The need for energy and the associated economic benefits from the oil and gas deposits found mainly in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria necessitated the exploration and exploitation activities being carried out by the oil and gas Companies. However, these exploration and exploitation activities due to their unpredictable nature have a huge potential for environmental pollution as been experienced in the form of oil spills, gas flaring, irresponsible disposal of waste and several other activities that have resulted in the environmental degradation of the Niger Delta region. In the light of these, the Federal Government of Nigeria having experienced the consequences of pollution of the environment during the Koko Toxic Waste Dump incident in the then Bendel State in 1987 established a regulatory body tasked with the responsibility of harmonizing the economic interest from the oil and gas exploration and exploitation activities with the sustainability of the natural environment by developing well structured and articulated policies aimed at guiding the operations of the oil and gas operators, track their compliance and administer appropriate punitive measures for non compliance. However, this research work which is aimed at evaluating the impact of the environmental protection policies in upstream oil and gas activities in the Niger Delta region, involved the use of questionnaires and interviews. These questionnaires were completed by the management and staff of three major oil and gas companies operating within the area, the Department of Petroleum Resources and members of the Host communities. The interview was carried out to provide relevant feedback on their assessment of the impact made by the environmental protection policies on the upstream oil and gas activities in their operational areas/host communities. The study however concluded that “Although there is a regulatory body tasked with the responsibility to develop, implement and track compliance of the environmental protection policies in the upstream oil industry, the body is ineffective and as such the impact of the environmental protection policies is inadequate. Appropriate informed recommendations on the improvement strategies to the identified gaps that resulted in the unfavorable conditions were also provided. / Thesis (M.Ing. (Development and Management Engineering))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011

Le rendement des turboréacteurs peut être amélioré en minimisant le jeu aube-carter, réduisant ainsi les pertes aérodynamiques. Ces jeux réduits occasionnent des risques de contact entre les aubes en rotation à grande vitesse et le carter moteur. Des matériaux sacrificiels, appelés matériaux abradables, sont alors déposés sur le carter pour limiter les endommagements induits par ces contact. Ces interactions font intervenir un grand nombre de mécanismes d’endommagement bénéfiques ou néfastes au bon fonctionnement du joint abradable et à la fiabilité du moteur. L’objectif de cette thèse est alors de comprendre, prédire et quantifier les différents endommagements et les efforts d’interaction associés pour des matériaux abradables obtenus à l’aide de paramètres procédés différents. Un dynamomètre triaxial a été développé afin de reproduire l’interaction locale entre l’extrémité de l’aube et le matériau abradable à très grande vitesse (50 – 300 m/s) lors de phases transitoires. La mesure d’efforts d’interaction lors de contacts de très courte durée (300 µs – 1 ms) nécessite une bande passante importante. Une méthode de correction basée sur l’analyse modale expérimentale a été mise en œuvre afin d’étendre la bande passante naturelle du dynamomètre et d’atténuer les couplages entre les différentes voies de mesure. Les mécanismes d’endommagements des abradables ont été étudiés à partir d’analyses post-mortem et corrélés aux efforts et vitesse d’interactions / The turbofan efficiency can be improved by minimizing the blade-casing gap, thus reducing the aerodynamic loss. The reduced gap conduces to contact risk between the high-speed rotating blades and the engine case. Sacrificial materials, called abradable materials, are deposited on the casing to limit the damage caused by these contacts. These interactions involve a lot of damage mechanisms, which can be adverse or