Processing can be accomplished by mining the oil shale and retorting it on the surface, called. Shale oil february 20 1 executive summary shale oil light tight oil is rapidly emerging as a significant and relatively low cost new unconventional resource in the us. Shale oil is an unconventional oil produced from oil shale rock fragments by pyrolysis, hydrogenation, or thermal dissolution. Shale technology is getting better faster than alternative energy tech and the saudis know it and we are only at the beginning of the shale oil revolution. Pdf on oct 1, 2019, nalendri govender and others published an overview of shale oil. Department of energy, does early investment in shale gas technology producing.
Neither tech nique has yet been applied to the oil shales of the green river formation. Studies indicate that the shale gas produced is sufficient to supply a large portion of the heat needed for oil shale retorting. Shale oil extraction is an industrial process for unconventional oil production. Osullivan,b and sergey paltseva abstract the emergence of u. Energy sources energy consumption liquids 36 % coal 27 % natural gas 23 % renewables 9 % nuclear 5 % industry transportation residential and commercial building 50 % 30 % 20 % future tasks the increasing demand for energy is a megatrend. Oil companies produce shale oil by fracturing the rock formations that contain the layers of oil. Surface mining is economically attractive for large, lowgrade ore deposits. Parallels are drawn between the processes available for recovering and using other fossil fuel sources, such as coal and tar sands, and oil shale. The development of shale gas in the usa is in the developing stage with advanced exploitation technology and huge reserves. Overview of the worlds commercial oil shale retorting technologies. An assessment of oil shale technologies part 7 of 18.
The global oil shale industry has grown again from the mid1990s. Department of oil shale technology tallinn university of technology 85 the former oil shale research institute has participated in working out the following products shale oil fuel for small boilers and bunkering epoxy resin arem220 used in adhesive compositions, mastics and coating compositions. Crude shale oil to synthetic crudecrude shale oil to synthetic crude sulfur andsulfur and nitrogen must benitrogen must be removedremoved hydrotreating,hydrotreating, hydrocracking,hydrocracking, and delayedand delayed cokingcoking crude shale oil crude petroleum ch ratio 1. Oil shale is an organicrich finegrained sedimentary rock containing kerogen a solid mixture of organic chemical compounds from which liquid hydrocarbons can be produced, called shale oil not to be confused with tight oilcrude oil occurring naturally in shales. There is potential for shale oil production to spread globally over the next couple of decades.
Oil shale production however, continued to grow in estonia, russia and china. Shale drilling site in pennsylvania photo helge hansen statoil. In addition to covering the characteristics of oil shale, oil shale technology summarizes the physical and chemical properties of shale oil obtained from various deposits around the world. This composition places shale in a category of sedimentary rocks known as mudstones.
The resultant shale oil is used as fuel oil or upgraded to meet refinery feedstock specifications by adding hydrogen and removing sulfur and nitrogen. These processes convert the organic matter within the rock into synthetic oil and gas. American petroleum institute, freeing up energy hydraulic fracturing. Changing the carbon footprints of unconventional oils. It must be processed by a technique known as retorting, wherein the rock is heated to release crude shale oil, shale gas and water. It takes two barrels of water to produce one barrel of oil shale liquid source. Resource categories when considering the market implications of abundant shale resources, it is important to distinguish between a. Shale oil is a highquality crude oil that lies between layers of shale rock, impermeable mudstone, or siltstone. The lower limit of the oil yield for an oil shale to be considered potentially economic now ranges between 10 and 15 gal of shale oil per ton, but the development of new mining and processing technology for the oil shale or a substantial increase of the price of oil may make oil. The production of oil from shales has a potentially serious impact on the environment. Eiaari world shale gas and shale oil resource assessment 14 concluding thoughts and next steps the june 20 world shale gas and shale oil resource assessment is the second step on a pathway toward a more rigorous understanding of the location and quality of the shale resource. Chevrons technology for the recovery and upgrading of oil from shale crush process is an insitu conversion process. Houston reuters shale oil engineer oscar portillo spends his days drilling as many as five wells at.
Pressured for profit, oil majors bet big on shale technology. The consequences of shale development in terms of impact on the physical and social envi. Breakthrough in shale oil extraction technology triples. However, advances in directional well drilling and reservoir stimulation have dramatically increased gas production from unconventional shales. World production of oil shale reached a peak of 46 million tonnes in 1980. Introduction shale oil light tight oil is rapidly emerging as a significant, and relatively low cost, unconventional energy resource. And without cuttingedge water treatment technology, the water discharge from oil shale refining will increase salinity in surrounding water, poisoning the local area source. Shale oil is a substitute for conventional crude oil. Oil shale technology a company of thyssenkrupp polysius. Pdf on jul 1, 2014, pawan r ingole and others published oil shale. Eiaari world shale gas and shale oil resource assessment.
