Researchers in Norway reported that injecting a special type of seawater – termed ‘smart water’ into certain low-yield oil wells may help boost oil extraction by as much as 60 percent. Scientists suggested that the study could help meet rising energy demands and provide consumers with some financial relief at the gas pump in the future. The study noted that more than 50 percent of the world's oil reserves were trapped in oil reservoirs composed of calcium carbonate. Injecting seawater into these chalk-based wells could potentially boost oil extraction, but researchers were however not sure if the method would work for oil wells composed of limestone, another tough material known for its low oil-recovery rates1.

• 1. “Smart water may help boost production from oil wells by 60 percent,” Science Daily, September 10, 2008, at http://asianenergy.blogspot.com/2008_09_07_archive.html