MX2008010923A - Method for extraction of hydrocarbons from limestone formations. - Google Patents

Abstract

A system and method for extracting hydrocarbon products from limestone using nuclear energy sources for energy to fracture the limestone formations and provide sufficient heat and pressure to produce liquid and gaseous hydrocarbon products. Embodiments of the present invention also disclose steps for extracting the hydrocarbon products from the limestone formations.

Description

METHOD FOR THE EXTRACTION OF HYDROCARBONS FROM LIMESTONE STONE FORMATIONS Field of the Invention The present invention relates to the use of alternative energy sources to create a method and system that minimizes the cost of production of usable hydrocarbons from hydrocarbon-rich shales or geological formations of "oil shale" and "stone" limestone". The advantageous design of the present invention, which includes a system and method for the recovery of hydrocarbons, provides several benefits including minimization of energy input costs, limitation of water use and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and other emissions and effluents, such as carbon dioxide and other gases and liquids. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The discovery of improved and economical systems and methods for the extraction of hydrocarbons from rock formations rich in organic substances, such as oil shale and limestone formations, has been: a challenge for many years. Historically, a substantial amount of hydrocarbons are produced from underground deposits. Deposits may include formations of Ref.195493 shales and limestone, rich in organic substances, from which hydrocarbons are derived. The shales contain a hydrocarbon precursor known as kerogen. The kerogen is a complex organic material that can naturally mature to hydrocarbons when it is exposed to temperatures above 100 ° C. However, this process can be extremely slow and takes place during geological time. The immature oil shale formations are those that still release their kerogen in the form of hydrocarbons. These rock formations rich in organic substances represent an undiscovered, vast source of energy. The kerogen, however, must be recovered from oil shale formations, which, under previous known methods, can be complex and expensive to extract, which can have a negative environmental impact such as greenhouse gases and other emissions and effluents , such as carbon dioxide and other gases and liquids. In a known method, kerosene-bearing shale near the surface can be extracted and crushed and, in a process known as in-situ distillation, the crushed shale can then be heated to elevated temperatures to convert the kerogen to liquid hydrocarbons. . However, there are a number of disadvantages to shale oil surface production including high costs of extraction, crushing, and in-situ distillation of the shale and a negative environmental impact, which also includes the cost of scrap debris from the shale. , the rehabilitation and cleaning of the site. In addition, many oil shale deposits are at depths that make the operation of surface extraction impractical. In other methods, oil is present in certain geological formations at varying depths in the earth's crust. In many cases, expensive, sophisticated equipment is required for recovery. The oil is usually trapped in a layer of porous sandstone, which lies beneath a bent or dome-shaped layer of some porous rock such as limestone. In other formations, oil is trapped as in a fault, or rupture, in the layers of the crust. In the folded and dome-shaped formations of limestone, natural gas is usually present below the non-porous layer and immediately above the oil. Below the oil layer, the sandstone is usually saturated with salt water. The oil is released from this formation by drilling a well and drilling the limestone layer on either side of the limestone crease or dome.

Attempts have been made to overcome the disadvantages of prior art methods of recovery by the use of in situ processes (ie, "in place"). The in situ processes may include techniques by which the kerogen in an oil shale is subjected to on-site heating by means of combustion, heating with other material or by electric heaters and radio frequencies in the shale formation itself. The shale is distilled in situ and the resulting oil is drained to the bottom of the drain in such a way that the oil is produced from the wells. In still other attempts, in situ techniques have been described that include the fractionation and heating of shale formations and underground limestone formations to release gases and oil. These types of techniques typically require finished hydrocarbons to produce thermal and electrical energy and heat from the shale and limestone formations, and may employ conventional hydro-fractionation techniques or explosive materials. These attempts, however, also continue to suffer from disadvantages such as negative environmental impacts, high fuel costs to produce thermal energy for heating and / or to produce electricity, as well as high water consumption. In addition, these methods can have a negative environmental impact such as greenhouse gases and other emissions and effluents, such as carbon dioxide and other gases and liquids. Therefore, it may be desirable to overcome the disadvantages and drawbacks of the prior art with a method and system for recovering hydrocarbon products from rock formations, such as petroleum shale and limestone formations, which fracture the formation and heat the oil shale and / or limestone by means of thermal energy or electrically induced energy produced by a nuclear reactor. It may be desirable if the method and system can accelerate the maturation process of crude oil and natural gas precursors. It is more desirable that the method and system of the present invention be advantageously employed to minimize energy input costs, limit water use, and reduce the emission of greenhouse gases and other emissions and effluents, such as dioxide. carbon and other gases and liquids. Brief Description of the Invention Accordingly, a method and system for recovering hydrocarbon products from rock formations, such as oil shale and limestone formations, which fracture the formation and heat the oil shale, is described. and / or the limestone by means of the thermal energy produced by a nuclear reactor to overcome the disadvantages and drawbacks of the prior art. Desirably, the method and system can accelerate the maturation process of crude oil and natural gas precursors. The method and system can be advantageously used to minimize energy input costs, limit the use of water and reduce the emission of greenhouse gases and other emissions and effluents, such as carbon dioxide and other gases and liquids. It is contemplated that the described improved fractionation technologies can greatly increase the efficiency of oil production from these limestone formations. In the method and system it is contemplated that the supercritical material will be injected into the oil shale and limestone formations to produce the fractionation and porosity that will maximize the production of the useful hydrocarbons from the formation of the oil shale and the limestone formations. In a particular embodiment, according to the present disclosure, a method for recovering hydrocarbon products is provided. The method includes the steps of: producing thermal energy using a nuclear reactor; provide the thermal energy to a hot gas generator; provide a gas to the hot gas generator; producing a high pressure hot gas from the hot gas generator using a high pressure pump; inject the hot gas flow at high pressure into the injection wells where the injection wells are placed in the limestone formation; distilling the limestone in situ in the formation of the limestone using the heat of the hot gas flow to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the recovery well. It is contemplated that the method, and the alternative modalities described, include injection wells, which can be placed in the rock formations that include oil shales and limestone, whereby oil shale and limestone are distilled