Oil-based Industries Research Articles

Remote sensing inversion of water quality parameters in the Yellow River Delta

In recent years, with the rapid socio-economic development of the Yellow River Delta (YRD), the pressure on the supply of water resources has continued to rise. The development of oil-based industries has also led to a series of ecological and environmental problems, such as wetland degradation and water quality deterioration. As an increasing number of rivers are getting polluted, resulting in the deterioration of their water quality, monitoring, managing, and protecting water resources in the YRD is particularly important. In this study, water quality monitoring data and simultaneous Sentinel-2 image data from April 30, 2020, to October 26, 2021, were used to construct an experimental sample in the YRD. Water quality parameters (WQPs) concentrations were correlated with Sentinel-2 image element spectral reflectance and sensitive bands were selected. An empirical method based on the characteristic bands was used to invert a total of six water quality indicators, namely dissolved oxygen (DO), permanganate index (CODMn), ammonia nitrogen (NH3-H), total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN) and turbidity. The results show: (1) A total of five water quality inversion models for DO, TN, CODMn, TP and TN were effective in the areas of the Guangli River, the Tiaohe and the Branch River. The inversion accuracies of the five inversion models (R2of 0.6099, 0.9271, 0.9581, 0.8784 and 0.7387; RMSE of 1.2723, 0.3413, 0.9923, 0.0118 and 1.8476; RPD of 1.53, 2.08, 3.56, 2.76 and 1.53) indicated the feasibility of the water quality inversion method based on Sentinel-2 data using statistical theory for monitoring water quality concentration in the YRD. (2) The spatial distribution of water quality in the YRD was generally characterized by high water quality in the upper reaches and low water quality in the middle and lower reaches (except for some seasonal variations). Among them, the water quality of the upper reaches of the Guangli River was poor, with opposite trends in DO and TN concentrations. In the Tiaohe, CODMn and TP concentrations were not strongly correlated. However, CODMn and TP concentrations were high in the middle reaches where water quality was the worst. The TN concentrations in the Branch River decreased between 2020 and 2021, but the water quality is still in Category V. Therefore, continued attention and appropriate water quality management measures in the YRD are required. Further, by measuring water quality indicators at monitoring stations, regression-fitting equations for WQPs were established to obtain complementary multi-platform observations. Thus, the water quality conditions in the YRD region can be evaluated more accurately and quickly. The research results not only provide an important reference basis for the identification and monitoring of pollution sources, prevention and treatment of water environment pollution in the YRD, but also provide water security for socio-economic and ecological environment security.

Iron Compounds in Anaerobic Degradation of Petroleum Hydrocarbons: A Review.

Waste and wastewater containing hydrocarbons are produced worldwide by various oil-based industries, whose activities also contribute to the occurrence of oil spills throughout the globe, causing severe environmental contamination. Anaerobic microorganisms with the ability to biodegrade petroleum hydrocarbons are important in the treatment of contaminated matrices, both in situ in deep subsurfaces, or ex situ in bioreactors. In the latter, part of the energetic value of these compounds can be recovered in the form of biogas. Anaerobic degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons can be improved by various iron compounds, but different iron species exert distinct effects. For example, Fe(III) can be used as an electron acceptor in microbial hydrocarbon degradation, zero-valent iron can donate electrons for enhanced methanogenesis, and conductive iron oxides may facilitate electron transfers in methanogenic processes. Iron compounds can also act as hydrocarbon adsorbents, or be involved in secondary abiotic reactions, overall promoting hydrocarbon biodegradation. These multiple roles of iron are comprehensively reviewed in this paper and linked to key functional microorganisms involved in these processes, to the underlying mechanisms, and to the main influential factors. Recent research progress, future perspectives, and remaining challenges on the application of iron-assisted anaerobic hydrocarbon degradation are highlighted.

Very High Gravity Bioethanol Revisited: Main Challenges and Advances

Over the last decades, the constant growth of the world-wide industry has been leading to more and more concerns with its direct impact on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Resulting from that, rising efforts have been dedicated to a global transition from an oil-based industry to cleaner biotechnological processes. A specific example refers to the production of bioethanol to substitute the traditional transportation fuels. Bioethanol has been produced for decades now, mainly from energy crops, but more recently, also from lignocellulosic materials. Aiming to improve process economics, the fermentation of very high gravity (VHG) mediums has for long received considerable attention. Nowadays, with the growth of multi-waste valorization frameworks, VHG fermentation could be crucial for bioeconomy development. However, numerous obstacles remain. This work initially presents the main aspects of a VHG process, giving then special emphasis to some of the most important factors that traditionally affect the fermentation organism, such as nutrients depletion, osmotic stress, and ethanol toxicity. Afterwards, some factors that could possibly enable critical improvements in the future on VHG technologies are discussed. Special attention was given to the potential of the development of new fermentation organisms, nutritionally complete culture media, but also on alternative process conditions and configurations.