beneficial to the proper performance of the abradable seal and to the reliability of the engine. The aim of this thesis is to understand, predict and quantify the different damages and the interaction forces associated for abradable materials obtained with different process parameters. A triaxial dynamometer was developed to reproduce the local high-speed interactions (50 – 300 m/s) between the blade tip and the abradable material during transitional phases. The interaction forces measurement during short-lived contacts (300 µs – 1 ms) requires a large bandwidth. A correction method based on experimental modal analysis was implemented to extend the natural bandwidth of the device and attenuate the crosstalk between the different measurement channels. The damage mechanisms of abradable materials were studied by post-mortem analysis and correlated to the interaction forces and velocity

[pt] O objetivo deste estudo foi ampliar o conhecimento em mecânica de rochas evaporíticas e aplicar a mecânica computacional na modelagem numérica do comportamento estrutural de poços de petróleo em zonas de sal. Amostras de rochas evaporíticas de anidrita, halita, carnalita e taquidrita pertencentes à sequência evaporítica Ibura da Formação Muribeca, testemunhadas em poços de petróleo, foram submetidas a ensaios laboratoriais de mecânicas de rochas, em especial a ensaios triaxiais de fluência sob diferentes condições de estado de tensões e temperaturas. Nas mesmas condições de ensaio triaxial de fluência a taquidrita desenvolveu deformação axial específica de cerca de 107 vezes maior que a halita e 2,7 vezes maior que a carnalita, sendo que a anidrita permanece essencialmente indeformável. Para os ensaios triaxiais de fluência com a halita na temperatura de 86 graus Celsius foi possível definir o mecanismo duplo de deformação por fluência, enquanto que para a carnalita e a taquidrita isto ocorreu nas temperaturas de 130 e 86 graus Celsius, respectivamente. A taxa de deformação por fluência em regime permanente obtida por simulação numérica reproduziu fielmente os resultados experimentais dos ensaios triaxias de fluência, com erro relativo inferior a 1 por cento. Através dos ensaios laboratoriais foram obtidos os parâmetros geomecânicos de fluência das rochas ensaiadas e a seguir aplicados nos modelos numéricos de simulação, construídos para avaliar a influência de diversos parâmetros nos estudos de estabilidade de poços e integridade de revestimentos. A desconsideração da interação geomecânica entre estruturas salíferas e o maciço hospedeiro pode conduzir a falhas na perfuração de poços próximos a tais estruturas devido ao processo de halocinése do sal que altera o estado de tensões gravitacional. / [en] The aim of this study was to increase knowledge of evaporitic rock mechanics and apply computational mechanics in numerical modeling of structural behavior of oil wells in areas of salt. Evaporitic rock samples of anhydrite, halite, carnallite e tachyhydrite and belonging to the evaporitic sequence Ibura from the Muribeca formation, coring in oil wells, were subjected to laboratory tests of rock mechanics, especially the triaxial creep under different states of stress and temperature. Under the same conditions of triaxial creep tachyhydrite developed specific axial strain rate about 107 times that of halite and 2.7 times that of carnallite, and anhydrite remains essentially undeformed. For the triaxial creep of halite in the temperature of 86 degrees Celsius it was possible to define the double mechanism creep law, while for carnallite and tachyhydrite this occurred at temperatures of 130 and 86 degrees Celsius, respectively. The creep rate in steady state condition obtained by numerical simulation accurately reproduced the experimental results of the triaxial creep tests, with a relative error less than 1 percent. Through laboratory tests geomechanical creep parameters of the tested rocks were obtained and then applied in numerical simulation models, designed to evaluate the influence of various parameters in the well stability and casing design. The lack of consideration of the geomechanical interaction between the salt structures and the host rock can lead to drilling failures in wells near such structures due to the salt halokinesis process that changes the gravitational stress state.