in situ. It is also contemplated that such rock formations only include oil shale. In an alternative embodiment, the method includes the steps of: generating electricity using a steam turbine powered by nuclear energy; distilling the limestone in situ in a limestone formation using electric heaters powered by electricity to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the injection well. In another alternative embodiment, the method includes the steps of: producing thermal energy using a nuclear reactor; provide thermal energy to a liquid metal or molten salt generator; providing a salt or liquid metal to the liquid metal or molten salt generator; producing a flow of liquid metal or molten salt from the liquid metal or molten salt generator using a pump; injecting the flow of molten metal or molten salt into the bayonet injection wells where the injection wells are placed in the formation of the limestone; distilling the limestone in situ in limestone formation using the heat of the liquid metal or molten salt stream to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the recovery well. In another alternative embodiment, the method includes the steps of: generating electricity using a steam turbine powered by nuclear energy; distilling in situ a limestone formation using radiofrequencies provided with energy by electricity to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the recovery well. The present invention provides a system and method for extracting hydrocarbon products from petroleum shale and / or limestone formations using nuclear power reactor sources to produce energy, to fracture oil shale formations and / or the limestone formations and provide sufficient heat and / or electrical energy to produce gaseous and liquid hydrocarbon products. The embodiments of the present invention also describe steps to extract the hydrocarbon products from the limestone and / or oil shale formations. Oil shale and limestone contain the precursors of crude oil and natural gas. The method and system can be used to artificially accelerate the maturation process of these precursors by first fracturing the formation using supercritical materials to increase both porosity and permeability, and then heating the shale and / or limestone to increase the temperature of the the formation above the heating that is naturally present created by an overload pressure. The use of a nuclear reactor can reduce the cost of energy input when compared to the use of finished hydrocarbons to produce thermal energy and / or electricity. Nuclear reactors produce the supercritical temperature in the range of 200 BC to 1100 SC (depending on the material to be used) necessary to increase the pressure used in the fractionation process compared with conventional hydro-fractionation and / or the use of explosives In oil shale and limestone formations, the maximization of the fractionation is advantageous for the accumulation and recovery of hydrocarbons. In general, massive formations of limestone and schist in their natural state have very limited porosity and permeability. In addition, limiting the use of water is also beneficial. The use of large amounts of water has downstream implications in terms of water availability and contamination. The method and system can significantly reduce the use of water. In addition, the use of natural gas / charcoal / petroleum for an input energy source creates greenhouse gases and other emissions and effluents, such as carbon dioxide and other gases. An increasingly large number of geologists believe that greenhouse gases contribute to a phenomenon popularly described as "global warming". The method and system of the present disclosure can significantly reduce the emission of greenhouse gases. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES The present invention, both in its organization and in its manner of operation, will be more fully understood from the following detailed description of the illustrative embodiments taken in conjunction with the appended figures in which: Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a method and system for the fractionation of petroleum shale and / or limestone formations using a nuclear power source in accordance with the principles of the present invention; Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the directionally drilled shafts used in an extraction site, in accordance with the principles of the present invention; Figure 3 is a process energy flow diagram of the method and system shown in Figure 1; Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a method and system for in situ distilling limestone and / or oil shale using a nuclear power source in accordance with the principles of the present invention; Fig. 5 is a process energy flow diagram of the method and system shown in Fig. 4; Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of an alternative embodiment of the method and system shown in Figure 4; Fig. 7 is a process energy flow diagram of the method and system shown in Fig. 6; Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of an alternative embodiment of the method and system shown in Figure 4; Figure 9 is a flow chart of process energy of the method and system shown in Figure 8; Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of an alternative embodiment of the method and system shown in Figure 4; and Figure 11 is a flow diagram of process energy of the method and system shown in Figure 10. Detailed Description of the Invention The exemplary embodiments of the method and system for the extraction of hydrocarbon products using alternative energy sources to fracture the Oil shale formulations and / or limestone formations and heating oil shale and / or limestone to produce liquid and gaseous hydrocarbon products are described in terms of the recovery of hydrocarbon products from the oil and gas formations. rock, and more particularly, in terms of the recovery of such hydrocarbon products from the shale formations of petroleum and limestone by means of thermal energy produced by a nuclear reactor. The method and recovery system of hydrocarbons can accelerate the maturation process of crude oil and natural gas precursors. It is contemplated that such a method and system as described here can be used to minimize energy input costs, limit water use and reduce the emission of greenhouse gases and other emissions and effluents, such as carbon dioxide and other gases and liquids. The use of a nuclear reactor to produce thermal energy reduces the costs of energy input and avoids confidence in the finished hydrocarbon products to produce thermal energy and the related disadvantages associated with them and described here. It is contemplated that the present disclosure can be employed with a gamma of recovery applications for the extraction of oil shale and / or limestone including other in situ techniques, such as combustion and alternative heating processes, and production methods. superficial. It is further contemplated that the present description may be used for the recovery of materials other than hydrocarbons or their precursors placed in underground locations. The following description includes a description of the method and system for recovering hydrocarbons according to the principles of the present disclosure. Alternative modalities are also described. Reference will now be made in detail to exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, which are illustrated in the appended figures. Turning now to Figure 1, there is shown a method and system for recovering hydrocarbon products, such as, for example, a system for fracturing and distilling in situ oil shales and / or limestone using a nuclear reactor and a associated thermal transfer system, in accordance with the principles of the present description. The nuclear reactor and the thermal components of the system 20 are suitable for recovery applications. Examples of such a nuclear reactor and thermal components are provided herein, although alternative equipment may be selected and preferred, as determined by one skilled in the art. The detailed embodiments of the present description are