These 9 Companies’ New Nanotechnologies Could Help World Stave Off Peak Oil (Part 1 of 2)
Posted: May 13, 2008
It would be momentous news if a giant new oilfield was suddenly discovered, one that raised global output by perhaps 1% to 3%, roughly around one to 2.5 million barrels a day. Such an oilfield would not prevent global oil production from “peaking,” but it would stave off the day when “peak oil” arrived, if it hasn’t already, giving the world more time to get off its oil addiction.
According to Max Bunger, a nanotechnology expert and research director at Lux Research in San Francisco, if you add up all the additional oil that should be recoverable using new nanotechnologies, it approximates a big new oil discovery. According to Bunger, there are a number of nanotechnologies that have been developed by tech firms over the last five years that the oil industry, which has always been slow to adopt new technology, needs to embrace more quickly – for its own sake as well as the world’s. To be sure, none are silver bullets in terms of getting more oil out of the ground, but each can make a small but significant contribution. Bunger highlighted nine companies that investors may want to keep their eyes on, beginning with:
Engineered nanoProducts – Bunger said this private German company’s “Nanofix” binder both increases the flow of oil from a field and reduces costs. It does so by preventing sand and other loose stuff from flowing to the surface along with the oil. Basically, the Nanofix binds that loose stuff in place belowground.
Headwaters Technology Innovation – Bunger said this unit of publicly-traded Headwaters Inc. has in-situ nanocatalysts that can increase the amount of valuable oil products refined from a barrel of heavy sour crude by some 2%. Basically, he said, with these nanocatalysts there’s “less tar and goop” and more gasoline and jet fuel that can be produced.
Intrinsiq Materials – According to Bunger, this private British firm has nanotechnology already in the field that effectively makes explosives more powerful in order to go deeper into rock without melting and sealing that rock, which would prevent oil from flowing. With Intrinsiq’s shape-charged explosives, Bunger said 7% better oil flow is achievable.
Reactive NanoTechnologies – This Hunt Valley, MD-based private firm has explosives similar to Intrinsiq’s, Bunger said. Like Intrinsiq, Reactive’s explosives serve to appreciably increase oil flow.
Tomorrow, May 14, Part 2 – Five more nanotech firms with technologies that can increase global oil production and/or lower operating costs
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