El Paso Natural Gas Research Articles

Introduction to AAPG Bulletin thematic issue on fault seals

Russell Davies is the United States operations manager and consulting structural geologist for Rock Deformation Research, Dallas, Texas. He received a Ph.D. in structural geology from Texas A&M University. He has worked in the oil and gas industry for more than 10 years in exploration and production with Shell and in research on topics including fault interpretation methods, structural styles, and seal analysis with ARCO.Jim Handschy received a Ph.D. in geology and geophysics from Rice University. He has worked in the oil and gas industry for 17 years on exploration, development, research, and technology services projects for Phillips Petroleum, Shell Oil, and El Paso Natural Gas. He has experience in prospect development and evaluation, complex structural interpretation, and trap analysis from around the world. He has served as team leader and project manager for various groups, as chief geologist, and is currently manager of Global Geology for Upstream at ConocoPhillips. This volume of the AAPG Bulletin presents a review of the processes, calibration, and prediction of fault-seal mechanisms and their capacity to support hydrocarbon columns. Geological seals are commonly low-permeability rocks that retard the flow of hydrocarbons. Top seals, for example, are low-permeability strata, such as shales, that overlie hydrocarbon reservoirs and stall the upward migration of hydrocarbons. Fault seals also trap hydrocarbons but by mechanisms that reduce the permeability along a fault. Mechanisms controlling fault seals in unlithified sediments have been identified primarily as (1) shale gouge or smear in the fault zone or (2) juxtaposition of reservoir against nonreservoir lithologies. The low-permeability lithology along the fault surface is the fault rock. Early studies of fault-sealing mechanisms proposed that the smearing of clay-rich layers, such as shale, along a fault plane created a lower permeability fault rock, or seal, between two reservoirs (Smith, 1966, 1980; Weber et …

Contrived Competition: Regulation and Deregulation in America.

This book explains how four major firms--American Airlines, El Paso Natural Gas, AT&T, and Bank America--and their respective managements were challenged by the deregulation of markets starting in the late 1970s. The four stories illustrate the dynamic process of market restructuring and organizational adjustment, as well as the ways in which managers and regulators painfully learned to operate effectively as their economic and political environments shifted around them.

Unintentional PCB Discharge Not Sudden and Accidental

El Paso Natural Gas Company operated a gas transmission system from 1959 to 1974 that crossed several states including Utah. In its system, El Paso used an air compressor lubricating oil later found to have contained a polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB). El Paso dumped condensed liquid wastes containing PCBs into unlined earthen pits and directly onto the ground. The contaminated wastes were carried into the surrounding environment. Hartford Accident and Indemnity Corporation insured El Paso under a general liability policy that excluded coverage for pollution unless it was “sudden and accidental.” El Paso sold the pipeline to Northwest Pipeline Corp. (NW) but agreed to indemnify NW for any liability. NW discovered the contamination and reported it to the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). NW cleaned the contaminated sites pursuant to a consent decree with the USEPA and sued El Paso, settling for $6.6 million. El Paso than sought indemnification from Hartford. Hartford brought this action seeking a court declaration that it was not liable. The trial court ruled for Hartford, and that decision was affirmed on appeal.

A View Of Spot‐Market Gas Accounting

Natural GasVolume 3, Issue 12 p. 9-10 Article A View Of Spot-Market Gas Accounting Robert R. Eades, Robert R. Eades Robert R. Eedes: is president of O&G Professionals, Inc. He was formerly director of the Gas Settlement Department for El Paso Natural Gas Company.Search for more papers by this author Robert R. Eades, Robert R. Eades Robert R. Eedes: is president of O&G Professionals, Inc. He was formerly director of the Gas Settlement Department for El Paso Natural Gas Company.Search for more papers by this author First published: July 1987 https://doi.org/10.1002/gas.3410031202 AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume3, Issue12July 1987Pages 9-10 RelatedInformation

Competing for Gas Sales in a Fluctuating Market

Competition for gas markets has increased over the past 2 years because of a declining demand and a supply surplus. The price of gas at the burner tip is approaching and, in some instances, has exceeded the price of alternative fuels. Expensive deep wells in the Anadarko basin will have a difficult time remaining competitive.

