Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field

Marian Charles Abatai; Julius Udo Akpabio; Anietie Ndarake Okon; Benjamin Reuben Etuk

doi:doi:10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11

| Peer-Reviewed

Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field

Marian Charles Abatai, Julius Udo Akpabio, Anietie Ndarake Okon, Benjamin Reuben Etuk

Published in Engineering and Applied Sciences (Volume 5, Issue 5)

Received: 3 September 2020 Accepted: 18 September 2020 Published: 28 September 2020

Views: Downloads:

Download PDF

Share This Article

Twitter
Linked In
Facebook

Abstract

Crude oil emulsion is an inevitable phenomenon in hydrocarbon production. Treatment of crude oil emulsion is challenging when the emulsion is stabilized. As crude oil is brought to the surface and pumped to the production facilities, the formation of emulsion increases operating cost. There is a wide array of demulsifiers that are available in the oil and gas industry for the treatment of crude oil emulsion, but one major concern has always been the efficiency of the treatment. No single universal demulsifier can effectively remove emulsion and a combination of two or more is usually expensive. In this study, crude samples were collected from the inlet manifold of a Niger Delta field and bottle tests were conducted with several demulsifiers to select the best chemical demulsifier for use in treating the emulsions as well as the optimum combination. To achieve this objective, twelve different industrial-based demulsifiers were considered which were EXP50, Separol NF-36, Baker-Basf V13-312, Servo CC-8271, Tretolite RP6275, NACCO-Exxon 006-1442, DMO87005, EXP30, AnticorQIT007, AnticorBE027, DMO86634 and DMO81656. It was observed that DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 produced better results based on separated water volume than other demulsifiers. Hence, the decision to use these demulsifiers to assess their combined potential and the demulsifier factors, namely, concentration, temperature and time effects on the separated water volume using design of experiments (DOE) approach. The results obtained shows that the selected demulsifiers DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 in a combined form separate more water volume from the crude oil emulsion. Also, the performance of the combined demulsifier is dependent on the combination ratio of the selected demulsifiers. Furthermore, the results depict that the selected (non-combined) demulsifiers and the combined demulsifier factors’ main effects on the separated water volume are concentration, while concentration-time and temperature-time are the factors’ interaction effects for selected and combined demulsifiers, respectively. Again, the magnitude of the main and interaction effects of the combined demulsifier’s factors on the separated water volume is affected by the selected demulsifiers combination ratio. Thus, the combined demulsifier at 0.45mL concentration at a temperature of 90°C for 60 minutes gave a good potential that would necessitate its use for crude oil emulsion treatment in the Niger Delta.

Published in	Engineering and Applied Sciences (Volume 5, Issue 5)
DOI	10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11
Page(s)	83-91
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Crude Oil, Emulsion, Demulsifier, Design of Experiments, Niger Delta

