Objective
Objectives and problems to be solved: SF6 (sulphur hexafluoride) and PFCs (per fluorocarbons) are gas molecules, which are being used as the state-of-the-art tracers in tracer technology programmes aimed at hydrocarbon reservoir characterization and efficient oil recovery. Despite the term "tracers", these chemicals are employed for the above purposes in quantities that are significant enough to represent e.g. in the case of Norway 5% of the total annual SF6 consumption. Although SF6 and PFCs are anthropogenic compounds originally used as substitutes for ozone depleting substances, their high Global Warming Potential (GWP) and extremely long lifetimes in the atmosphere constitute them very potent greenhouse gases (GHG).
given
(i) the current pressure of the environmental authorities on the oil industry to reduce and even ban the use of such chemicals and
(ii) their proven usefulness in the oil exploration and production operations, the question arises of assessing the impact of SF6 and PFCs reservoir tracers on global warming and developing an alternative tracer technology that is substantially more environmentally friendly.
Therefore, AEOLOS objectives include:
- Specify sources of leakage and quantify emission levels of SF6 and PFCs during standard tracer reservoir technology programmes. These include leaks to the atmosphere directly at platforms during straight gas burning and hydrocarbon combustion at platforms and on-shore processing facilities and leaks during hydrocarbon transport and consequent consumption.
- Evaluate the effect of these emissions on global warming and atmospheric quality.
Description of the work:
- To ensure the smooth execution of the project the following main targets have to be achieved: Estimation of injected/released SF6 and PFCs amounts as reservoir tracers; Development of reliable database for sources distribution and rates of emissions.
- Qualitative and quantitative laboratory analysis of SF6 and PFCs combustion products under various realistic flame/temperature conditions.
- Field scale characterization of SF6, PFCs and their combustion products in relation to laboratory results.
- Assessment of the effect of SF6, PFCs tracers and combustion products on global warming and atmospheric quality.
Expected results and exploitation plans:
The main expected results of the proposed project are the following:
- Specification of sources of leakage and quantification of emission levels of SF6 and PFCs during a standard tracer technology programme undertaken by the oil industry.
- Identification and quantification of combustion by-products of SF6 and PFCs at controlled conditions.
- Results from narrow-band and wide-band radiative transfer models on radiative forcing to evaluate the effect on global warming (climatic change) due to the estimated SF6 and PFCs emissions.
No earlier work has been conducted in this specific problem area. As a result, several aspects of the proposal take on an innovative character (identifying and mapping sources and rates of emissions of these gases, quantifying combustion by-products under various operating flame and temperature conditions). In addition, some of the expected results (mainly from the SF6/PFCs combustion studies) are generic in nature and have consequently important applications in other industrial sectors (aluminium production, HCFC-22 production, semiconductor manufacturing, electrical transmission and distribution, magnesium production and processing, soundproof glazing) that use these gases and should reduce their emissions soon. This aspect makes the project of multi-sectorial importance and shows how its results and the associated benefits may diffuse to other industrial sectors.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences chemical sciences inorganic chemistry alkaline earth metals
- natural sciences chemical sciences organic chemistry hydrocarbons
- natural sciences chemical sciences inorganic chemistry post-transition metals
- natural sciences physical sciences electromagnetism and electronics semiconductivity
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences atmospheric sciences climatology climatic changes
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Programme(s)
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Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
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Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
15310 ATHENS
Greece
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.