Information from the Website re the DHTDownhole Steam Generation System and Method
Overview
The Enhanced Recovery System (ERS) is an invention which relates generally to a Down Hole Tool (DHT), system and method for generating underground steam. Specifically, the present invention relates to an electrical steam generation system that enables efficient production of downhole steam without the heat and pressure losses realized by surface steam generation equipment.
Simply put, the DHT is placed underground through existing vertical and/or horizontal well holes. From an energy source connected from the surface by an encased coil cable, the DHT is heated while it is underground to a temperature that will be significant enough to generate downhole steam and pressure.
Patent pending claims include that the DHT is a method of creating in situ steam in a well for hydrocarbon recovery comprising the steps of:
Positioning a downhole electrical steam generating system in the well adjacent to the hydrocarbon producing formation;
Continuously forming downhole steam pressure within the well from in situ water; and,
Maintaining a high intra-well pressure to promote hydrocarbon recovery.
Additional patent pending claims supporting the claims listed above that are of interest include but are not limited to:
A method wherein the electrical steam generating system is conveyed to the hydrocarbon producing formation by coiled tubing.
A method wherein the high intra-well pressure is maintained by adding water to the production or injection well from the surface.
A method wherein the high intra-bore pressure is maintained by a sealed wellhead.
A method wherein steam is generated in an injection or production well and hydrocarbons are recovered. from a recovery well.
Testing to validate the claims made in the patent application will commence once the assembly of the DHT is complete. The company anticipates testing will commence on its Maidstone property in Saskatchewan and results known by 2006-Q1.
As a point of comparison to the DHT, the use of steam to assist in oil recovery is well known in heavy oil recovery. The current methods, such as Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) and Vapor-Extraction (VAPEX) production methods of injecting steam downhole are energy and capital intensive. The capital costs associated with designing, building and operating a surface steam plant are significant, requiring years of production from the formation to make the investment worthwhile. As a consequence, heavy oil recovery using surface steam production is generally limited to large scale projects while smaller scale projects that could benefit from steam injection to aid in hydrocarbon recovery are typically abandoned.
As a result, there has been a need for steam production facilities with lower infrastructure costs that can deliver steam more efficiently to downhole formations. Petrostar Petroleum Corp. believes it has an answer to the foregoing expensive oil recovery methods with the introduction of its DHT.