Johnston_subbed.qxp 1/4/09 12:51 Page 97
Increasing Heavy Crude Oil Flow Through a New Flow Improver Product – A Case Study
Figure 1: Pictorial Illustration of Drag-reducing Agents at Work Table 1: Laboratory Crude Oil–Drag-reducing Agent Polymer Interaction
Injection of drag-reducing agent
LiquidPower™ ExtremePower™
Crude Oil Flow Improver Flow Improver API
Laminar
Sample Compatibility Compatibility Gravity
sublayer West Texas Intermediate High Moderate 41.6
West Texas Sour High Moderate 31.6
Buffer
Basrah High Moderate 31.0
region
Corocoro None High 25.1
Turbulent
Albian None High 22.4
core
Turbulent bursts
Marlim Blend High High 22.2
Maya None High 21.9
Bow River None High 21.8
Apiay Moderate Moderate 21.8
demonstrated in Table 1, the Castilla blend displayed a high interaction
WCS (Western None High 20.9
Canadian Select)
with the ExtremePower Flow Improver polymer and no interaction with
Castilla None High 18.0
the existing DRA technology (LP 300 Flow Improver). The pipeline system Merey None High 16.0
can be modelled by taking the above parameters into consideration
SJVH (San Joaquin None High 13.0
Valley Heavy)
and applying rigorous hydraulic equations. The initial analysis of this
Petrozuata None High 9.1
system showed the crude oil batches to be in laminar, transition and
API = American Petroleum Institute.
turbulent flow regimes at various intervals along the pipeline. This is
best modelled by the use of Churchill’s
4
hydraulic equations. The Prediction
The model above showed that portions of the Apiay pipeline system
The analysis is carried out using internal software and the flow is modelled are in turbulent flow even while pumping the heavy Castilla blend.
over finite intervals of distance. This finite interval analysis model is tuned Given the nature of the production, the Castilla blend enters the
so that the model overlaps with the observed pipeline capacity of the pipeline at 45°C and cools to 29°C by the end of the pipeline. This
untreated fluid, which establishes baseline flow. To this baseline flow, means that the flow regime changes due to the fact that the crude oil
knowledge of how DRAs affect the flow in a given flow regime are becomes more viscous as it cools. The analysis showed that the Castilla
applied to generate the predicted DRA performance factors. The DRA blend was in transition or turbulent flow for approximately two-thirds
performance factors allow CSPI to reasonably model the resulting of the distance travelled in the pipeline. Furthermore, the distance
hydraulic performance of the pipeline system after treatment with DRA. travelled in the turbulent flow regime would lend itself well to
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