World Energy Systems Corporation

Charles H Ware

Blair A Folsom

Myron Ira Kuhlman

Anthony Gus Castrogiovanni

John E Langdon

M Cullen Johnson

Randall Todd Voland

Myron I Kuhlman

Leslie C Rose

Daniel Tilmont

Joseph Anthony Alifano

Robert M Amundson

Cyril Cherian Jos

Joseph C Allen

Michael S Klassen

Marvin J Schneider

Allen Ray Harrison

Norman W Hein, Jr

Ponnuthurai Gokulakrishnan

Casey Fuller

Andrew J Hamer

Glenn B Topping

Norman W Hein

A downhole steam generation system may include a burner head assembly, a liner assembly, a vaporization sleeve, and a support sleeve. The burner head assembly may include a sudden expansion region with one or more injectors. The liner assembly may include a water-cooled body having one or more water injection arrangements. The system may be optimized to assist in the recovery of hydrocarbons from different types of reservoirs. A method of recovering hydrocarbons may include supplying one or more fluids to the system, combusting a fuel and an oxidant to generate a combustion product, injecting a fluid into the combustion product to generate an exhaust gas, injecting the exhaust gas into a reservoir, and recovering hydrocarbons from the reservoir.

Downhole steam generator and method of use

A downhole steam generation apparatus and method of use are provided. The apparatus may include an injection section, a combustion section, and an evaporation section. The injection section may include a housing, injector elements, and injector plate. The combustion section may include a liner having channels disposed therethrough. The evaporation section may include conduits in fluid communication with the channels and the combustion chamber, and a nozzle operable to inject a fluid from the channels to the combustion chamber in droplet form. A method of use may include supplying fuel, oxidant, and fluid to the apparatus; combusting fuel and oxidant in a chamber while flowing the fluid through a plurality of channels disposed through a liner, thereby heating the fluid and cooling the liner; and injecting droplets of the heated fluid into the chamber and evaporating the droplets by combustion of the fuel and the oxidant to produce steam.

Method of recovering hydrocarbons from a reservoir

A method for recovering oil from a reservoir comprises performing a first CHOPS process in one or more first wells, performing a second CHOPS process in one or more second wells that are laterally offset from the first wells, and injecting gas and/or steam into the one or more second wells after the CHOPS processes are at least partially completed. A plurality of channels that extend from the one or more first and second wells may be created as a result of the CHOPS processes. The gas and/or steam may be injected into the channels of the one or more second wells via a downhole steam generator that is located in the one or more second wells. The gas and/or steam may form a gas and/or steam front that drives reservoir products into the channels of the one or more first wells. The reservoir products may be recovered to the surface through the one or more first wells.

Method for recovering hydrocarbons using cold heavy oil production with sand (CHOPS) and downhole steam generation

Embodiments of the invention described herein relate to methods and apparatus for recovery of viscous hydrocarbons from subterranean reservoirs. In one embodiment, a method for recovery of hydrocarbons from a subterranean reservoir is provided. The method includes drilling an injector well to be in communication with a reservoir having one or more production wells in communication with the reservoir, installing casing in the injector well, cementing the casing, perforating the casing, positioning a downhole steam generator in the casing, flowing fuel, oxidant and water to the downhole steam generator to intermittently produce a combustion product and/or a vaporization product in the reservoir, flowing injectants to the reservoir, and producing hydrocarbons through the one or more production wells.

Apparatus and methods for recovery of hydrocarbons

Method and apparatus for a downhole gas generator

Embodiments include methods for recovering petroleum products from a formation containing heavy crude oil. In one embodiment, a method includes positioning a steam generator within the petroleum-bearing formation, flowing a fuel source and an oxidizing agent into the steam generator, generating and releasing steam from the steam generator to heat the heavy crude oil, flowing a catalytic material containing a nanocatalyst into the petroleum-bearing formation, and exposing the catalytic material to the heavy crude oil. The method further provides forming lighter oil products from the heavy crude oil within the petroleum-bearing formation and extracting the lighter oil products from the petroleum-bearing formation. In some examples, the fuel source contains methane, syngas, or hydrogen gas, and the oxidizing agent contains oxygen gas, air, or oxygen enriched air. The nanocatalyst may contain cobalt, iron, nickel, molybdenum, chromium, tungsten, titanium, alloys thereof, or combinations thereof.

Process for dispersing nanocatalysts into petroleum-bearing formations

A method for producing hydrocarbons from a reservoir. The method includes positioning a burner having a combustion chamber in a first well, supplying a fuel, an oxidant, and one of water or steam from the surface to the burner in the first well, supplying a viscosity-reducing gas from the surface to the reservoir in a conduit separate from the fuel, igniting the fuel and the oxidant in the combustion chamber to generate heat and steam in the burner, injecting the viscosity-reducing gas and steam into the reservoir to reduce the viscosity of and heat hydrocarbons within the reservoir, and recovering hydrocarbons from the reservoir.

Method for producing viscous hydrocarbon using steam and carbon dioxide

A downhole burner is used for producing heavy-oil formations. Hydrogen, oxygen, and steam are pumped by separate conduits to the burner, which burns at least part of the hydrogen and forces the combustion products out into the earth formation. The steam cools the burner and becomes superheated steam, which is injected along with the combustion products into the earth formation. Carbon dioxide is also pumped down the well and injected into the formation.

A downhole burner for a steam generator includes an injector and a cooling liner. Steam enters the burner through holes in the cooling liner. Combustion occurring within the cooling liner heats the steam and increases its quality and may superheat it. The heated, high-quality steam and combustion products exit the burner and enter an oil-bearing formation to upgrade and improve the mobility of heavy crude oils held in the formation. The injector includes a face plate, a cover plate, an oxidizer distribution manifold plate, and a fuel distribution manifold plate. The cooling liner has an effusion cooling section and effusion cooling and jet mixing section. The effusion cooling section includes effusion holes for injecting steam along the cooling liner surface to protect the liner. The effusion cooling and jet mixing section has both effusion holes and mixing holes for injecting steam further toward central portions of the burner.

System, method and apparatus for hydrogen-oxygen burner in downhole steam generator

Embodiments include methods for recovering petroleum products from a formation containing heavy crude oil. In one embodiment, a method includes flowing a catalytic material containing the nanocatalyst into the formation containing the heavy crude oil and exposing the heavy crude oil and the catalytic material to a reducing agent (e.g., H). The method further includes positioning a steam generator within the formation, generating and releasing steam from the steam generator to heat the heavy crude oil containing the catalytic material, forming lighter oil products within the formation, and extracting the lighter oil products from the formation. In another embodiment, a method includes exposing the heavy crude oil and the catalytic material to an oxidizing agent (e.g., O). The nanocatalyst may contain cobalt, iron, nickel, molybdenum, chromium, tungsten, titanium, oxides thereof, alloys thereof, or combinations thereof.

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Palm Harbor, FL, United States of America

Charles H Ware