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At least 127 records · Page 7

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DOE OSTI2024

Applying colloidal silica suspensions injection and sequential gelation to block vertical water flow in well annulus: laboratory testing on rheology, gelation, and injection

We evaluated the application of silica suspension injection and sequential gelation to block vertical water flow in the annuli of long-screened wells. First, we studied the viscosity, rheological behavior, and gelation performance of colloidal silica suspensions in batch tests. Then, we tested the injection of silica suspensions and the water flow blocking efficiency of the later formed silica gel in column and bench-scale sandbox experiments. Micron-sized fumed powder silica suspensions and nanosized silica suspensions recovered from geothermal fluids were tested in this work. Fumed silica suspensions showed shear thinning, while nanosized silica suspensions exhibited Newtonian flow behavior. During the gelation process, the nanosized silica suspension changed from a Newtonian fluid to a shear thinning fluid while increasing its overall viscosity. At comparable concentrations, the nanosized silica suspensions have much lower viscosity than that of the fumed silica suspensions. Increases in the Na + concentration and silica particle concentration in these suspensions shortened the gelation time. Silica suspension gelation in sand columns completely blocked the water flow and sustained the injection pressure up to 50 psig (344.7 kPa). A silica suspension was successfully injected into the target zone in the annulus of a bench-scale sandbox mimicking long-screened wells in the field. The silica gel formed in the annulus effectively blocked chemical transport through the gelled zone. Our research reveals that a process using silica suspension injection and sequential gelation technology is promising for blocking the vertical water flow and chemical transport through the filter pack in targeted zones within the annulus of long-screened well systems.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2024

Utah FORGE: Wells 16A(78)-32 and 16B(78)-32 Stimulation Program Report - May 2024

This dataset consists of a comprehensive report documenting the stimulation program conducted in May 2024 on Utah FORGE wells 16A(78)-32 and 16B(78)-32. It includes detailed accounts of operational and scientific objectives, stimulation methodologies, and testing outcomes. The report describes the hydraulic fracturing activities, equipment setups, proppant and fluid usage, and the execution of a nine-hour circulation test. It also includes observations from seismic and fiber optic monitoring systems, providing data on microseismic activity and fracture propagation. Detailed parameters for each stimulation stage are provided, alongside operational challenges and solutions. The dataset includes analyses of injection and production rates, well temperatures, and pressure data, supported by graphical illustrations and logs.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2024

Utah FORGE: Well 16A(78)-32 Hydraulic Fracturing Stage 8 Crosswell Strain FDI and Microseismic Presentations - April 2024

This is a pair of PowerPoint presentations from Neubrex Energy Services (US), LLC. The presentations review work done in April 2024 on crosswell strain fracture driven interactions (FDI) and microseismic event monitoring during hydraulic fracturing in stage 8 of Utah FORGE well 16A(78)-32. Well 16B(78)-32 was the monitoring well and was where the data for these presentations were collected.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2025

Utah FORGE: RESMAN Well 16A(78)-32 and 16B(78)-32 Stimulation and Circulation Tracer Test Results - 2024

This dataset contains tracer test results from stimulation and circulation experiments conducted on the Utah FORGE wells 16A(78)-32 and 16B(78)-32 during 2024. The data was collected by RESMAN Energy Technology and includes detailed tracer analysis from flowback, short- and extended-duration circulation tests, and reinjection sampling. Sampling included analysis of tracers during different stages of testing in April, August, and September 2024. The dataset is accompanied by an interpretation report and contains time-series tracer concentration data with identification of test phases and sampling conditions. It includes results for flowback from well 16A, commingling effects with water from well 16B, tracer data from short and extended circulation tests, and reinjection tracer corrections for the August/September test. Users should be aware that proprietary tracer methodologies were applied, and they should consult the interpretation report for insights into experimental procedures and data contextualization.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

NASA NTRS2014

Final Overview of ACES Simulation for Evaluation SARP Well-Clear Definitions

The UAS in the NAS project is studying the minimum operational performance standards for unmanned aerial systems (UAS's) detect-and-avoid (DAA) system in order to operate in the National Airspace System. The DoD's Science and research Panel (SARP) Well-Clear Workshop is investigating the time and spatial boundary at which an UAS violates well-clear. NASA is supporting this effort through use of its Airspace Concept Evaluation System (ACES) simulation platform. This briefing presents the final results to the SARP, which will be used to judge the three candidate well-clear definitions, and for the selection of the most operationally suitable option.