Clay-Mineral Relationships in Some Low-Permeability Hydrocarbon Reservoirs and Their Use as Predictive Resource Tools: ABSTRACT

Detailed mineralogical characterizations, using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy of sand-shale and carbonate-shale-bentonite sequences, of some classic low permeability hydrocarbon reservoirs reveal basic clay-mineral relationships that are helpful in evaluating the extent of diagenesis and petroleum resource potential. Gas-potential units of the El Paso Natural Gas 1 Wagon Wheel and BELCO 3-38 (formerly INEXCO 1-A WASP) wells, Green River basin, Wyoming, contain shales composed primarily of altered detrital clay suites of various origins and compositions that are consistently different than authigenic clays formed within adjacent sandstones. Commonly, discrete illite is abundant in the shales as a major detrital component; the percentage of illite is lower in the sandstones. Chlorite typically comprises a high percentage of the clay-size (< 2µm) material of sandstones and is primarily authigenic, however, little chlorite (< 8%) is inherent in the shales. Authigenic interstratified illite-smectite (I/S) formed in relatively clean sandstones is typically less illitic and more restricted in omposition range than I/S clay of various origins within shales or shale-laminated sandstones. Therefore, because of these primary differences in clay mineral assemblages between sandstones and shales from these units, log interpretations of low permeability sand reservoirs should not be extrapolated from the log response of adjacent shales. The composition of I/S clay from relatively cleaner sands also may give a better indication of diagenetic minimums. Indigenous gas and oil are produced from low-permeability chalk beds of the Upper Cretaceous Niobrara Formation within the Denver basin of eastern Colorado and western Kansas. Clay-mineral studies of I/S clay in insoluble residues of shaly chalk sampled throughout the basin show that the starting composition of the I/S clay in these strata is highly variable due to a complex mixing of I/S clays from many different sources at the time of deposition. However, the composition of I/S clay from thin bentonites in these strata is quite consistent throughout a section from any one specific location and/or depth, and these clays become progressively more illitic and ordered with increasing temperature due to increased burial. At approximately 60% illite layers in I/S, the I/S of bentonites pr ceed from random (R = 0) to short-range ordered (R = 1) interstratification. I/S clay formed in thin, discrete bentonite beds within Niobrara strata, where original starting compositions were nearly fixed and uniform and there was little or no contribution from detrital clays, is the best indicator of the extent of diagenetic reactions. The presence (or absence) of regular interstratified clay minerals in thin bentonite beds of the Niobrara can, therefore, be used as relative geothermometers for constructing predictable petroleum resource maturation maps of the Denver basin and adjacent areas. End_of_Article - Last_Page 536------------

