Immediately following a spill at sea, released oil ranging from diesel to light crude and diluted bitumen, will initially weather through evaporation, resulting in an elevated concentration of light hydrocarbons in th...Immediately following a spill at sea, released oil ranging from diesel to light crude and diluted bitumen, will initially weather through evaporation, resulting in an elevated concentration of light hydrocarbons in the air. As part of oil spill response operations, first responders use hand-held devices to monitor airborne concent- rations when approaching a spill. The feasibility of using numerical modelling as an additional tool to assess potential flammability and plan response operations in the spill area was explored in this study. The Lower Explosive Limit (LEL) is defined as the minimum concentration of a gas in air, in this case a mixture of evaporated hydrocarbons, which can produce a flash fire in the presence of an ignition source. This ignition source could be triggered by the vessel itself or by spill response operations. A framework was put into place, utilizing a three- dimensional hydrodynamic model (H3D), an oil spill model (SPILLCALC), and an air dispersion model (CALPUFF) to assess the risk of possible ignition of the hydrocarbon vapour in the event of a spill. The study looked at a hypothetical credible worst case tanker spill (16 500 m3) of diluted bitumen (cold lake winter blend) occurring at Arachne Reef in Haro Strait, British Columbia, Canada. SPILLCALC provided one-minute averaged vapour fluxes from the water surface for each of 17 modelled pseudo-components which were used as inputs to CALPUFF. Using the predicted airborne concentrations of each pseudo-component, time-scaled to one-second averages, the flammability potential in the immediate spill area was determined at each grid point using Le Chatelier’s mixing equation. The approach describe here was developed as a proof of concept, and could be established as a real-time system, bringing valuable information in addition to hand-held devices during a spill response, or during a response exercise. This modelling study was conducted as part of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion Project. There are a number of commercially available oil spill models but few if any are equipped with the ability to model air dispersion and forecast hazardous conditions as discussed in this paper.展开更多
Plant maintenance has been a discipline that has gradually evolved with the industrial revolution. For quite some time, it has been a ＂necessary evil＂ in production, manufacturing, and process settings. The changing...Plant maintenance has been a discipline that has gradually evolved with the industrial revolution. For quite some time, it has been a ＂necessary evil＂ in production, manufacturing, and process settings. The changing business needs and industrial conditions have had various impacts on the maintenance process, particularly over the last few years. While some industries have inherent difficulties seeing what maintenance is all about, others have begun to add more flavor to the organizational maintenance practices. This article brings an overview of developments within the offshore oil and gas production sector.展开更多
A comprehensive method was developed to assess the transnational operation environment in host countries for Chinese oil companies. This method includes an assessment criterion system of the environment, which is to b...A comprehensive method was developed to assess the transnational operation environment in host countries for Chinese oil companies. This method includes an assessment criterion system of the environment, which is to be scored by the experts. Analytical Hierarchy Process （AHP） and fuzzy mathematical methods were used to make evaluation and get the assessment result and ranking of three host countries.展开更多
Technology evolution has been a driving factor in the oil tanker industry. The technology breakthroughs and historical data served as the main factor of evo-lution in the industry. Nowadays the oil tankers have been m...Technology evolution has been a driving factor in the oil tanker industry. The technology breakthroughs and historical data served as the main factor of evo-lution in the industry. Nowadays the oil tankers have been modified and opti-mized according to the requirements of the cargo and the area in which they are supposed to operate. This paper reviews some technological developments in the tanker industry and driving factors behind them. The issues of environmental pollution, failure prediction, and efficient operations are also discussed in mathematical terms.展开更多
This paper deals with a first-principle mathematical model that describes the electrostatic coalescer unitsdevoted to the separation of water from oil in water-in-oil emulsions, which are typical of the upstreamoperat...This paper deals with a first-principle mathematical model that describes the electrostatic coalescer unitsdevoted to the separation of water from oil in water-in-oil emulsions, which are typical of the upstreamoperations in oil fields. The main phenomena governing the behavior of the electrostatic coalescer are denscribed, starting from fundamental laws. In addition, the gradual coalescence of the emulsion droplets isconsidered in the mathematical modeling in a dynamic fashion, as the phenomenon is identified as a keystep in the overall yield of the unit operation. The resulting differential system with boundary conditionsis then integrated via performing numerical libraries, and the simulation results confirm the available lit-erature and the industrial data. A sensitivity analysis is provided with respect to the main parameters. Themathematical model results in a flexible tool that is useful for the purposes of design, unit behavior predic-tion. performance rnoniroring, and ontimization.展开更多
