Ramey Thermal Recovery Laboratory

From Left to Right - Jeonggyu Seo, PhD candidate, South Korea; Wan Dedi Yudistira, MS, Indonesia; Claudia Soto, MS, Colombia; Carlos Rueda, MS, Columbia; Dr. Daulat Mamora, Associate Professor & Manager of Ramey Thermal Recovery Lab; Jose Rodriquez, PhD candidate, Venezuela (2003)

Donated by Texaco, the "Ramey Lab" is fully equipped to conduct in-situ combustion tube and steam injection experiments.

This two-year old Program (managed by Dr. Daulat Mamora) is sponsored at $100,000 by five organizations - U.S. DOE, PDVSA-Intevep, Texaco, Phillips Petroleum, and HOCOL. The Program consists of two projects: (a) Sand consolidation using high temperature alkaline solution, and (b) Steam-propane injection. The new sand consolidation method has been tested successfully in the laboratory with further research aimed at fine-tuning design parameters for field implementation. The new sand consolidation method is estimated to save some $100,000 for a 4000 ft deep well by not running conventional gravel packs. Findings from the steam-propane injection experimental studies have been very promising. Compared to pure steam injection, steam-propane injection significantly accelerates the start of oil production, increases injectivity, and in some cases enhances in-situ crude oil upgrading - with obvious potential economic benefits in the field. Experiments have been conducted for both heavy and intermediate crude oil types, future research being planned for light crude oil. Field testing of the new EOR method is expected in the near future.

Overview of the in-situ combustion and steam injection apparatus
 

Overview of the in-situ combustion and steam injection apparatus