Implications of the Southland Royalty Case

This paper discusses the significance and implications of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in the California v. Southland Royalty Co. case. Although the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 substantially limited the scope of the Southland decision, the case still has vitality in some limited circumstances. Introduction The subject of this paper is the decision rendered on May 31, 1978, by the U.S. Supreme Court in California v. Southland Royalty Co. This decision is perhaps the most significant Supreme Court decision perhaps the most significant Supreme Court decision concerning the jurisdiction of the Federal Power Commission (FPC) [now the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)] since the 1954 decision in Wisconsin v. FPC, which held that the Natural Gas Act, passed in 1938 applied to interstate sales of gas by independent producers and, therefore, such sales were subject to regulation by the commission.Of particular interest is the almost immediate reaction the decision evoked from Congress, which then was considering the Natural Gas Policy Act, which became law Nov. 9, 1978. This pending legislation was amended to include provisions that explicitly limited the effect of the Supreme Court s decision in Southland.Unfortunately, Congress' efforts to solve the problems created by Southland were not enuciated problems created by Southland were not enuciated clearly. At least some of the problems created by the Supreme Court's decision remain, and there unquestionably will be further litigation with respect to the significance and applicability of the statutory provisions aimed at limiting that decision. provisions aimed at limiting that decision. To place things in perspective, this paper will review briefly the history of the Southland case. In 1925, Gulf Oil Corp. took an oil and gas lease in west Texas on the Waddell Ranch, which covered many thousands of acres. This lease did not, however, contain the usual habendum clause providing that the lease would remain in effect as tong as oil and gas were produced in paying quantities. Rather, the lease had a fixed term of 50 years. Needless to say, more than half the lease term had expired when Gulf contracted in 1951 to make an interstate sale of gas from the Waddell Ranch to El Paso Natural Gas Co., operator of a pipeline system extending from Texas to California.Gulf had delivered gas to El Paso Natural Gas for almost 24 years when the lease termination became imminent. A few months before the lease expired, El Paso Natural Gas petitioned what was then the FPC Paso Natural Gas petitioned what was then the FPC for a determination that the gas that belonged to Southland Royalty Co. upon expiration of the Gulf lease was dedicated to El Paso Natural Gas and, therefore, could not be sold in intrastate commerce without abandonment permission from the commission under Sec. 7b of the Natural Gas Act.A few days before the Gulf lease terminated, the FPC, not surprisingly, held that Southland's gas was dedicated to interstate commerce and that it could not make a sale of its gas to the intrastate pipeline with which Southland had contracted. JPT P. 728

Detection of Hydraulic Fracture Orientation And Dimensions in Cased Wells

A promising technique for recovering gas reserves combines large hydraulic fractures with multiple-zone completions in a single well. An accurate knowledge of the dimensions, orientation, and spatial characteristics of the fractures is needed. This paper reports research on the use of large hydraulic fractures and multiple completions conducted in conjunction with projects for detecting and measuring fracture dimensions and orientation. projects for detecting and measuring fracture dimensions and orientation. Introduction The need for the nation to expand its natural gas reserves has become increasingly apparent to both the industry and the layman in recent years. Considerable gas in place exists in several Rocky Mountain sedimentary basins in tight reservoirs that are not now included in the nation's reserves because of a lack of means to economically recover this gas. Fig. 1 shows the location of some of the more predominant sedimentary basins in the mountain area of the west. A recent national study estimates that the nation's recoverable natural-gas reserves could be doubled if economic means could be developed to recover about half the gas from the tight sandstones in the Green River, Uintah, and Piceance Basins alone. Many of these potential reserves are contained in large vertical intervals up to 4,000 ft thick. One of the promising techniques for recovering this gas combines promising techniques for recovering this gas combines the use of large hydraulic fractures and multiple-zone completions in a single well. For example, economic completion of a well in the northern Green River Basin may require hydraulic fracturing of more than 100 individual pay sands in a single well in up to 10 completion stages. One proposal would require 8 million gal of fracturing fluid and 15 million lb of sand proppant for a single well. Propped fractures would extend about 1/2-mile from the wellbore. Economic development of such a gas reservoir using these fracturing techniques will require an accurate knowledge of the dimensions, orientation, and spatial characteristics of the fractures. Well spacing must be correlated with fracture orientation to minimize interference of drainage patterns and, thus, maximize economic-recovery potential. Fracture dimensions and spatial characteristics are the key to understanding reservoir exposure and production characteristics. The completion of gas wells in these tight sands will require casing to insure well integrity and to minimize production problems. However, the use of casing limits production problems. However, the use of casing limits the usefulness of the standard tools for defining fracture properties. Casing prevents the use of impression properties. Casing prevents the use of impression packers to determine fracture height and orientation and packers to determine fracture height and orientation and severely limits sonic and electromagnetic techniques. Temperature and radioactivity tools do work at only slightly reduced efficiencies. Even in uncased wells, the plane and direction of a hydraulic fracture can be directly observed only at the wellbore with standard techniques. What is needed is a means to measure the dimensions and orientation of the induced fracture over its entire area. El Paso Natural Gas Co. is presently conducting research in the use of large hydraulic fractures and multiple completions in the Pinedale Unit in the northern Green River Basin. In conjunction with this effort, research projects implemented by El Paso, Sandia Laboratories, and Globe Universal Sciences have the goal of detecting and measuring fracture dimensions and orientation. Exploratory experiments also have been performed in the San Juan Basin in New Mexico. These performed in the San Juan Basin in New Mexico. These sites are shown in Fig. 1. This paper is a progress report on these fracture-detection efforts. P. 1116

