Zapping Oil for Better Flow

Zapping Oil for Better Flow
Mar-03-15
By zapping oil with electric fields, the Applied Oil Technology (AOT) device increases the flow of the oil through pipelines while also saving energy.

Pipeline oil is traditionally heated in order to reduce its viscosity and speed its flow. However, this method typically uses a large amount of energy and increases the turbulence in the oil flow. As an alternative solution, Rongjia Tao of Temple University proposed in 2006 that applying an electric field to the oil could align its particles and reduce its viscosity.

Now, almost ten years later, the AOT device is ready for testing. Built in collaboration with Save The World Air, Inc, the device attaches to the pipeline to create an electric field in the direction of the oil flow. This field causes the oil particles to form short chains, reducing viscosity as well as turbulence. In tests on the Keystone pipeline, the AOT device was able to maintain the same flow rate with 75 percent less pumping power.

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