Methods of well treatment

• US 20040244969A1
• Filed: 06/04/2004
• Published: 12/09/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Statoil Petroleum As (Asa Equinor)
• Original Assignee: Statoilhydro ASA
• Inventors: Haugen, Jarle Andre, Kotlar, Hans Kristian
• Granted Patent: US 7,325,603 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 166/246
• CPC Class Codes: C07K 14/00 Peptides having more than 20 amino acids; Gastrins; Somatostatins; Melanotropins; Derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C09K 8/58 Compositions for enhanced recovery methods for obtaining hydrocarbons, i.e. for improving the mobility of the oil, e.g. displacing fluids
• CPC Class Codes: C09K 8/582 characterised by the use of bacteria
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 11/00 Carrier-bound or immobilised enzymes; Carrier-bound or immobilised microbial cells; Preparation thereof

Abstract

A method is disclosed relating to the treatment of a hydrocarbon well, which method comprises administering down a bore hole thermophilic microorganisms capable of generating a well treatment chemical, in particular wherein the bore hole is a producer bore hole and the well treatment chemical is a peptide such as polyAsp; further aspects include thermophilic microorganisms which have been genetically engineered to produce a well treatment chemical and bioreactors in which microorganisms generate well treatment chemicals for application to a down hole environment.

Claims

1. A method for the treatment of a hydrocarbon well, which method comprises administering down a bore hole thermophilic microorganisms capable of generating a well treatment chemical:

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said thermophilic microorganism is naturally occuring.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said thermophilic microorganism is genetically modified to produce a well treatment chemical.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said thermophilic microorganism is also halophilic and anaerobic.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein said thermophilic microorganism is indigenous to the hydrocarbon field in which the well to be treated is located.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein said well treatment chemical is a scale inhibitor, hydrate inhibitor, alsphaltene inhibitor, wax inhibitor or a corrosion inhibitor.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the well treatment chemical is a protein or peptide molecule, an alcohol, a glycerol, a proteiniaceous or non-proteiniaceous anti-freeze molecule, biosurfactant or organic acid.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein at least 50% of all amino acids in said protein or peptide have charged side chains.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein said charged amino acids are aspartic acid.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the well treatment chemical is polAsp or a copolymer thereof.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein said microorganism is a thermophilic Archea or thermophilic bacteria.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein said thermophilic microorganism is a thermophilic Archea.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said bore hole is a producer bore hole.

14. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said bore hole is an injection bore hole.

15. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the well treatment chemical is secreted by the microorganism.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein said microorganisms are delivered to the down hole site in or on particles.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said particles also carry nutrients for the thermophlilic microorganisms.

18. The method of claim 16 or wherein said particles have a mode particle size of 1 μ

m to 5 mm.

23. A microorganism genetically engineered to produce a well treatment chemical as described in claim 6.

24. A microorganism as claimed in claim 23 which is thermophilic.

25. A microorganism as claimed in claim 23 which is an Archea.

26. A microorganism as claimed in claim 23 wherein said well treatment chemical is or a copolymer thereof.

27. A method of transforming a microorganism which comprises introducing into said microorganism a nucleic acid molecule, expression of which directly or indirectly results in production of a well treatment chemical as described in claim 6.

28. A method as claimed in claim 27 wherein said well treatment chemical is of a copolymer thereof.

29. A method as claimed in claim 27 wherein said microorganism is thermophilic.

30. A bioreactor comprising a culture of microorganisms which are able to produce a well treatment chemical as described in claim 6.

31. A bioreactor as claimed in claim 30 wherein the well treatment chemical is or a copolymer thereof.

32. A method for the treatment of a hydrocarbon well which comprises harvesting a well treatment chemical as described in claim 6 from a bioreactor wherein a culture of microorganisms are producing said well treatment chemical and then administering said well treatment chemical down a bore hole.

33. A method as claimed in claim 32 wherein said bore hole is a producer bore hole.

34. A method as claimed in claim 32 wherein said well treatment chemical is delivered down hole in or on particles.

35. A bioreactor or method as claimed claim 30 wherein said microorganisms have been genetically engineered to produce said well treatment chemical.

19. Particles impregnated with thermophilic microorganisms capable of generating a well treatment chemical.

21. Particles or a composition as claimed in claim 19 wherein said microorganisms have been genetically engineered to produce a well treatment chemical.

22. Particles or a composition as claimed in claim 21 wherein said well treatment chemical is or a copolymer thereof.

20. A hydrocarbon well treatment composition comprising a carrier liquid containing thermophilic microorganisms capable of generating a well treatment chemical.