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A - C | D - G | H - L
| M - P | Q - S | T - Z H - L
H
Hang the rods - To pull pump rods out of the well and
hang them in the derrick on rod hangers.
Heating oil - Oil use for residential heating.
Heavy oil - A type of crude petroleum characterized
by high viscosity and a high carbon-to-hydrogen ration. It is usually difficult
and costly to produce by conventional techniques.
Held by production - Refers to an oil and gas
property under lease, in which the lease continues to be in force, because of
production from the property.
History of a well - A written account of a well's
drilling and operation, required by law in some states.
Horizon - A specific sedimentary layer in a cross
section of land, especially one in which a petroleum reservoir is
found.
Horizontal drilling - The newer and developing
technology that makes it possible to drill a well from the surface, vertically
down to a certain level, and then to turn at a right angle, and continue
drilling horizontally within a specified reservoir, or an interval of a
reservoir.
Horsehead - The curved guide or head piece on the
well end of a pumping jack's walking beam. The guide holds the short loop of
cable, called the bridle, attached to the well's pump rods.
Hydraulic fracturing - A method of stimulating
production from a low-permeability formation by creating fractures and fissures
by applying very high fluid pressure.
Hydrocarbons - A large class of organic compound of
hydrogen and carbon. Crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas condensate are all
mixtures of various hydrocarbons, among which methane is the
simplest.
Hydrometer - An instrument that measures the specific
gravity of liquids.
Hydrostatic head - The height of a column of liquid.
The difference in height between two points in a body of liquid.
I
In situ - In its original place. Refers to methods of
producing synfuels underground, such as underground gasification of a coal seam
or heating oil shale underground to release its oil.
Independent producer - 1. A person or corporation
that produces oil for the market, who has no pipeline system or refining. 2. An
oil entrepreneur who secures financial backing and drills his own
wells
Infill drilling - Wells drilled to fill in between
established producing wells to increase production.
Initial potential - Flow rate measured during the
initial completion of a well in a specific reservoir (initial daily rate of
production).
Injection well - A well employed for the introduction
into an underground stratum of water, gas or other fluid under pressure.
Injection well are employed for the disposal of salt water produced with oil or
other waste. They are also use for a variety of other purposes: 1) Pressure
maintenance, to introduce a fluid into a producing formation to maintain
underground pressures which would otherwise be reduced by virtue of the
production or oil or gas, 2)Secondary recovery operations, to introduce a fluid
to decrease the viscosity of oil, reduce its surface tension, lighted its
specific gravity, and drive oil into producing wells, resulting in greater
production of oil.
Intangible drilling costs - Expenditures, deductible
for federal income tax purposes, incurred by an operator for labor, fuel,
repairs, hauling, and supplies used in drilling and completing a well for
production.
Investment Tax Credit (ITC) - A credit against income
taxes, usually computed as a percent of the cost of investment in certain types
of assets.
Isopachous map - A geological map showing the
thickness and shape of underground formations. A tool used to determine
underground oil and gas reservoirs.
J
Jack or Unit - An oil-pumping unit. The pumping
jack's walking beam provides the up-and-down motion to the well's pump
rods.
Jack-up rig - A floating platform with legs on each
corner that can be lowered to the sea bottom to raise or jack up the platform
above the water.
Jet fuel - See Kerosene.
Jetting - Injecting gas into a subsurface formation
for the purpose of maintaining reservoir pressure.
Joint - A single section of drill pipe, casing, or
tubing, usually about 30 feet long.
Joint Operating Agreement - A detailed written
agreement between the working interest owners of a property which specifies the
terms according to which that property will be developed.
Joint venture - A large-scale project in which two or
more parties (usually oil companies) cooperate. One supplies funds and the other
actually carries out the project. Each participant retains control over his
share, including liability and the right to sell.
Junk basket - A magnet used to retrieve small tools
lost in the well. A fishing instrument.
