chemiphase oilfield demulsifier case study - middle east

CHEMIPHASE LTD Unit 2 Ringtail Road, Burscough Industrial Estate,

Burscough, Lancashire, L40 8JY, UK (Tel) 08456 432900 (Fax) 08456432900

www.chemiphase.co.uk www.chemiphase.com Email : [email protected]

Technical Case Study’s

Middle East Customer Demulsifier Trial

1.0 Introduction

The client operated field in the Middle East which produces crude with not only a heavy API but

also a significant water cut. As such it is essential that the correct Oilfield Demulsifier is

employed onsite, in order to remove any water contained within the crude oil, before it is sent

to refinery.

Chemiphase were invited to carry out Demulsifier bottle testing onsite, in order to determine

the correct demulsifier blend to be applied onsite.

2.0 Well Information

The wells to be tested were from two separate points and would represent one heavy sample

and one light sample of crude oil. This is in order to replicate the field conditions.

The crude oil at the well head has an API of 12. This crude oil is fed into a production manifold

where a secondary, lighter crude is blended into it. This lighter crude has an API of 34 and

serves to raise the combined crude to an API of 17. After this point the chosen demulsifier is

added and the combined crude and demulsifier is sent to one of three retention tanks. The free

water is constantly removed from these retention tanks, until such time as the tanks become

full of crude oil. At this point the retention tanks are shut in for 24 hours in order for the

demulsifier to remove any water from the crude oil.

During the demulsifier testing the crude oil would be supplied in the form of one heavy sample

and one light sample.

3.0 Chemiphase Demulsifier Samples.

Chemiphase supplied 34 samples of demulsifier bases. These were chosen for their proven

ability with heavy crude oils around the world. These were a selection of droppers, treaters,

desalters and hybrid chemicals. The samples that were supplied and available for testing were

‘ready to use’ products and required no blending with solvents. This was to ensure consistency

in the samples used for bottle testing and to ensure repeatability.

The full list of Chemiphase demulsifiers that were tested on the client’s crude can be found in

table 3.0.1

3.1 Non Chemiphase Demulsifier Samples

Alongside the Chemiphase demulsifier samples, three other third party demulsifiers were

supplied. These were intended to act as a comparison against the Chemiphase samples and in

order to show the effectiveness of the Chemiphase products.

The samples were supplied by the client and included “Competitor A,” “Competitor B,” and

“Competitor C.”

3.2 Samples Used

The samples used for the demulsifier trials were part of the D600 range of

demulsifier’s as seen below in the table.





Middle East Customer Demulsifier Trial

Chemiphase Demulsifier Sample Guide

Function Suitability

Demulsifier

Sample

RSN Dehydrator Coalescer Hybrid All

Round

Heavy Environmental

D- 0601 15 Y Y

D- 0602 11 Y Y

D- 0603 17 Y Y Y

D- 0604 8 Y Y

D- 0605 7 Y Y Y Y

D- 0606 19 Y Y

D- 0607 17 Y Y

D- 0608 6 Y Y

D- 0609 8 Y Y

D- 0610 23 Y Y

D- 0611 11 Y Y

D- 0612 21 Y Y

D- 0613 18 Y Y

D- 0614 20 Y Y

D- 0615 7 Y Y

D- 0616 6 Y Y

D- 0617 20 Y Y

D- 0618 16 Y y Y

D- 0619 6 Y Y

D- 0620 21 Y y Y

D- 0621 21 Y y Y

D- 0622 8 Y Y

D- 0623 15 y Y

D- 0624 Not Applicable








4.0 Bottle Test Method

It was essential that the bottle test method accurately represent the field conditions. The crude

oil that is retained in the retention tanks and is subject to the demulsifier, is a blend of the

heavy crude oil and a lighter crude oil, intended to raise the overall API to aid in

demulsification.

The bottle testing was carried out on the heavy crude oil and light crude oil mixed in a 4:1 ratio

of heavy to light. This was mixed in the lab using the crude oil samples supplied.

The bottle testing was carried out using 140ml clear glass sample bottles with clear volumetric

markings on the bottles. Each bottle was filled with 100ml of the crude sample and dosed with

500ppm of the demulsifier.

The samples were placed in a water bath at 50 degC and allowed 24 hours for the separation

to occur.

The samples were noted for the amount of water drop out, amount of basic solid drop out,

clarity of water and sharpness of the oil water interface.





Middle East Customer

Demulsifier Trial

5.0 Remaining Water Centrifuge Test Method

Once the bottles had been subjected to 24 hours in the water bath a centrifuge test was

carried out in order to determine the total water remaining in the crude samples. This test

involved a two stage process.