The study is a cross-sectional design assessment of the likelihood, frequency and severity of hazards associated with underwater operations in the Niger Delta. Five oil and gas companies were used for this study selec...The study is a cross-sectional design assessment of the likelihood, frequency and severity of hazards associated with underwater operations in the Niger Delta. Five oil and gas companies were used for this study selected by a purposive method given that they had the highest number of workers involved in underwater operations. A sample size of 418 was computed to which the questionnaires were administered with response rate of 95.93%. Data analyses were carried out to cover descriptive statistics, analysis of variance and Pearsonal correlation coefficients. The 4 by 4 risk assessment matrix for the likelihood and consequences showed that 8 out of 20 underwater hazards were categorized as having very high risk according to their risk ratings. The eight hazards categorized based on their risk IDs were H01, H03, H04, H08, H10, H11, H12, and H15. The 4 by 4 risk matrix for frequency and consequences revealed that two hazards (Piracy & bandit attack/kidnapping (H01) and Other main vessels/heavy object dropping or falling load/collision (H08)) were identified to be of very high risk.展开更多
We developed a detailed simulation model of the Arctic marine transport system(MTS) for oil platform Prirazlomnaya. The model has a multidisciplinary nature and involves: sub-models of various transport and technologi...We developed a detailed simulation model of the Arctic marine transport system(MTS) for oil platform Prirazlomnaya. The model has a multidisciplinary nature and involves: sub-models of various transport and technological processes; stochastic weather generator to obtain time series of 15 environmental parameters; and contextual planning algorithm to build voyage plan considering several types of ships and cargoes. We used a significant amount of real operational data to identify model parameters and to prove its statistical reliability. Our main scientific task is to investigate the interaction of various processes of a different nature, while the practical aim is to find a set of measures to increase the efficiency of MTS. The results of the study reveal many examples of the mutual interaction of various processes that need to be considered at the design stage to avoid technical mistakes.The study formed a basis for making managerial decisions at the top level of Gazprom Neft Shelf Company.展开更多
Mycoflora of atmospheric air and dust samples collected from air conditioning systems in 12 of each I.C.U. （intensive care units） and O.R. （operation rooms） were tested using settle and dilution plate methods on f...Mycoflora of atmospheric air and dust samples collected from air conditioning systems in 12 of each I.C.U. （intensive care units） and O.R. （operation rooms） were tested using settle and dilution plate methods on four types of agar media and incubated at 25℃. Forty-five fungal species representing 23 genera were isolated and identified. The most prevalent genera recorded were Cladosporium, Aspergillus, Penicillium and Fusarium. The total colony forming units of airborne fungi recovered in I.C.U. and O.R. ranged between 31.13-49.61 colonies/m3 on the four types of media usedl The fungal total catch of the dust samples collected from the air conditioning system filters in I.C.U. and O.R. were ranged from 65.5-170 colonies/mg dust. Since, the interest to replace synthetic xenobiotics by natural compounds with low environmental persistence and biodegradable to control such airborne fungal contaminants is needed. In this respect, essential oils showed to possess a broad spectrum of antifungal activity. Fungal static ability of six oils was tested on 30 different fungal isolates. Vapors of common thyme oil exhibited the strongest inhibitory effects on the tested isolates, whereas the headspace vapors of blue gum and ginger had no inhibitory effects on the tested fungal isolates. These data revealed that the air conditioning systems may be an important source of contamination in I.C.U. and O.R. of Assiut university hospitals. Thus, patients may be in risk of being exposed to contaminated atmospheric air by opportunistic fungi and the use of essential oils as an alternative option to control hospital wards from fungal contaminants needs further studies.展开更多
Generically, SCM may be said to include all activities carried out to ensure proper functioning of the supply chain. The activities included in proper management of a supply chain broadly include logistics activities,...Generically, SCM may be said to include all activities carried out to ensure proper functioning of the supply chain. The activities included in proper management of a supply chain broadly include logistics activities, planning and control of the flow of information and materials in a firm, management of relationships with other organizations and government intervention, However, crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism are established products supply chain disruptors in Nigeria which are rendering the task of running an efficient petroleum supply chain onerous. This paper aims to establish the importance of effective supply chain strategies for companies in the oil and gas industry with special focus on the Nigerian oil and gas sector and the strategies by which the state oil and gas corporation in this sector may mitigate disruptions to its supply chain. This study investigates the enhancement of supply chain strategies towards meeting the challenge of crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism, using the Nigerian National Corporation (NNPC) as a case study. Based on this study, data were collected from two sources: A summary of incident reports obtained from NNPC and an interview with personnel in the PPMC Department. Incident report refers to a report produced when accidents such as equipment failure, injury, loss of life, or fire occur at the work site. Content analysis is utilized to evaluate data obtained from interview responses, CBN financial stability reports, NDIC annual reports, circulars, banking supervision reports and implementation guidelines. The study found out that NNPC should endeavor to sustain its value chain and ward of pipeline vandals and crude oil thieves by engaging in community partnership, detailing security outfits to ensure its pipelines’ right of way and bridging. Concluded that the oil supply chain of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has been plagued by disruptions in the form of crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism which has had debilitating effects on its value.展开更多