This work aims to evaluate the reliability levels associated to a probabilistic approach of mechanical strength models of casing tubes on oil and gas wells. A comparative study between different reliability evaluation methods commonly applied is also carried out. On the oil and gas well design, casing tubes must bear the mechanical loadings in the subsurface, such as the ones from formations, from drilling and completion fluids, from production fluid over the well lifetime, from the self-weight of casing column and from weight of other components. Reliability-based analysis applied to a structural design allows the assessment of the probability of violation for a given limit state of the structure, so that it can be predicted with adequate value since the design stage. This kind of analysis is useful to obtain adequate safety levels in design and to discuss the quality control level in the manufacturer production process. In this work, the failure probability is evaluated by the following reliability methods: failure domain numericintegration,MonteCarlosimulationandthetransformationmethods:FirstOrder eliabilityMethod(FORM)andSecondOrderReliabilityMethod(SORM).Thelimitstatesv rified are established by using casing strength models found in the literature, based on mechanics of materials theory and rupture test data.Statistical data are based on technical reports from casing manufacturers found in open-access literature. The achieved results contributes to well casing structural assessment taking into account the influence of design uncertainties, motivating the adoption of reliability-based analysis in decision-making process on OCTG design. / FUNDEPES - Fundação Universitária de Desenvolvimento de Extensão e Pesquisa / Estetrabalho visa avaliar os níveis de confiabilidade associados a uma abordagem probabilística das resistências mecânicas de tubos de revestimento em poços de petróleo. Além disso, durante as análises realizadas, objetiva-se comparar os diferentes métodos de confiabilidade comumente encontrados na literatura com a finalidade de identificar o método mais vantajoso para a aplicação proposta. Em projetos de poços de petróleo e gás natural, os revestimentos exercem o papel de resistir mecanicamente aos esforços existentes na subsuperfície, como as solicitações impostas pela formação, pelo fluido de perfuração, pelos fluidos produzidos ao longo da vida útil do poço e pelos pesos da própria coluna de revestimento e de outros equipamentos. Já a análise de confiabilidade, aplicada a um projeto estrutural, permite a avaliação da probabilidade de violação de um determinado estado limite da estrutura, de forma que esta pode ser prevista, com valor adequado, ainda na fase de projeto.Esse tipo de análise é útil não obtenção da margem de segurança adequada do projeto e na discussão do nível de controle no processo de produção de elementos estruturais. Neste trabalho, o cálculo da probabilidade de falha é realizado através dos seguintes métodos: integração numérica sobre o domínio de falha, simulação de Monte Carlo e dos métodos de transformação: First Order Reliability Method (FORM) e Second Order Reliability Method (SORM). Os estados limites dos tubos são estimados por modelos de resistência encontrados na literatura, baseados em teorias da mecânica dos materiais e em dados de ensaios de ruptura. Os dados estatísticos utilizados são baseados em relatórios técnicos de produção disponíveis na literatura sob domínio público. Os resultados obtidos contribuem para a avaliação estrutural de revestimentos de poços de petróleo sob a influência de incertezas de projeto, motivando a incorporação da análise de confiabilidade no processo de tomada de decisão do projetista.

Le rendement des compresseurs aéronautiques est amélioré en minimisant le jeu entre les aubes en rotation et le carter qui les entoure, réduisant ainsi les fuites aérodynamiques. Ce jeu réduit occasionne des contacts entre les aubes et le carter ; afin d’assurer leur intégrité mécanique, le carter est revêtu d’un matériau abradable sacrificiel, lequel accommode les incursions d’aube. Les interactions aube – revêtement abradable couplent des phénomènes tribologiques et vibratoires à haute vitesse et à haute température, dont l’étude expérimentale est requise pour le développement de modèles numériques prédictifs. L’objectif de cette thèse est d’identifier expérimentalement la force et les mécanismes d’interaction aube-abradable AlSi-Polyester dans une configuration d’essai représentative du fonctionnement des étages de compresseur basse-pression. Des méthodes couplées expérimentales - analytiques, prenant en compte la dynamique d’aube, ont été développées afin d’accéder à la force d’interaction et à l’incursion aube-abradable. L’influence de la température, de la nuance du matériau abradable et de la raideur d’aube a été étudiée. Les mécanismes d’usure