described here, however, it will be understood that the described modalities are only exemplary of the description, which can be included in several ways. Therefore, the specific functional details described herein are not to be construed as limiting, but only as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for the teaching of a skilled artisan to variably employ the present description in virtually any modality properly detailed. In one aspect of the system 20 and its associated operation method, a limestone extraction site 22 is selected for the recovery of hydrocarbon products and the treatment of oil and gas precursors. It is contemplated that system 20 and its associated method, and the alternative modalities described below, can be used with an extraction site, which includes the limestone and oil shale formations for the recovery of hydrocarbon products and precursors. It is further contemplated that such an extraction site may only include oil shale formations. Site selection can be based on subsurface mapping using data from existing wells as well as kernel samples and well logs and finally data from new holes drilled in a regular grid. Areas with higher concentrations of relatively mature kerogen, and limestone formations and favorable lithology for fractionation, will be selected. Well log data, geophysical, where available, including resistivity, conductivity, sonic records and etc., will be used. Seismic data are desirable. However, core analysis is a reliable method of determining the actual permeability and porosity that are related both to efficient heating and extraction of the final product, the usable hydrocarbons. The size and distribution of the grain are also desirable. The areas where there is a high drilling density and reliable data with positive indications in the data, could be ideal. Geochemical analysis is also desirable for the process because limestone formations tend to have very complicated geochemical characteristics. Surface geochemistry is desirable in a localized sense. Structural features and deposition environments are desirable in an area or in a larger regional sense. The reconstruction of the deposition environments and the dynamics of the post-deposition are desirable. The three-dimensional computer modeling provided there with sufficiently accurate data may be desirable. As an experience has been obtained in the optimum parameters for exploitation, the complete process and system can be modulated in their application to different sub-surface environments. At the selected site 22, a surface level 24 is drilled by extracting the core samples (not shown) using suitable drilling equipment for an application of a rock formation, as is known to one skilled in the art. The core samples are taken from site 22 and the geological information is taken from the core samples. These core samples are analyzed to determine if the selected site 22 is suitable for the recovery of hydrocarbons and the treatment of oil and gas precursors. If the core samples have the desired characteristics, site 22 will be considered adequate to try to extract the hydrocarbons from the limestone formations. Alternatively, site 22 may be considered suitable for the extraction of limestone and oil shale, or only oil shale. Consequently, a strategy and design are formulated for the construction of fractionation wells and in situ distillation injection wells, as will be described later. The joints, fractures and depositional weaknesses will be exploited to maximize the effect of this fractionation method. Ideally, the areas can be identified because they have experienced a relatively higher degree of fractionation that is naturally present due to bending and faults as observed in the coastal areas of central California. The pipe arrangements will be oriented according to these existing weaknesses to create the maximum alteration of the rock matrix. The placement of the nuclear reactor will also be formulated and planned for implementation, as well as for any other infrastructure sites for system and method implementation. It is contemplated that if core samples taken from the selected site were not found to have the desired characteristics, an alternative site can be selected. Site 22 is also prepared for installation and related construction of a supercritical material generator 28 and other components including high pressure pumps 30 and drilling equipment (not shown). In another aspect of the system 20, the installation and related construction of the nuclear reactor 26 and the components of the thermal transfer system at site 22, is effected. The plumbing equipment (not shown) is built and installed. A supply of material 34 is connected to the plumbing equipment and to the components of the heat transfer system. The electrical equipment (not shown) is wired and installed. Off-site electrical connections (if available) are made with respect to electrical equipment. If off-site electrical connections are not available, then a small current of energy from the nuclear reactor can be generated using a conventional electric generator (not shown). It is contemplated that the plumbing equipment and electrical equipment are employed, which are suitable for an extraction application of oil shale and / or limestone formation and more particularly, for the recovery of hydrocarbons and the treatment of their precursors. , as is known by an expert in the art. It is contemplated that the nuclear reactor 26 may be a large or small scale nuclear reactor employed with the system 20 in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. The nuclear reactor 26 is a thermal source used to provide the thermal energy 32 for fracturing limestone formations and / or oil shale formation (not shown). The nuclear reactor 26 is designed to be located on or near the formation of the oil shale and / or the limestone formations of site 22. It is contemplated that the thermal performance of the nuclear reactor 26 is between 20 MWth to 3000 MWth. For example, a nuclear reactor, such as the Toshiba 4S reactor can be used. These reactors can include all generation III, III + and IV reactors, including but not limited to pressurized water reactors, boiling water reactors, CA DU reactors, advanced gas reactors, ESBWR, very high temperature reactors , reactors cooled with helium or with another gas, reactors cooled with liquid sodium, reactors cooled with liquid lead or other reactors cooled with a liquid metal, reactors cooled with a molten salt, supercritical water reactors, and all the designs of nuclear power plants the next generation. The supercritical material generator 28 is constructed and installed at site 22. The nuclear reactor 26 is coupled to the supercritical material generator 28, as is known to a person skilled in the art, for the transfer of thermal energy 32. The material supply source 34 supplies the material 35 to the supercritical material generator 28. The system 20 employs the supercritical material generator 28, in cooperation with the nuclear reactor 26 as the thermal source, to produce the supercritical material 36 for fractionation of oil shale formations and / or limestone formations. It is contemplated that a number of materials can be generated by a supercritical material generator 28 for fractionation, such as water, carbon dioxide and nitrogen, among others. The use of supercritical material 36 is employed to improve the permeability and porosity of an oil shale formation and / or limestone formations by means of fractionation. Studies have shown that supercritical material can be used effectively to permeate and fracture rock formations. (See, for example, the 14th International Conference on the Properties of Water and Stream in Kyoto, Sergei Fomin *, Shin-ichi Takizawa and Toshiyuki Hashida, Athermatical Model of the Laboratory Experiment that Simulates the Hydraulic Fracturing of Rocks under Supercritical Water Conditions, Fracture and Reliability Research Institute, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8579, Japan), which is incorporated herein in its entirety. Other supercritical material has been used in other applications.