References

[1]	Noik, C., Dalmazzone, L. and Komunjer, L. (2003). Mechanism of crude oil/water interfaced destabilization by silicone demulsifiers. International Journal of Chemistry, 2 (3): 23-45.
[2]	Oriji, A. B. and Appah, D. (2012). Suitability of local demulsifier as an emulsion treating agent in oil and gas production. Paper presented at the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Nigerian Annual International Conference and Exhibition, Abuja, Nigeria, 2-4 August 2012.
[3]	Schramm, L. L. (1992). Emulsions: Fundamentals and Applications in the Petroleum Industry. 3rd Edition. John Wiley and Sons, Washington, DC. 230 p.
[4]	Sun, T., Zhang, L. Y. and Wang, S. (2002). Influence of demulsifiers of different structures on interfacial dilational properties of an oil-water interface containing surface-active fractions from crude oil. Journal of Colloid Interface Science, 255: 241-247.
[5]	Opawale, A. O, Osisanya, A. O, Appah, D. and Otakoro, A. (2011). An Integrated Approach to Selecting and Optimizing Demulsifiers Chemical Injection points using Shearing Energy Analysis: A Justification for Downhole Injection in High Pressured Well. Paper presented at the Offshore Technology Conference, Houston, Texas, 2-5 May 2011.
[6]	Auflem, I. H. (2002). Influence of Asphalting Aggregation and Pressure on Crude Oil Emulsion Stability. MSc. Thesis, Norwegian University of Science and Technology. Norway, 53 p.
[7]	Mohammed, R. A., Bailey, A. I. and Luckham, P. F. (1993). Dewatering of crude oil emulsions: Rheological behaviour of the crude oil water interface. Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects. 80 (2): 223-235.
[8]	Sanchez, L. E. and Zakin, J. L. (1994). Transport of viscous crudes as concentrated oil-in-water emulsions. Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 33 (12): 3256-3261.
[9]	Khan, M. R. (1996). Rheological properties of heavy oils and heavy oil emulsions. Energy Sources, 18 (4): 385-391.
[10]	Hemmingsen, P. V., Silset, A., Hannisdal, A. E. (2005). Emulsions of heavy crude oils influence of viscosity, temperature and dilution. Journal of Dispersion Science and Technology, 26 (5): 615-627.
[11]	Kokal, S. L. (2005). Crude oil emulsions: A state-of-the-art review. Society of Petroleum Engineers Production and Facilities Journal, 20 (1): 5-13.
[12]	Abdel-Raouf, M. E. (2012). Factors affecting the stability of crude oil emulsions. Croatia Intech Journal, 23 (2): 1-13.
[13]	Poindexter M. K, Chuai S, Marble S. and Marsh S. C. (2006). The Key to predicting emulsion stability: solid content. International oilfield Journal, 3 (2): 1-9.
[14]	Aamir, S. A. (1998). De-Emulsification of Different Iraqi Crude Oil Emulsion. MSc. Dissertation, University Baghdad, Iraq.
[15]	Rezende, F. C. Rabelo, R. B. and Filho, P. J. C. (2017). The use of Experiments for Development of Flocculating Agents for Treatment of Crude Oil Emulsions. Paper presented at the Offshore Technology Conference Brasil, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 24-26 October 2017.
[16]	Amadi, N. O. and Ajienka, J. A. (2007). Comparative Evaluation of Environmental Concern in the use of Oilfield Production chemicals. Proceedings of the 1st International Conference and Exhibition on Oilfield Chemistry, University of Port Harcourt, 14-15 June 2007.
[17]	Ovuema, A. and Okotie, S. (2015). Emulsion Treatment in the Oil Industry: A Case Study of Oredo Field Crude Oil Emulsion. Paper presented at the Nigeria Annual International Conference and Exhibition, Lagos, 5-7 May 2015.
[18]	Abouther, T. H. (2010) Effect of pH and salinity on stability of crude oil water emulsions, Misan Journal for Academic Studies, 9 (17): 2-12.
[19]	MacConnachie, C. A., Mikula R. J, Kurucz, L. and Seoular R. J. (1993). Correlation of Demulsifier Performance and Demulsifier Chemistry. Paper Presented at the Petroleum conference of the South Saskatchewan Section, South Saskatchewan, 12-15 June 1993.
[20]	Midttun, Ö, Kallevik, H., Sjöblom, J, and Kvalheim, O. (2000). Multivariate screening analysis of water-in-oil emulsions in high external electric field as studied by means of dielectric time domain spectroscopy. Journal of Colloid Interface Science, 227: 262-271.
[21]	Einar J. J. and Magnar I. S. (1988). Water-in-Crude oil emulsions from Norwegian continental shelf part formation, characterization and stability correlation, Colloids and Surfaces Journal, 34: 353-370.
[22]	Fingas, M. and Fieldhouse, B. (2004). Formation of water in oil emulsions and application to oil spill modeling. Journal of Hazardous Materials 107: 37-50.
[23]	Fingas, M., Fieldhouse, B., Bobra, M. and Tennyson, E. (2003). The physics and chemistry of emulsions. Proceedings on workshop on emulsion, marine spill response corporation held at Washington, DC from 12-14 July, 2003, 21 p.
[24]	Abatai, M. C (2019). Demulsification of Crude oil emulsion: A case study of a Well in a Crude processing facility in the Niger Delta. MEng. Dissertation, University of Uyo, Uyo, Nigeria.
[25]	Yi, M., Huang, J. and Wang L. (2017). Research on crude oil demulsification using the combined method of ultrasound and chemical demulsifier. Journal of Chemistry, 2017: 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/914796.

