TOTAL FLOW ASSURANCE MANAGEMENT FOR SUBSEA DEVELOPMENTS

– A CASE FOR REAL-TIME SOLUTION

Professor Babs Oyeneyin; C.Eng

School of Engineering

Robert Gordon University

Aberdeen

PRESENTATION OUTLINE

• Introduction

• Challenges of Deep Water Development - QUESTIONS

• OGI CHALLENGES

• Flow Assurance Challenges

• Need for Real-Time /Proactive Solutions

• Examples of RGU PE TEAM R&D Building Blocks – CO2 Sequestration for Heavy Oil Recovery

• CASE FOR COMBINATION OF CASED BASED REASONING + MACHINE LEARNING + MODELING

SUBSEA TIE-BACK

• Deep - Tier I – 500m – 1500m

• Very Deep Water Depths - Tier II – 1500- 3000meters

• Ultra Deepwater - Tier III – >3000meters

EXAMPLES OF DEEPWATER ENVIRON

KEY CHARACTERISTICS

• High Pressure : 20Kpsi – 30Kpsi[200MPa-300MPa]

• Low Pressure & High Temperature

• HP & LT/LP-HT/HP-HT

• Unconsolidated Reservoir:

– Sand Production

• Multiphase Fluid Production

– Gas, Condensate, Oil, Water [Formation Water vs Condensed Water], Solids[Sand, debris, hydrates, scale, etc]

• Long Subsea Tie Back

• 3-D Heat Transfer?

– High Temperature : >230oC

– Cold Sea Bed temperature < - 20oC

INTRODUCING RGU

RGU

FACULTIES

DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY

ENGINEERING COMPUTING

& INFORMATICS

SCOTT SUNDERLAND

BUSINESS SCHOOL

HEALTH & SOCIAL CARE

OIL & GAS INSTITUTE

SOE ACADEMIC PROGRAMMES • BSC - ME; MOE

• B.ENG – ME; MOE; EE

• M.ENG - ME; MOE; EE

• MSc – Oil & Gas

– Drilling & Wells

– Subsea Engineering

– Production Operations

– Renewable Energy

RGU SOE RESEARCH AREAS

R & D THEMES

OIL & GAS

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING CONDITION

MONITORING

FLUIDS & HEAT

TRANSFER

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

SUSTAINABLE SYSTEMS

UNDERSTANDING SUSTAINABILITY RENEWABLE

ENERGY

MATERIAL & MANUFACTURING

ADVANCED MATERIALS

MEMBRANE & PROCESS CONTROL SYSTEMS

OGI CHALLENGES • Economic Downturn

• Demand vs Supply

• Unstable Regions

• High Lifting Cost

• Reactive Approach

• Human Factors – SITUATION AWARENESS

• NEED FOR OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY = LOW $/BBL

– Proactive Approach to FEED & Management

– Real-Time Diagnosis & Solution

• ACCURATE AND RELIABLE MODELS/DATA

MULTIPHASE PRODUCTION CHARACTERISTICS

• OIL TIEBACKS

– OIL

– GAS

– FORMATION WATER

– CHEMICALS

• GAS TIEBACKS

– GAS

– CONDENSATE

– FORMATION WATER

– CONDENSED WATER

– CHEMICALS

FLOW ASSURANCE ISSUES • Hydrate Management

– MEG; KHI; AA[Anti Agglomerate]

– Flow Management

• Scale Management

– Scale Inhibitor

– Flow Management

• Alsphatenes/Wax

• Microbial

• Sand Management

– Sand Production Rate

– Sand Size Distribution

– Sand Transport

• Slugging

• Subsea Separation

• Produced Water Management [Separation, Treatment]

• UNCONVENTIONAL HEAVY OIL

11

EXAMPLES OF FLOW ASSURANCE PROBLEMS

Hydrate Block Sand Production

12

Typical Field Development Subsea Layout

AN EXAMPLE OF SUBSEA DEVELOPMENT

SUBSEA DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGES – TECHNOLOGY ENABLERS

• Front End Design Optimisation for Production control & Management

– Transient Multiphase Flow Phenomena

• Start-up & Blowdown effects VS WELL MANAGEMENT

• Precise Multiphase flow modelling – Coupled reaction kinetics?

- Produced water utilisation

• Multiphase Flow Metering?

– Salinity - SA

– Phase Fractions

– Phase Differentiation- Condensed Water vs Formation Water

• Precise Production Monitoring

• Cold Flow?