K
Kelly bushing - Part of the drilling rig, the Kelly
is a long hollow steel bar that connects to the upper end of the drill
string.
Kerogen - The hydrocarbon in oil shale. Scientists
believe that kerogen was the precursor of petroleum and that petroleum
development in shale was somehow prematurely arrested.
Kerosene - The petroleum
fraction containing hydrocarbons that are slightly heavier than those found in
gasoline and naphtha. Kerosene (also spelled kerosene) was the most important
petroleum product because of its use for home and commercial lighting; in recent
years demand has risen again as a result of kerosene's use in gas turbines and
jet engines.
Keyseating - A condition in which the drill collar of
another part of the drill string becomes wedged in a section of crooked
hole.
Kick Occurs - when the pressure encountered in a
formation exceeds the pressure exerted by the column of drilling mud circulating
through the hole. If uncontrolled, a kick leads to a blowout.
Kill a well - To overcome downhole pressure by adding
weighting elements to the drilling mud.
L
Lag time - The time it takes for cuttings to be
carried (circulate) from the bottom of the borehole up to the surface by the mud
system.
Landman - A self-employed individual or company
employee who secures oil and gas leases, checks legal titles, and attempts to
cure title defects so that drilling can begin.
Landowner royalty - The share of the gross production
of the oil and gas on a property without deducting any of the cost of producing
the oil or gas. The usual landowner's royalty is one-eighth of gross
production.
Law of capture - A legal concept on which oil and gas
law in some states is based: since petroleum is liquid, and hence mobile, it is
not owned until it is produced.
Lead lines - The lines through which production from
individual wells is run to tanks.
Lease (Oil and Gas) - A contract by which the owner
of the mineral rights to a property conveys to another party, the exclusive
right to explore for and develop minerals on the property, during a specified
period of time.
Lease acquisition costs - Bonus payments.
Lease broker - An individual engaged in obtaining
leases for speculation or resale.
Lease hound - Someone who goes out and aggressively
acquires oil and gas leases from the landowner, and then turns around and sells
or trades them to an oil company planning to drill a well in the
area.
Lease offering (lease sale) - An area of land offered
for lease - usually by the U.S. Department of Interior - for the exploration for
and production of specific natural resources such as oil and gas. Such a lease
conveys no title or occupancy rights apart from the right to search for and
produce petroleum or other natural resources subject to the conditions stated in
the lease.
Lease or Sublease - Any transaction in which the
owner of operating rights in a property assigns all or a portion of these rights
to any other party.
Lifting costs - The costs of producing oil from a
well or lease; the operating expenses.
Lignite - A solid fuel of a grade higher than peat
but lower than bituminous coal.
Limestone - Sedimentary rock largely consisting of
calcite. On a world-wide scale, limestone reservoirs probably contain more oil
and gas reserves than all other types of reservoir rock combined.
Limited partner - In a limited partnership, a partner
whose liability is limited to the amount of his investment in the partnership
(plus any assessments and his share of undistributed partnership
earnings).
Limited partnership - A partnership in which the
general partner manages the partnership's activities and is solely liable for
them. The limited partners are liable only to the extent of their
contributions.
LNG (liquefied natural gas) - Natural gas that has
been converted to a liquid through cooling to -260 degrees Fahrenheit at
atmospheric pressure.
Logs - Records made from data-gathering devices
lowered into the wellbore. The devices transmit signals to the surface which are
then recorded on film and used to make the record describing the formation's
porosity, fluid saturation, and lithology. The filing of a log is required by
the federal government if the drill site is on federal land.
Lost circulation - A serious condition that occurs
when drilling mud pumped into the well does not return to the surface, but goes
into the porous formation, crevices, or caverns instead.
LPG (liquefied petroleum gases) - Hydrocarbon
fractions lighter than gasoline, such as ethane, propane and butane, kept in a
liquid state through compression and/or refrigeration, commonly referred to as
"bottled gas."
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