Working paper series quantitative effects of the shale oil revolution. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, opened up more natural gas for production, but the technology added costs to the oil extraction process. Crude shale oil, shale gas and water are produced from insitu retorts. Four specific areas of concern dominate discussion regarding development of the resource. Contents executive summary 2 shale in the us 4 the story so far beyond the united states 6 global shale oil scenarios 8 the bigger picture 12. Apco company for oil shale aljonoub company for oil shale owned by the armed forces and the marvol management company for the exploitation of in nadyya area using russian technology. This is essentially oil trapped in solid form within rock.
Oil shale the underground supply of oil cannot much longer be depended upon to supply the ever increasing demand,pointing unerringly to the one permanent supply of the raw material which we have the deposits of oil shale. Pdf 30 years of the journal oil shale researchgate. Extracting shale oil from oil shale is costlier than the production of. Technically recoverable shale oil and shale gas resources. Most federal oil shale is closed to development despite the growing need for new sources of oil supply. In the 21 st century, the shale gas is a greatly potential unconventional gas resource, which can serve as an important complement to conventional energy sources, and can effectively alleviate the energy pressure of the world. Whether we wish it to be so or not, we shall soon be forced to resort to the oil shales for our supply of oil. We are using advanced technology developed and refined over 60 years to safely unlock resources of natural gas trapped tightly inside dense rock in extremely fine pores. It also presents a summary of regulations applicable to the natural gas production. Todays technology helps us reduce our environmental footprint, cut down the number of drilled wells, and lower costs. The economics and finances of establishing an industry of various sizes are analyzed. Oil shale presents environmental challenges as well. Shale is a finegrained sedimentary rock that forms from the compaction of silt and claysize mineral particles that we commonly call mud.
Shale oil and gas are exactly the same product as oil. Us shale oil dynamics in a low price environment iv executive summary us unconventional oil has proved to be more resilient than originally anticipated, and shale producers have been able to maintain production at relatively high levels through several months of low oil prices. Dyni abstract oilshale deposits are in many parts of the world. Economics, barriers, and risks of oil shale development in the united states khosrow biglarbigi, president, intek incorporated, 2300 clarendon boulevard ste. It has helped produced more than 600 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 7 billion barrels of oil. Due to competition from cheap conventional petroleum in the 1980s, several investments became economically unfeasible. Unlocking americas natural gas, july 19, 2010, page 4. I am tired of hearing about the unbelievable impact of technology on collapsing u. The oil market in the age of shale oil european central bank. In the past, the oil and gas industry considered gas locked in tight, impermeable shale uneconomical to produce. Breakthrough in shale oil extraction technology triples production. The units research and development efforts seek innovative solutions to improve performance and support responsible shale development. And the current economics of oil are spurring a technological transfor mation of petroleum.
One of the more promising reserves of oil that hasnt been commercially exploited yet is oil shale. They range in age from cambrian to tertiary and were formed in a variety of marine, continental, and lacustrine depositional environments. Advancing systems and technologies to produce cleaner fuels oil and gas in the energy economy of the united states fossil fuel resources account for 82% of total u. Whats new in shale technology weatherford has developed a lowercost fueling solution for shale field operations, with its df ramforce, a pumping unit powered by a 2,500hp caterpillar cat. Following the 1973 oil crisis, the oil shale industry was restarted in several countries, but in the 1980s, when oil prices fell, many industries faced closure. Geology and resources of some world oilshale deposits. This paper responds to these needs by describing the importance of shale gas in meeting the future energy needs of the united states u. This process converts kerogen in oil shale into shale oil by pyrolysis, hydrogenation, or thermal dissolution.
Shale is a rock that has been formed from the compression of mud over time. Because oil and gas are produced by heating oil shale and because. The potential of an oil shale as a source of energy depends on the economic recoverability of oil and gas from it. Geology and resources of some world oilshale deposits1 by john r. Chevron has established a technology unit focused exclusively on solving the technical challenges of shale and tight rock formations. The fact that much of the best shale is located on federal land is examined in light of the desire to increase use of the resources. Pdf the first number of the journal oil shale was released in april 1984. An assessment of 7 shale formations in 41 countries outside the united states. The resulting oil can be used immediately as a fuel or upgraded to meet refinery feedstock specifications by adding hydrogen and removing impurities such as sulfur and nitrogen. Some black shale contains organic compounds that can be converted to oil or natural gas. The rand corporations 2005 research analysis found that conventional mining followed by surface retorting offered technically viable options for developing oil shale, but noted that existing operations.
Shale is distinguished from other mudstones because it is fissile and laminated. Processing oil shale unlike conventional petroleum, shale oil cannot be pumped directly from the ground. The crude shale oil produced is a quality that requires less upgrading than oil from most exsitu processes, but recoveries are somewhat less. Shale oil costs more than conventional oil to extract. Other colors of shale are crushed and mixed with water to create clay. Comparative study and analysis of the development of shale.
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