The world's recoverable reserves of heavy oils and bitumen are estimated at 120 and 60 billion tons respectively, which is more than 60% of world oil reserves. Significant part of these reserves is located in Russia. A lot of the bitumen deposits in Russia are complicated by their autonomous location in remote areas of Eastern Siberia without access to developed infrastructure or are associated with small deposits. While traditional oil reserves depletion, the value of heavy oil and bitumen deposits, and, consequently, the methods of their development, is growing. Zarubezhneft JSC has a program for the development of methods for enhanced oil recovery. In collaboration with partners, promising technologies with a low TRL (technology readiness level) are being developed, which may be in demand in future. Together with the Rosatom company, the possibility of using radioactive heat sources for the implementation of thermal EOR was evaluated. Designs of downhole steam generators have been developed, the energy source for these generators are rods from control and protection system (CPS) of nuclear reactors that have expired their time at nuclear power plants. CPS rods are a consumable material in the energy production cycle at nuclear power plants, which makes it possible to organize a closed cycle of using the rods: usage in the CPS of nuclear reactors, after that their discharge with a heat producing as part of an in-well steam generator and return to the CPS.
References
1. Oil sands emissions by extraction method: Busting myths on GHG intensity, Oil Sands magazine, 2023, URL: https://www.oilsandsmagazine.com/news/2021/3/18/oil-sands-emissions-by-extraction-busting-myths-on-g...
2. Mokheimer E.M.A. et al., A comprehensive review of thermal enhanced oil recovery: Techniques evaluation, Journal of Energy Resources Technology, 2019, V. 141(3), DOI: http://doi.org/10.1115/1.4041096
3. Yegane M.M. et al., Comparing different scenarios for thermal enhanced oil recovery in fractured reservoirs using hybrid (solar-gas) steam generators. A simulation study, SPE-180101-MS, 2016, DOI: https://doi.org/10.2118/180101-MS
4. Bierman B. et al., Construction of an enclosed trough EOR System in South Oman, Energy Procedia, 2014, V. 49, pp. 1756-1765,
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2014.03.186
5. Al-Maaitah A., Utilization of the innovative A.S.C. technology for 24/7 solar enhanced oil recovery, SPE-202893-MS, 2020, DOI: https://doi.org/10.2118/202893-MS
6. Robertson E. et al., Integrating nuclear energy to oilfield operations - Two case studies, SPE-146587-MS, 2021, DOI: https://doi.org/10.2118/146587-MS
7. Booklet to provide basic information regarding health effects of radiation, Ministry of the Enviroment, Government of Japan, 2022, URL: https://www.env.go.jp/en/chemi/rhm/basic-info/2022/index.html
8. Patent RU 2756155 C1, Well ring heater, Inventors: Kudryashov S.I., Afanasev I.S., Antonenko D.A., Terentev V.L., Solovev A.V., Oshejko Yu.V., Verbitskij A.G.
9. Patent RU 2756152 C1, Well beam heater, Inventors: Kudryashov S.I., Afanasev I.S., Antonenko D.A., Terentev V.L., Solovev A.V., Avdeenkov A.V., Ketlerov V.V.
10. Mckinney G., Report No: LA-13709-M, MCNP - A general Monte Carlo code n-particle transport code, Version 5. X-5 Monte Carlo Team, 2003.
11. Seregin A.S., Kislitsyna T.S., Annotatsiya kompleksa programm Trigex-consyst-BNAB-90 (Abstract of the Trigex-consyst-BNAB-90 software package), Obninsk: Publ. of FEI, 1997, 10 p.
12. Kryachko M.V., Khokhlov G.N., Tsikunov A.G., SKIF – Computer code for nuclear fuel radiation characteristics calculation (In Russ.), Voprosy atomnoy nauki i tekhniki. Seriya: Yadernye konstanty, 2017, no. 3, pp. 65-79.
13. Ivanova I.Yu. et al., Malaya energetika Severa: Problemy i puti razvitiya (Small-scale energy in the North: Problems and development paths), Novosibirsk: Nauka Publ., 2022, 187 p.
14. ANSI/ANS-6. American National Standard Neutron and Gamma-Ray Flux-to-Dose-Rate Factors, 1977.
15. Patent RU 2804628 C1, Method for increasing the efficiency of oil extraction using a heater based on ionizing radiation sources, Inventors: Kudryashov S.I.,
Afanasev I.S., Antonenko D.A., Terentev V.L., Solovev A.V., Avdeenkov A.V., Verbitskij A.G., Ketlerov V.V., Oshejko Yu.V., Surov S.V.