Systems to handle extremely high pressures must be installed to safely operate the entire apparatus. The placement of burst prevention devices and pressure relief valves will be integrated into the system and checked carefully, particularly at the start of the process test. The high pressure pumps 30 are installed at the site 22 and coupled to the supercritical material generator 28 for the injection of the supercritical material 36 into the limestone formations. The high pressure pumps 30 supply the supercritical material 36 to the limestone formations by fracturing the wells 38 at high pressure. The supercritical material 36 is supplied at high pressures to the limestone formations to achieve maximum permeability therein. It is contemplated that high pressure pumps 30 provide pressures in the range between 50 and 500 MPa or higher. These pumps can be centrifuges or other types of pumps. The high pressure pumps and remote pumping stations required (not shown) can be designed for remote operation using SCADA pipe systems (Supervised Control and Data Acquisition) and can be equipped with protective equipment such as controllers of the Inlet and discharge pressure and automatic cutting devices in the case of deviating from the design operating conditions. Alternatively, the pumps 30 may be installed at site 22 having the limestone and oil shale formations, or only oil shale. It is further contemplated that the optimal injection parameters can be determined based on the characteristics of the formation and other factors. Geological environments can vary locally and regionally. As described above, system 20 may include various configurations of high pressure pumps such as a series of multiple pumps to achieve optimum results. The distribution system of the supercritical material described is constructed and installed at site 22, as is known to one skilled in the art. All systems are tested and an adapted integration is carried out. An infrastructure 39 for the fractionation wells of 38 (Figure 1) is constructed at site 22, as shown in Figure 2. A drill rig 40 with equipment designed for accurate directional drilling is carried on the site. It will be very important to determine exactly the location of the trepan while drilling. Many recent innovations in the design of the equipment and the probe make this possible. The probes can be licensed one day or per square foot and are transported piece by piece for large installations and can be mounted on a truck for small installations. The probes mounted on a truck can drill to depths of up to 670. 5 m (2200 feet) or more than 24 from site 22, as is known to one skilled in the art. The piercing probe 40 is positioned adjacent a vertical piercing hole 42 from which the horizontal piercing holes 44, which can be placed in orthogonal, angular or non-orthogonal orientations relative to the vertical piercing hole 42, are formed. The fractionation wells 38 of the limestone formation are installed with the infrastructure 39 of site 22. The fractionation wells 38 of the limestone formation inject the supercritical material 3 6 into the drilling holes 42, 44 of the limestone formation and the site 22. Alternatively, wells 38 can be configured for limestone and oil shale formations, or only for oil shale. Directional drilling is used to maximize the increase in permeability and porosity of shale formation. petroleum and / or limestone formations and to maximize the exposure of oil shale formation and / or limestone formation to induced heat. The configurations of horizontal drilling holes 44 can be formulated based on the geological characteristics of oil shale formation and limestone formations as determined by core drilling and geophysical investigation. These characteristics include depositional disuniformities, the orientation of the bed planes, the schistosity, as well as the structural alterations within the formations with a consequence of the tectonic characteristics. The existing weaknesses in oil shale formations and / or limestone formations can be exploited, including depositional disuniformities, stress fractures and faults. An illustration of the energy flow of the system 2 0 for the fractionation operations of the limestone formations (Figure 1), as shown in Figure 3, include the nuclear energy 46 generated from the nuclear reactor 2 6. The nuclear energy 46 creates the thermal energy 32 which is transferred to the supercritical material generator 28 to produce the supercritical material 3 6. The supercritical material 3 6 is supplied to the high pressure pumps 3 0. The energy 48 of the pump supplies the supercritical material 3 6 under high pressure. The high pressure pumps 3 0 supply the supercritical material 3 6 to the fractionation wells 3 8 with sufficient energy 50 to cause fractionation in the limestone formations. Such fractionation force increases the porosity and permeability of the limestone formations by means of hydraulic stimulation under supercritical conditions. The residual supercritical materials from the fractionation operations are recovered by means of a system for recovering the material 45 and reintroduced to the supercritical material generator 28 by means of the supply of the material 34 using suitable conduits, as is known to an expert in the art. art. It is contemplated that a material recovery system is used to minimize the consumption of the material used to fracture the limestone formations. A recycling system can also be deployed to minimize any contamination of the groundwater and recycling of the material where possible. In another aspect of the system 20, the fractionation operations employing the distribution system of the described supercritical material and the fractionation wells 38 of the limestone formations are initiated. The nuclear reactor 26 and the material distribution system are put into operation. The fractionation of the limestone formations by means of the wells 38 is carried out to increase the permeability and porosity of the limestone formations for the induction of heat. The fractionation process in the formation of limestone at site 22 is tracked by means of the readings taken. Based on these values of the readings, the formulations are carried out to determine when the. Fractionation has advanced to a desired level. A method of determining the level of fractionation could be to take some kind of basically inert material, circulate it in the borehole, and read the amount and rate of material loss. In other words, the measure of the "flight" in the formation. The gases can also be used with the amount of pressure loss that is used to measure the degree of fractionation. These measurements could be compared with the "pre-fractionation" level. This method could be particularly useful in the case of micro-fractionation. Core samples are extracted from fractured limestone formations. These samples are analyzed. The results of the analysis are used to formulate and plan the implementation of a drilling scheme for injection wells and for in situ distillation and drilling wells for product recovery. Alternatively, the fractionation operations described can be used with the limestone and oil shale formations, or only with oil shale.