Simple and rapid FTIR spectral data and chemometric analysis based method for evaluation of the quality of Indian Sandalwood oil

ABSTRACT The authentication of Indian Sandalwood oil and the detection of adulterants are issues of increasing importance in the sandalwood oil-based industries such as food, perfumery, cosmetics and aromatherapy industries. In this paper, Fourier-Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectral data combined with Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Partial Least Square Regression (PLSR) were used for the authentication of pure and adulterated sandalwood oil. The pure Indian sandalwood oil was extracted by three different methods (i.e. solvent extraction, hydro-distillation and steam distillation) and blended with various proportion of diethyl phthalate (DEP) and diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) separately. The pure and adulterated oil samples were evaluated using FTIR-ATR (attenuated total reflection) spectroscopic technique. The results lead to the conclusion that FT-IR spectroscopy with chemometric techniques could be successfully used as a simple, rapid and non-destructive method for the quality assessment of the high-valued Indian Sandalwood oil.

Increasing added-value of styrax resin through post-harvesting techniques improvement and essential oil based product innovation

Styrax resin is a major non-timber forest product from North Sumatra, Indonesia. However, thousands tons of raw resin are sent abroad, while various styrax oil-based products worth US millions dollars are imported annually. Limited harvesting and processing technology are some of root of causes the lack of styrax oil-based industry development in Indonesia. The objective of this paper was an overview of styrax forest management in North Sumatra, efforts to increase the added-value both quality and quantity of resin, and an alternative processing of raw material into a perfume innovation. Benzoin resin is produced by the injured inner epithelial bark of styrax tree. Therefore, tapping of bark is the best effort to harvest the resin. But, styrax forest management has been carried out traditionally, including harvesting techniques. One of scheme to increase added-value is resins processing into a perfume products with high economic value. The innovative products begin from extracting a solid styrax resin into pure essential oil. There are two methods used, namely (a) extraction with solvent, and (b) distillation method. The amount of yield of benzoin oil produced by solvent method is influenced by incense grade from 23.9 to 34.6% and higher than another method. But distillation method also produces high quality and quantity of hydrosol (side product) with a distinctive aroma. Combined with various essential oils from Indonesia’s tropical forests, the styrax oil becomes a fixing agent for a signature perfume that formulated by considering the gradation of aroma in accordance with release of constituent essential oil particles. Processing resin into an essential oil increases the added-value of styrax resin. Innovation of styrax resin based products will explore the fragrance formulation of this commodities therefore reduce our country dependence on imported perfume and raw materials used for various personal cares.

Chemometric tools applied to optimize a fast solid-phase microextraction method for analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in produced water.

Chemometric tools are powerful strategies to efficiently optimize many processes. These tools were employed to optimize a fast-solid phase microextraction procedure, which was used for the analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in oil-based produced water using a Headspace-Solid Phase Microextraction technique (HS-SPME/GC-MS). This optimization was achieved with a 24 factorial design approach, where the final conditions for this extraction procedure were 10 μg L-1, 1 h, 92 °C (at headspace), and 0.62 mol L-1 for PAHs concentration, fiber exposition to headspace, temperature, and NaCl concentration, respectively. The limit of detection (LOD) in this protocol ranged from 0.2 to 41.4 ng L-1, while recovery values from 67.65 to 113.10%. Besides that, relative standard deviation (RSD) were lower than 8.39% considering high molecular weight compounds. Moreover, the proposed methodology in this work does not require any previous treatment of the sample and allows to quantify a higher number of PAHs. Notably, naphthalene was the major PAHs compound quantified in all samples of the produced water at 99.99 μg L-1. Altogether, these results supported this methodology as a suitable analytical strategy for fast determination of PAHs in produced water from oil-based industry.

Utilization Oil Based Industrial Sludge as Potential Construction Components

The aim of this study is to investigate the potential of using Wastewater Treatment sludge (WWTs) from oil-based industry as a target material for sustainable construction component. Intensive laboratory investigations were carried out to establish the best mix design for brick composition. WWTs were blended with Laterite Clay (LC) at 50:50 ratio to produce unfired bricks. These target material were stabilised using Hydrated Lime (HL), Portland cement (PC) on its own and combination of Ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS), waste from metal industry, HL: GGBS and PC: GGBS both (50:50 and 70:30 ratio) at 10%, 20% and 30% stabilizer dosage. The influence of the waste addition on the compressive strength and water absorption test was investigated on brick specimens. The unfired brick were fabricated in the factory environment. The bricks that casted were wrapped in cling film and air cured for 7 and 28 days before testing. The results obtained show that the measured strength properties and water absorption of the stabilized WWTs are comparable to conventional bricks. The results suggest there is a potential of using sludge from oil based industry in view of economic and environmental concern.