The centrifuge test was carried out using 12ml clear glass test tubes with clear volumetric

markings. Each test tube was filled with 5 ml of toluene to which a further 5 ml of the crude oil

that was to be tested was added.

The first stage of the test involved centrifuging the samples at 1600rpm for 5minutes. The

samples were examined for the amount of water drop out, amount of basic solid drop out,

clarity of water and sharpness of the oil water interface. These figures were recorded and the

samples moved on to the second stage of the centrifuge test.

The second stage of the centrifuge test involved introduction of ‘knock out drops’ to the

samples. This was in the form of High strength Knock Out Drops,” samples. Two drops of the

High strength Knock Out Drops,” were added to each sample, the samples were then

centrifuged at 1600rpm for a further 5 minutes. The samples were examined for the amount of

water drop out, amount of basic solid drop out, clarity of water and sharpness of the oil water

interface.

6.0 Bottle Testing- Demulsifier Bases

The initial testing involved bottle testing each demulsifier base in order that we could establish

the best combination of droppers, treaters, desalters and hybrids.

The bottle test was carried out for each one of the 34 Chemiphase samples along with one

blank sample, one sample of the Competitor A and one sample of the Competitor B, as detailed

above.

6.1 Bottle Testing- Demulsifier Bases- First Round Results

*Water Clarity and Interface are based on a scale of 1-5 with five being the highest and most

desirable.

Sample % H2O Drop Out

% BS Drop Out

Water Clarity Interface Picture

BLANK 0 0 NA NA 6.1.1

COMPETITOR A 9.0 0 2

Multiple Large oil droplets in water phase

2

Poor, brown opaque (2.5%)

6.1.2

COMPETITOR B 5.5 0 2 Multiple Large oil droplets in water phase

2 Poor, brown opaque (1.0%)

6.1.3

Chemiphase D0602 2.5 0 4

Good, few small oil droplets noticeable

3

Quite defined

Signs of ragged interface

6.1.4


Opaque but oil free

4

Highly defined

6.1.5


Good, few small oil droplets noticeable

3

Quite defined

Signs of ragged interface

6.1.6


Looks clear although very small drop

3

Good interface

6.1.7


Looks clear although very small drop

3

Good interface

although very small drop

6.1.8


Multiple Large oil droplets in water phase

2

Poor, Ragged interface

6.1.9


Light brown in colour

2

Poor, Ragged interface

6.1.10

Chemiphase D0633 7.5 0 5 Very Clear Water

5 Very Sharp

6.1.11


Very Clear Water

4

Sharp, slight ragged

6.1.12






Demulsifier Trial

Sample Performance

D0601, D0603, D0605, D0608, D0609, D0612, D0615,

D0616, D0619, D0621, D0621, D0624

Little to no water drop- not suitable for second stage testing

D0611, D0614, D0625, D0620 Some water drop- not suitable for second stage testing

Overall the first round of bottle testing showed encouraging signs for the Chemiphase products.

Four droppers and four treaters products were identified as being suitable to go forward to the

next stage of testing.

The initial testing showed that the Competitor A product performed the best; however the

Competitor B product performed in a similar manner to that of the individual Chemiphase

Bases at 5.5 % water drop.

6.2 Centrifuge Testing- Demulsifier Bases- First Round Results

The samples identified above as being suitable for the second round of testing were tested for

remaining water content via the centrifuge test, as outline above.

Table 6.2.0- Centrifuge Testing- Demulsifier Bases- First Round Results

Sample Without Knock out Drops (%) With Knock Out Drops

(%)

Difference

(%)

BLANK 0 0.3 0.3

CC9496 0 0.2 0.2

Clariant 5481 0 1.0 1.0

Chemiphase

D0633 0.5 0.5 0.0

Chemiphase

D0606 3.0 3.0 0.0

Chemiphase

D0618 2.0 2.0 0.0

Chemiphase

D0623 2.0 2.0 0.0

Chemiphase

D0613 0.5 0.75 0.25






Demulsifier Trial

7.0 Bottle Testing- Demulsifier-Second Round Results

Once the correct Chemiphase bases were established, the bases were combined in order to find the

most suitable combination of droppers and treaters. The Chemiphase products were combined in the

following way;

Table 7.0.1 Combination of Chemiphase products

Set A Set B

Sample

Name Products

Sample

Name

Products

A1 D0602 + D

0604

B1 D0606 + D 0604

A2 D0602 + D

0613

B2 D0606 + D 0613

A3 D0602 + D

0618

B3 D0606 + D 0618

A4 D0602 + D

0623

B4 D0606 + D 0623

Set C Set D

Sample

Name Products

Sample

Name

Products

C1 D0607 + D

0604

D1 D0610 + D 0604

C2 D0607 + D

0613

D2 D0610 + D 0613

C3 D0607 + D

0618

D3 D0610 + D 0618

C4 D0607 + D

0623

D4 D0610 + D 0623

Each of the products was combined at a ratio of 1:1 and added to the samples at a dosage

rate of 500ppm (therefore 250ppm of each product).

