Briefs
AOT New Product Brief
Deepwater Testing Brief
About Dr. Tao
Oil Hotsheet
Whitepapers
US Department of Energy RMOTC FINAL REPORT on STWA Applied Oil Technology Testing (October 19, 2011)
Energy & Fuels:
Reducing the Viscosity of Crude Oil (Energy & Fuels Article)
Electrorheology Leads To Efficient Combustion (Energy & Fuels Article)
Investigative Effects of Magnetic Fields on Fuels (Energy & Fuels Article)
Reducing the Viscosity of Crude Oil by Pulsed Electromagnetic Field Final Report for JGC Corporation
NIST Report Dr. Tao from National Institute of Standards and Technology Testing
Electric Field Assisted Fuel Atomization, Dr. Tao Dept. of Physics Temple University
APPLIED OIL TECHNOLOGY (AOT) - CRUDE OIL VISCOSITY REDUCTION SYSTEMS
"The (AOT) device may hold potential for energy savings and increased pipeline flow rates for the oil production and transportation industry." -U.S. Department of Energy
About STWA Applied Oil Technology (AOT):
STWA's Applied Oil Technology allows pipeline operators to temporarily reduce the viscosity of the crude oil within their pipeline(s) to reduce the fluid-drag (also known as friction-loss) between the fluid and the pipeline. By reducing the friction loss, pipeline operators' pump systems require less energy to maintain a constant flow rate, thereby directly reducing daily operation costs.
A short overview powerpoint presentation about the AOT technology can be found at the following link:
http://www.stwa.com/STWA/presentations/AOT_Brief_Dec2011.pdf
The more comprehensive "AOT New Product Brief" can be found at the following link:
http://stwa.com/STWA/whitepapers/AOT_NEW_PIPELINE_EFFICIENCY_Dec_2011_FINAL-revised.pdf
AOT Overview:
The Company's goal with creating the Applied Oil Technology(AOT) was to create a new method by which to reduce the amount of energy consumed in the production and transportation of crude oil, currently one of the largest providers of stored energy in the world. The technology reduces friction loss within the pipeline, allowing crude oil to be transported using less energy per mile.
AOT has been confirmed by U.S. Department of Energy:
Recent testing at the U.S. Department of Energy's Rocky Mountain Oilfield Testing Center confirmed that the use of STWA's Applied Oil Technology directly reduced the power consumption of the purpose-built 4.4 mile test pipeline loop by 13.55% and 13.14%.
The US DOE report can be found here:
http://www.rmotc.doe.gov/PDFs/TS19_51141_Final%20Report.pdf
About AOT Commercial Implementation:
The Applied Oil Technology(AOT) is a device that enables existing equipment and new construction to operate more efficiently. The devices are to be installed along the pipelines at the discharge side of pump stations, and/or as autonomous flow-assurance booster stations mid-stream along the pipelines. Installation sizes and spacing between units are dictated by pipeline operation metrics such as crude oil grade, chemical composition, flow rate, flow volume, temperature, other flow-assurance equipment in use, as well as other variables. Size and number of units per system is determined on a case-by-case basis.
AOT FEATURES: |
AOT BENEFITS: |
| Temporarily Reduces Crude Oil Viscosity | - Reduced Line-Loss per mile - Reduced Energy Consumption per mile - Reduced Pressure-Loss per mile - Crude Oil returns to natural state after a few hours |
| Crude Oil Temperature remains unchanged | - No impact in permafrost regions - No structural modifications to down-line pipelines required |
| Crude oil remains chemically unchanged | - Crude Oil chemical composition remains unchanged - No alterations or challenges to refining operations |
| Reduces Pump Energy Consumption | - Reduced daily fuel usage for a given flow rate - Reduced CO2 emissions/day |
| Energy-Efficient Design | - AOT has high energy-leverage benefits for the pipeline. - AOT use consumes small amounts of energy to provide large amounts of energy savings |
| Stand-Alone System Design | - AOT is designed for ease of integration into existing and/or new pipeline networks. |
| Off-the-shelf parts design | - AOT uses off-the-shelf parts for ease of
installation/maintenance/repair - AOT’s off-the-shelf parts simplify supply-chain networks for manufacture and maintenance |
About Crude Oil Viscosity:
Crude oil and its derivatives are fluids in suspension, meaning they have a base fluid with particulate matter "suspended" within.
Highly viscous fluids exhibit large amounts of friction against the interior surfaces of pipelines, requiring large amounts of energy to overcome this friction. Less viscous fluids exhibit reduced amounts of drag upon these pipeline surfaces, and require less energy per mile to maintain the same flow rate. By lowering the viscosity of the crude oil, one can reduce the amount of drag exerted by the fluid on the inside of the pipeline, thereby saving energy per mile.
ELEKTRA
New Emissions Reduction and Fuel Efficiency Technology
STWA's patented and patent pending ELEKTRA, also being co-developed with Temple University, improves diesel engine performance, reducing emissions and improving fuel economy by assisting in fuel atomization just prior to combustion. This technology expands upon the physics principles employed by our Applied Oil Technology for diesel fuel and its derivatives. ELEKTRA is under development at this time.
Related Research / Data
Early Release U.S. Energy Information Administration Annual Energy Outlook 2011
U.S. Energy Information Administration Annual Energy Outlook 2010 with Projections to 2035 pdf
U.S. Energy Information Administration International Energy Outlook 2010 pdf
U.S. Energy Information Administration Short-Term Energy and Summer Fuels Outlook pdf
U.S. EIA Short-Term Energy and Summer Fuels Outlook Slideshow ppt
U.S. Energy Information Administration U.S. Crude Oil Imports by Country of Origin