In another aspect of the system 20 limestone fractionation wells 38 are dismantled from the infrastructure 39. Initially, the operation of the nuclear reactor 26 is temporarily stopped at a hot or cold stop depending on the characteristics of the particular reactor. The fractionation wells 38 of the limestone formations are dismantled and removed from the infrastructure 39 of site 22. The wells for in situ distillation and the recovery wells of the drilling (not shown) are constructed with the infrastructure 39, instead of the fractionation wells 38 of the limestone formulations, and installed in the site 22 for connection with the drill holes 42, 44. The exemplary embodiments of the on-site distillation systems for use with the system 20, of In accordance with the principles of the present disclosure, they will be described in detail with respect to Figures 4-11 described below. The wells for in situ distillation transfer the hot materials to the fractured limestone formations for heat induction. The exposure of limestone to heat in a manner related to high pressure accelerates the maturation of hydrocarbon precursors, such as kerogen, which form liquefied and gaseous hydrocarbon products. In limestone formations, oil can be extracted using conventional techniques. During on-site distillation operations, hydrocarbons accumulate. An adequate recovery system is built for the recovery of hydrocarbons, as will be described later. The nuclear reactor 26 is restarted for the operations of in-situ distillation, as described. All systems are tested and an adapted integration is carried out. In another aspect of the system 20, in situ distillation operations using wells for in-situ distillation and drilling recovery wells are initiated for product recovery. Wells for in-situ distillation and drilling wells are operational and operational. In a particular embodiment, as shown in Figure 4, the system 20 includes an in situ distillation system 120 for in situ distillation operations that relate to fractured limestone formations at site 22, similar to those described. with respect to Figures 1-3. Site 22 is prepared for installation and related construction of the on-site distillation system 120, which includes the gas handling equipment and thermal transfer system components, which will be described. The in situ distillation system 120 employs the hot gases that are injected into the fractured limestone formations to induce heating and to accelerate the maturation process of the hydrocarbon precursors as described. The nuclear reactor 26 described above is a thermal source that provides thermal energy 132 for in situ distillation of the limestone formation in situ. The nuclear reactor 26 is designed to be located at or near the site 22 of the fractured limestone formation. It is contemplated that the thermal output of the nuclear reactor 26 is between 20 MWth to 3000 MWth. It is further contemplated that the hydrogen generated by the nuclear reactor 26 may be used to improve the value of the carbon-bearing material, which may resemble charcoal and which may be recoverable. A hydrogen generator (not shown), with a system either electrolytic, thermal or other, can be attached to the nuclear reactor 26 to generate hydrogen for this use. Alternatively, the wells for in-situ distillation and recovery wells can be used with the limestone and oil shale formation applications, or only oil shale. A gas injection system 134 is installed at site 22. Gas injection system 134 supplies gas to a hot gas generator 128. Hot gas generator 128 is constructed and installed at site 22.

There are many types of hot gas generators available for this type of application, including, but not limited to, reboilers and the like. The nuclear reactor 26 is coupled to a hot gas generator 128, as is known to one skilled in the art, for the transfer of the thermal energy 132. The system 20 employs the hot gas generator 128, in cooperation with the nuclear reactor. 26 as the thermal source, to produce the hot gas 36 for the in situ distillation of fractured limestone formations. It is contemplated that the thermal performance of the nuclear reactor 26 can be used to heat various types of gases for injection, for in situ distillation of oil shale and / or limestone formations, such as air, carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrogen, methane, acetic acid, steam or other appropriate gases or other appropriate combinations. Other gases can also be injected secondarily to maximize the distillation process in situ if appropriate. The high pressure pumps 130 are installed at the site 22 and are coupled to the hot gas generator 128 for injection of the hot gas 136 into the fractured limestone formations. The high pressure pumps 130 place the hot gas 136 in a high pressure state to promote the in situ distillation of the limestone formations. It is contemplated that the system 20 may include various configurations of high pressure pumps having multiple pumps and multiple gases to maximize the efficiency of the in situ distillation operation. The injection wells 138 by in situ distillation with the active heating of the limestone formations are installed with the system infrastructure 20, as described. Hot gas 136 is transferred to injection wells 138 and injected into the fractured limestone formation. The use of horizontal drilling described with respect to Figure 3, can be employed to maximize the exposure of the formation of limestone and / or oil shale to the heat necessary to form both gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons. It can take between 2-4 years for the formation of sufficient kerogen to make it recoverable. After this, recovery can occur at a commercial level for between 3-30 years or more. A product recovery system 160 is constructed at site 22. The product recovery system 160 can be a conventional hydrocarbon recovery system or other suitable system that solves the recovery requirements and that is coupled with the recovery wells of the product. perforation 120 (not shown) for the collection of gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons that are released during the distillation process in situ. An illustration of the energy flow of the system 20 with the in situ distillation system 120 for the in situ distillation operations of the limestone (Figure 4) as shown in Figure 5, includes the nuclear energy 146 generated from the nuclear reactor. 26. The gas is supplied from the gas injection system 134 to the hot gas generator 128. The nuclear energy 146 creates the thermal energy 142 which is transferred to the hot gas generator 128 to produce the hot gas 136. The hot gas 136 is supplied to the high pressure pumps 130. The pump energy 148 places the hot gas 136 under high pressure. The high pressure pumps 130 supply the hot gas 136 to distill in situ the injection wells 138 with sufficient energy for the transfer of the hot gas 136 to the fractured limestone formations for heat induction from in situ distillation operations. . The exposure of limestone to heat in relation to high pressure accelerates the maturation of hydrocarbon precursors, such as kerogen, which forms liquefied and gaseous hydrocarbons. During on-site distillation operations, the hydrocarbon products 162 are accumulated. The hydrocarbon products 162 are extracted and collected by the product recovery system 160. The waste gas from the on-site distillation operations is recovered by means of a gas recycling system 145 and reinjected to a hot gas generator 128 by means of the gas injection system 134. It is contemplated that a gas recovery system will be employed to minimize the gas consumption used for the in situ distillation of the fractured limestone formation. In an alternative embodiment, as shown in Figure 6, the system 20 includes an in situ distillation system 220 for in situ distillation operations that relate to fractured limestone formations at site 22, similar to those described. . The site 22 is prepared for installation and related construction of the on-site distillation system 220, which