The samples were tested as per the above method and the results were recorded after 24

hours in the water bath.






Demulsifier Trial

7.1 Bottle Testing- Demulsifier-Second Round Results

Sample % H2O Drop

Out % BS Drop

Out Water Clarity Interface Picture

BLANK 0 0 na na 7.1.1

COMPETITOR A 0.0 0 No noticeable water drop No noticeable water drop 7.1.2

COMPETITOR B 5.0 0 4

Good H2O clarity,

2

Ragged, Large oil droplets in

water

7.1.3

A1 7.0 0 4

Good H2O clarity,

3

Good,

Small oil droplets in water

7.1.4

A2 5.0 0 4

Good H2O clarity,

4

Good,

Few Small oil droplets in water

7.1.5

A3 9.0 0 3

H2O slightly cloudy

4

Good, Few Small oil droplets in water

7.1.6

A4 3.0 0 5

Clear H2O clarity,

4

Good,


7.1.7

B1 9.5 0 4

Good H2O clarity,

3

Finely dispersed oil at interface

7.1.8

B2 7.5 0 3

H2O slightly cloudy

3


7.1.9

B3 8.0 0.25 3

Good H2O clarity,

4

Good,


7.1.10

B4 5.0 0 3

Good H2O clarity,

3


7.1.11

C1 0.0 0 na na na

C2

0.0 0 na na na

C3 0.0 0 na na na

C4 0.0 0 na na na

D1 7.5 0 4 Good H2O clarity,

4 Good,

No Noticeable oil, very slight

ragged

7.1.12

D2 0.0 0 na na na

D3 0.0 0 na na na

D4 0.0 0 na na na






Demulsifier Trial

Table 7.2.0- Centrifuge Testing- Demulsifier Bases-Second Round Results

Sample Without Knock out

Drops (%)

With Knock Out

Drops

(%)

Difference

(%)

BLANK 0 5.0 5.0

COMPETITOR

A 1.0 4.0 3.0

COMPETITOR

B 2.0 3.0 1.0

A1 0.0 0.0 0.0

A3 0.5 0.5 0.0

B1 1.0 2.0 1.0

B2 0.25 0.25 0.0

B3 0.4 0.5 0.1

B4 0.75 2.0 1.25

The centrifuge results were gathered as per the method set out above.

8.0 Bottle Test Conclusions

The results show that the four best performing Chemiphase samples are the A1, A3, B1 and

B3 samples. All four of these samples exceeded the results obtained at the stage two trials

by either the Competitor A or Competitor B product. The samples also matched or exceeded

the results gained by either the Competitor A or Competitor B product at the stage one

trials.






Demulsifier Trial

8.1 Chemiphase A1 vs Competitor A vs Competitor B

Sample % H2O Drop

Out

% BS Drop

Out Water Clarity Interface

Picture

Reference

Chemiphase

A1

7.0 0 4

Good H2O

clarity,

3

Good,

Small oil

droplets in

water

7.1.4

Competitor A

(first stage)

9.0 0 2

Multiple Large

oil droplets in

water phase

2

Poor, brown

opaque (2.5%)

6.1.2

Competitor B

(second stage)

0.0 0 0

No noticeable

water drop

0

No noticeable

water drop

7.1.2

Competitor A

(first stage)

5.5 0 2

Multiple Large

oil droplets in

water phase

2

Poor, brown

opaque (1.0%)

6.1.3

Competitor B

(second stage)

5.0 0 4

Good H2O

clarity,

2

Ragged,

Large oil

droplets in

water

7.1.3

As can be seen in the table above, the Chemiphase A1 sample performed better than the

Competitor A in the second stage and better than the Competitor B sample in the first and

second stage testing. When comparing the water quality and interface it is evident that the

Chemiphase A1 sample produced a much cleaner water drop and sharper interface. This

highly beneficial as the discharged water will contain less oil than with either of the

Competitor A or Competitor B products.