Along with oil and gas operations, huge amounts of sulfur byproducts are produced. For example, in the State of Qatar which has the third largest proven reserves of natural gas, an incredible amount of sulfur is produ...Along with oil and gas operations, huge amounts of sulfur byproducts are produced. For example, in the State of Qatar which has the third largest proven reserves of natural gas, an incredible amount of sulfur is produced as byproduct from its natural gas processing facilities. The amount of produced sulfur surpasses by far the amount that can be utilized currently in the country. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) existing in natural gas extracted from Qatar’s North Field is converted to elemental sulfur using the conventional Claus process. Managing byproduct sulfur from natural gas processing is a key aspect of economic development and environmental protection in many countries with oil and gas facilities. Therefore, new markets must be found to utilize sulfur to avoid disposal crises. Sulfur byproduct from natural gas can be utilized for various applications. This paper discusses alternative potential uses for sulfur in addition to the current practices of sulfur utilization. Some of these alternative applications of sulfur byproducts include the potential usage for medicinal uses, road construction, batteries, hydrogen production, structural additives, solar energy, waste treatment, arsenite removal, and production of maize.展开更多
Vehicle fuel economy will continue to increase in importance as world vehicle production grows and fuel supplies become more limited year by year.As OEMs strive to produce cars and trucks with greater fuel efficiency ...Vehicle fuel economy will continue to increase in importance as world vehicle production grows and fuel supplies become more limited year by year.As OEMs strive to produce cars and trucks with greater fuel efficiency and extended durability,additive technology developers are increasingly being asked to contribute to these goals from the lubricant side.Axle inefficiency can account for as much as 10% of the overall losses in an automotive driveline so improvements in axle efficiency can contribute greatly to improving vehicle fuel economy.For good durability,low axle oil operating temperatures are also needed to minimize oxidative and thermal degradation of the oil,reduce deposits and sludge formation,and extend oil drain intervals.To develop gear oils that can increase axle efficiency significantly while maintaining stable operating temperatures requires rig tests that are fast,precise and reproducible.This paper documents the development of a new axle test rig and test procedures and presents test results on several gear oils.The test results show the contributions of base oil viscosity,base oil chemistry,and additive chemistry on the fuel economy and temperature of the various oils.Having a dependable tool is enabling the development of new fuel-efficient and durable gear oil technology.展开更多
文摘Immediately following a spill at sea, released oil ranging from diesel to light crude and diluted bitumen, will initially weather through evaporation, resulting in an elevated concentration of light hydrocarbons in the air. As part of oil spill response operations, first responders use hand-held devices to monitor airborne concent- rations when approaching a spill. The feasibility of using numerical modelling as an additional tool to assess potential flammability and plan response operations in the spill area was explored in this study. The Lower Explosive Limit (LEL) is defined as the minimum concentration of a gas in air, in this case a mixture of evaporated hydrocarbons, which can produce a flash fire in the presence of an ignition source. This ignition source could be triggered by the vessel itself or by spill response operations. A framework was put into place, utilizing a three- dimensional hydrodynamic model (H3D), an oil spill model (SPILLCALC), and an air dispersion model (CALPUFF) to assess the risk of possible ignition of the hydrocarbon vapour in the event of a spill. The study looked at a hypothetical credible worst case tanker spill (16 500 m3) of diluted bitumen (cold lake winter blend) occurring at Arachne Reef in Haro Strait, British Columbia, Canada. SPILLCALC provided one-minute averaged vapour fluxes from the water surface for each of 17 modelled pseudo-components which were used as inputs to CALPUFF. Using the predicted airborne concentrations of each pseudo-component, time-scaled to one-second averages, the flammability potential in the immediate spill area was determined at each grid point using Le Chatelier’s mixing equation. The approach describe here was developed as a proof of concept, and could be established as a real-time system, bringing valuable information in addition to hand-held devices during a spill response, or during a response exercise. This modelling study was conducted as part of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion Project. There are a number of commercially available oil spill models but few if any are equipped with the ability to model air dispersion and forecast hazardous conditions as discussed in this paper.