detect and avoid↗

NASA NTRS2017

UAS Well Clear Recovery Against Non-Cooperative Intruders Using Vertical Maneuvers

This paper documents a study that drove the development of a mathematical expression in the minimum operational performance standards (MOPS) of detect-and-avoid (DAA) systems for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). This equation describes the conditions under which vertical maneuver guidance could be provided during recovery of well clear separation with a non-cooperative VFR aircraft in addition to horizontal maneuver guidance. Although suppressing vertical maneuver guidance in these situations increased the minimum horizontal separation from 500 to 800 feet, the maximum severity of loss of well clear increased in about 35 of the encounters compared to when a vertical maneuver was preferred and allowed. Additionally, analysis of individual cases led to the identification of a class of encounter where vertical rate error had a large effect on horizontal maneuvers due to the difficulty of making the correct left-right turn decision: crossing conflict with intruder changing altitude. These results supported allowing vertical maneuvers when UAS vertical performance exceeds the relative vertical position and velocity accuracy of the DAA tracker given the current velocity of the UAS and the relative vertical position and velocity estimated by the DAA tracker. Looking ahead, these results indicate a need to improve guidance algorithms by utilizing maneuver stability and near mid-air collision risk when determining maneuver guidance to regain well clear separation.

detect and avoid↗

NASA NTRS2018

Simulated Water Well Performance on Mars

The surface of Mars once had abundant water flowing on its surface, but now there is a general perception that this surface is completely dry. Several lines of research have shown that there are sources of potentially large quantities of water at many locations on the surface, including regions considered as candidates for future human missions. Recent discovery of exposed water ice scarps in Martian mid-latitudes has bolstered the evidence for massive amounts of almost pure water in these regions. These favorable indications of massive quantities of water have initiated studies of changes that could be made to human Mars missions if a means could be devised that would make this water available to these crews. The proposed paper will describe progress towards developing one approach for accessing and extracting water from these mid-latitude sources. This approach relies on mechanical drills to access the water ice through overlying debris. Once the ice has been accessed, a technique known as a Rodriguez Well is used to melt the ice, store the resulting water until it is needed, and then pump the water to the surface for use. Previous work in this area has utilized a computer simulation to predict the performance of the Rodriguez Well. This simulation was developed originally to predict performance in terrestrial polar regions. While the basic approach used in this model is appropriate for a similar well on Mars, several parameters were known to require a change to correctly model the Martian environment. Some of these parameters are empirical and require experiments simulating the Martian environment to determine their value. The proposed paper will describe the experiments set up to determine the value of these parameters and compare their numerical value to the terrestrial equivalent. Finally, the proposed paper will show results from the updated computer simulation and compare results with those determined from the original version of the simulation.

water↗

NASA NTRS2014

Pilot Evaluation of a UAS Detect-and-Avoid System's Effectiveness in Remaining Well Clear

Unmanned aircraft will equip with a detect-and-avoid (DAA) system that enables them to comply with the requirement to "see and avoid" other aircraft, an important layer in the overall set of procedural, strategic and tactical separation methods designed to prevent mid-air collisions. Regulators will establish minimum operating standards for DAA effectiveness, but different combinations of algorithms, displays and procedures could be used to meet those standards. The research presented in this paper indicates the effectiveness of the combined pilot-DAA system as a function of the DAA design requirements and provides data that may be used to model the behavior of pilots when employing such systems. Two simulations involving 21 professional unmanned aircraft system (UAS) pilots evaluated eight different DAA system designs in order to assess their ability to maintain the "well clear" separation standard, i.e., the state of maintaining a safe distance from other aircraft that would not normally cause the initiation of a collision avoidance maneuver by either aircraft. When the traffic display was integrated with the primary mission map directly in front of the pilot, there were fewer losses of well clear. Greater warning time provided to the pilot was strongly correlated with success in remaining well clear. Pilots' ability to separate from aircraft with cooperative and non-cooperative surveillance systems was nearly the same after accounting for the amount of alert time provided in each encounter, although the limited surveillance volume for the airborne-equipped aircraft meant alerts tended to occur later and therefore were more difficult to resolve.

detect-and-avoid↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Progress in Simulated Water Well Performance on Mars

