In 2014, Matjaž Finšgar was entrusted with, managed, and executed an industrial project for the international German company BASF SE, Ludwigshafen. The research was carried out at the Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Maribor. The subject of the research was formulation design for methanesulphonic (MSA) and HCl acids at elevated temperatures for drilling applications, i.e. up to at least 150 degrees Celsius. It has to be pointed out that the majority of acidizing treatments carried out in the oil and gas drilling industry utilize HCl. The purpose of performing research on MSA is that this acid can substantially enhance the operational safety of the personnel involved in the acidizing procedure due to the beneficial properties of MSA compared with HCl. In this project, HCl was used for comparison with MSA. The goal of the project was successfully achieved. Formulations were developed for MSA and HCl and were dispersible at 2 wt.% loading up to 72 h at room temperature. Dispersibility is crucial for a CIF to be used in the drilling industry. It has to be emphasized that all chemicals used in these CIFs were WGK class 1 or lower, which means that “green” CIFs were developed. WGK (German: Wassergefährdungsklassen) stands for the German Water Hazard Class, and WGK class 1 can be deemed relatively harmless and close to non hazardous to the environment.
D.01 Chairing over/coordinating (international and national) projects
COBISS.SI-ID: 17786390Matjaž Finšgar was invited to give a lecture on the annual Corrosion Forum in Ludwigshafen. Special attention was given on the formulation design, its compatibility with other oilfield ingredients, costs and environmental impact. Especially, the focus was on the synergistic effect of different components with the most effective and environmentally acceptable intensifiers to be used at elevated temperature.
B.04 Guest lecture
COBISS.SI-ID: 18133014Matjaž Finšgar was invited to give a lecture at the ICMT 2014 conference. The lecture explained electrochemical and surface analytical study of molecules on metallic materials. Special attention was devoted to the analysis of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements for the adsorbed molecules on different metals. Especially surface bonding and orientation of the molecules was presented.
B.04 Guest lecture
COBISS.SI-ID: 18189590Lecture at the Eurocorr 2014 conference in Pisa, Italy. In this work we were focus on the compatibility of inhibited or non-inhibited methanesulfonic (MSA) and steel materials used for well construction. Inhibitors for MSA solution could be effective for HCl solution as well, in our experience, however, this is not always the case and frequently the chemistry effective for MSA is not necessarily effective for HCl. We presented how to formulate a mixture consisting of a inhibitor, surfactant, solvent, and intensifier to improve inhibition effectiveness compared to the individual inhibitor compound. This mixture is called a corrosion inhibitor formulation (CIF). CIF design was presented especially for the lower-grade steel materials that are the most commonly used construction materials for gas and oil wells.
B.03 Paper at an international scientific conference
COBISS.SI-ID: 18133526In 2016, Matjaž Finšgar was entrusted with, managed, and executed an industrial project for the company Impol R in R d.o.o., Slovenska Bistrica, Slovenia. The subject of the project was the establishment of new electrochemical laboratory, and development and validation of new electrochemical methods for analysis of different materials.
D.02 Establishment of a research centre, laboratory, study course, association
COBISS.SI-ID: 20074518