Overview Section 1: Petroleum in Our Lives ... - Centre for Energy

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Thank you for choosing the eighth edition of
Our Petroleum Challenge as a teaching resource.
After an extensive update made with input from
more than a dozen government and industry
experts, we at the Canadian Centre for Energy
Information believe we have produced the most
current and comprehensive educational guide to
Canada’s crude oil and natural gas industry.
Overview
Whether you are using Our Petroleum Challenge
for the first time or simply updating your edition,
this document will provide a brief overview of the
eighth edition, including additions and changes.
With fresh layout and a clearer structure, the eighth edition is designed to be simpler to read than ever
before. Our Petroleum Challenge’s four sections can be read in sequence or individually, depending on
your curriculum.
The intent of the book’s current structure is to move from a broad overview of hydrocarbons and their
role in Canada to the specific steps required to bring these resources to consumers, concluding with an
exploration of sustainable development practices.
For quick reference, you will find a complete list of graphs, maps, tables and illustrations on
pages 124 – 125, along with reference material at the end of each section.
• Definitions: pages 138 – 143
• Canadian timeline: pages 131 – 137
• Index: pages 144 – 149
• Government and industry web sites: pages 127 – 129
Section 1: Petroleum in Our Lives
This section provides a general summary of the importance of hydrocarbon-based products and Canada’s
role as a hydrocarbon producer.
Understanding Crude Oil and Natural Gas (pages 6 – 13)
• An overview of the contemporary role of hydrocarbons, definitions of conventional and
unconventional resources and the origin of hydrocarbon resources.
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Oil and Gas in Canada (pages 14 – 23)
• An overview of Canada’s hydrocarbon reserves, the country’s global role as an energy
producer and the economic benefits of oil and natural gas production.
Section 2: Inside the Industry
This section’s chapters take the reader through the processes that make up the oil and natural gas
industry. Each chapter concludes with an examination of the relevant measures required to protect the
environment during these activities.
Exploration (pages 26 – 33)
• An overview of the exploration process, from examining existing geological information to
obtaining land access for seismic surveying.
Drilling (pages 34 – 45)
• An overview of the drilling process, from site preparation to the drilling rigs required for vertical
and horizontal drilling to well completion and abandonment.
Production (pages 46 – 63)
• An overview of producing techniques for both conventional and unconventional resources beginning
with crude oil and oil sands production, followed by natural gas and offshore production.
Processing (pages 64 – 70)
• An overview of processing crude oil and natural gas, from upgrading heavy oil and bitumen to
removing hydrogen sulphide from sour gas.
Transportation (pages 70 – 81)
• An overview of oil and natural gas transportation, with an emphasis on pipelines and
supplementary information on other modes of delivery and storage.
Refining (pages 82 – 87)
• An overview of oil refining and petrochemical production, with a summary of Canada’s refineries
and petrochemical plants.
Marketing (pages 88 – 91)
• An brief overview of how gasoline and natural gas are sold in Canada.
Section 3: Sustainable Development
An entirely new section on contemporary issues related to sustainable development and the measures
being taken by the oil and natural gas industry.
Sustainability (pages 95 – 99)
• An overview of sustainable development (also known as sustainability) and its development in a
historical context.
Sustainability in Action (pages 100 – 105)
• An overview of the general approaches that guide current industry actions on sustainability.
Regulation (pages 106 – 107)
• A brief overview of how regulations affect each of the oil and natural gas industry’s sectors.
Sustainability in Action (pages 108 – 117)
• An overview of the environmental and social issues that guide sustainable development and the
actions being taken by the industry.
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Section 4: Additional Information
Supplemental information including tables for converting measurements, a selected bibliography, a list of
the book’s graphical materials, online resources, a Canadian oil and gas timeline and relevant definitions.
What’s New
In addition to extensive updates to the facts, figures and statistics, the eighth edition includes several
new features including:
Sidebars
Focus sidebars provide further information on some of the most important contemporary issues related to
oil and natural gas production.
Steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) (p. 52 – 54)
• An in-depth look at a technology that has unlocked bitumen for in-situ production.
Shale development in Canada (p. 58 – 60)
• An in-depth look at the development of unconventional shale gas in Canada, which requires the
use of multi-stage hydraulic fracturing.
Pipeline safety and integrity (p. 78 – 79)
• An in-depth look at the technologies and techniques designed to inspect and monitor pipeline
operations.
Sustainable Development section
A completely rewritten section on sustainability provides contemporary examples and historical context
for today’s sustainable development issues and the oil and natural gas industry’s related actions.
Visual industry summary
A fold-out summary of the oil and gas industry, found on the inside cover, provides readers with a clear
overview at a glance.
What’s Moved
The following table outlines those topics that have been moved within the eighth edition.
Seventh Edition
Eighth Edition
Origins of oil and natural gas pages 3 – 4 pages 12 – 13
Where are crude oil and natural gas found? page 5 pages 18 – 19
Canadian oil and natural gas history pages 8 – 12 pages 131 – 137
see also: Evolution of Canada’s Oil and Gas Industry
Petroleum products page 16 page 7
Canada’s global role page 18 pages 20 – 21
Canadian reserves pages 26 – 28 pages 18 – 19
Climate change pages 31 – 32 pages 110 – 112
Exploration pages 35 – 47 page 26 – 33
Cuttings and cores page 38 page 27
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Land – the basis of all wealth pages 39 – 40 pages 28 – 29
Seismic surveys pages 44 – 45 pages 32 – 33
Drilling pages 48 – 64 pages 34 – 45
Anatomy of a land-based drilling rig page 51 page 36
Stages of drilling page 57 page 35
Drilling techniques page 58 pages 35 – 40
Well control page 60 page 40
Abandonment and reclamation page 61 page 42
Hydrogen sulphide page 63 page 45
Production pages 65 – 78 pages 46 – 63
Unconventional natural gas page 68 pages 58 – 61
Offshore petroleum pages 71 – 74 pages 61 – 63
see also: Canada’s Evolving Offshore Oil and Gas Industry
Mining and in-situ bitumen pages 75 – 78 pages 50 – 57
Processing pages 79 – 84 pages 64 – 69
Natural gas processing pages 80 – 81 pages 67 – 69
Crude oil processing pages 82 – 83 pages 65 – 67
Transportation pages 85 – 96 pages 70 – 81
Storage page 86 page 76
Pipeline integrity pages 87 – 88 pages 78 – 79
Smart pigs page 89 page 73
Oil pipelines pages 90 – 91 pages 71 – 72
Natural gas pipelines pages 92 – 93 pages 72 – 76
Natural gas pricing / distribution page 95 pages 76 – 78
Natural gas for vehicles page 96 page 91
Refining pages 97 – 102 pages 82 – 87
Oil refineries page 98 page 83
Products from refining page 100 page 83
Benzene and sulphur page 101 page 86
Petrochemical plants page 102 page 85
Marketing pages. 103 – 105 pages 88 – 91
Gasoline pricing page 104 page 89
Used oil page 105 page 91
Measurements page 113 pages 120 – 121
Glossary pages 117 – 131 pages 138 – 143
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