Fix this text
UNIKEN
Fix this textTHE UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES
Fix this textNo. 186 (No. 7 of 1984)
Fix this textPublished fortnightly by the Public Affairs Unit
Fix this textRegistered by Australia Post Publication No. NBF 4388
Fix this text18 May 1984
Fix this textOil recovery - looking
Fix this textbeyond
Fix this textthe
Fix this textyear
Fix this text2,000
Fix this textIn 20 years time, Aust-
Fix this textralia will be more dependent
Fix this texton overseas oil suppliers unless
Fix this textnew techniques are developed
Fix this textto maintain our level of self-
Fix this textsufficiency by getting more
Fix this textoil from existing wells.
Fix this textThinking ahead and re-
Fix this textsearching new ways of pro-
Fix this textducing oil like 'enhanced
Fix this textoil recovery' is the job of
Fix this textProfessor Val Pinczewski and
Fix this texta team of six researchers in
Fix this textthe School of Chemical
Fix this textEngineering and Industrial
Fix this textChemistry at UNSW.
Fix this textAt present, Australia produces some 65
Fix this textper cent of its hydrocarbon liquid needs but,
Fix this texton the basis of industry forecasts, this level of
Fix this textself-sufficiency will decline steadily over the
Fix this textnext two decades to well below 50 per cent.
Fix this text'That is the reason we are doing basic research
Fix this textnow into increasing the level of Australian oil
Fix this textproduction', according to ProfessorPinczewski.
Fix this textHe says a direct way of achieving this in-
Fix this textcrease is to improve the efficiency of recovery
Fix this textof oil from Australian fields by the introduc-
Fix this texttion of appropriate enhanced oil recovery
Fix this texttechniques. 'Using conventional oil recovery
Fix this texttechniques, the oil is displaced from its
Fix this textreservoir by natural water influx. However,
Fix this textconsiderable volumes of oil are by-passed by
Fix this textthe invading water and cannot be recovered.'
Fix this textProfessor Pinczewski says enhanced oil
Fix this textrecovery using carbon dioxide is a method
Fix this textwhereby the gas is injected or 'flooded' into
Fix this textthe reservoir. The carbon dioxide dissolves
Fix this textinto the oil causing it to swell by anything
Fix this textfrom 50 to 100 per cent of its original volume.
Fix this textThe high concentration of the gas lowers the
Fix this textoil's surface tension and viscosity, making it
Fix this texteasier for the oil to flow to the surface.
Fix this text'The economics of enhanced oil recovery
Fix this textreally depend on the availability and cost of
Fix this textcarbon dioxide', he says. 'ln Australia's
Fix this textCooper Basin area there are large, naturally-
Fix this textoccurring deposits of carbon dioxide in sub-
Fix this textsurface reservoirs and if these were used, the
Fix this texteconomics could be extremely attractive. On
Fix this textpresent assessment, carbon dioxide flooding is
Fix this textonly marginally economic. But in 15 or 20
Fix this textyears, when the current reserves in Bass Strait
Fix this textand the Cooper Basin are depleted and new
Fix this textresources are hard to find enhanced oil
Fix this textrecovery is going to be more economic.'
Fix this textProfessor Pinczewski's team is carrying
Fix this textout basic research on some of the mechanisms
Fix this textassociated with carbon dioxide flooding. High
Fix this textpressure and temperature equipment is being
Fix this textused for experiments that simulate actual
Fix this textunderground pressures of up to 5,000 psi and
Fix this texttemperatures of 200°C, representing a depth
Fix this textof 3,000 metres. Their laboratory is a joint
Fix this textfacility of UNSW and the Bureau of Mineral
Fix this textResources in Canberra, which gives strong
Fix this textsupport to the project.
Fix this text'There are still problems to be overcome
Fix this textin Australia with enhanced oil recovery, the
Fix this textbasic one being the efficiency with which it is
Fix this textpossible to bring CO2 and residual oil into
Fix this textcontact', according to Professor Pinczewski.
Fix this text'The CO2, when injected into the rock forma-
Fix this texttion, tends to flow through the very porous
Fix this textareas, leaving large volumes of oil in the
Fix this textreservoir untouched. We have developed facili-
Fix this textties where we can investigate various alterna-
Fix this texttives for making these CO2 flooding processes
Fix this textmore efficient for specific Australian
Fix this textreservoirs.'