The Effect of Nuclear Stimulation on Formation Permeability and Gas Recovery At Project Gasbuggy

At Project Gasbuggy, permeability was affected for some 220 feet beyond the chimney. However, irrespective of the permeability of the close-in region and of chimney size, gas eventually must flow into the chimney from the outer reaches of the drainage area of the well. Thus the preshot formation permeability is a highly critical factor in calculating anticipated recovery from nuclear stimulated reservoirs. Introduction Project Gasbuggy is a joint experiment by the Atomic Project Gasbuggy is a joint experiment by the Atomic Energy Commission, the Dept. of the Interior, and the El Paso Natural Gas Co. to investigate the feasibility of using underground nuclear explosives to stimulate production and increase ultimate recovery of natural gas from a low-permeability gas-bearing formation. The low-permeability Pictured Cliffs formation found in the San Juan basin of the Four Corners area of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado was selected for the experiment. The actual test site is about 55 miles east of Farmington, N. M., in the southwest quarter of Sec. 36, T29N, R4W, Rio Arriba County (Fig. 1). To supplement reservoir and production data available from the eight original field wells in the Gasbuggy test area, two preshot test wells, GB-1 and GB-2 (Fig. 2), were drilled in 1967. Extensive production tests were conducted on GB-1. The Project production tests were conducted on GB-1. The Project Gasbuggy nuclear explosive of 29-kiloton yield was detonated on Dec. 10, 1967, at a depth of 4,240 ft, approximately 40 ft below the base of the Pictured Cliffs formation (Fig. 3). Postshot re-entry of the emplacement hole, designated as GB-ER, began on Dec. 12, 1967, and terminated at a total depth of 3,916 ft on Jan. 10, 1968. Initial computations indicated a collapsed chimney about 160 ft in diameter extending from the 4,240-ft detonation depth to about 3,900 ft, the top of the 300-ft-thick Pictured Cliffs gas sand. In addition to GB-ER, preshot well GB-2 was reentered as GB-2RS, and a new well, GB-3, was drilled in 1969 at a surface distance of 250 ft from GB-ER. GB-ER has undergone extensive testing covering a period of 3 years. During this period, pressures were monitored in GB-2RS and GB-3. Presented in this paper is an analysis of the effectiveness of nuclear stimulation on increasing the formation permeability and the resulting gas recovery at Project Gasbuggy as determined from a flow model. Effect on Reservoir Rock Studies of a number of contained underground nuclear explosions have yielded a rather consistent representation of the geometric features produced. The items of primary interest related to the breakage and displacement of rock resulting from a nuclear stimulation include (1) chimney configuration, (2) chimney void volume, (3) chimney permeability, and (4) permeability of the rock outside the chimney. Boardman has discussed these as a function of explosive yield, depth of burst, and rock type. The chimney configuration and chimney void volume as reported by Boardman and by Atkinson et al. are in close agreement. As to the permeability in the chimney and the permeability outside the chimney, Boardman reported no quantitative answer. For the nuclear stimulation of hydrocarbon reservoirs, as for other stimulation processes, the quantitative value of the permeability increase outside the chimney is vital to the prediction of the ultimate recovery of hydrocarbons. JPT P. 1199

Prediction of Underground Nuclear Explosion Effects in Wagon Wheel Sandstone

Project Wagon Wheel is a joint study by Lawrence Livermore Laboratory (LLL) and El Paso Natural Gas Company (EPNG) to investigate the technical concept of nuclear stimulation of a natural gas reser...