Rethinking and Moving Beyond GDP: A New Measure of Sarawak Economy Panorama

Despite the relatively strong adjustment in the global economy outlook, the Malaysian economy remains uncertain as the ringgit movement lies ambiguously ahead while volatile capital flows, inflationary pressure, and the vulnerable external sector and global trade remain intense. The Sarawak economy, which relies heavily on primary commodities and export earnings from oil-based industries, will soon face a noxious mixture of economic risks following the decrease in commodity prices. Thus, it is essential to develop a well-timed signaling mechanism to estimate the unpredictable economic forces that develop from the complex and multidimensional issues of domestic and global economies. The ideology of indicator construction from the Conference Board will be applied in this study to build a composite leading indicator, called the Sarawak Business Cycle Indicator (SBCI), to trace the cyclical movement of the aggregate economic activity in Sarawak. In this respect, the SBCI, which has demonstrated statistical significance with an average leading power of 3.5 months, is expected to be important in reflecting a notable economic outlook for the State. More importantly, the SBCI will serve as a valuable reference to act as a short-term forecasting tool to provide insight at both the national and state levels.

Dynamic graphene filters for selective gas-water-oil separation.

Selective filtration of gas, water, and liquid or gaseous oil is essential to prevent possible environmental pollution and machine/facility malfunction in oil-based industries. Novel materials and structures able to selectively and efficiently filter liquid and vapor in various types of solutions are therefore in continuous demand. Here, we investigate selective gas-water-oil filtration using three-dimensional graphene structures. The proposed approach is based on the adjustable wettability of three-dimensional graphene foams. Three such structures are developed in this study; the first allows gas, oil, and water to pass, the second blocks water only, and the third is exclusively permeable to gas. In addition, the ability of three-dimensional graphene structures with a self-assembled monolayer to selectively filter oil is demonstrated. This methodology has numerous potential practical applications as gas, water, and/or oil filtration is an essential component of many industries.

Intelligence in the Oil Patch: Knowledge Management and Competitive Intelligence Insights

The fields of knowledge management and competitive intelligence have been joined in the literature for over a decade, as scholars recognized the emphasis in each field on developing knowledge, albeit of different types. While knowledge management is often limited to the human, structural, and relational capital of the firm, competitive intelligence is more outward looking, building a broadly sourced knowledge base concerning competitors. In fact, practitioners are one step ahead of academia in this application as many organizations have a connection between their knowledge management and competitive intelligence functions. In extensive depth interviews to ascertain the state of intelligence work of all types in contemporary industry, we found such an inclination to be prominent in a number of specific industries. One of these was oil and gas. While exploration, recovery, refining, transportation, and retail are all separate aspects of this broad field, it is collectively of interest, in large part because of this extensive scope. In this paper, we compare and contrast knowledge management and competitive intelligence practice in oil-based industries. In doing so, we draw upon an extensive database including financial returns of thousands of companies in a broad range of industries over a five-year period. Looking specifically at industries related to oil and gas, we review data concerning the level and importance of knowledge assets in each industry. Included in the database is additional information on competitive intelligence activity in each industry. We add these figures to the analysis, allowing us to assess the relative competitive intelligence threat levels. Finally, we discuss the results from the depth interviews we conducted with practitioners in these industries, sharing their perspective on the nature of knowledge management, competitive intelligence, and the interplay between them in this complex industry.

EDITORIAL NOTE VOL 3, NO 3 (2013)