et d’endommagement du revêtement abradable ont été investigués et corrélés aux conditions d’interaction. Ces travaux de thèse ont été réalisés dans le cadre d’une collaboration entre le Laboratoire de Mécanique de Lille, SNECMA Villaroche (groupe SAFRAN) et le centre ONERA de Lille. / Minimizing the clearance between turbofan blades and the surrounding casing is a key factor to re-ducing leakage flows and consequently improving efficiency. The tight clearance may lead to blade-casing interactions. An abradable coating is deposited on the casing to accommodate blade incursions and thus to protect the blades and the casing from severe damage. Blade/abradable-coating interactions involve tribological and vibratory phenomena at high velocity and temperature. Experimental knowledge of these interactions is paramount to the proper design of abradable materials and the prediction of their lifetimes through numerical simulations. The purpose of this thesis is to identify experimentally the force and the mechanisms occuring during interaction between a vibrating blade and an AlSi-Polyester abradable coating. To this end, experiments were conducted on a dedicated test rig, in conditions representative of low-pressure compressor situation. Specific methods involving dynamical measurements and analytical models have been developed in order to obtain the blade/abradable-coating interacting force as well as the blade tip incursion. The influence of temperature, coating nature and blade stiffness has been studied. The interaction mechanisms and wear of the abradable coating have been investigated and correlated with the interaction conditions. This work was achieved within the framework of cooperation between Laboratoire de Mécanique de Lille (France), SAFRAN-SNECMA (France) and ONERA, the French Aerospace Lab.

This thesis is focused on calculation of double casing condensing steam turbine with capacity 200 MW for petrochemical industry´s consumptions. Engine is projected for gas-steam cycle. It has one controlled extraction points placed between two bodies, two uncontrolled extraction points and axial output to air-cooling condenser. Balance scheme was made for 100% operation. Detail design is made only for ST/NT casing and it includes calculation of flowing part, selection of blade´s profile and its stress control. Rotor is checked for critical speed, safety rigid coupling is calculated and according to reaction forces journal bearing are designed. In the end regulation of turbo-set is discussed more precisely and there are calculation of temperature and pressure in uncontrolled extraction points during 80% and 60% operation. Thesis was written out according to Doosan Skoda Power´s instruction and with their cooperation.

Skanska Grundläggning in Region Special wishes to gain an increased understanding of the extent to which it differs in the wear of percussion hammers and pilot drill crowns, depending on which driving medium is used in down-the-hole drilling, as well as logistical and economic aspects depending on the chosen method. Down-the-hole drilling means that the hammer works down in the borehole and forms one of the components at the far end of the drill string together with a drill bit. The blow of the hammer is created by air or water at high pressure. The piling method that is examined is drilled steel pipe piles, which means that a steel pipe pile is driven into the ground in step with the hammer and the drill bit's advancement. Once the desired depth has been reached, the drill string with the drill bit is pulled out of the casing and then the steel pipe pile is filled with concrete. The study aims to examine the products' lifespans and repair intervals from several different perspectives and set them against reality, as well as what the different methods have for differences regarding logistics and establishment. This is to create a basis for future decisions on the most suitable method of down-the-hole drilling. The beginning of the study consisted of qualitative preliminary interviews to identify and create a problem formulation that was dealt with via a literature study, five semi-structured interviews, eleven questionnaires, internal data from drilling protocols and purchasing. The result shows that there is some difference in wear in the hammer depending on whether it is an air or water powered system, the wear appears in different places and can have an impact on the life of the hammer. The wear that occurs most frequently on drill bit is grinding on the buttons. Geotechnical differences for various projects are a significant factor in the service life of the equipment. An air hammer requires that the air constantly being mixed with lubricating oil and that an air compressor consumes more diesel compared to a high-pressure pump for the equivalent water hammer. The handling of water that is flushed