Large-Size LNG Tankers Building

The largest LNG tankers presently in operation are the SS POLAR ALASKA and SS ARCTIC TOKYO, of 71,500 cubic meters capacity each, operating between Alaska and Japan since 1969. Three 125,000-cu m ships were ordered in 1970 by El Paso Natural Gas from Chantiers France—Dunkerque; they are intended to carry LNG between Algeria and the East Coast of the United States. Right now 160,000-cu m and even 200,000-cu m LNG tankers are under consideration.

A GEOPHYSICAL CASE HISTORY OF THE LAKESHORE ORE BODY

The Lakeshore ore body is in Pinal County, Arizona about 30 miles south of Casa Grande. In February, 1969 when the latest figures were published, the ore reserves were reported at 241 million tons of disseminated sulfide ore (0.7 percent copper) and 24 million tons of concentrated metallic ore (1.69 percent copper). Sulfide copper ore was first intersected in July, 1967 in Hole P‐3. The magnetite‐pyrite‐chalco‐pyrite mineralization occurred in a banded tactite at a depth of 1147 ft. Hole P‐3 was the fourth of several holes that were drilled to determine the source of an induced polarization anomaly that had been outlined, at depth, to the west of the old Lakeshore pit. The successful conclusion of this exploration program by El Paso Natural Gas Company is an excellent example of an integrated exploration approach. The application of regional geological planning, geophysical methods, and detailed geological reasoning resulted in the discovery of a major copper ore body. Due to the depth of the ore zone and the disseminated character of most of the ore, the only geophysical technique that was useful in the direct detection of the ore mineralization was the induced polarization method. Field measurements were made sporadically between August, 1966 and July, 1968. Variable‐frequency induced‐polarization measurements, made using the dipole‐dipole electrode configuration and electrode intervals from 300 ft to 1000 ft, successfully indicated the presence of the metallic mineralization at depth and gave some indication of its extent. Comparisons of the induced polarization data and the appropriate geological sections give information concerning the usefulness of the method.

Recent Coal Developments in San Juan Basin, Colorado and New Mexico: ABSTRACT

The principal San Juan basin coals are in the Upper Cretaceous Fruitland Formation; smaller reserves of somewhat better quality are found in several formations of the Mesaverde Group. Nearly all are subbituminous A or B, or high-volatile bituminous C, with sulfur content averaging about 0.7%. Since 1953, when coal exploration began in earnest in the basin, 5 major lease blocks totaling on the order of 2 3/4 billion tons of potentially strippable coal have been established. Additional areas underlain by perhaps another 2 billion tons are in preliminary stages of exploration. In 1971 the Navajo mine at Fruitland probably will be the largest in the United States. Of this reserve, about 485 million tons (10%) is committed to electric power generation. Much of the rest, particularly a large lease held jointly by El Paso Natural Gas Co. and Conoco's Consolidation Coal subsidiary, is likely to leave the basin in the form of synthetic liquid hydrocarbons or gas. Gasification and liquefaction technology is moving rapidly, and that, plus availability of major reserves of suitable coal, rising demand for fuels, and increasing availability of pipeline and marketing capacity as gas production declines, seems to indicate the future for the basin. The ultimate reserve would appear to be equivalent to about 14½ billion bbl of oil. End_of_Article - Last_Page 541------------

Pipeline Salvage Near Willcox, Arizona

AbstractThe Arizona State Museum, funded by El Paso Natural Gas Company, excavated a pit house (Arizona CC: 10:1) 11 miles northeast of Willcox, Arizona, in January 1969. The site has affinities to the San Simon branch of the Mogollon and on ceramic evidence is believed to have been inhabited between A.D. 1100-1200.

2 FINANCIAL DATA

On the following pages CE three large producers of paper and other forest products, Georgia-Pacific Corp., International Paper Co., and Union Camp Corp.; two natural gas companies with growing chemical interests. El Paso Natural Gas Co. and Tenneco., Inc.; and Detrex Chemical Industries. Three companies listed formerly have new names this year. Diamond Alkali Co. is now Diamond Shamrock Corp. following its merger with Shamrock Oil and Gas Corp. Pittsburgh Plate Glass Co. is now PPG Industries, Inc., and General Aniline & Film Corp. is ...

