Sucker rods are a key element in certain oil-extraction processes as they link the motor group on the surface with the pumps located downhole. During the transport from the production site toward the extraction well, these components are prone to corrosion. A hydrophobic carbon nanotube (CNT) coating, deposited via electrophoretic deposition (EPD), is proposed as a protective layer, shielding the rods from harsh environmental conditions. Three different coating systems are considered and thoroughly characterized (depending on the additive that is used to deposit the CNT), namely, magnesium nitrate hexahydrate (Mg-Nit), triethylamine (TEA), and a duplex coating (DD). The latter presents an approach which combines the advantages of each additive, mechanical stability from Mg-Nit and strong hydrophobicity from TEA (near superhydrophobic). The former coatings are further processed to overcome their individual shortcomings, resulting in an increase in the coating's stability for TEA coating, as well as transforming the hydrophilic Mg-Nit surface into a hydrophobic surface.

The effluents of the sugar and bio-ethanol industry, mainly vinasse as well as lignocellulosic waste, are produced in high volumes. Therefore, their treatment and valorization would reduce the environmental impact and make this industry more productive and competitive. The purpose of this study was to determine the potential use of press mud (lignocellulosic waste), vinasse powder, and vinasse sludge from an extraction process with ethanol, as raw materials for conventional pyrolysis evaluating the physicochemical characteristics that affect this thermochemical process, such as calorific power, density, ash content, volatile material, moisture and nitrogen, sulfur, carbon and hydrogen content, thermogravimetric profile, and quantification of lignin cellulose and hemicellulose. The batch pyrolysis experiments showed that all three wastes could be converted successfully into more valuable products. The powder vinasse led to the formation of the lowest content of bio-char (42.7%), the highest production of volatiles (61.6 wt.%), and the lowest ash content (20.5 wt.%). Besides, it showed the high heating value of 15.63 MJ/kg. Meanwhile, the extraction sludge presented the highest liquid yield (32%) with the lowest gas formation (18.2 wt.%) and the lowest heating value of 8.57 MJ/kg. Thus, the sludge could be a good feedstock for production of bio-oil and bio-char.

Electrochemical technologies are a promising alternative for the Oil Industry, for the treatment of formation water containing organic and inorganic contaminants. The main advantages of these technologies include environmental compatibility, versatility, energy efficiency, health & safety and selectivity. However, the effectiveness of the electrochemical approaches depends significantly on the electrode material and the cell parameters. Recently, BDD electrodes have shown a growing interest due to their unique ultra-wide electrochemical window with highest O2 and H2 over-potentials. The current approach based on the application of boron doped diamond (BDD) electrode to treat electrochemically production water (PW) coming from a heavy oil field, was investigated in one-compartment electrolytic batch cell. Formation water is increasing more and more with the depletion of pressure and the age of many oil and gas fields. This formation water is characterized by high initial chemical oxygen demand (COD) due to their high level of organic content. Proper elimination of the high COD content from PW to be re-usable water streams for beneficial purposes such as irrigation water or correct disposal is becoming increasingly important for an environmental and human health in the Oil Industry. The influence of primary settling treatment step and several operating parameters such as applied current density, supporting electrolyte (NaCl or Na2SO4), agitation and temperature on the COD removal efficiency from PW were investigated and the corresponding energy consumption value was also evaluated. The estimated COD removal efficiency was achieved with and without settling step between 90 and 100 % within treatment time of 5h - 7h by using applied current in the range of 5 - 12.5 mA/cm2, but the minimum absolute value of COD for the resulting water with and without settling step was achieved to be less than 0.09 mg/l and 75 mg/l, respectively by adding 3.5 g/l NaCl. However, the energy requirement for high removal efficiency without adding NaCl was 2.5 more than with NaCl into PW. Adding NaCl into PW decreases the energy consumption and increases the oxidation efficiency by promoting the electro-generation of active chlorine species in addition to hydroxyl radical. On the other hand, only 67 % removal efficiency of COD was achieved by adding 5.1 g/l Na2SO4 into PW which affect negatively the COD removal efficiency compared to PW without any supporting electrolyte. The integration of electrochemical treatment step based on BDD electrodes after settling primary step, which is commonly used in industry, as a novel secondary treatment step will create a hybrid stable electrochemical system combining different electrochemical removal mechanism by BDD electrode as anode and cathode such as electro-oxidation, - reduction [1], -flotation, - coagulation and -disinfection simultaneously.

In this work, we demonstrate at a laboratory scale the possibility of using a radio frequency (RF) heating system as a heat exchanger, with future applications for heavy oil processing. This laboratory work is the base for further improvements in heavy oil operations. The system consists of a pipe packed with nanoparticle-doped, superparamagnetic spheres as the bed material. The experimental results are compared to the data obtained with a volume average numerical method. In the RF heating system, the spheres are excited when subjected to oscillating electric fields ensuing thermal energy dissipation; this mechanism is called the Neel relaxation, a type of electrical induction heating. We have tested this system’s performance using water and heavy crude oil flowing in non-electrically conductive ceramic pipes packed with different sizes and spheres materials. Pressure, temperature and electric consumption data corresponding to varying flow rates have been collected and the numerically solved heat transfer equations are used to extend the system characterization; this will allow for industrial apparatus design considerations. Steady state data indicate that fluid heating is achieved at smaller residence times than in conventional heaters; temperature can be controlled with a great accuracy by varying the parameters of the RF generator. When heat leakage could be contained (through insulating the pipe outer wall and relatively low temperature gradients), heating efficiencies were significantly higher than 80 %. The volume average numerical method shows that the liquid flowing through the packed bed gets uniformly heated. Thermal and flow characterization are achieved for Reynolds and Nusselt numbers in the range of 10−2−102 respectively. This set up is able to heat in an efficient and temperature accurate manner for a wide range of flow conditions, and can be potentially used as a highly efficient heat exchanger for production operations (e.g., steam generation) in areas where the construction of surface facilities (fuel storage tanks, boilers) is not possible, either for environmental reasons or for lack of land space. A RF heat exchanger would only require a reliable source of electricity.