Cite This Article

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Marian Charles Abatai, Julius Udo Akpabio, Anietie Ndarake Okon, Benjamin Reuben Etuk. (2020). Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field. Engineering and Applied Sciences, 5(5), 83-91. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Marian Charles Abatai; Julius Udo Akpabio; Anietie Ndarake Okon; Benjamin Reuben Etuk. Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field. Eng. Appl. Sci. 2020, 5(5), 83-91. doi: 10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Marian Charles Abatai, Julius Udo Akpabio, Anietie Ndarake Okon, Benjamin Reuben Etuk. Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field. Eng Appl Sci. 2020;5(5):83-91. doi: 10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11,
  author = {Marian Charles Abatai and Julius Udo Akpabio and Anietie Ndarake Okon and Benjamin Reuben Etuk},
  title = {Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field},
  journal = {Engineering and Applied Sciences},
  volume = {5},
  number = {5},
  pages = {83-91},
  doi = {10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.eas.20200505.11},
  abstract = {Crude oil emulsion is an inevitable phenomenon in hydrocarbon production. Treatment of crude oil emulsion is challenging when the emulsion is stabilized. As crude oil is brought to the surface and pumped to the production facilities, the formation of emulsion increases operating cost. There is a wide array of demulsifiers that are available in the oil and gas industry for the treatment of crude oil emulsion, but one major concern has always been the efficiency of the treatment. No single universal demulsifier can effectively remove emulsion and a combination of two or more is usually expensive. In this study, crude samples were collected from the inlet manifold of a Niger Delta field and bottle tests were conducted with several demulsifiers to select the best chemical demulsifier for use in treating the emulsions as well as the optimum combination. To achieve this objective, twelve different industrial-based demulsifiers were considered which were EXP50, Separol NF-36, Baker-Basf V13-312, Servo CC-8271, Tretolite RP6275, NACCO-Exxon 006-1442, DMO87005, EXP30, AnticorQIT007, AnticorBE027, DMO86634 and DMO81656. It was observed that DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 produced better results based on separated water volume than other demulsifiers. Hence, the decision to use these demulsifiers to assess their combined potential and the demulsifier factors, namely, concentration, temperature and time effects on the separated water volume using design of experiments (DOE) approach. The results obtained shows that the selected demulsifiers DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 in a combined form separate more water volume from the crude oil emulsion. Also, the performance of the combined demulsifier is dependent on the combination ratio of the selected demulsifiers. Furthermore, the results depict that the selected (non-combined) demulsifiers and the combined demulsifier factors’ main effects on the separated water volume are concentration, while concentration-time and temperature-time are the factors’ interaction effects for selected and combined demulsifiers, respectively. Again, the magnitude of the main and interaction effects of the combined demulsifier’s factors on the separated water volume is affected by the selected demulsifiers combination ratio. Thus, the combined demulsifier at 0.45mL concentration at a temperature of 90°C for 60 minutes gave a good potential that would necessitate its use for crude oil emulsion treatment in the Niger Delta.},
 year = {2020}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field
AU  - Marian Charles Abatai
AU  - Julius Udo Akpabio
AU  - Anietie Ndarake Okon
AU  - Benjamin Reuben Etuk
Y1  - 2020/09/28
PY  - 2020
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11
T2  - Engineering and Applied Sciences
JF  - Engineering and Applied Sciences
JO  - Engineering and Applied Sciences
SP  - 83
EP  - 91
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2575-1468
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11
AB  - Crude oil emulsion is an inevitable phenomenon in hydrocarbon production. Treatment of crude oil emulsion is challenging when the emulsion is stabilized. As crude oil is brought to the surface and pumped to the production facilities, the formation of emulsion increases operating cost. There is a wide array of demulsifiers that are available in the oil and gas industry for the treatment of crude oil emulsion, but one major concern has always been the efficiency of the treatment. No single universal demulsifier can effectively remove emulsion and a combination of two or more is usually expensive. In this study, crude samples were collected from the inlet manifold of a Niger Delta field and bottle tests were conducted with several demulsifiers to select the best chemical demulsifier for use in treating the emulsions as well as the optimum combination. To achieve this objective, twelve different industrial-based demulsifiers were considered which were EXP50, Separol NF-36, Baker-Basf V13-312, Servo CC-8271, Tretolite RP6275, NACCO-Exxon 006-1442, DMO87005, EXP30, AnticorQIT007, AnticorBE027, DMO86634 and DMO81656. It was observed that DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 produced better results based on separated water volume than other demulsifiers. Hence, the decision to use these demulsifiers to assess their combined potential and the demulsifier factors, namely, concentration, temperature and time effects on the separated water volume using design of experiments (DOE) approach. The results obtained shows that the selected demulsifiers DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 in a combined form separate more water volume from the crude oil emulsion. Also, the performance of the combined demulsifier is dependent on the combination ratio of the selected demulsifiers. Furthermore, the results depict that the selected (non-combined) demulsifiers and the combined demulsifier factors’ main effects on the separated water volume are concentration, while concentration-time and temperature-time are the factors’ interaction effects for selected and combined demulsifiers, respectively. Again, the magnitude of the main and interaction effects of the combined demulsifier’s factors on the separated water volume is affected by the selected demulsifiers combination ratio. Thus, the combined demulsifier at 0.45mL concentration at a temperature of 90°C for 60 minutes gave a good potential that would necessitate its use for crude oil emulsion treatment in the Niger Delta.
VL  - 5
IS  - 5
ER  -