Transient Flow Characteristics of Low Permeability Gas Reservoirs and Improvement of Deliverability by Nuclear Explosion

Abstract A program for computing the transient radial flow of natural gas, taking into account significant variable properties of the fluid and of the porous medium was used in an investigation of flow characteristics of formations for which the permeability-thickness product kh is 1 to 100 md-ft. A graphic summary of the results obtained may be used with well flow-test data to estimate kh for the formation in which the well is completed. Assuming that a nuclear explosion in a gas-containing formation would create a rubble-filled chimney with a diameter of 170 ft and fissures radiating from the chimney wall out to a distance of 255 ft, formation pressure gradients were computed for the recovery of gas with a well drilled into the chimney. These computations for 640-and 160-acre spacing indicate that diminution of the radius segment re - rf over which flow occurs in unaltered formation provides for markedly greater ultimate recovery of gas in place than is possible with conventional well completions. A formation drilled with conventional wells 1.0 mile apart must have a productivity product of kh = 197 md-ft to deliver for 20 years 1.0 MMscf/D of gas into a pipeline operated at 300 psi. Aided by nuclear stimulation, one well can meet the same performance requirements with a kh of only 49 md-ft for the native formation. With a spacing of 160 acres and nuclear stimulation, kh need be only 9 md-ft. Introduction Project Gasbuggy of the El Paso Natural Gas Co. and government agencies is concerned with the creation by nuclear explosion of a chimney and radiating fissures in a low-permeability formation containing natural gas. A well is to be drilled and completed in this chimney and tests will be made on this well and other wells in the vicinity to determine the economic feasibility of nuclear stimulation for recovery of the gas. Engineering studies of the Bureau of Mines pertaining to parts of this project have been in progress since 1963. Because of the complexity of the experiment, its cost, and possible economic significance, it is desirable to define the reservoir flow problem, determine by computing the relative importance of the parameters involved, and obtain a measure of the benefits that may be expected. The results should be generalized for application to other projects. Two parts of this problem have been investigated: - determination of average properties of the native formation from flow tests of wells, and - evaluation of the transient flow performance of a low-permeability formation in which a relatively high-permeability area has been created to receive a recovery well. BASIC EQUATIONS The partial differential equation for transient radial flow of a gas phase, (1) was integrated in the range rd r re. With rd/re = 0.005 and 640-acre spacing rd = 14.9 ft, so that flow over most of the radius is computed by means of Eq. 1. A program previously described by the authors was used for this purpose.

Project Gasbuggy - Status Report

Abstract Project Gasbuggy is a joint government-industry experiment to test the effectiveness of underground nuclear explosions for stimulating oil and gas production from low-permeability reservoirs. The project was approved by the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in 1965, and federal funds became available in Nov., 1966. The Project Gasbuggy contract was signed by the AEC, El Paso Natural Gas Co. (EPNG) and U. S. Dept. of the Interior in Jan., 1967. One month later, two preshot wells were drilled and tested at the expense of EPNG as part of industry's $1.8 million share of the $4.7 million project cost. Drilling the 28-in. hole for the 26-kiloton explosive began in June, 1967. All technical and safety programs are scheduled for a shot date of Nov. 14, 1967. Preshot core, log and test data, and hydrological data obtained in accordance with the reservoir evaluation program developed by the primary technical participantsEPNG, USBM and Lawrence Radiation Laboratory (LRL), Livermore, Calif. revealed that the Pictured Cliffs gas reservoir met criteria for site acceptability, including considerations of safety. This article discusses preshot reservoir and production data, and programs related to safety, public information and postshot exploration. Introduction The 26-kiloton nuclear detonation for Project Gasbuggy scheduled on Nov. 14, 1967, will occur at 4,240 ft, 40 ft below the base of the 300-ft thick Pictured Cliffs gas sand in Rio Arriba County, N. M. This reservoir at the east edge of the San Juan basin has a history of low productivity, and development of the area has been sparse. Details of the project's early history have been covered in previous publications. Fig. 1 shows the organization of Project Gasbuggy established by the AEC and its contractors. The project manager, who is manager of the AEC Nevada operations office in Las Vegas, executes the field program and provides for public safety, both on and off site. He provides security for classified material and is responsible for providing evaluations of the project to the AEC. The scientific advisor serves as chairman of the advisory panel which evaluates safety and operational aspects relating to executing the experiment. The test director has over-all responsibility for directing, organizing and executing the scientific program and for collecting data from all phases of the experiment with the cooperation of EPNG and USBM. The site coordinator, site manager and deputy project manager for operations are responsible for such work as construction and support operations, communications, security, safety and site visits. Programs and Plans In drilling the explosive emplacement hole, the 30-in. conductor pipe was set at 50 ft; a 28-in. hole will be drilled to 4,350 ft and 20-in. OD casing will be run. The explosive canister will be attached to 7-in. casing with electrical cables strapped to the outside, and this assembly will be run in a dry hole. All holes in the immediate vicinity will be stemmed with cement and sand prior to detonation. The reservoir evaluation program calls for additional logging when Gasbuggy test wells 1 and 2 (GB-1 and GB-2) are mudded up prior to stemming. A schedule of activities to the ready date for detonation is shown in Fig. 2.

