Research area: Natural resources and extraction

We aim to understand fundamentals and applications of methods and approaches for harvesting materials and energy from underground natural resources in an environmentally responsible manner, increase productivity while achieving lower emissions, underground carbon storage and recycling.​

Areas include hydrocarbon extraction, geothermal energy, carbon storage, waste recycling, hydrogen generation and critical minerals extraction. We work with industries to adapt our technologies and develop prototypes to test their efficacies in scaled-up systems.

Research sub-areas

Critical minerals​

We develop greener technologies for extraction and separation of critical minerals from dilute and ultra-dilute resources. The methods we use include traditional approaches such as flotation and foam flotation as well as electrochemical and adsorption-based approaches. A key focus of our approach is to utilize greener reagents as well as greener energies.  

Faculty members: Sathish Ponnurangam 

For example: Selective flotation of rare earth ions by monorhamnolipid surfactant​.​

CO2 capture and conversion ​

Faculty members: Nader Mahinpey

Also see Environmental Technologies.​

Extraction of heat for electricity and sensible heat​

Faculty members: Apostolos Kantzas​, Hossein Hejazi, Ian Gates, Roberto Aguilera  

Hydrocarbon extraction

Flow in Porous Media, Heat Transfer, Mass Transfer, Thermodynamics and Phase behaviour. 

Faculty members: Anil Mehrotra, Apostolos Kantzas, Harvey Yarranton, Hassan Hassanzadeh, Hossein Hejazi, Ian Gates, Maen Husein, Shengnan (Nancy) Chen, Roberto Aguilera

Hydrogen

Faculty members: Hossein Hejazi, Ian Gates, Maen Husein, Shengnan (Nancy) Chen, Roberto Aguilera

Pipeline transportation​

Faculty members: Anil Mehrotra, Hossein Hejazi

Upgrading of natural resources

Bitumen upgrading, waste plastics upgrading, petroleum coke conversion to adsorbents and catalysts.​

Faculty members: Apostolos Kantzas, Harvey Yarranto, Josephine Hill, Maen Husein, Nader Mahinpey

Expertise

  • Flow though porous media​

  • Heavy oil & bitumen upgrading. Converting Solid Plastic Waste (PSW) into liquid fuel

  • High temperature, high pressure phase behavior and fluid properties​

  • Naturally fractured reservoirs​

  • Routine and special core analysis ​

  • Shale petroleum reservoirs

  • Solid characterization for porosity (nitrogen adsorption) and surface groups (diffuse-reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy, DRIFTS)​

  • Thermal cracking​