Previous Winners
Figure 2. Winners and judges of the DR competition
Top row (L-R) Alyssa Wechsler, David Carol, Nolan Bray Jacob Olenick, Austin Gaskamp
Middle row (L-R) Juan Uzcategui, Kristen Beck, Tyrel Hulet
Bottom row (L-R) David Moore, Sharon Buccino, John Hall, Guido Deloranttis
The university finalists for the 2008 competition were from the University of Wyoming and The Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering at Texas A&M University.
The University of Wyoming research team developed a layered mat, roll-out road system and a modular frame design. The concepts came from the need to minimize soil disruption and wildlife fragmentation in Jonah Field and Pinedale Anticline Production Area (PAPA) of the upper Green River Valley, Wyoming. Developed in cooperation with advisers from Bureau of Land Management and major upstream gas production companies, the submission provided testing procedures and engineering evaluations and contained detailed information used to develop the recommendations.
The Texas A&M team presented the "Skylift System" designed to transport equipment and materials to drill sites in environmentally protected areas, with a focus on minimizing the environmental impact. In order to accomplish the development of a field within a protected area, the use of the skylift system, similar to those adopted in mining operations (where they are often referred to as aerial tramways) was proposed. This would be installed via helicopter or airship. Pairing the skylift system with pipelines to transport drilling and production fluids outside the area would significantly minimize the environmental impact, especially when compared to using a traditional road and provide a solution to the low impact issue that spans over the entire field life, ten to thirty years during the development phase.
A panel of judges representing EFD sponsors chose the winning idea. The first-place award winner, the University of Wyoming, received a check for $20,000 while the Texas A&M team was second and received a check for $10,000.
Judges for the event were representatives from the Natural Resources Defense Council, the U.S. Department of Energy NETL, the Rio Vista Bluff Ranch McFaddin, Texas, and the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC). Halliburton Energy Services sponsored the competition and provided funding for the cash awards.
From the article “GPRI presents awards in Disappearing Roads contest” which can be found at:
http://tees.tamu.edu/index.jsp?page=news_current&p_news_id=1908
"I feel like the Disappearing Roads Competition is especially important because we, as a country, are going to be using oil and natural gas for a long time to come and we need to continue to explore ways to make the extraction process as effective and efficient as possible while also minimizing the impact on the environment." -Jacob Olenick (2008 winner from University of Wyoming)
From the article, “UW Wins First Place in Environmental Competition” which can be found at:
http://business.uwyo.edu/sustainable/showrelease.asp?id=23921
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