out of the borehole is considered a concern. To reduce wear on water hammers and thus fewer replacements and more repairs, a drill bit intended for water powered down-the-hole hammer should be used. DTH-drilling with an air hammer is considered an industry standard and a certain skepticism towards a water powered system may indicate inexperience. / Skanska Grundläggning inom Region Special önskar att få en ökad förståelse hur vida det skiljer sig vid slitage av hammare och pilotborrkrona beroende på vilket drivande medium som nyttjas vid sänkhammarborrning, samt logistiska och ekonomiska aspekter beroende på vald metod. Sänkhammarborrning innebär att hammaren arbetar nere i borrhålet och utgör en av komponenterna längst ut på borrsträngen tillsammans med en borrkrona. Hammarens slag skapas av luft eller vatten i högt tryck. Pålningsmetoden som undersöks är borrade stålrörspålar, det betyder att ett foderrör drivs ned i marken i takt med hammaren och borrkronans framfart. Väl när önskat djup uppnåtts lyfts borrsträngen med hammaren och piloten upp ur foderröret för att sedan fyllas upp med betong. Studien syftar till att undersöka produkternas livslängder och reparationsintervall från flera olika perspektiv och ställa dem emot verkligheten, samt vad dem olika metoderna har för olikheter kring logistik och etablering. Detta är för att skapa underlag för framtida beslut om mest lämplig metod av sänkhammarborrning. Studiens begynnelse bestod av kvalitativa förintervjuer för att identifiera och skapa en problemformulering som avhandlades via en litteraturstudie, fem semistrukturerade intervjuer, elva frågeformulär, interna data från borrningsprotokoll och inköp. Resultatet visar att det förekommer viss skillnad i slitage i hammaren beroende på om det är en luft- eller vattenanläggning, slitaget visar sig på olika ställen och kan ha betydelse för hammarens livslängd. Det slitage som uppträder mest frekvent på piloter är nedslipning av stift. Geotekniska egenskaper för olika projekt utgör en betydande faktor för utrustningens livslängd. En lufthammare är i behov av att luften konstant beblandas smörjolja och att en luftkompressor förbrukar mer diesel jämfört med en högtryckspump för motsvarande vattenhammare. Efterhanteringen av vatten som spolas upp anses vara ett bekymmer. För att minska slitage på vattenhammare och därmed färre byten och mer reparationer bör en pilotborrkrona avsedd för vattendriven sänkhammarborrning nyttjas. Sänkhammarborrning med lufthammare anses som branschstandard och en viss skepticism mot en vattendriven anläggning kan tyda på oerfarenhet.

[pt] Este trabalho apresenta procedimentos para análise dos esforços em colunas de revestimento instaladas em um poço de petróleo, sob a ação do fenômeno de fluência do sal, sendo também abordado os principais aspectos da estabilidade e deformabilidade das rochas salinas durante a fase de perfuração. Para a discretização e solução das equações diferenciais de equilíbrio do contínuo, utiliza-se no presente trabalho o método dos elementos finitos, através do programa ANVEC(1) . O comportamento tensão-deformação do sal foi descrito através de leis constitutivas obtidas a partir de dados sobre mineração subterrânea de evaporitos. O comportamento dos revestimentos é analisado segundo o enfoque adotado pela indústria do petróleo, no qual o carregamento salino é considerado independente do tempo e de intensidade igual a coluna litostática, na parede externa do revestimento. Os resultados obtidos comprovam que, para a solução do problema de se revestir uma seção salina é fundamental um trabalho eficiente de cimentação primária dos revestimentos, concêntricos, frente ao sal. Ao final, examina-se o comportamento de fluência de uma seção evaporítica típica de um poço de perfurado da Bacia de Campos, comparando-se as simulações numéricas com medições in-situ. / [en] This thesis presents an approach for analysis of casing stresses in oil wells due to the fenomena of creep of rock salt. The main aspects of wellbore stability and deformability while drilling salt formations are also discussed. In order to obtain the solutions for the differential equations of continous salt media, the finite element method has been used through the application of the ANVEC program for underground excavation analysis, utilizing constitutive laws obtained from salt mining projects. The mechanical behavior of casings are also analized according with the procedures considered in the petroleum literature, in which the salt loads are considered as time-independent. The results are in agreement with the observations of several autors that a sucessfull primary cement job is the main concern for keep the integrity of casing strings set acoss salt formations for long time. At the end of this work, the salt creep behaviour of a section of one well drilled in Campos basin are simulated and compared