The Future of Petroleum Operations This state-of-the-art text analyzes some of the most contentious issues in the energy industry, covering new and greener processes for engineers and scientists and urging them to move petroleum operations closer to sustainability. Although petroleum is still the world's most diverse, efficient, and abundant energy source, there is a growing initiative from global political and industry leaders to "go green," because of climate concerns and high gasoline prices. This book investigates and details how to do that. This groundbreaking new volume: Explains why current petroleum industry practices are inherently unsustainable and offers unique new solutions for "greening" the petroleum industry Discusses hot-button issues, such as global warming, carbon sequestration, zero-waste management, and sustainability Shows engineers and scientists how to implement the processes necessary to be more environmentally conscious Offers, for the first time, a new theory that certain carbons do not contribute to global warming, but their origin and the processes involved do Praise for The Greening of Petroleum Operations "The book proposes a paradigm shift in energy management. It correctly identifies root causes of environmental impact of current petroleum production operations. With proper science, the book shows that fossil fuel production and utilization are inherently sustainable as long as natural materials and energy sources are used.... This book has the potential of revolutionizing energy management practices." —Farouq Ali, Honorary Professor of Oil and Gas Engineering, University of Calgary

1 Introduction 2 A Delinearized History of Civilization and the Science of Matter and Energy 3 Fundamentals of Mass and Energy Balance 4 A True Sustainability Criterion and Its Implications 5 Scientific Characterization of Global Energy Sources 6 Scientific Characterization of Light and Light Sources 7 The Science of Global Warming 8 Diverging Fates of Sustainable and Unsustainable Products 9 Scientific Difference Between Sustainable and Unsustainable Processes 10 Comparison of Various Energy Production Schemes 11 The Zero-Waste Concept and its Application to Petroleum Engineering 12 Sustainable Refining and Gas Processing 13 Flow Assurance in Petroleum Fluids 14 Sustainable Enhanced Oil Recovery 15 The Knowledge Economics 16 Deconstniction of Engineering Myths Prevalent in the Energy Sector 17 Greening of Petroleum Operations 18 Conclusion