Steam drive is an oil recovery method that uses steam to increase the percentage of crude oil removed from a reservoir. It requires drilling multiple wells and is more efficient than other methods due to its heat advantage. It is commonly used on thick and heavy oil fields, with estimates of 40-50% additional oil recovered. The term can also refer to an engine that uses steam pressure for motion.
Steam drive, also known as steam flooding, is an advanced oil recovery method that can greatly increase the percentage of crude oil that can be removed from a reservoir. Since 1959, the steam engine has been used to boost oil production and, in the 21st century, it has become the most popular advanced oil recovery technique used by oil companies around the world. The process requires drilling multiple wells: production wells that pump oil from the ground and injection wells that pump a continuous flow of steam into the reservoir.
This process is similar to other common advanced oil recovery practices used by oil companies, especially cyclic steam injection and water flooding. Cyclic vapor injection is nearly identical to vapor drive, but the vapor is released in bursts rather than as a constant stream. In floods, water is injected into the ground to force the extraction of oil through production wells. While more expensive – in terms of energy and expense – than either of these options, the steam engine is far more efficient, mainly due to its main heat advantage.
Because heated oil is less viscous and flows more easily, heated oil fields generally produce much better results than water flooding and cyclic steam injection. Also, as heat dissipates in the oil reservoir, the vapor condenses into water. The pressure of the hot water, as well as the flow of steam that pumps behind it, displaces the oil, pushing it up through the producing wells.
This effect on viscosity is the reason steam drive is used more frequently on tanks where the oil is particularly thick and heavy, such as with tar sand. Instead, there has been an increase in the use of steam traction on lighter oil fields, where the steam is able to pull a greater percentage of the reserve out of the ground. Estimates put the amount of additional oil recovered at between 40 percent and 50 percent. However, this increase must be weighed against the fuel used to heat the steam, which means that this method is not appropriate for smaller reserves.
The term “steam drive” can also be used to refer to an engine that relies on steam pressure to produce motion. An example would be the classic steam locomotive. While it is seen primarily as the obsolete engine of the Industrial Revolution, its high efficiency and low maintenance have given some people reason to reconsider their use in the 21st century.
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