Project Gasbuggy A Nuclear Fracturing Experiment

Abstract Project Gasbuggy was instituted to design, conduct and evaluate a nuclear fracturing experiment and it is a joint undertaking by the United States Atomic Energy Commission; Bureau of Mines, U. S. Dept. of the Interior; the U. of California Lawrence Radiation Laboratory at Livermore; and El Paso Natural Gas Co. The experiment is designed for the detonation of a 10-kiloton fission explosive at a depth of 4,150 ft to evaluate the stimulative erect on gas production from the Pictured Cliffs formation in the San Juan Basin, N. M. Nuclear-explosive stimulation of natural gas reservoirs is technically feasible; but only from analysis of production data obtained by this and future experiments can the economics be determined. Favorable results from Project Gasbuggy could pave the way for substantially increased recovery from many known but low-productivity hydrocarbon reservoirs. Introduction For more than a century, petroleum has been produced commercially in the U. S., and present-day estimates are that produced hydro-carbons supply approximately three-fourths of the total energy consumed in this country. An ever-increasing demand for petroleum, coupled with increasing difficulty and cost involved in finding new petroleum reserves, has placed emphasis on increased recovery from known hydrocarbon-bearing reservoirs. The inability to recover more than a small fraction from some of these known deposits by existing technology and economics limits development of our natural resources. In 1957, a 1.7-kt (a kiloton is the energy equivalent of 1,000 tons of TNT) nuclear explosive was detonated at a depth of 899 ft below the Rainier mesa at the Nevada test site near Mercury, Nev. The Rainier test, which was the first contained nuclear explosion, suggested to many in the petroleum industry that perhaps a nuclear explosive could be used to stimulate petroleum production, for here was an enormous quantity of energy stored in a relatively small package. Engineers at the Bureau of Mines' Bartiesville Petroleum Research Center early in 1959 began to investigate the potential for nuclear-explosive (NE) stimulation. The initial work was carried out on a limited scale with engineers of Continental Oil Co. Since 1962 this work has been per formed on an expanded scale under a cooperative agreement with the San Francisco operations office, Special Projects Div. (Plowshare), Atomic Energy Commission (AEC). The Plowshare program was established to develop peaceful uses for nuclear explosives. This cooperative research has resulted in the following conclusions: the application of NE in stimulating production from selected low-productivity oil and natural gas reservoirs is technically feasible, the extensive, thick, low-permeability natural gas reservoirs in the Rocky Mountain region appear the most favorable for application of NE stimulation, the economics of NE stimulation can be determined only by a full-scale field test, and justification for such a test lies in the number, areal extent and resources of low-productivity gas reservoirs where producing rates and ultimate recovery may be substantially increased. A survey of gas fields and discussions with operators resulted in a choice of several locations where field tests should be feasible. One of the most promising of these prospective test sites is on El Paso Natural Gas Co.'s (EPNG) acreage in the San Juan Basin, Rio Arriba County, N. M. An affirmative preliminary evaluation of the suitability of this site and the desire of EPNG to participate in such an experiment led to the initiation of Project Gasbuggy. Nuclear detonations under the AEC Plowshare program are customarily named for vehicles. Project Gasbuggy was instituted to design, conduct and evaluate a NE stimulation experiment in the Pictured Cliffs reservoir at the proposed location and is a joint undertaking by the AEC, EPNG, USBM and the U. of California Lawrence Radiation Laboratory at Livermore, Calif. A detailed report was prepared concerning the feasibility of NE stimulation of a natural gas reservoir, including results of the site evaluation and a preliminary design for the experiment. The report was prepared as a supporting document to be submitted along with a field-test proposal by EPNG to the AEC. JPT P. 139ˆ