Fix this textIn April, Professor Pinczewski visited the
Fix this textUS to attend the world's foremost forum on
Fix this textthe subject the Fourth Symposium on
Fix this textEnhanced Oil Recovery in Tulsa, Oklahoma,
Fix this textwhere he presented one of 80 papers to
Fix this textdelegates from nine countries.
Fix this text'While in the US and Canada I visited
Fix this texta number of enhanced oil recovery establish-
Fix this textments, and came back convinced that the
Fix this textresearch we are doing and our experi-
Fix this textmental facilities are second to none in the
Fix this textworld', he says. 'We are working in what the
Fix this textMinister of Science and Technology, Mr
Fix this textBarry Jones, would call "new high technol-
Fix this textogy". The technique is not in use at the
Fix this textpresent time, but its days are not far off.'
Fix this textProfessor Pinczewski says there is serious
Fix this texttalk of a possible experiment in carbon
Fix this textdioxide flooding in one of the Cooper Basin
Fix this textoil fields in the next year or so. 'Meanwhile,
Fix this textour research team will be looking at the whole
Fix this textspectrum of steps necessary in taking labora-
Fix this texttory experiments and translating them into
Fix this textinformation valuable imthe field.'
Fix this textThe enhanced oil recovery work is being
Fix this textfunded by a three year grant of $430,000
Fix this textfrom the National Energy Research, Devel-
Fix this textopment and Demonstration Council.
Fix this textCourses and
Fix this textCareers Day
Fix this texta boon for the
Fix this textserious student
Fix this textPeter Baillie, in Year 10 at
Fix this textMaroubra Bay High, found the
Fix this textprospects of a career in electrical
Fix this textengineering or computer science
Fix this textengrossing. This was one subject
Fix this textthat played to a packed house,
Fix this textmade up of mums and dads as
Fix this textwell as prospective students, on
Fix this textCourses and Careers Day on
Fix this text5 May (story and more pictures
Fix this textinside).
Fix this textGeneral practice in Britain - the model
Fix this textfor our future
Fix this textThe Head of UNSW's School of Commu-
Fix this textnity Medicine, Professor lan Webster, believes
Fix this textAustralian general practice should follow the
Fix this textBritish model, which he describes as ideal. GPs
Fix this textin England are often so closely associated with
Fix this texttheir communities that they know if one of
Fix this textthe patients on their list has suffered a bereave-
Fix this textment, he says, and their surgeries are more
Fix this textlike our community health centres than like
Fix this textAustralian doctors' rooms.
Fix this textProfessor Webster is recently back from a study
Fix this texttrip to Britain to look at community health care and
Fix this textgeneral practice there. He says Australian doctors
Fix this textand the Australian public have a false and rather
Fix this textjaundiced view of Britain's National Health Service.
Fix this textHistorically, trends in general practice in Aust-
Fix this textralia have followed those in Britain, according to
Fix this textProfessor Webster, who says medicine in Australia
Fix this textwould benefit from having GPs more closely identi-
Fix this textfied with the geographical community and more
Fix this texttightly associated with area-based community health
Fix this textservices as is the case in the UK. He is also much in
Fix this textfavour of the British emphasis on prevention pro-
Fix this textgrams and the maintenance of elderly, disabled and
Fix this textsick people at home,
Fix this text'Everybody in England has a doctor to whom
Fix this textthey go because they are on his or her list. Each GP
Fix this textmakes an independent contract with the NHS to
Fix this textprovide all medical services for 24 hours a day to an
Fix this textagreed population averaging 2,200 people. That
Fix this textmeans not only in their rooms but at home as well,
Fix this textand they make home visits with great willingness.
Fix this textThe only people who do not have a doctor are home-
Fix this textless people but one doctor I met looked after a
Fix this textpopulation of gypsies.'
Fix this textProfessor Webster spent time in various parts of
Fix this textEngland but concentrated on Sheffield, where he
Fix this texthad practised 15 years ago. 'I found many of the
Fix this textgroup practices there almost indistinguishable from
Fix this textcommunity health centres in Australia, with com-
Fix this textmunity nurses, health visitors, social workers, the
Fix this textlocal health library and the occupational health pro-
Fix this textject all based in the doctors' rooms. On the notice-
Fix this textboards would be information about meetings of
Fix this textinterested people on health issues and counselling
Fix this textgroups or associations for the old or disabled.'