Recent studies of human Mars missions considered the impacts of an abundant supply of in-situ, accessible water on these mission scenarios. Discovery of exposed water ice scarps in Martian mid-latitudes has bolstered the evidence for massive amounts of almost pure water in buried deposits in regions considered candidates for these future human missions. This paper describes progress towards adapting a long-standing terrestrial technique for accessing and extracting water from these mid-latitude sources of ice. This approach relies on mechanical drills to access the ice through overlying debris. Once the ice layer has been reached, a technique known as a Rodriguez Well, or Rodwell, is used to melt the ice, store the resulting water in a subsurface cavity until needed, and then pump the water to the surface for use. Previous work by the authors utilized a computer simulation to predict the performance of a Martian Rodwell. This simulation was originally developed to predict performance in terrestrial Polar Regions. Whereas the basic approach is appropriate for a similar well on Mars, several parameters had been empirically derived and required experiments simulating the Martian environment to determine the values appropriate for a Martian Rodwell simulation. These experiments have now been completed and preliminary values have been determined for the empirical parameters. Test results are consistent with a dimensionless Sh(Ra) correlation developed by Bower and Saylor (2009) and based on lab tests of water evaporating from a pool into a large air chamber. They are also consistent with correlations derived by Ingersoll (1970) and by Hecht (2002), based on natural-convection heat transfer. Each of these earlier correlations found Sh~Ra1/3, with the 1/3rd power characteristic of large Ra where the boundary layer over the pool surface is turbulent. A somewhat surprising result was that this power-law was found to extend into a range of Ra where laminar flow would be expected. Another surprising result was found in that instead of following established correlations for natural-convection heat transfer over flat plates, the dimensionless heat-transfer rates (Nu) were much larger and approximately independent of Ra. This suggests that mass transfer from the pool enhances convective heat transfer, possibly by enhanced mixing in the boundary layer. Although this possibility has been suggested in the literature, if it is proven to be true under these conditions it could play an important role in the use of a Rodwell on Mars, where evaporative mass transfer is enhanced relative to terrestrial wells.

Human Mars Mission↗

NASA NTRS1998

Quantum Well Infrared Photodetectors for Long Wavelength Infrared Applications

Quantum Well Infrared Photodetectors (QWIPs) offer greater flexibility than usual extrinsically doped semiconductor IR detectors because the wavelength of the peak response and cutoff can be continuously tailored by varying layer thickness (well width), barrier composition (barrier height), and carrier density (well doping density).

Quantum↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Mars Water Well Performance: Experimental Heat Transfer Results Supporting Simulations

Favorable indications of massive quantities of water on Mars have initiated studies of potential changes to human Mars missions. Using a technique known as a Rodriguez Well to melt the ice, store the resulting water in a subsurface ice cavity until needed, and then pump water to the surface for use is one potential means to effect these changes. A computer simulation of the Rodriguez Well in a terrestrial environment is one of the engineering tools being used to characterize the performance of this type of well on Mars. An experiment at the NASA Johnson Space Center is gathering data for convective heat transfer and evaporation rates at Mars surface conditions so that this computer simulation can be properly modified to predict performance on Mars. While quantitative results await processing, tests have indicated that a pool of water can be maintained at 1°C to 2° C while at Mars surface temperatures and pressures.

Mars↗

NASA NTRS2024

Monitoring Well Installation Completion Report for Ransom Road Landfill, Vertical Processing Facility, and Environmental Health Facility, Solid Waste Management Units: 003, 077, and 079

The intended purpose of the Monitoring Well Installation project is to support the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Environmental Remediation Department’s Resource Conservation and Recovery Act Program by installing new monitoring wells. The wells are installed in accordance with the Brevard County Health Department and St. Johns River Water Management Districts rules and guidelines.

Well Installation↗

DOE OSTI2024

High conductivity coherently strained quantum well XHEMT heterostructures on AlN substrates with delta doping

Polarization-induced two-dimensional electron gases (2DEGs) in AlN/GaN/AlN quantum well high-electron-mobility transistors on ultrawide bandgap AlN substrates offer a promising route to advance microwave and power electronics with nitride semiconductors. The electron mobility in thin GaN quantum wells embedded in AlN is limited by high internal electric field and the presence of undesired polarization-induced two-dimensional hole gases (2DHGs). To enhance the electron mobility in such heterostructures on AlN, previous efforts have resorted to thick, relaxed GaN channels with dislocations. In this work, we introduce n-type compensation δ-doping in a coherently strained single-crystal (Xtal) AlN/GaN/AlN heterostructure to counter the 2DHG formation at the GaN/AlN interface, and simultaneously lower the internal electric field in the well. This approach yields a δ-doped XHEMT structure with a high 2DEG density of ∼3.2×1013 cm−2 and a room temperature (RT) mobility of ∼855 cm2/Vs, resulting in the lowest RT sheet resistance 226.7 Ω/□ reported to date in coherently strained AlN/GaN/AlN HEMT heterostructures on the AlN platform.