El Paso Natural Gas to Buy Idaho Phosphate Operation

RETURN TO ISSUEPREVConcentratesNEXTEl Paso Natural Gas to Buy Idaho Phosphate OperationCite this: Chem. Eng. News 1964, 42, 23, 24–26Publication Date (Print):June 8, 1964Publication History Published online6 November 2010Published inissue 8 June 1964https://doi.org/10.1021/cen-v042n023.p024Copyright © 1964 AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETYArticle Views6Altmetric-Citations-LEARN ABOUT THESE METRICSArticle Views are the COUNTER-compliant sum of full text article downloads since November 2008 (both PDF and HTML) across all institutions and individuals. These metrics are regularly updated to reflect usage leading up to the last few days.Citations are the number of other articles citing this article, calculated by Crossref and updated daily. Find more information about Crossref citation counts.The Altmetric Attention Score is a quantitative measure of the attention that a research article has received online. Clicking on the donut icon will load a page at altmetric.com with additional details about the score and the social media presence for the given article. Find more information on the Altmetric Attention Score and how the score is calculated. Share Add toView InAdd Full Text with ReferenceAdd Description ExportRISCitationCitation and abstractCitation and referencesMore Options Share onFacebookTwitterWechatLinked InReddit PDF (585 KB) SUBJECTS:Natural resources,Phosphates Get e-Alerts

Gas Transportation Cost Dividends From Internally Coated Pipe and Station Automation

Abstract The Alberta-California gas pipeline is coated internally throughout most ofits length with a thin film of epoxy resin, the purpose of which was primarilyto provide a smooth internal surface and reduce compressor station horsepower requirements. Three of the compressor stations installed on the line are automated and arecontrolled remotely by a single "set point" signal from the central dispatch office. This paper evaluates the benefits that have been realized from these two factors. Pipeline flow efficiency factors are reported and compared with thosefor uncoated portions of the line, and compressor station operating and maintenance costs on the line are compared with costs usually experienced insimilar manned stations. Both of these effects are then related to costs of transportation, and the net effect of each is reported. Introduction The Alberta – California pipeline system extends from gas fields in theeastern foothills region of Alberta through the southeast corner of British Columbia across the international border in Idaho, and through Washington, Oregon and northern California to Antioch on San Francisco Bay – a total ofsome 1,600 miles, including gathering laterals. It carries gas purchased in Alberta by Alberta and Southern Gas Co. Ltd. to markets served by the Pacific Gas &amp; Electric Co. throughout northern California, and to the Canadian Montana Pipeline Co. at the Alberta-Montana border. In addition, gas purchasedby the Westcoast Transmission Company Limited from fields in Alberta is carriedby the line and delivered to the El Paso Natural Gas Co. near Spokane, Washington, as well as to local utility companies along the route of the linein British Columbia, Idaho, Washington and Oregon. The main line is 36 inches in diameter throughout its length and, with thefour compressor stations installed at the time the line was built, the systemis capable of delivering some 460 MMcf/D to the San Francisco Bay area, about160 MMcf/D to El Paso at Spokane and about 36 MMcf/D to Canadian Montana.