March 26-28, 2014
La Torretta Lake Resort and Spa
Montgomery, Texas
The substantial growth in shale gas production in the US is expected to entail significant investments and gains to the US energy, chemical, and petrochemical industries. Substantial opportunities exist for shale gas monetization. The identification and planning of the these opportunities require collaborative efforts among governmental, industrial, and academic entities. Additionally, the academic institutions must adapt to provide industry with skilled engineers and scientists capable of supporting and advancing this emerging market.
The purpose of the workshop was to bring together experts from academia, industry, and government to discuss opportunities and needs in shale gas monetization in the US. The workshop also discussed lessons learned from Qatar’s experience in natural gas monetization. Qatar’s current reserves of natural gas are estimated to be around 22 trillion cubic meters, the third largest in the world. The State of Qatar monetized its rich non-associated natural gas reserves in several ways to become the “The Gas Processing World Capital.” The country has attracted major global corporations to invest in shale gas monetization. Examples include the world’s largest facilities in gas-to-liquid (GTL) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) production in addition to a well-integrated supply chain of chemicals and petrochemicals.
Supply chain, environmental, and safety issues associated with the emerging shale gas industry in the US as well as a review of recent progress in natural gas monetization highlighting Qatar’s experience and its relevance to the US shale gas industry were discussed. Other topics discussed were identification of future educational, workforce training, and research opportunities, directions, and emerging trends in shale gas monetization; and a description of current and future challenges in developing, adapting, and commercializing emerging technologies in the area of shale gas monetization. Networking and discussion opportunities among junior and senior academic, industrial, and government attendees were also available.
Tutorials
Theoretical and Experimental Evaluation of Natural Gas Properties
Speaker: Dr. Mert Atilhan, Qatar University
Tutorial Description: This short course focuses on the important aspects of multi-component gas mixture property determination benchmarks in particular to natural gas mixtures. The course covers the rule of thumb methods to determine the properties including density, viscosity and phase behavior. Comparisons of the very widely used equation of state predictions with respect to benchmark equations and actual laboratory data for natural gas mixtures will be shared to highlight the importance of the property prediction in custody transfer monetization. The course will have technical content that will help both decision makers and operators to see the what is the latest state-of-the-art in the field of applied thermodynamics applied to natural gas processing. Course material will be conveyed through PowerPoint presentation and printed handouts will also be available.
Keywords: Natural Gas, Thermodynamics, PVT, Equation of State, High Pressure
Presentations
Opportunities in Chemical Engineering: Domestic Shale Gas
Speakers: Dr. Sharon Robinson, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Dr. Bruce Eldridge, Process Science and Technology Center, University of Texas, Austin
Impact of Shale Gas on Energy Efficiency and Smart Manufacturing
Speaker: Dr. Thomas Edgar, University of Texas at Austin
Natural Gas to Liquid Transportation Fuels (GTL): Process Synthesis, Global Optimization, and Supply Chain Strategies
Speaker: Dr. Christodoulos A. Floudas, Princeton University
Resource-Efficient Catalytic Technologies for Shale Gas Upgrading
Speaker: Dr. Bala Subramaniam, Center for Environmentally Beneficial Catalysis, University of Kansas
Molecular simulation: A powerful computational tool for the prediction of physical properties for the GTL and other oil and gas processes
Speaker: Dr. Ioannis Economou, Texas A&M University at Qatar
The Impact of Shale Gas on the Chemical Industry
Speaker: Dr. Jeffrey J. Siirola, Purdue University and Carnegie Mellon University
Abnormal Situation Management in Gas Processing Facilities
Speaker: Dr. Fadwa Eljack, Qatar University
A Fischer-Tropsch Gas-to-Liquid Technology for Small-Scale Applications
Speakers: Dr. Mark Peters, Diane Hildebrandt, David Glasser, Wayne Stocks, Andrew Ross-Innes Material and Process Synthesis (MaPS) Engineering, University of South Africa
A Financial Analysis for the Recovery of High Purity Propylene from Refinery LPG
Speaker: Mr. Ed Palmer, Wood Group Mustang
Process Safety Applications for Emerging Issues in the Gas Industry
Speakers: Dr. Sam Mannan, Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center, Texas A&M University
Gas to Liquids: Unlocking Value From Natural Gas
Speaker: Mr. Dragan Djakovic, Business Development Manager, Gas to Liquids Sasol North America
Perspectives on Future of Unconventional Resources
Speaker: Mr. Robert Denton, ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company, Houston