with field data. / [es] Este trabajo presenta procedimientos para análisis de los refuerzos en colunas de revestimiento instaladas en un pozo de petróleo, bajo la acción del fenómeno de fluencia de sal, abordando también los principales aspectos de estabilidad y deformabilidad de las rocas salinas durante la fase de perforación. Para la discretización y solución de las equaciones diferenciales de equilibrio del contínuo, se utiliza en el presente trabajo el método de los elementos finitos, a través del programa ANVEC. El comportamiento tensión-deformación de la sal fue descrito a través de las leyes constitutivas, obtenidas a partir de datos sobre mineración subterránea de evaporitos. Se analiza el comportamiento de los revestimientos según el enfoque adoptado por la industria del petróleo, en el cual, la concentración salina se considera independiente del tiempo y de intensidad igual a la columna litostática, en la pared externa del revestimiento. Los resultados obtenidos comprueban que, para la solución del problema de revestir uma sección salina, es fundamental un trabajo eficiente de cimentación primaria de los revestimientos, concéntricos, frente a la sal. Al final, se examina el comportamiento de fluencia de una sección evaporítica típica de um pozo de perforación de la Bacia de Campos, comparando las simulaciones numéricas con mediciones in situ.

This thesis constitutes detailed computational investigation on ow through the passages of a centrifugal compressor used for turbocharging applications. Given the dynamic nature of operation of the turbocharger, it becomes necessary to under- stand the ow that occurs within the blade passages and its e ect on performance. CFD is an established computational technique wherein the ow is dissected to fun- damental levels and a detailed picture is presented, application of this technique with limited and diverse sense towards understanding of ows through a turbocharger compressor has been successfully carried out by many before. This work presented attempts to address many of the lacuna reported and carries forward the work of several researchers to ll in the gaps. The complexity of the geometry of the blade shape poses many challenges in model- ing within the virtual space, an e ective way to overcome the obstacles is presented as a part of this work. Grid generation of the impeller and casing are discussed and adaptive approach is followed with generation of hexahedral grids for the impeller whereas tetrahedral for the casing. Since the grids of the impeller and its casing are di erent, ways of interfacing between the two domains in a CFD environment is discussed. An industry standard implicit 3D RANS solver was used to carry out the simula- tions. The importance of use of boundary conditions for the domain at unsteady operating points is presented in detail. On the choice made for turbulence model that governs the validity of the solution obtained, an extensive literature survey of the relevant topic as applicable for centrifugal compressors is presented and logic of the choice made for the present work is discussed. Menter's two equation SST-k! model emerges as the clear choice to be used even though the di erence in perfor- mance predictions by other turbulence models are insigni cant. Dynamics of ow at optimum design point, surge and choke of the compressor are presented in detail. With the geometry modeled with a tip clearance and the casing included within the simulation environment, it can be seen that the performance predicted is closer to actual at all operating points. A study of behavior of the compressor at extreme o design points is carried out and it can be seen that it depicts the trends that are seen in experimental works available in open literature. The distortion of pressure within the vaneless di user and the inviscid nature of the ow within the volute space are e ectively captured and an in depth analysis is carried out to uncover new patterns. A parametric study involving important geometric features such as the tip clearance and wrap angles are conducted leading to discovery of anomalies. The work summarizes to point out that the investigation carried out with the CFD simulations comprehensively leads to uncovering of ow dynamics within a complex system such as the centrifugal compressor within the limits of numerical analysis.

This thesis is elaborated for the preparation and organization of the construction of multi-functional home for hospital in Breclav. It is a complex of three buildings of which the first two are terraced houses and a third garage. Individual objects are divided into units according to the expansion section. My job is processed for the object SO02 - section 4.5. The supporting system consists of reinforced concrete columns and ceilings filled with bricks Porotherm. The roof is designed as a horizontal single casing.