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re: WSJ Article: America’s Biggest Oil Field Is Turning Into a Pressure Cooker

Posted on 12/30/25 at 7:49 am to
Posted by lostinbr
Baton Rouge, LA
Member since Oct 2017
12687 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 7:49 am to
quote:

X123F45

I think you’re missing the issue entirely. The cooling medium doesn’t matter. Whether they use a closed loop with chilled water, a closed loop with some sort of glycol coolant, or forced-air convection with chilled air for the actual heat transfer from the server racks doesn’t really affect their water usage.

The issue is how they ultimately eject the heat from the larger system. There are basically three options for this:
1. Air cooling by passing coolant through an exchanger where ambient air is blown over the coils outside.
2. Vapor-compression refrigeration (which still ultimately uses air cooling to remove heat from the refrigerant, but allows for much smaller air cooled exchangers because the refrigerant gives higher approach temperatures).
3. Evaporative cooling.

Evaporative cooling in cooling towers is simply the most economical option most of the time. The downside of evaporative cooling is that you lose coolant (water) to evaporation and have to make it up somehow, hence the high water usage.
Posted by castorinho
13623 posts
Member since Nov 2010
86621 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 8:21 am to
quote:

and has plans to become a hub for burying carbon dioxide captured at industrial plants and sucked out of the air.
This isn't true at all. Have not seen a single viable carbon capture project in the Permian.
Posted by ragincajun03
Member since Nov 2007
27668 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 8:29 am to
quote:

This isn't true at all. Have not seen a single viable carbon capture project in the Permian.


While “viable” could be relative, due to tax credits being the main driver, outfits have purchased or leased pore space in the Permian for capture and sequestration. Occidental Petroleum has an air capture facility in Ector County that should be starting up some time soon, if it hasn’t already.

Economic viability TBD.
This post was edited on 12/30/25 at 8:34 am
Posted by castorinho
13623 posts
Member since Nov 2010
86621 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 8:31 am to
quote:

So why not use a closed system?
there are closed loop solutions being worked on. But even just the initial amount of water needed is still massive, and replenishing the losses is still also massive for most of these municipalities.
Posted by castorinho
13623 posts
Member since Nov 2010
86621 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 8:37 am to
I'm guessing that's really really small scale compared to what they're doing in Allen parish?
Posted by ragincajun03
Member since Nov 2007
27668 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 8:42 am to
?? Beats me. Don’t know any specifics on what they may be doing in Allen, other than LA DNR shows they did file for a permit.

This article sites the Ector County air capture facility as being a $1.3 Billion project.

LINK
Posted by TigersnJeeps
FL Panhandle
Member since Jan 2021
2657 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 8:55 am to
quote:

Also, as much as it pains me to admit, when OK outlawed salt water injection their occurrence of earth quakes dropped dramatically. So there's a pretty good case for removing the option all together.


So there is a connect between quakes and injection/fracking?

I see arguments/discussions on this pop up for various locations like PA, NY and the West.

Posted by ragincajun03
Member since Nov 2007
27668 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 9:25 am to
quote:

So there is a connect between quakes and injection/fracking?


Water injection for disposal, it appears so. You have both oil companies and regulators collecting data and monitoring in the Permian.

Fracking, nothing I’ve seen or heard discussed.
This post was edited on 12/30/25 at 9:26 am
Posted by X123F45
Member since Apr 2015
29541 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 10:09 am to
quote:

I think you’re missing the issue entirely


Nope.

quote:

Evaporative cooling in cooling towers is simply the most economical option


Nope. It's theft. Call a spade a spade.

Use a closed loop system... OR engineer it to tie into a resource not impacted by evaporative loss.

Ie: the 10th largest river system in the world.
Posted by casualobserver
Baton Rouge
Member since Oct 2011
191 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 10:18 am to
quote:

M-Tex can't seem to catch a break lately. As if the 400 million dollar off-shore well wasn't a big enough headache, now America's biggest oil field is turning into a pressure cooker. It will take everything Billy Bob has to solve this one!


I’m thinking Cooper might be of some use now with his almost degree.
Posted by RobbBobb
Member since Feb 2007
33419 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 10:28 am to
quote:

salty water, which they pump back into the ground

Wait until they hear about the oceans



And the seas
Posted by aTmTexas Dillo
East Texas Lake
Member since Sep 2018
22806 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 10:38 am to
quote:

So there is a connect between quakes and injection/fracking?


Injection more than fracking. I lived in Oklahoma when this was going on. My boss didn't believe it. I said if he were to look at a map of earthquakes in the US and then the oilfield and injection activity in Oklahoma, he would believe me. Those were fun times. I learned you can hear an earthquake.
Posted by ragincajun03
Member since Nov 2007
27668 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 10:58 am to
quote:

Wait until they hear about the oceans

And the seas


That’d be one hell of a pipeline(s) required to get all that Permian water to the Gulf of America.
Posted by RobbBobb
Member since Feb 2007
33419 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 11:00 am to
quote:

That’d be one hell of a pipeline(s) required to get all that Permian water to the Gulf of America.

But the amount of jobs . . . .
Posted by NPComb
Member since Jan 2019
28050 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 11:03 am to
quote:

We've already had a wellsite blow up and a deadly H2S release recently. Just as soon have the geyser shooting produced water in the air. Something else M-Tex can get sued for.


All you need is a hot lawyer and it all goes away.
Posted by ragincajun03
Member since Nov 2007
27668 posts
Posted on 12/30/25 at 11:21 am to
quote:

But the amount of jobs . . . .


Absolutely, but someone has to be willing to spend that capital. I agree it would be awesome.
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