includes a steam generator and components of the thermal transfer system, as will be described. The in situ distillation system 220 employs the heat generated by the electric heaters inserted in the holes drilled in the fractured limestone formations of site 22. The generating heat induces the heating of the fractured limestone formations to accelerate the maturation process of hydrogen precursors, as described. The nuclear reactor 26 described above is a thermal source cooperating with a steam generator 228 to provide power to the steam turbine 23 0 to generate steam that can be used to drive an electrical generator 234 to produce electrical energy for distillation in situ of limestone formation fractured in situ. If a conventional pressurized water reactor or a water reactor that is not boiling, like, is used, a heat exchanger (not shown) may be required. The nuclear reactor 26 is sized to be located at or near the site 22 of the fractured limestone formation. It is contemplated that the production of the electrical capacity of the nuclear reactor 26 is between 50 MWe up to 2000 MWe. It is contemplated that the hydrogen generated by the nuclear reactor 26 can be used to improve the value of the carbon-bearing material, which can resemble charcoal, so that it will be recoverable. A hydrogen generator (not shown) with either an electrolysis, thermal energy, or other system, can be attached to the nuclear reactor 26 to generate hydrogen for this use. The water supply 34 supplies the water to the steam generator 228, which is constructed and installed at site 22. The nuclear reactor 26 is coupled to the steam generator 228, as is known to one skilled in the art, for the transfer of thermal energy 232. The system 20 employs the steam generator 228, in cooperation with the nuclear reactor 26 as the thermal source, to produce steam 236 to activate the steam turbine 23 0 for the operation of an electric generator to provide electrical energy for on-site distillation. of fractured limestone formations. If a conventional pressurized water reactor or a water reactor that is not boiling, like, is used, a heat exchanger (not shown) may be required. The steam generator 228 is coupled to the steam turbine 230, in a manner known to one skilled in the art. The steam 236 of the steam generator 228 flows into a steam turbine 23 0 to provide the mechanical energy 237 to an electrical generator 234. The steam turbine 230 is coupled to an electrical generator 234, in a manner that is known to one skilled in the art, and the mechanical energy 237 generates the current 239 from the electrical generator 234. It is contemplated that current 239 may include alternating current or direct current. The stream 239 of the electric generator 234 is supplied to the injection wells 238 for on-site distillation with active electrical heating to the limestone. The injection wells 238 employ electric resistance heaters (not shown) that are mounted with drilled holes in the fractured limestone formations of the site 22., to promote the in situ distillation of limestone. Electrical resistance heaters heat the subsurface of fractured limestone formations to approximately 343 degrees C (650 degrees F) for a period of 3 to 4 years. During the extension of this period of time, the production of both gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons is recovered in a product recovery system 260. The product recovery system 260 is built on site 22. The product recovery system 260 it is coupled with the injection wells 238 or the perforation recovery wells for the collection of gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons that are released during the distillation process in situ. An illustration of the energy flow of the system 20 with the on-site distillation system 220 (FIG. 6) for limestone in situ distillation operations, as shown in FIG. 7, includes the nuclear energy 246 generated from the reactor nuclear 26. The nuclear energy 246 creates the thermal energy 232 which is transferred to the steam generator 228 to produce the vapor 236. If a conventional pressurized water reactor or a non-boiling water reactor, like, is used, it is used. it may require a heat exchanger (not shown). The steam 236 is supplied to the steam turbine 230, which produces the mechanical energy 237. The mechanical energy 237 generates the current 239 from the electric generator 234.

The stream 239 supplies the electric power 241 to the electric heating elements to heat fractured limestone formations for the induction of heat. The exposure of limestone to heat accelerates the maturation of hydrocarbon precursors, such as kerogen, which form liquefied and gaseous hydrocarbons. During the on-site distillation operations, hydrocarbon products are accumulated. The hydrocarbon products are extracted and collected by the product recovery system 260. Alternatively, the on-site distillation system 220, the product recovery system 260, and the related components can be used with the applications of the limestone and oil shale formations, or only the oil shale. In another alternative embodiment, as shown in Figure 8, the system 20 includes an on-site distillation system 320 for in situ distillation operations that relate to fractured limestone formations at site 22, similar to those described. . The site 22 is prepared for installation and related constructions of the on-site distillation system 320, which includes a generator of a liquid metal or a molten salt, bayonet heaters and components of the heat transfer system, which will be described.

The in situ distillation system 320 employs molten salts or liquid metal, which are injected into the fractured limestone formations to accelerate the maturation process of the hydrocarbon precursors as described. The nuclear reactor 26 is a thermal source that provides the thermal energy 332 for the in situ distillation of the fractured limestone formation in situ. The nuclear reactor 26 is designed to be located at or near the site 22 of the fractured limestone formation. It is contemplated that the thermal performance of the nuclear reactor 26 is between 20 MWth to 3000 MWth. It is also contemplated that the hydrogen generated by the nuclear reactor 2 6 can be used to improve the value of the material that carries the carbon, which can resemble charcoal and which will be recoverable. A hydrogen generator (not shown), which uses either electrolysis, a thermal process or another, can be attached to the nuclear reactor 26 to generate hydrogen for this use. A salt injection system 334 is installed at site 22. Salt injection system 334 supplies the salts to a molten salt generator 328. The molten salt generator 328 is constructed and installed at site 22. The nuclear reactor 26 is coupled to the molten salt generator 328, as is known to one skilled in the art, for the transfer of thermal energy 332. The system 20 employs the molten salt generator 328, in cooperation with the nuclear reactor 26 as the thermal source, to produce the molten salt 33 6 for in situ distillation of the fractured limestone formations. It is contemplated that the thermal production of nuclear reactor 26 can be used to heat various types of salts for injection for in situ distillation of limestone, such as halide salts, nitrate salts, fluoride salts, and chloride salts. . It is further contemplated that the liquid metals may be used with the in-situ distillation system 320 as an alternative to the salts, which include the use of a metal injection system and a liquid metal generator. The thermal production of the nuclear reactor 26 can be used to heat various types of metals for injection, for in situ distillation of the limestone, including alkali metals such as sodium. Pumps 330 are installed at site 22 and coupled to molten salt generator 328 to inject molten salt 336 into fractured limestone formations. Pumps 330 are coupled to injection wells 338 for in situ distillation with active heating of limestone, to supply the molten salt 336 for the in situ distillation of fractured limestone formations. It is contemplated that the