“Package deal” for the petroleum industry

Senior scientist Are Lund of SINTEF Applied Chemistry has great faith in the new test method for chemicals for the petroleum industry. Here the researcher can test a hundred different chemicals at a time, rather than one at a time until now. Photo: Rune Petter Ness

Nowadays, a hundred chemicals for the petroleum industry can be monitored online in the time taken to do an experiment, saving the petroleum industry time and money.

By Åse Dragland

Scientists at SINTEF Applied Chemistry have recently patented a solution of this sort, and they are currently working on finishing the prototype. Their point of departure was a testing method known as “combinatorial chemistry”, which is widely used in pharmacology. A few years ago, this was developed at the same department for use with zeolites, a type of mineral. Now the scientists had to include a new feature: the chemicals needed to be tested at high temperatures and pressures while what was taking place in each individual chamber or cell was being measured. They have now managed to do this.

Purer, nicer and cheaper
Every year the petroleum industry employs tonnes of chemicals in drilling, producing and transporting oil. Drilling alone consumes some 26,000 tonnes. These chemicals are used to prevent blockages and corrosion in pipelines, for example, and to stabilize oil wells. Many of the chemicals are toxic and not very environmentally friendly. Other are undesirable because they damage the product itself. Just a few years ago the attitude of the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy was that all chemicals should be eliminated from the Norwegian continental shelf. This attitude has since changed, while more emphasis is being laid on environmental friendliness, and companies that pollute their surroundings will probably be taxed for doing so in the future.
– Today, it is expensive and time-consuming to test chemicals; for one thing, it involves a lot of cleaning of dirty equipment. For this reason, the development of chemicals has virtually come to a halt in certain areas. Chemical suppliers and oil companies just carry out a few tests and end up with chemicals that are “good enough”. Because many types of chemical have to be used in combination in reservoirs, we often see that the mixtures do not work well together. These were all factors that encouraged us to do something about solving this problem, says Are Lund at SINTEF Applied Chemistry.

The chemicals to be tested are put into small individual cells at high temperatures and pressures. A sheet of foil on top of each cell prevents them from contaminating each other. The measuring instruments are stuck directly into each cell, and a magnetic stirrer under the tray keeps the chemicals in motion.

The concept
In practice, the scientists use a single pressure chamber in which one or more trays of individual 2 x 1 cm cells are placed. Just how many they use depends on how many chemicals are to be tested. The cells are run up to the temperature and pressure required, but otherwise they “live their own life” without being in chemical contact with each other. A sheet of foil on the inside of each cell simulates a reservoir or pipewall. This is essential for the sake of simulating realistic conditions. The cells are filled with the appropriate chemicals by robot. Another sheet of foil laid on top of each cells prevents them from contaminating each other, and measuring instruments are stuck through the foil and into each cell. A plate with a magnetic stirrer is placed under the tray of cells to keep the chemicals in motion.
The first prototype has demonstrated that the concept works. Now the scientists are developing a prototype that can be sold. The potential savings are large: a person who currently performs 250 tests a year will be able to carry out 25 000 or more tests in the future.
– This offers a completely new perspective on what can be developed and tested, says Are Lund. – It could also mean that we can eliminate large-scale testing before we go out into the field.

Contact at SINTEF: Are Lund
Tel: +47 73 59 41 27
Email: Are.Lund@chem.sintef.no