Abstract

1. Economical Potential of Stranded Natural Gas Hydrates* John Hudson**, Elizabeth Wyant**, Liu Shi and Miguel J. Bagajewicz University of Oklahoma ― Chemical Engineering *This work was done as part of the capstone Chemical Engineering class at the University of Oklahoma **Capstone undergraduate students • Conclusions • It is economical to pursue transport by LNG, but if horizontal wells were drilled instead, there are many other options that would make good investments. • GTL production is also a possible option! • The research that is on going in industry is promising . • Abstract • This work studies the commercial feasibility of producing natural gas from Ng hydrates in the peninsula region of Kamchatka, Russia and selling it to markets in either China or Japan. • A production model was constructed to determine the logistics of surface equipment placement. In addition, the difference in prices between transporting the produced natural gas via pipeline and tanker ship were compared. • Preliminary calculations compare the commercial viability of constructing an LNG plant on the western coast of Kamchatka to selling gas to China via pipeline. • Figure 5: Difference in costs of pipeline for varying flowrates and conditions. • Table 1: Schedule of operations Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia • Figure 6: Total Gas-to-Liquids (GTL) costs for varying gas flow rates. • Problem • With the supply of conventional energy sources on a decline and the demand for them increasing, the need for a large and stable supply of unconventional resources is growing fast. Natural gas hydrates can be found on the ocean floor and in permafrost regions, such as Alaska, Siberia and eastern Russia • Can gas hydrates be exploited economically? • What are hydrates and where are they located? • What research is going on and what are the problems? • What is the time line for the project? • Where are the wells going to be drilled and how many? • What kind of production can be expected? • What markets can the natural gas from hydrate be sold in? • What is the most economic option to transport the natural gas to the sales market? • Figure 3: Difference in price for LNG equipment for varying selling rates. • Reservoir pressure model • Wiggins and Shah (OU) model (2001) • Based on continuity equation and Darcy flow. • Uses dissociation kinetics. • Consider pressure drop in porous hydrate free rock • Figure 2: Natural gas flow rate trend through the pipe to the surface for varying diameters. The figure confirms that the reservoir is controlling the flow • Figure 1: Reservoir pressure profile for maximum flow rate before choke conditions occur. Reservoir Pressure Flow Properties Dissociation Pressure Distance from well • Figure 4: Pipeline path from Magadan, Russia to Blagoveshchensk, Russia.