High Efficiency Shale Oil Recovery

U.S. shale oil reserves have been estimated to contain ½ to 4 trillion bbl oil equivalent ¿ an amount comparable to the entire world¿s recoverable petroleum reserves. In the past, shale oil has been unattractive because (1) 100 kg of oil shale may contain about 90 kg inorganic mineral, and (2) an extremely fine dust is generated by oil shale processing. This project continues the development of a process called Counter-current Heat Exchange in Solid Streams (CHESS) to improve the economics and environmental acceptability of shale oil recovery. The process consists of a rotating kiln with an inner concentric Heat-Conducting Cylinder (HCC). The cold ore feeds into the HCC and heats up as it passes the hot residue moving in the opposite direction in the annular space of the outer cylinder. In this manner, a high counter-current heat recovery is achieved without mixing the solid streams. The process feasibility was proven in a bench-scale kiln and will be further demonstrated in a Phase II pilot plant. Dust treatment is the subject of Phase I. A proprietary system is being developed to consolidate the dust as lumps which can then be ejected with the larger particle residue. Commercial Applications and other Benefits as described by the awardee: The CHESS approach has the potential to become the preferred design for a future shale oil industry. The high efficiency of the CHESS system would help stabilize oil costs and reverse our trend toward increased dependency on foreign oil.