文摘Plant maintenance has been a discipline that has gradually evolved with the industrial revolution. For quite some time, it has been a ＂necessary evil＂ in production, manufacturing, and process settings. The changing business needs and industrial conditions have had various impacts on the maintenance process, particularly over the last few years. While some industries have inherent difficulties seeing what maintenance is all about, others have begun to add more flavor to the organizational maintenance practices. This article brings an overview of developments within the offshore oil and gas production sector.
文摘A comprehensive method was developed to assess the transnational operation environment in host countries for Chinese oil companies. This method includes an assessment criterion system of the environment, which is to be scored by the experts. Analytical Hierarchy Process （AHP） and fuzzy mathematical methods were used to make evaluation and get the assessment result and ranking of three host countries.
文摘Technology evolution has been a driving factor in the oil tanker industry. The technology breakthroughs and historical data served as the main factor of evo-lution in the industry. Nowadays the oil tankers have been modified and opti-mized according to the requirements of the cargo and the area in which they are supposed to operate. This paper reviews some technological developments in the tanker industry and driving factors behind them. The issues of environmental pollution, failure prediction, and efficient operations are also discussed in mathematical terms.
文摘This paper deals with a first-principle mathematical model that describes the electrostatic coalescer unitsdevoted to the separation of water from oil in water-in-oil emulsions, which are typical of the upstreamoperations in oil fields. The main phenomena governing the behavior of the electrostatic coalescer are denscribed, starting from fundamental laws. In addition, the gradual coalescence of the emulsion droplets isconsidered in the mathematical modeling in a dynamic fashion, as the phenomenon is identified as a keystep in the overall yield of the unit operation. The resulting differential system with boundary conditionsis then integrated via performing numerical libraries, and the simulation results confirm the available lit-erature and the industrial data. A sensitivity analysis is provided with respect to the main parameters. Themathematical model results in a flexible tool that is useful for the purposes of design, unit behavior predic-tion. performance rnoniroring, and ontimization.
文摘The study is a cross-sectional design assessment of the likelihood, frequency and severity of hazards associated with underwater operations in the Niger Delta. Five oil and gas companies were used for this study selected by a purposive method given that they had the highest number of workers involved in underwater operations. A sample size of 418 was computed to which the questionnaires were administered with response rate of 95.93%. Data analyses were carried out to cover descriptive statistics, analysis of variance and Pearsonal correlation coefficients. The 4 by 4 risk assessment matrix for the likelihood and consequences showed that 8 out of 20 underwater hazards were categorized as having very high risk according to their risk ratings. The eight hazards categorized based on their risk IDs were H01, H03, H04, H08, H10, H11, H12, and H15. The 4 by 4 risk matrix for frequency and consequences revealed that two hazards (Piracy & bandit attack/kidnapping (H01) and Other main vessels/heavy object dropping or falling load/collision (H08)) were identified to be of very high risk.
文摘We developed a detailed simulation model of the Arctic marine transport system(MTS) for oil platform Prirazlomnaya. The model has a multidisciplinary nature and involves: sub-models of various transport and technological processes; stochastic weather generator to obtain time series of 15 environmental parameters; and contextual planning algorithm to build voyage plan considering several types of ships and cargoes. We used a significant amount of real operational data to identify model parameters and to prove its statistical reliability. Our main scientific task is to investigate the interaction of various processes of a different nature, while the practical aim is to find a set of measures to increase the efficiency of MTS. The results of the study reveal many examples of the mutual interaction of various processes that need to be considered at the design stage to avoid technical mistakes.The study formed a basis for making managerial decisions at the top level of Gazprom Neft Shelf Company.