– Intelligent Condition Monitoring & Surveillance

– Precise Pressure & temperature Profiling

• Sand Production/Monitoring/Transport

• Produced Water Management

– Subsea Processing = In-line separation?[OSPAR Regulation QA/QC Standard]

ACTION POINTS

14

HYDRATE PHASE BOUNDARY (MEG+KHI)

©MBO

INTEGRATED MODELLING TOOLS

RESERVOIR WELL INFLOW COMPLETION

SUBSEA PRODUCTION

SYSTEM

SUBSEA COMPRESSION

STATION

SUBSEA FLOW LINES

‘’TOPSIDE’’ SYSTEM UPSTREAM INLET SEPARATION

INLET

SEPARATION

TOPSIDE PRE-COMPRESSION

STATION

INTEGRATED/AUTOMATIC MODELLING DIFFICULT • Data Acquisition/Transmission in Deepwater • Data Quality • Model Quality

• Steady State/Transient Phenomena • E.g Temperature profile vs Gas expansion[Joules-Thomson Effect] • 3-D Heat Transfer

• Complex Environment

16

SUBSEA HEALTH CARE

• Condition Monitoring

• Proactive Prediction/Diagnosis in Real-Time

– Integrated Modelling

• Complex Phenomena

• Loads of Uncertainties

• Quality Data

• ACCURACY /REPEATABILITY

– Case Based Reasoning + MODELLING + MACHINE LEARNING?

• Real-Time Process Optimisation

REAL-TIME PREDICTION AND AUTOMATED LOOKAHEAD SYSTEM

VIRTUAL SENSING

MODELLING

MACHINE LEARNING

CBR

PATTERN RECOGNITION

SENSOR

DATA

KEY REQUIREMENTS

• PRECISE AND ACCURATE DATA

• ACCURATE MODEL

• PRECISE MONITORING

• REAL-TIME PREDICTION

• LOOK AHEAD CAPABILITY

RESEARCH BUILDING BLOCK

HYBRID SOLUTION – R & D BUILDING BLOCKS • END-TO-END SOLUTION

• FLOW ASSURANCE SOLIDS DIFFERENTIATION AND QUANTIFICATION

• TRANSIENT MODELLING & VISUALISATION

– INTELLIGENT/VIRTUAL MONITORING

• NICHE HARDWARE SUPPORT & PROCESS SUPPORT

– NMR FOR SOLIDS MONITORING – NEW PROJECT

– COLD FLOW TECHNOLOGY

– SALINITYSCAN

• MULTIPHASE METERING

• ELECTROSTATIC COALESCENCE – MAIR’S TAIL

• CASE BASED REASONING FOR PROACTIVE PREDICTION

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING RESEARCH GROUP

PE RESEARCH

MULTIPHASE FLOW

ASSURANCE

DEEPWATER TECHNOLOGIES

INTEGRATED SAND MANAGEMENT

IMPROVED HEAVY

OIL RECOVERY

WELL ENGINEERING

UNCONVENTIONAL

RESERVOIR MNGMT

TRANSIENT MPF

MODELING

CBR +

MACHINE LEARNING

NMR SYSTEM

SALINITY SCAN

MARE’S TAIL

SAGD COLD FLOW

CO2 FOR

CHOR

HEAVY OIL

• What is Heavy Oil?

– High Density- above 0.92 specific gravity

– High Molecular weight

– High Viscosity- above 100 cP @ Reservoir

• Where and how much? Category °API

gravity

Down hole viscosity

(cP)

Light heavy oil 20-25 25-100

Heavy oil 10-20 100-10,000

Extra heavy oil <10 100-10,000

Tar

sands/Bitumen

<20 > 10,000

RECOVERY METHODS

• To fill the increasing gap between supply and demand

• Low mobility- Enhanced recovery techniques

• Cold

– Oil Mining, ESP, CHOPS (Solvent, CO2, water etc)

– Low Recovery

• Thermal

– Huff and Puff, In-situ combustion, SAGD

– SAGD is popular for high recovery- Steam reduces viscosity

– High recovery but require more investment

– Process risk assessment and planning is required

COLD FLOW?

