Shell Oil Comapny

General Electric Company

Chia-Fu Hsu

Harold J Vinegar

Ronald Jan Schoonebeek

Stanley Leroy Mason

Ronnie Wade Watkins

Peter Terry Griffin

Paul Taylor Hamilton

William George Coit

Allan James Samuel

William A Edelstein

Otward M Mueller

Alexander Michiel Mollinger

Kirk Samuel Hansen

A method for producing oil and/or gas comprising injecting a miscible enhanced oil recovery formulation into fractures, karsts, and/or vugs of a formation for a first time period from a first well; producing oil and/or gas from the fractures, karsts, and/or vugs from a second well for the first time period; injecting a miscible enhanced oil recovery formulation into the fractures, karsts, and/or vugs for a second time period from the second well; and producing oil and/or gas from the fractures, karsts, and/or vugs from the first well for the second time period.

Methods for producing oil and/or gas

A system for treating a hydrocarbon containing formation is described. The system includes two or more groups of elongated heaters. The group includes two or more heaters placed in two or more openings in the formation. The heaters in the group are electrically coupled below the surface of the formation. The openings include at least partially uncased wellbores in a hydrocarbon layer of the formation. The groups are electrically configured such that current flow through the formation between at least two groups is inhibited. The heaters are configured to provide heat to the formation.

Grouped exposed metal heaters

A system for producing oil and/or gas from an underground formation comprising a first array of wells dispersed above the formation; a second array of wells dispersed above the formation; wherein the first array of wells comprises a mechanism to inject a miscible enhanced oil recovery formulation into the formation while the second array of wells comprises a mechanism to produce oil and/or gas from the formation for a first time period; and wherein the second array of wells comprises a mechanism to inject a miscible enhanced oil recovery formulation into the formation while the first array of wells comprises a mechanism to produce oil and/or gas from the formation for a second time period.

Systems and methods for producing oil and/or gas

A cyclic steam soak (CSS) stimulation method for producing heated hydrocarbons from a viscous hydrocarbon-containing formation comprises the steps of: a) drilling a well () having a substantially horizontal or inclined lower section () into the viscous hydrocarbon-containing formation () substantially along the trajectory of the minimum compressive horizontal stress Sh; b) cutting at selected intervals along the length of the lower well section () substantially disk-shaped cavities (A-D) into the viscous hydrocarbon-containing formation () by a rotating hydraulic jet cutting device (); c) completing the well (); d) injecting steam into the well () and disk-shaped cavities (A-D) at such an elevated pressure that the hydraulic pressure in at least one disk-shaped cavityA is above the formation fracturing pressure, thereby fracturing the formation () and permitting the steam to invade the formation surrounding the fracture and to heat hydrocarbons in the steam invaded zone; e) interrupting steam injection and producing heated hydrocarbons via the well (); and f) repeating steps (d) and (e) a number of times.

Cyclic steam stimulation method with multiple fractures

A system for heating a subsurface formation is described. The system includes a plurality of elongated heaters located in a plurality of openings in the formation. At least two of the heaters are substantially parallel to each other for at least a portion of the lengths of the heaters. At least two of the heaters have first end portions in a first region of the formation and second end portions in a second region of the formation. A source of time-varying current is configured to apply time-varying current to at least two of the heaters. The first end portions of at least two heaters are configured to have substantially the same voltage applied to them. The second portions of at least two heaters are configured to have substantially the same voltage applied to them.

In situ conversion process systems utilizing wellbores in at least two regions of a formation

Methods for treating a tar sands formation are described herein. Methods may include heating at least a section of a hydrocarbon layer in the formation from a plurality of heaters located in the formation. Heat may be allowed to transfer from the heaters to at least a first portion of the formation. Conditions may be controlled in the formation so that water vaporized by the heaters in the first portion is selectively condensed in a second portion of the formation. At least some of the fluids may be produced from the formation.

Method of condensing vaporized water in situ to treat tar sands formations

An in-situ method of extracting oil from a hydrocarbon bearing layer such as oil-shale or tar sands lying beneath a surface layer comprises applying a radiofrequency excitation signal to the hydrocarbon bearing layer through a system of electrodes. The electrodes are inserted into a matrix of holes drilled through the surface layer and into the hydrocarbon bearing layer. A coaxial line extending through the surface layer is connected to the electrodes extending into the hydrocarbon bearing layer. The electrodes have a length that is an integral number of quarter wavelengths of the radiofrequency energy. A matching network connected between the coaxial cable and a respective one of the electrodes maximizes the power flow into each electrode. The electrodes are excited uniformly in rows and as a 'balanced-line' RF array where adjacent rows of electrodes are 180.degree. out of phase. This method does not produce substantial heating of the surface layer or the region surrounding the producing layer, and concentrates most of its power in the hydrocarbon bearing layer.

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Rijswijk, Netherlands

Chia-Fu Hsu