Editorial Comment
Rebuilding Iraq. Now that the war is over, the difficult task of reconstructing Iraq’s infrastructure is starting. The oil industry, far and away the country’s most important economic sector, has been decimated by inattention and a decade of economic sanctions. Although many wells were reported to have been rigged with explosives, Iraqi soldiers chose not to cause wholesale damage to the country’s producing wells and facilities. And from what we’ve learned thus far, it is very fortunate that they did not. Industry experts who have visited there say that if wells had been set ablaze in numbers similar to those destroyed in Kuwait, a severe environmental disaster would have occurred. Iraq’s wells are in such bad shape, it would be difficult to cap them. Iraq’s reconstruction is a priority within the US Department of Commerce, which will oversee the Iraq Reconstruction Task Force, comprised of experts throughout the department dedicated to assisting in the Iraq rebuilding efforts. The International Trade Administration (ITA) is responding to companies seeking information on how to participate in the rebuilding of Iraq. The goal is to provide them with the latest information on reconstruction efforts and related projects in which they can participate. To that end, the task force has:
New study says GW normal. Research by a team from Harvard University casts serious doubt on claims that man-made pollution is causing global warming (GW), in fact indicating that the Earth was warmer during the Middle Ages. This is in contrast to what environmentalists have said from the beginning of the GW debate – that temperatures are rising higher and faster than ever before because of greenhouse gases from cars and power stations. A review of more than 240 scientific studies showed that today’s temperatures are not the warmest over the past millennium and they are not producing more extreme weather. The team from Harvard examined findings of studies of so-called temperature proxies such as tree rings, ice cores and historical accounts that allow scientists to estimate temperatures prevailing at sites around the world. The findings indicate that the world experienced a Medieval warm period between the ninth and fourteenth centuries with global temperatures significantly higher than today. They also confirm that a Little Ice Age set in around 1300, during which the world cooled. Since 1900, the world has begun to warm up again, but has yet to reach temperatures of the Middle Ages. The timing of the end of the Little Ice Age is significant, since it implies that the records used by climate scientists date from a time when the Earth was relatively cold, thereby exaggerating the significance of today’s temperature rise. The researchers say the evidence confirms suspicions that today’s unprecedented temperatures are simply the result of examining temperature change over too short a period of time. The study, which will be published in Energy and Environment, has been welcomed by skeptics of global warming. Dr. Philip Stott, professor emeritus of bio-geography at the University of London, told The Telegraph, “What has been forgotten in all the discussion about global warming is a proper sense of history. During the Medieval warm period, the world was warmer even than today, and history shows that it was a wonderful period of plenty for everyone. When the temperature started to drop, harvests failed and England’s vine industry died. It makes one wonder why there is so much fear of warmth.” A clarification. In March, World Oil published Modern Sandface Completion Practices, a comprehensive handbook on sand control. As might be expected with such an extensive work, there are areas in which the authors do not completely agree with a manufacturer’s claims. This happened within the discussion of diatomaceous earth (DE) filters (last paragraph, page 56 and first paragraph, page 57). In the interest of fairness, the following discussion is offered by Greig Filters as a clarification of what was originally published: “Vertical pressure leaf (VPL) filters are compact, providing a large filter area within a small equipment footprint. A typical filter package includes a VPL pre-coat filter, cartridge filter, supply pump and engine and blending tank.” “VPL filters exhibit high flow rates, initially 1/2 to 3/4 gpm per sq-ft-FA, or 14 bpm per 1,000-sq-ft-unit at 10 psid and 1/4-in. filter cake. The filter leaf wire cloth rigidity and strength provide higher differential pressure. The filters utilize 24 x 110 PDW 316 SS wire mesh cloth. The VPL filter is resistant to change from high differential pressures, high temperature, corrosive fluid and malleable solids.” “Wide leaf spacing on the collection manifold provides high filter cake capacity, and therefore processes large volumes, high solid loads and a high ratio of DE to dirt.” “Another advantage is a longer filter cycle due to a higher differential pressure limit and larger filter cake. Therefore, premature blinding of the filter cake from polymer contamination and other malleable solids is reduced.” “Safety, cleanliness and environmental issues are other inherent benefits of the VPL filter. Heal fluid is completely removed, leaving a dry cake and no waste of fluid. The dry unit is opened manually and the cake washed out to the waste area or pit, leaving the surrounding area clean.” “Specifications for a model GFI 73 S/C** 1000 BP VPL unit include a 1,000 sq-ft-VPL DE filter, 15 bpm flow rate, 110 cu-ft-filter-cake capacity and a downstream, 60-cartridge filter housing for absolute filtration. Skid size is 8 x 19 ft, with 9-ft height; weight is 14,500 lb.” To order the Modern Sandface Completion Practices handbook, contact our reprint department. Telephone: 713-529-4301. Fax: 713-520-4433. Price is $95.00
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