Pore scale analysis of oil shale/sands pyrolysis

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Publication Type report
School or College University of Utah
Research Institute Institute for Clean and Secure Energy (ICSE)
Author Lin, Chen-Luh; Miller, Jan D.
Title Pore scale analysis of oil shale/sands pyrolysis
Date 2011-03-31
Description There are important questions concerning the quality and volume of pore space that is created when oil shale is pyrolyzed for the purpose of producing shale oil. In this report, 1.9 cm diameter cores of Mahogany oil shale were pyrolyzed at different temperatures and heating rates. Detailed 3D imaging of core samples was done using multiscale X-ray computed tomography (CT) before and after pyrolysis to establish the pore structure. The pore structure of the unreacted material was not clear. Selected images of a core pyrolyzed at 400oC were obtained at voxel resolutions from 39 microns (μm) to 60 nanometers (nm). Some of the pore space created during pyrolysis was clearly visible at these resolutions and it was possible to distinguish between the reaction products and the host shale rock. The pore structure deduced from the images was used in Lattice Boltzmann simulations to calculate the permeability in the pore space. The permeabilities of the pyrolyzed samples of the silicate-rich zone were on the order of millidarcies, while the permeabilities of the kerogen-rich zone after pyrolysis were very anisotropic and about four orders of magnitude higher.
Publisher University of Utah, Institute for Clean and Secure Energy
Subject pore scale analysis; oil shale/sands pyrolysis; shale oil production; domestic oil shale deposits
Bibliographic Citation Lin, C.-L., Miller, J. D. (2011). Pore scale analysis of oil shale/sands pyrolysis. DOE Award No.: DE-FE0001243. University of Utah, Institute for Clean and Secure Energy.
Relation Has Part DOE Award No.: DE-FE0001243
ARK ark:/87278/s6b02401
Setname ir_eua
ID 214310
Reference URL https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6b02401