Table 8.1.2 Chemiphase A1 vs Competitor A vs Competitor B Centrifuge Testing


Drops (%)

With Knock Out

Drops

(%)

Difference

(%)

Chemiphase A1 0.0 0.0 0.0

Competitor A

(first stage)

0.0 0.2 0.2

Competitor B

(second stage)

1.0 4.0 3.0

Competitor A

(first stage)

0.0 1.0 1.0

Competitor A

(second stage)

2.0 3.0 1.0

The centrifuge testing showed that the Chemiphase A1 product removed all the water present

within the crude sample, whilst the Competitor A product failed to remove all the water on either

first or second stage tests. Whilst the Competitor B product did remove the water in the first stage

testing, it failed to reproduce this in the second stage of testing.






Demulsifier Trial

8.2 Chemiphase A3 vs Competitor A vs Competitor B

Sample % H2O Drop

Out

% BS Drop


Picture

Reference

Chemiphase

A3

9.0 0 3

Good H2O

clarity,

4

Good,

Small oil

droplets in

water

7.1.7

Competitor A

(first stage)

9.0 0 2

Multiple Large

oil droplets in

water phase

2

Poor, brown

opaque (2.5%)

6.1.2

Competitor A

(second stage)

0.0 0 0

No noticeable

water drop

0

No noticeable

water drop

7.1.2

Competitor B

(first stage)

5.5 0 2

Multiple Large

oil droplets in

water phase

2

Poor, brown

opaque (1.0%)

6.1.3

Competitor B

(second stage)

5.0 0 4

Good H2O

clarity,

2

Ragged,

Large oil

droplets in

7.1.3

As can be seen in the table above, the Chemiphase A3 sample performed equally as well as

the Competitor A product in the first stage and better than the Competitor B in the second

stage. The Chemiphase A3 outperformed the Competitor B sample in the first and second

stage testing. When comparing the water quality and interface it is evident that the

Chemiphase A3 sample produced a much cleaner water drop and sharper interface. This

highly beneficial as the discharged water will contain less oil than with either of the

Competitor A or Competitor B products.

Table 8.1.2 Chemiphase A3 vs Competitor A vs Competitor B Centrifuge Testing


Drops (%)

With Knock Out

Drops

(%)

Difference

(%)

Chemiphase A3 0.5 0.5 0.0

Competitor A

(first stage)

0.0 0.2 0.2

Competitor A

(second stage)

1.0 4.0 3.0

Competitor B

(first stage)

0.0 1.0 1.0

Competitor B

(second stage)

2.0 3.0 1.0

The centrifuge testing showed that the Chemiphase A3 product removed all but 0.5 % the

water present within the crude sample, whilst the Competitor B product failed to remove all

the water on either first or second stage tests. Whilst the Competitor A product did remove

all but 0.2 % the water in the first stage testing, it failed to reproduce this in the second

stage of testing.






Demulsifier Trial

Table 8.3.1 Chemiphase B1 vs Competitor A vs Competitor B Bottle Testing

Sample % H2O Drop

Out

% BS Drop


Picture

Reference

B1 9.5 0 4

Good H2O

clarity,

3

Finely

dispersed oil at

interface

7.1.8

Competitor A

(first stage)

9.0 0 2

Multiple Large

oil droplets in

water phase

2

Poor, brown

opaque (2.5%)

6.1.2

Competitor A

(second stage)

0.0 0 0

No noticeable

water drop

0

No noticeable

water drop

7.1.2

Competitor B

(first stage)

5.5 0 2

Multiple Large

oil droplets in

water phase

2

Poor, brown

opaque (1.0%)

6.1.3

Competitor B

(second stage)

5.0 0 4

Good H2O

clarity,

2

Ragged,

Large oil

droplets in

7.1.3

As can be seen in the table above, the Chemiphase B1 sample outperformed all the

Competitor A and Competitor B samples tested. It had a higher water drop and produced a

higher clarity of water and a stronger interface.

Table 8.3.2 Chemiphase B1 vs Chemiphase CC9496 vs Clariant 5481 Centrifuge Testing


Drops (%)

With Knock Out

Drops

(%)

Difference

(%)

Chemiphase B1 1.0 2.0 1.0

Competitor A

(first stage)

0.0 0.2 0.2

Competitor A

(second stage)

1.0 4.0 3.0

Competitor B

(first stage)

0.0 1.0 1.0

Competitor B

(second stage)

2.0 3.0 1.0

The centrifuge testing showed that the Chemiphase A3 product removed all but 0.5 % the water present

within the crude sample, whilst the Competitor A product failed to remove all the water on either first or

second stage tests. Whilst the Competitor A product did remove all but 0.2 % the water in the first stage

testing, it failed to reproduce this in the second stage of testing.






Demulsifier Trial

chemiphase oilfield demulsifier case study - middle east

Documents

chemiphase demulsifier

chemiphase samples

chosen demulsifier

samples of demulsifier

demulsifier trials

lighter crude

combined crude

clients crude