Technology Intermediary
Cold Spray
WHAT IS COLD SPRAY TECHNOLOGY?
Cold Spraying (CS) is a coating deposition method. Solid Powders (1 to 50 micrometers in diameter) are accelerated in a supersonic gas jet to velocities up to ca. 1200 m/s. During impact with the substrate, particles undergo plastic deformation and adhere to the surface. To achieve a uniform thickness the spraying nozzle is scanned along the substrate. Metals, polymers, ceramics, composite materials, and nanocrystalline powders can be deposited using cold spraying. The kinetic energy of the particles, supplied by the expansion of the gas, is converted to plastic deformation energy during bonding. Unlike thermal spraying techniques, e.g., plasma spraying, arc spraying, flame spraying, or high-velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF), the powders are not melted during the spraying process.
NFH INTEREST IN COLD SPRAY TECHNOLOGY
NHF staff was researching ways to provide repairs “on the go” for the variety of heavy equipment used in the oilfield. The Permian Basin is the largest oilfield in North America, and the most productive oilfield in the world. Many of the producing oil wells are located in rather remote sections of the Permian, making repairs to continually running equipment difficult
NHF purchased the cold spray equipment and found a local company that thought the technology was what they needed to grow the business.
Coating Sucker Rods
EXTEND THE LIFE OF SUCKER RODS IN THE OILFIELD
Corrosion is known to be one of the major issues contributing to the degradation and failure of equipment, such as the sucker rods, in the oil industry. It is a phenomenon that develops in confined regions of a metallic material in contact with a corrosive medium. Corrosion accounts for about two-thirds of all sucker rod and coupling failures. Carbon dioxide (CO2) generated an iron carbonate scale that tends to retard corrosion rates. However, if and when this scale is compromised, such as by cracking, abrasion, etc./ then aggressive local corrosion occurs in the affected areas and appears as deep corrosion pitting.
Metal Coatings
EARLY DETECTION OF STRESS IN METALS USED IN OILFIELD
A challenge in the oilfield is the detection of stress or fatigue in tank batteries and storage facilities for oil land gas. Many of these facilities are located in remote areas and can be difficult to monitor. Of special concern is the leaking of methane and/or hydrogen sulfide gas that could occur when the metal is under stress or fatigue. Working with our contacts in various labs, we have been researching the various patents under the control of the Dept. of Defense that could provide a paint that could be used in the tank batteries and storage facilities that would change color to denote the metal portions under stress. This could give the oilfield companies a warning of potential leaks, saving lives in the process.
Water Quality Enhancement
PRODUCED WATER
Produced water is naturally occurring, saline water recovered during oil and gas production. Produced water includes formation water, hydraulic, fracturing fluid flow back, and any chemicals added during routine production operations.
Oil and gas operations in the state generate an abundance of produced water. For every barrel of oil produced in New Mexico, for example, three to six barrels of water are produced, giving this water its name of “produced water.”
Once the produced water is separated from the oil and gas, it needs to be either used or disposed of.
Most produced water is disposed of by injecting it into geologic formations that are thousands of feet below the surface and below usable groundwater. The water is injected through water disposal wells. However, reinjecting the water can have unintended consequences. Research has been linked deep underground injection of produced water to an increase in seismicity in several states, including New Mexico.
Instead of reinjecting produced water into disposal wells, produced water has the protentional to help New Mexico preserve its surface and underground freshwater resources.
PRESERVING OUR FRESHWATER
Treated produced water is currently being re-used in oil and gas operations to reduce the use of freshwater. Treated produced water also can be used for fire control, to support power generation, and for vehicle and equipment washing. It also can be used for non-edible crop irrigation like cotton.
Private industry and government agencies at the state and federal levels are researching and investing in technology to reduce the cost of treating and reusing produced water to transform produced water from waste to a resource.
New Mexico State University, working collaboratively with the New Mexico Environment Department, is host to the New Mexico Produced Water Research Consortium, a transdisciplinary public-private partnership advancing scientific and technological solutions to treat, and reuse produced water generated by the oil and gas industry.
Other types of water:
- Potable Water: Potable water, or drinking water, is safe for people to drink. To be safe to drink, water must be purified through a series of treatment steps.
- Fresh Water: Water that contains less than 1,000 milligrams per liter of dissolved solids, most often salt. Despite its name, fresh water must be treated for it to be safe to drink. Fresh water is found naturally on the Earth’s surface as ice, as water in wetlands, ponds, lakes, rivers, and streams, and as groundwater in aquifers.
- Salt Water: More commonly known as seater, salt water comes from oceans and seas.
- Brackish Water: Brackish water comes from natural environments like aquifers. It contains more salt than freshwater, but less salt than seawater.
- Raw Water: Raw water is untreated water and does not have any of its minerals, ions, particles, bacteria, or parasites removed. Raw water includes rainwater, ground water, water from infiltration wells, and water from bodies like lakes and rivers.
- Waste Water: water that contains waste from residential, commercial, and industrial processes. Often called black water, wastewater is treated and then sent elsewhere for non-potable (nondrinkable) purposes.