system 20 may include various pumping configurations including multiple pumps to maximize the efficiency of the operation of the on-site distillation. It is further contemplated that the pumps 331 may be employed to recover the residual molten salt, after the on-site distillation operations, to return to the molten salt generator 328, as part of the recovery and recycling system of the on-site distillation system 320 described later. Injection wells 338 for in situ distillation with active heating of the limestone are installed with the system infrastructure 20, as described. The molten salt 336 is transferred to the injection wells 338 and injected into the fractured limestone formation. The use of a horizontal perforation described with respect to Figure 3 can be employed to maximize the exposure of the limestone formation to the heat necessary to form both gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons. It can take between 2-4 years for the formation of sufficient kerogen to be commercially recoverable. After this, recovery can occur at a commercial level for between 3-30 years or longer. A product recovery system 360 is constructed at site 22. Product recovery system 360 can be coupled with injection wells 338 for the collection of gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons that are released during the on-site distillation process or they can be drilling recovery wells. An illustration of the energy flow of the system 20 with the on-site distillation system 320 (FIG. 8) for the in-situ distillation operations of the limestone, as shown in FIG. 9, includes the nuclear power 346 generated from the reactor nuclear 26 The salt is supplied from the salt injection system 334 to the molten salt generator 328. The nuclear energy 346 creates the thermal energy 332 which is transferred to the molten salt generator 328 to produce the molten salt 336. The molten salt 33 6 is supplied to the pumps 330 and the pumping energy 348 supplies the molten salt 336 to the injection wells 338 for on-site distillation with sufficient energy 350 to transfer the molten salt 33 6 to the limestone formations. fractured for induction with heat. The exposure of limestone to heat accelerates the maturation of hydrocarbon precursors, such as kerogen, which forms liquefied and gaseous hydrocarbons. During on-site distillation operations, hydrocarbon products accumulate 362. The hydrocarbon products 362 are extracted and collected by the product recovery system 3 60. The residual molten salt 364 from the on-site distillation operations is recovered by means of a salt recovery system 345 and reinjected to the molten salt generator 328 by means of the pumps 331 and the salt injection system 334. It is contemplated that the salt recovery system 345 be employed to minimize the consumption of the salt used for the in situ distillation of the fractured limestone formation. Alternatively, the on-site distillation system 320, the product recovery system 360 and the related components can be used with applications for the formation of limestone and oil shale, or only for oil shale. In another alternative embodiment, as shown in Figure 10, the system 20 includes an on-site distillation system 420 for in-situ distillation operations that relate to fractured limestone formations at site 22. In a similar way to those already described. Site 22 is prepared for installation and related construction of the on-site distillation system 420, which includes a steam generator, oscillators and the components of the thermal transfer system, as will be described. The in situ distillation system 420 employs the heat generated by the oscillators, which are assembled with the fractured limestone formations of site 22. The heat generated induces the heating of fractured limestone formations to accelerate the maturation process of hydrogen precursors, as already described. The nuclear reactor 26 described above is a thermal source cooperating with a steam generator 228 to provide power to the steam turbine 23 0 to generate electrical energy to distill in situ the limestone formation fractured in situ. The nuclear reactor 26 is sized to be located at or near the site 22 of the fractured limestone formation. It is contemplated that the production of the electrical capacity of the nuclear reactor 26 is between 50 MWe up to 3,000 MWe. It is contemplated that the hydrogen generated by the nuclear reactor 26 can be used to improve the value of the material that carries the coal, which can be similar to the charcoal, so that it will be recoverable. A hydrogen generator (not shown), having a system of either electrolysis, thermal, or other, can be fixed to the nuclear reactor 26 to generate hydrogen for this use. The water supply 34 supplies the water to the steam generator 228, which is constructed and installed at site 22. The nuclear reactor 26 is coupled to the steam generator 228, in a manner as is known to one skilled in the art, for the transfer of the thermal energy 232. The system 20 employs the steam generator 228, in cooperation with the nuclear reactor 26 as the thermal source, to produce the vapor 236 to activate the steam turbine 23 for the in situ distillation of the fractured limestone formations. The steam generator 228 is coupled to the steam turbine 230 in a manner as is known to one skilled in the art. The steam 236 of the steam generator 238 flows into the steam turbine 230 to provide mechanical power 237 to an electrical generator 234. The steam turbine 230 is coupled to the electric generator 234, and the mechanical energy 237 generates the current 239 from the electric generator 234. It is contemplated that current 239 may include alternating current or direct current. The current 239 of the electric generator 234 is supplied to the oscillators 438. The electrical power supplied to the oscillators 438 by means of the current 239 creates a radiofrequency having a wavelength wherein the attenuation is compatible with the well spacing to provide a substantially uniform heating. A product recovery system 460 is built on site 22. The product recovery system 460 is connected to the recovery wells for the connection of the gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons that are released during the distillation process in situ. An illustration of the energy flow of the system 20 with the on-site distillation system 420 (FIG. 10) for limestone in situ distillation operations, as shown in FIG. 11, includes the 446 nuclear power generated from the reactor nuclear 26. Nuclear energy 446 creates thermal energy 232 which is transferred to steam generator 228 to produce steam. The steam 236 is supplied to the steam turbine 230, which produces mechanical energy 237. The mechanical energy 237 generates the current 239 from the electric generator 234. The current 239 supplies the electrical energy to the oscillators 438 to create the radio frequencies 241 for heating fractured limestone formations for the induction of heating. The exposure of limestone to heat accelerates the maturation of hydrocarbon precursors, such as kerogen, which forms liquefied and gaseous hydrocarbons. During the operations of the distillation in situ, the hydrocarbon products are accumulated. The hydrocarbon products are extracted and collected by the product recovery system 460. Alternatively, the on-site distillation system 420, the product recovery system 460 and the related components, can be used with the applications in the stone formations limestone and oil shale, or only oil shale. It will be understood that various modifications can be made to the modalities described herein. Therefore, the foregoing description should not be interpreted as limiting, but only as an implementation of the various modalities. Those skilled in the art will contemplate other modifications within the scope and spirit of the claims appended to this document. It is noted that in relation to this date the best method known by the applicant to carry out the aforementioned invention, is that which is clear from the present description of the invention.