The journal continues to draw mainly on articles presented at academic conferences on topics related to competitive intelligence. In 2013 SCIP organized a first conference in South Africa, under the leadership of ASA du Toit, the journal’s editor for Africa.The first article by Agostino et al. entitled “Cloud solution in Business Intelligence for SMEs –vendor and customer perspectives“ identifies key success factor for SMEs of cloud based Business Intelligence products. Most important KSFs identified in this study were the level of software functionalities, the ubiquitous access to data, responsive answers to customer support requests, handling large amounts of data and implementation cost. The study also shows that SMEs prefer industry tailored software, monthly or quarterly billings, and contact by email or phone for service.The second article by Helen N. Rothberg and G. Scott Erickson entitled “Intelligence in the Oil Patch: Knowledge Management and Competitive Intelligence Insights” argue with extensive empirical data and examples from oil-based industries that practitioners are one step ahead of academia in the sense that many organizations have a connection between their knowledge management and competitive intelligence functions. While the natural inclination of most working in the fields of KM and CI is that more is always better, both theory and practice suggest that sometimes a more measured approach may be better, the authors conclude. The third article by Esteves and Curto entitled “A Risk and Benefits Behavioral Model to Assess Intentions to Adopt Big Data” develops a model that predicts the intention to adopt Big Data technologies. The article by Salvador and Casanoa entitled “Applying Competitive Intelligence: The Case of Thermoplastics Elastomers” provides a practical case of the Competitive Intelligence Methodology applied to the Thermoplastics Elastomers Industry, specifically within the Styrenic Block Copolymers category. The authors identify a solution for a Mexican Company to support their decision-making process. The last article by Kabir and Carayannis entitled “Big Data, Tacit Knowledge and Organizational Competitiveness” show how big data is a source of firm’s competitive advantage.As always we would first of all like to thank the authors for their contributions to this issue of JISIB.

Simulation and pre-feasibility analysis of the production process of α-methyl ester sulfonates (α-MES)

alpha-Methyl esters sulfonates (alpha-MES) are anionic surfactants that are derived from biorenewable resources, offering interesting environmental and chemical properties for application in the detergent industry. A simulation of their production process was conducted using a commercial production process currently used for palm oil. Results, prices of raw materials were submitted to economic analysis, and final MES price was compared with available data for linear alkyl benzene sulfonates (LAS) prices. The results for substances properties and product streams obtained from simulation were reliable in agreement to real values. It was found that increasing methyl ester national price by 20%, 50% and the equivalent to linear alkyl benzene price, the final price of alpha-methyl ester sulfonates was lower than the current price of linear alkyl benzene sulfonates. The capital cost and payout period for a production capacity of 49,000tons of surfactant per year were obtained. Results indicate that the process is economically feasible and can be applied to palm oil-based industries in Colombia.

Catalysis and the oil-based industry (1930-1960)

One of the most important petroleum refining processes - catalytic cracking - was conceived and developed by Eugene J. Houdry in France as early as 1929 but it was after he joined Sun Oil in the USA that it was realised commercially in 1937. This was a period when industrial developments were rapid and with the discovery of rich oil-fields in Saudi Arabia in the 1940s the gradual dominance of an oil-based rather than a coal based economy was emerging. Progress was particularly rapid in the USA with contributions from I patieff, Pines, Plank, C.L. Thomas and Haensel. Previously coal hydrogenation had been pioneered in Germany by Franz Fischer and Hans Tropsch to give long chain hydrocarbons and by Friedrich Bergius to give liquid hydrocarbons.

Opting for Oil: The Political Economy of Technological Change in the West German Chemical Industry, 1945–1961 by Raymond G. Stokes

TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE Book Reviews 1057 administrators of the branch, especially the genial Brigadier O’Brien, who smoothed his path, but Kelly did the work. And he was more than a physicist. It is perhaps worth noting that in mid-1941 Kelly had accepted an offer, nullified by the war, to teach at St. John’s College in Annapolis, celebrated for its focus on “great books” and the humanities. This book is testimony to his success. That might not be sufficient reason for anyone to read it a half-century later—except for the rarity with which success in administration can be claimed, not to mention documented. Perhaps the circumstances of the time and place vitiate its usefulness to the present. Perhaps not. Robert P. Multhauf Dr. Multhauf is retired from the National Museum ofAmerican History, Smithson­ ian Institution, and lives in San Rafael, California. Optingfor Oil: The Political Economy of Technological Change in the West German Chemical Industry, 1945—1961. By Raymond G. Stokes. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1994. Pp. xi + 259; illustrations, notes, index. $49.95. The German chemical industry has often been portrayed as an economic miracle, either in its own right or within the framework of 19th- and early-20th-century industrial developments and reconstruc­ tion after two world wars. The achievements ofthe industry include the application of formal scientific knowledge to the creation of synthetic dyestuffs during the period 1868-1900, the introduction of highpressure ammonia synthesis in the decade after 1909, and the subse­ quent extension of high-pressure synthesis to the manufacture of syn­ thetic oil and rubber. All these were based on the exploitationofreadily available German coal resources and created a strong scientific and technological tradition that emphasized self-sufficiency in raw materi­ als. This was especially critical during the National Socialist era. While the history of the German chemical industry until the imme­ diate aftermath of World War II has been well-documented, until now little has been written about the origins of the present-day oilbased industry in western Germany. In Opting for Oil, Raymond Stokes provides an account of the conditions that brought about the change from coal to oil. The industry’s dependence on coal began to decline after the collapse of Nazi Germany and the breakup of the I. G. Farben corporation (successor to the 19th-century dye-making companies, including BASF, Bayer, and Hoechst). However, as Stokes demonstrates, until the late 1950s, the move away from coal did not seem to be inevitable. The reasons for this included foreignexchange restrictions, tariffs on petroleum, and the retention of in­ dustrial leaders who “had come of age in a period in which the pre­ vailing mode of thinking was in terms of maximizing domestic self 1058 Book Reviews TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE sufficiency” (p. 229). The deliberately slow rate of changeover from coal-based to oil-based chemicals was, therefore, determined to a large extent also by concern over the risks of becoming dependent on imported raw materials. When the move toward oil did begin, it was influenced as much by external political and economic influences, such as the Cold War and the Korean War, as by the new direction of the international organic chemical industry. Prewar, wartime, and postwar successes in traditional coal-based processes, notably Fischer-Tropsch gasification of coal, Walter Reppe’s acetylene chemistry, and Karl Ziegler’s catalysts (which per­ mitted low-pressure production of high-density polyethylene), ac­ counted for some of the ongoing commitment to coal. These pro­ cesses were also admired outside Germany and influenced trends in the sharing and transfer of coal- and oil-based technologies as Ger­ many entered into a new world order increasingly dominated by a U.S. foreign policy that favored inexpensive petroleum. This encour­ aged breakthroughs in petrochemical research, and the eventual real­ ization in Germany that strategies relevant before 1945 were no longer appropriate. Stokes delineates the different approaches adopted by the major players through case studies that show how BASF and Bayer became involved in collaboration with outsiders (Shell and British Petroleum, respectively), while Hoechst decided to enter the petrochemical arena without embarking on joint ventures. The Hüls factory, which specialized in...

Carbohydrate assimilation by saccharolytic clostridia

Biological fermentations, using renewable resources, are 'viewed as a possible alternati, e to oil-based industries for the production of bulk chemical feedstocks. Among the many microorganisms which produce useful fermentat ion products, the genus CIostridium represents a group with considerable potential for exploitation. The saccharolytic clostridia are capable of fermenting a wide range of sugars (hexoses, pentoses and disaccharides) to form organic acids and solvents, and the fact that they are anaerobic, and in some cases thermoph;,lic, is advantageous for the operation of a large scale process. Furthermore one ~neoi,~c r ace,'obut).,_ur., has , . . . . , ~ . the distinction of having been used industrially in the past for production of acetone and butanol from starch and molasses. At least in this case, expectations are high that construction or development of stratus w~tl~ improved properties, coupled with advances in fermentation technology and product recovery, will lead to the revival of the industrial process.

L'évolution récente du port d'Anvers

ABSTRACT The present-day development of the port of Antwerp is characterized by the constant improvement of access routes of all kinds, by the rapid development of and an appreciable growth in new modes of maritime transport, and finally by the development of its industrial function, linked with its sea traffic. While, on land, it is only a matter of maintaining and improving the old railway links, which were excellent, and the road links, modernized by the building of a whole modern motorway network, the same cannot be said for shipping routes, whether continental or maritime, which call for a far-reaching transformation because of the constantly increasing tonnage of barges and seagoing vessels : the junction with the Rhine will require extensive works, as will the extension of the seaward shipping channels. In any case the great petrol tankers cannot reach Antwerp, whence the need to lay oil pipe-lines from Rotterdam to improve the supplying of oil to the refineries. The imbalance between incomings and outgoings in Antwerp's overall activity is less marked than that of most major European ports, mainly because of general merchandise and goods in transit, two forms of traffic where outgoings are in excess of in comings. Besides the traditional importance of Antwerp in Belgian national trading or in international iransillinq to and from northwest Europe, it should be emphasized thai the port, with its excellent technical equipment, has seen the rapid growth of modern techniques in maritime traffic (loading by trailor-lruck and by container). Finally, the third important aspect of recent transformations in the port of Antwerp is the remarkable development of port industries such as the oil-refineries, which created a great and thriving chemical industry, until the 1973 crisis, and attracted motor-car production lines, which bring with them more jobs than the oil-based industries (refineries and peiro-chemicals). As for the future, Antwerp must above all find answers to the two problems posed by the port's links with its continental hinterland, an also with the sea.