Microbially enhanced thermal oil recovery
Assignee9668241 Canada Inc.
InventorsCasey Hubert, Milovan Fustic
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Abstract
A method and a system for recovering oil from currently inaccessible oil containing geological units by activating the deep biosphere microbial seed bank. Nutrient and thermal enhancement of microorganisms in oil containing geological units allows for stimulation of inactive and/or dormant microorganisms such that they proliferate and produce gas. The oil viscosity that is decreased by heat, along with the gas pressure produced by activated microbes which allows previously inaccessible oil to flow toward production wells.
Claims20
A method for oil recovery in a subsurface of an oil reservoir, the method comprising steps of:
- utilizing at least one injection well within the subsurface;
- utilizing a heat source to heat, at a temperature from above in situ temperatures to below an upper limit for microbial life, the subsurface and stimulate activity of at least one in situ dormant microorganism from a deep biosphere microbial seed bank located in the subsurface to produce a gas pressure within the subsurface;
- and
- utilizing the gas pressure in recovery of subsurface oil through a production recovery well.
A method for oil recovery in a subsurface of an oil reservoir, the method comprising steps of:
- utilizing at least one injection well within the subsurface;
- utilizing a change in temperature, ranging from above in situ temperatures to below an upper limit for microbial life, of the subsurface to stimulate activity of at least one in situ dormant microorganism from a deep biosphere microbial seed bank located in the subsurface to produce a gas pressure within the subsurface;
- and
- utilizing the gas pressure in recovery of subsurface oil through a production recovery well.
A method for oil recovery in a subsurface of an oil reservoir, the method comprising the steps of:
- retrieving a test sample from a deep biosphere microbial seed bank located in the subsurface of the oil reservoir;
- conducting testing of the test sample to identify at least one in situ dormant microorganism;
- determining at least one of:
- an optimal nutrient formulation and an optimal bioaugmentation formulation to stimulate, at a temperature from above in situ temperatures to below an upper limit for microbial life, activity of the at least one in situ dormant microorganism from the deep biosphere microbial seed bank located in the subsurface to produce a gas pressure;
- injecting the at least one of:
- the optimal nutrient formulation and the optimal bioaugmentation formulation into the subsurface through at least one injection well;
- and
- utilizing the gas pressure in recovery of subsurface oil through a production recovery well or the at least one injection well.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.