Discovering oil at micro level
Thursday, November 3, 2011 - 06:30
in Physics & Chemistry
(PhysOrg.com) -- Getting trapped oil out of porous layers of sandstone and limestone is a tricky and costly operation for energy exploration companies the world over. But now, University of Alberta researchers have developed a way to replicate oil-trapping rock layers and show energy producers the best way to recover every last bit of oil from these reservoirs. Mechanical engineering professor Sushanta Mitra led a research team that uses core samples from oil drilling sites to make 3-D mathematical models of the porous rock formations that can trap huge quantities of valuable oil.