Fix this textMedical practitioners and the health care sys-
Fix this texttem in Britain are much more geared to having people
Fix this textat home than in Australia, with broadly based sup-
Fix this textport available. 'Doctors are proud to a fault that
Fix this textthey are able to maintain severely ill people at home
Fix this textthey regard it as part of their duty. I had the
Fix this textunique experience of walking into the home of a
Fix this textman living on continuous oxygen piped into his
Fix this textroom, a patient of mine years ago who had been
Fix this textadmitted to hospital with severe lung disease. The
Fix this textprognosis at that time had been poor.'
Fix this textDespite a common picture to the contrary,
Fix this textProfessor Webster believes GPs in Britain have a
Fix this textmore pivotal role in the health care system, better
Fix this textrelationships with local hospitals and are less fettered
Fix this textby bureaucracy than their colleagues in Australia.
Fix this text'A British GP can refer a patient directly to the
Fix this textx-ray department of a hospital, or to a specialist or a
Fix this textlaboratory without going through another set of
Fix this textdoctors at the hospital, as happens in Australia, In
Fix this textmy experience British doctors feel government
Fix this textprovisions and regulations are adequate and are satis-
Fix this textfied with their standard of living. They are subsidized
Fix this textto a high degree, with staff costs and so on and are
Fix this textcovered by a superannuation scheme.'
Fix this textProfessor Webster says there is no doubt the
Fix this textNHS is under-resourced, and there are still inequalities
Fix this textand differences in the level of health in various
Fix this textsections of the community. 'There is disillusionment
Fix this textbut that arises partly out of the size and complexity
Fix this textof the system. The English people and their doctors
Fix this textare committed to health care free at the point of
Fix this textdelivery', he says.
Fix this textProfessor Webster thinks there is more optimism
Fix this textabout initiating changes in medicine in Australia
Fix this textthan there is in Britain. 'I feel more positive about
Fix this textthe situation in Australia now than I did before I left.
Fix this textThe advantage in Australia is that there is a high level
Fix this textof political and public concern about the provision
Fix this textof care, especially community care and care of the
Fix this textelderly, which is stronger than I perceived in Britain.'
Fix this text'We allocate a larger proportion of our funds to
Fix this texthealth care too so there is more room to manoeuvre.'
Fix this textProfessor Webster will give a seminar on
Fix this text‘Genera! Practice in England Portents for Australia'
Fix this texton 25 May in the School of Community Medicine.
Fix this textInquiries should go to 662 3860.
Fix this textProfessor Val Pinczewski (right) and PhD student, Andrew Grogan, examine
Fix this texta high pressure volume, temperature cell which confines crude oil under
Fix this textsimilar pressure and temperatures to that applying in underground reservoirs.
Fix this textPictures this page: Public Affairs Unit
Fix this textProfessor lan Webster, Head of UNSW's School of
Fix this textCommunity Medicine, counselling prospective stu-
Fix this textdents at the University's Courses and Careers Day.
Fix this text‘If I wanted to show a model of general practice that
Fix this textI wish our medical students would follow in the
Fix this textfuture, I would take them to the practices and the
Fix this textcentres in England', he says.
Fix this textIt's easy and takes two shakes of a lamb's tail!
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http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-257344537
University of New South Wales. Public Affairs Unit & University of New South Wales, issuing body. (1975). Uniken Retrieved June 11, 2025, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-257344537
University of New South Wales. Public Affairs Unit and University of New South Wales, issuing body. Uniken Kensington, N.S.W: University of New South Wales, 1975. Web. 11 June 2025 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-257344537>
University of New South Wales. Public Affairs Unit & University of New South Wales, issuing body. 1975, Uniken University of New South Wales, Kensington, N.S.W viewed 11 June 2025 http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-257344537
{{Citation
| author1=University of New South Wales. Public Affairs Unit.
| author2=University of New South Wales, issuing body.
| title=Uniken.
| year=1975
| section=volumes : illustrations ; 30-43 cm.
| issn=0312-7877
| issue=1984, no. 7 (18-31 May, 1984)
| location=Kensington, N.S.W
| publisher=University of New South Wales
| url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-257344537
| id=nla.obj-257344537
| access-date=11 June 2025
| via=Trove
}}
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