文摘Mycoflora of atmospheric air and dust samples collected from air conditioning systems in 12 of each I.C.U. （intensive care units） and O.R. （operation rooms） were tested using settle and dilution plate methods on four types of agar media and incubated at 25℃. Forty-five fungal species representing 23 genera were isolated and identified. The most prevalent genera recorded were Cladosporium, Aspergillus, Penicillium and Fusarium. The total colony forming units of airborne fungi recovered in I.C.U. and O.R. ranged between 31.13-49.61 colonies/m3 on the four types of media usedl The fungal total catch of the dust samples collected from the air conditioning system filters in I.C.U. and O.R. were ranged from 65.5-170 colonies/mg dust. Since, the interest to replace synthetic xenobiotics by natural compounds with low environmental persistence and biodegradable to control such airborne fungal contaminants is needed. In this respect, essential oils showed to possess a broad spectrum of antifungal activity. Fungal static ability of six oils was tested on 30 different fungal isolates. Vapors of common thyme oil exhibited the strongest inhibitory effects on the tested isolates, whereas the headspace vapors of blue gum and ginger had no inhibitory effects on the tested fungal isolates. These data revealed that the air conditioning systems may be an important source of contamination in I.C.U. and O.R. of Assiut university hospitals. Thus, patients may be in risk of being exposed to contaminated atmospheric air by opportunistic fungi and the use of essential oils as an alternative option to control hospital wards from fungal contaminants needs further studies.
文摘Generically, SCM may be said to include all activities carried out to ensure proper functioning of the supply chain. The activities included in proper management of a supply chain broadly include logistics activities, planning and control of the flow of information and materials in a firm, management of relationships with other organizations and government intervention, However, crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism are established products supply chain disruptors in Nigeria which are rendering the task of running an efficient petroleum supply chain onerous. This paper aims to establish the importance of effective supply chain strategies for companies in the oil and gas industry with special focus on the Nigerian oil and gas sector and the strategies by which the state oil and gas corporation in this sector may mitigate disruptions to its supply chain. This study investigates the enhancement of supply chain strategies towards meeting the challenge of crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism, using the Nigerian National Corporation (NNPC) as a case study. Based on this study, data were collected from two sources: A summary of incident reports obtained from NNPC and an interview with personnel in the PPMC Department. Incident report refers to a report produced when accidents such as equipment failure, injury, loss of life, or fire occur at the work site. Content analysis is utilized to evaluate data obtained from interview responses, CBN financial stability reports, NDIC annual reports, circulars, banking supervision reports and implementation guidelines. The study found out that NNPC should endeavor to sustain its value chain and ward of pipeline vandals and crude oil thieves by engaging in community partnership, detailing security outfits to ensure its pipelines’ right of way and bridging. Concluded that the oil supply chain of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has been plagued by disruptions in the form of crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism which has had debilitating effects on its value.
文摘Along with oil and gas operations, huge amounts of sulfur byproducts are produced. For example, in the State of Qatar which has the third largest proven reserves of natural gas, an incredible amount of sulfur is produced as byproduct from its natural gas processing facilities. The amount of produced sulfur surpasses by far the amount that can be utilized currently in the country. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) existing in natural gas extracted from Qatar’s North Field is converted to elemental sulfur using the conventional Claus process. Managing byproduct sulfur from natural gas processing is a key aspect of economic development and environmental protection in many countries with oil and gas facilities. Therefore, new markets must be found to utilize sulfur to avoid disposal crises. Sulfur byproduct from natural gas can be utilized for various applications. This paper discusses alternative potential uses for sulfur in addition to the current practices of sulfur utilization. Some of these alternative applications of sulfur byproducts include the potential usage for medicinal uses, road construction, batteries, hydrogen production, structural additives, solar energy, waste treatment, arsenite removal, and production of maize.
文摘Vehicle fuel economy will continue to increase in importance as world vehicle production grows and fuel supplies become more limited year by year.As OEMs strive to produce cars and trucks with greater fuel efficiency and extended durability,additive technology developers are increasingly being asked to contribute to these goals from the lubricant side.Axle inefficiency can account for as much as 10% of the overall losses in an automotive driveline so improvements in axle efficiency can contribute greatly to improving vehicle fuel economy.For good durability,low axle oil operating temperatures are also needed to minimize oxidative and thermal degradation of the oil,reduce deposits and sludge formation,and extend oil drain intervals.To develop gear oils that can increase axle efficiency significantly while maintaining stable operating temperatures requires rig tests that are fast,precise and reproducible.This paper documents the development of a new axle test rig and test procedures and presents test results on several gear oils.The test results show the contributions of base oil viscosity,base oil chemistry,and additive chemistry on the fuel economy and temperature of the various oils.Having a dependable tool is enabling the development of new fuel-efficient and durable gear oil technology.
