US 4,381,124 AGranted

Method of mining an oil deposit

OwnerVladimir G. Verty, Pavel G. Voronin +6inventors

InventorsVladimir G. Verty, Pavel G. Voronin, Evgeny I. Gurov, Vitaly S. Zubkov, Alexandr I. Obrezkov, Vladimir P. Tabakov, Boris B. Khvoschinsky, Vladimir N. Judin

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Abstract

A method of mining an oil deposit, wherein a plurality of underground workings with inlet and recovery galleries are provided in an oil-bearing bed. From the inlet galleries inlet wells are drilled, and from the recovery galleries--recovery wells. A heat carrier is supplied through the recovery wells to the oil-bearing bed and oil is extracted from the recovery wells. In so doing, each inlet gallery is arranged in the bed between two recovery galleries and near the faces of the recovery wells, while the inlet and recovery wells in the oil-bearing bed portions between the inlet and recovery galleries are drilled towards each other such that they should alternate to envelop the oil-bearing bed in a uniform network of wells.

Claims12

Dependent claims

A method of oil recovery by thermal mining from an oil deposit wherein a plurality of underground workings and recovery galleries are provided, comprising:

drilling rows of recovery wells from said recovery galleries;
providing inlet galleries each in the bed between two recovery galleries near the faces of said recovery wells;
drilling inlet wells from said inlet galleries toward said recovery wells such that said inlet and recovery wells alternate in the oil-bearing portions between said inlet and said recovery galleries to form a uniform network of wells enveloping said oil-bearing bed;
delivering a heat-carrier to said bed through said inlet wells;
thereby heating said bed sufficiently to fluidize said oil therein and displace said oil towards said recovery wells;
and
extracting said oil from said recovery wells to said recovery galleries.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.