Physics↗

DOE OSTI2024

Deploying a Publicly Available and Living National Oil and Gas Well Geodatabase: CO2-Locate: A Dynamic Database & Tool

Emission mitigation and safe geologic carbon storage require an understanding of local wellbore infrastructure, yet well data are siloed across many entities. Addressing this challenge, the National Energy Technology Laboratory published CO2-Locate, an integrated and dynamic national wellbore geodatabase. CO2-Locate offers up to date well data spanning more than 40 federal, state, and tribal entities, as well as spatially summarized insights designed to support commercial, regulatory, and research communities as they strive to curb climate change through a national energy transition.

Pfander, Isabelle↗

DOE OSTI2024

Well-Log Derived Geomechanical Analysis of Microseismicity in the Mt. Simon Saline Aquifers (Illinois Basin - Decatur Project)

The Illinois Basin Decatur Project (IBDP) successfully demonstrated the safe geologic storage of carbon dioxide at a commercial scale. Within the IBDP project three deep wells (injection (CCS1), monitoring (VW1), geophysical (GM1)) were competed and geophysical logs were recorded. During injection and post-injection periods microseismic monitoring was conducted to create a miscoseismic catalog. The correlations between microseimic attributes and geomechanical well logs define major geomechanical drivers of microseismic expression to understand a reservoir response to CO2 injection in geological context. Utilizing standard sonic and density well logs, the dynamic elastic moduli were calculated and employed to correlate with microseismic pseudo-logs. A multi-dimensional Mu-rho and Lambda-rho (MRLR) hyperdimensional plots display of meaningful data and uncovered subtle relationships between elastic properties of sandstones and the seismological attributes of recorded microseismicity.

Myshakin, Evgeniy↗

DOE OSTI2024

Computed Tomography Scanning and Geophysical Measurements of the Integrated Mid-Continent Stacked Carbon Storage Hub Sleepy Hollow Reagan Unit 86A Well

The Computed Tomography (CT) facilities, the Multi-Sensor Core Logger (MSCL), and the Geologic Storage Core Flow laboratory at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) in Morgantown, West Virginia and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania were used to characterize a core through Upper Pennsylvanian strata (limestones, mudstones, and sandstones) from the Sleepy Hollow Reagan Unit (SHRU) 86A well in southwest-central Nebraska. The Integrated Mid-Continent Stack Carbon Storage Hub (IMSCS-HUB) core from the vertical well was obtained as part of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) effort to assess the feasibility of stacked storage complexes in Nebraska and Kansas to support a commercial-scale CO2 storage hub. The Sleepy Hollow Field (SHF) is one of three sites within the IMSCS-HUB corridor. Bulk scans of core were obtained from the IMSCS-HUB SHRU 86A well. This report, and the associated scans, include detailed datasets not typically made available to the public. The data sets presented in this report can be accessed from NETL's Energy Data eXchange (EDX) online system.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2024

Analysis of Rig Parameter Data Using Drilling Process Modeling Constraints, Volume 5: Utah FORGE Well 16B(78)-32

Drill rig parameter measurements are routinely used during deep well construction to monitor and guide drilling conditions for improved performance and reduced costs. While insightful into the drilling process, these measurements are of reduced value without a standard to aid in data evaluation and decision making. In the main body of this work (Volume 1), a method is demonstrated whereby rock reduction model constraints are used to interpret drilling response parameters; the method could be applied in real-time to improve decision-making in the field and to further discern technology performance during post-drilling evaluations. Drilling parameters are evaluated using laboratory-validated rock reduction models for predicting the phenomenological response of drag bits (Detournay and Defourny, 1992) in computational algorithms. The method presented has applicability to development of advanced analytics on future geothermal wells using real-time electronic data recording for improved performance and reduced drilling costs. A drilling cost model is also used to show the tradeoff between rate of penetration and bit life and the influence on interval drilling costs. Details of the bit specifications and performance are cataloged in an independent volume, documented under separate cover, for each of the four wells, and include Volume 2: Utah FORGE 16A(78)-32; Volume 3: Utah FORGE 56-32; Volume 4: Utah FORGE 78B-32 and Volume 5: Utah FORGE 16B(78)-32.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2024

Analysis of Rig Parameter Data Using Drilling Process Modeling Constraints, Volume 4: Utah FORGE Well 78B-32

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