Claims (1)

1. CLAIMS Having described the invention as above, the content of the following claims is claimed as property. A method for recovering hydrocarbon products, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: producing thermal energy using a nuclear reactor; provide thermal energy to a supercritical material generator; provide a material to the generator of supercritical material; produce a supercritical material flow from the supercritical material generator using a high pressure pump; inject the flow of the supercritical material into the fractionation wells where the fractionation wells are placed in a limestone formation; and fracturing the limestone formation using the heat of the supercritical material flow from the fractionation wells. 2. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that it further comprises the steps of: providing the thermal energy to a hot gas generator; provide a gas to the hot gas generator; produce a high pressure hot gas flow from the hot gas generator using a high pressure pump; and injecting the hot gas flow at high pressure into the injection wells where the injection wells are placed in the limestone formation. 3. A method according to claim 2, characterized in that it further comprises the steps of: distilling the limestone in situ in limestone formation using the heat of the flow of the hot gas to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the injection wells. . A method according to claim 3, characterized in that the extraction step includes a product recovery system coupled to the injection wells in a configuration for the collection of the gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons released during the in-situ distillation step. 5. A method according to claim 3, characterized in that it also comprises the step of recovering the waste gas from the distillation stage in situ by means of a recycling system, the waste gas is injected with the hot gas generator. 6. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that it further comprises the steps of: providing the thermal energy to the steam generator; provide water to the steam generator; produce steam from the steam generator; Inject steam into a steam turbine to generate mechanical energy; provide mechanical energy to an electric generator; generate the current from the electric generator from the mechanical energy; and to operate the electric resistance heaters with the current, the heaters are placed with the injection wells where the injection wells are placed in the limestone formation. 7. A method according to claim 6, characterized in that it further comprises the steps of: distilling the limestone in situ in limestone formation using the heat of the heaters to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the injection wells. A method according to claim 7, characterized in that the extraction step includes a product recovery system coupled to the injection wells in a configuration for the collection of the gaseous or liquefied hydrocarbons released during the distillation step in if you. 9. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that it further comprises the steps of: providing the thermal energy to the generator of the molten salt or the liquid metal; providing a salt or metal to the molten salt or liquid metal generator, producing a flow of a molten salt or a liquid metal from the molten salt or liquid metal generator using a pump; and injecting the flow of molten salt or liquid metal into the bayonet injection wells where the injection wells are placed in the formation of the limestone. 10. A method according to claim 9, characterized in that it further comprises the steps of: distilling the limestone in situ in limestone formation using the heat of the molten salt or liquid metal flow to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the injection well. A method according to claim 10, characterized in that the extraction step includes a product recovery system coupled to the injection wells in a configuration for the collection of gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons released during the in-situ distillation stage. 12. A method according to claim 10, characterized in that it also comprises the step of recovering the salt or residual metal from the distillation stage in situ by means of a recycling system, the salt or residual metal is injected with the generator. the molten salt or the liquid metal. 13. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that it further comprises the steps of: providing the thermal energy to a steam generator; provide water to the steam generator; produce steam from the steam generator; Inject steam into a steam turbine to generate mechanical energy; provide mechanical energy to an electric generator; generate a current from the electric power generator from the mechanical energy; and to drive the oscillators with the current to create radiofrequencies to produce heat, the oscillators are placed with the injection wells where the injection wells are placed in the limestone formation. 14. A method according to claim 13, characterized in that it also comprises the steps of: distilling the limestone in situ in limestone formation, using the heat of the oscillators to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the injection wells. A method according to claim 13, characterized in that the extraction step includes a product recovery system coupled to the injection wells in a configuration for the collection of gaseous and liquefied hydrocarbons, released during the in-situ distillation stage . 16. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that it also comprises the stage of building an infrastructure in the formation of limestone, the infrastructure is formed by drilling in the horizontal and vertical direction in a configuration to increase permeability and porosity of the limestone formation. 17. A method for the recovery of hydrocarbon products, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: producing thermal energy using a nuclear reactor; provide thermal energy to a hot gas generator; provide a gas to the hot gas generator; produce a high pressure hot gas flow from the hot gas generator using a high pressure pump; injecting the hot gas flow at high pressure into the injection wells, where the injection wells are placed in a limestone formation; distilling the limestone in situ in limestone formation using the heat from the hot gas flow to produce the hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the injection wells. 18. A method for recovering hydrocarbon products, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: producing thermal energy using a nuclear reactor; provide thermal energy to a steam generator; provide water to the steam generator; produce steam from the steam generator; Inject steam into a steam turbine to generate mechanical energy; provide mechanical energy to an electric generator; generate the current from the electric generator from the mechanical energy; operating the electric resistance heaters with the current, the heaters are placed in the injection wells where the injection wells are placed in a limestone formation; distilling the limestone in situ in limestone formation using heat from the heaters to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the injection wells. 19. A method for recovering hydrocarbon products, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: producing thermal energy using a nuclear reactor; provide thermal energy to a generator of molten salt or liquid metal; provide a salt or metal to the generator of molten salt or liquid metal; producing a flow of molten salt or liquid metal from the molten salt or liquid metal generator using a pump; injecting the flow of the molten salt or the liquid metal into the bayonet injection wells where the injection wells are placed in a limestone formation; distilling limestone in situ in limestone formation using heat from the flow of molten salt or liquid metal to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the injection well. 20. A method for recovering hydrocarbon products, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: producing thermal energy using a nuclear reactor; provide thermal energy to a steam generator; provide water to the steam generator: produce steam from the steam generator; Inject steam into a steam turbine to generate mechanical energy; provide mechanical energy to an electric generator; generate a current from the electric generator from the mechanical energy; operating the oscillators with the current to create radiofrequencies to produce heat, the oscillators are placed with the injection wells where the injection wells are placed in a limestone formation; distilling the limestone in situ in limestone formation using the heat of the oscillators to produce hydrocarbon products; and extract the hydrocarbon products from the injection wells. 21. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the step of the injection includes the fractionation wells that are placed in a formation including the limestone and the oil shale. 22. A method according to claim 3, characterized in that the in situ distillation step includes the in situ distillation of oil shale and limestone.