• Useful & Effective Option

• To be backed up by Intelligent Condition Monitoring & Surveillance

• Total Insulation or Heating uneconomical

• Solids Transport with HECTOR Sub at strategic Points along Tie-Back

• Intelligent Pigs[Gel Pigs vs Mechanical Pigs]

• Hector Sub Positioning Critical

CRITICAL INDUSTRY CHALLENGES - OUR BUSINESS DRIVER

PRODUCTION/ INTEGRITY/ABANDONMENT

DRILLING/G&G

Losses

Inflow

Extended Reach Wel Problems Completion Material erosion - Sand

SAND MANAGEMENT

DEEPWATER DEVELOPMENT

Well Blowout 26

HYBRID SOLUTION • END-TO-END SOLUTION

– FOCUSSED RESEARCH THEMES

• SOLIDS DIFFERENTIATION & QUANTIFICATION – NMR SYSTEM FOR VOID FRACTIONS & DIFFERENTIATION

• TRANSIENT MODELLING & VISUALISATION

– INTELLIGENT/VIRTUAL MONITORING

• HEAVY OIL STUDIES

• NICHE HARDWARE SUPPORT & PROCESS SUPPORT

– HECTOR UNIT

– HYDRAFLOW/HYDRACHEK

– COLD FLOW TECHNOLOGY

– SALINITYSCAN

• MULTIPHASE METERING

• CASE BASED REASONING FOR PROACTIVE PREDICTION

STEP-CHANGE NODAL ANALYSIS FOR FLOW ASSURANCE

SCALE WINDOW

HYDRATE WINDOW

STRATEGIC SOLUTION PLAN • Establish Thorough Diagnosis Technique

• Improve Related Monitoring

• Drive to minimise impact of sand production & Flow Problems

• Condition Monitoring with Case Based Reasoning/SITUATION AWARENESS

– Unloading strategy

– Sand Sampling/Analysis

– Oil/Water Analysis

– Reservoir/Produced Water Management

– Topside Solids Management

• Competency Training

MULTIPHASE FLUID –NUCLEATED SOLID FLOW PATTERN COUPLING

CO2 SEQUESTRATION FOR IMPROVED HEAVY OIL RECOVERY

• CO2 needs to be at super critical pressure and temperature for it to be utilised for IHOR

• Improved recovery can effected by a combination of miscibility -immiscibility mechanism. - The CO2 at appropriate high pressure and temperature can be miscible with the heavy oil, and, once dissolved, it has two effects.

– First, it causes the oil to swell, thereby lowering the oil’s viscosity significantly and making it flow more easily in response to pressure gradients.

– Under the miscible conditions it reduces the interfacial (capillary) forces that cause the heavy oil to stick to the reservoir rock.

NEW RESEARCH

• Process of the interaction between CO2 and the rock matrix is not yet fully understood .

• There is evidence that, from formation chemistry aspect, there can be foaming phenomena that can dramatically affect the integrity of the rock matrix and its flow and petrophysical properties

• New follow-up research

• INDUSTRY COLLABORATION REQUIRED

REDUCING COST , INCREASING EFFICIENCY AND PRODUCTIVITY WITH

INTEGRATED MULTIPHASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM +

PROACTIVE CONDITION MONITORING WITH

- CASE-BASED REASONING TECHNOLOGY APPLICATION TO REAL-TIME PROCESS DIAGNOSIS AND OPTIMISATION

SUBSEA HEALTH CARE

• Condition Monitoring

• Proactive Prediction/Diagnosis in Real-Time

– Integrated Modelling

• Complex Phenomena

• Loads of Uncertainties

• Quality Data

• ACCURACY /REPEATABILITY

– Case Based Reasoning + MODELLING + MACHINE LEARNING?

• Real-Time Process Optimisation

REAL-TIME PREDICTION AND AUTOMATED LOOKAHEAD SYSTEM

VIRTUAL SENSING

MODELLING

MACHINE LEARNING

CBR

PATTERN RECOGNITION

SENSOR

DATA

CASE BASED SITUATION AWARENESS COGNITIVE FRAMEWORK

CBSA MODEL

• SEVEN COMPONENTS

– User context,

– State of the environment,

– Case-base (situation library),

– Perception,

– Comprehension,

– Projection,

– Preserve experience.

CASE BASED SITUATION AWARENESS MODEL

HYBRID SOLUTION

VIRTUAL SENSING

REAL-TIME

SIMULATION

MODELLING

UPSCALING

CBR/PATTERN RECOGNITION

DATA ACQUISITION

MACHINE LEANING AUTOMATED

DATA MANAGEMENT VALIDATION

REAL-TIME PREDICTION AND AUTOMATED LOOKAHEAD SYSTEM

VIRTUAL SENSING

MODELLING

MACHINE LEARNING

CBR

PATTERN RECOGNITION

SENSOR

DATA

©MBO

?

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR LISTENING

41