerate the cost-effective and environmentally safe development of unconventional oil resources.

Accomplishments
The heavy oil resources report [PDF] was completed in September 2007. Over 1,000 copies of the publication have been printed and distributed throughout North America. The online repository, essentially an online library containing scientific papers related to heavy oil, tar sands, and oil shale, has been completed and is available for public use. The repository is fully searchable by resource, geographic region, author, title, and key word. There is also a geographical interface that allows users to see resources by geographic region on a map server, and then get related papers from that area. The repository may be accessed at http://ds.heavyoil.utah.edu/dspace/index.jsp.

In early 2007, the UHOP issued a request for Center-sponsored research. Eleven proposals were received and in April five projects were notified that they were selected for funding. Work on these five projects began in August 2007.

On February 22, 2008 UHOP hosted the Western U.S. Oil Sands Technology Transfer Meeting in Salt Lake City. Information on this meeting can be found at http://www.heavyoil.utah.edu/ [external site]. On March 12, UHOP held a project meeting with DOE representatives to review the ongoing research related to this project.

Current Status (February 2009)
The Utah Heavy Oil Program (UHOP) recently received a contract extension to complete activities associated with five UHOP-sponsored projects and the on-line repository. The five UHOP-sponsored projects include: two projects in oil shale development, one in oil sands development, one focused on the critical issues surrounding water availability and water re-use, and one that examines the legal/economic/social ramifications of energy resource development in the western United States.

Isothermal and non-isothermal shale pyrolysis experiments have been performed. Most of the oils produced good distillate fractions; maximum oil recovery was achieved at low heating rates (1oC/min). Researchers used Shell Oil's pilot scale in-situ conversion process (ICP) well geometry to simulate depositional heterogeneity and fluid flow modeling in an oil shale interval in the Uinta Basin. The kerogen content in the oil shale interval was estimated using gamma log data from the Utah Geological Survey. Results from the simulation showed about 50% reservoir heating efficiency at the end of 4 years. Thermal simulation of the steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) process was applied to in situ production of Utah oil sands in partitioned reservoirs. Results show that high vertical communication in the reservoir is the key to the success of SAGD. The water management team acquired GIS data related to water resources in the Uinta Basin and is in the process of uploading the data to the UHOP repository to complete the project. In a separate task focused on the treatment of produced waters from oil shale, researchers in the water management team tested electrolytic degradation of BTEX and naphthalene under varying pH and current densities. To test biological degradation, they are growing bacteria communities capable of degrading BTEX, naphthalene and MTBE. Ozonation is also being investigated to treat produced waters. More information on the status of these projects can be found in the status reports under "Additional Information" below.

Funding
This project was funded as earmarked by EPACT and funded through NETL.

Project Start: June 21, 2006
Project End: October 20, 2009

DOE Contribution: $1,442,376
Performer Contribution: $360,594 (20 percent of total)

Contact Information:
NETL – Robert Vagnetti (Robert.vagnetti@netl.doe.gov or 304-285-1334)
U. of Utah – Philip Smith (smith@crsim.utah.edu or 801-585-3129)

Additional Information
Quarterly Progress Report with Summaries of Center-sponsored Research Projects – October-December 2007 [PDF 591KB]

Quarterly Progress Report January - March, 2008 [PDF-189KB]

Quarterly Progress Report April - June, 2008 [PDF-845KB]

Quarterly Progress Report July - September, 2008 [PDF-750KB]