Copy | Download

Author Information

Marian Charles Abatai

Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Uyo, Uyo, Nigeria
Julius Udo Akpabio

Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Uyo, Uyo, Nigeria
Anietie Ndarake Okon

Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Uyo, Uyo, Nigeria
Benjamin Reuben Etuk

Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Uyo, Uyo, Nigeria

Download PDF

Sections

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Marian Charles Abatai, Julius Udo Akpabio, Anietie Ndarake Okon, Benjamin Reuben Etuk. (2020). Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field. Engineering and Applied Sciences, 5(5), 83-91. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Marian Charles Abatai; Julius Udo Akpabio; Anietie Ndarake Okon; Benjamin Reuben Etuk. Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field. Eng. Appl. Sci. 2020, 5(5), 83-91. doi: 10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Marian Charles Abatai, Julius Udo Akpabio, Anietie Ndarake Okon, Benjamin Reuben Etuk. Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field. Eng Appl Sci. 2020;5(5):83-91. doi: 10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11,
  author = {Marian Charles Abatai and Julius Udo Akpabio and Anietie Ndarake Okon and Benjamin Reuben Etuk},
  title = {Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field},
  journal = {Engineering and Applied Sciences},
  volume = {5},
  number = {5},
  pages = {83-91},
  doi = {10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.eas.20200505.11},
  abstract = {Crude oil emulsion is an inevitable phenomenon in hydrocarbon production. Treatment of crude oil emulsion is challenging when the emulsion is stabilized. As crude oil is brought to the surface and pumped to the production facilities, the formation of emulsion increases operating cost. There is a wide array of demulsifiers that are available in the oil and gas industry for the treatment of crude oil emulsion, but one major concern has always been the efficiency of the treatment. No single universal demulsifier can effectively remove emulsion and a combination of two or more is usually expensive. In this study, crude samples were collected from the inlet manifold of a Niger Delta field and bottle tests were conducted with several demulsifiers to select the best chemical demulsifier for use in treating the emulsions as well as the optimum combination. To achieve this objective, twelve different industrial-based demulsifiers were considered which were EXP50, Separol NF-36, Baker-Basf V13-312, Servo CC-8271, Tretolite RP6275, NACCO-Exxon 006-1442, DMO87005, EXP30, AnticorQIT007, AnticorBE027, DMO86634 and DMO81656. It was observed that DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 produced better results based on separated water volume than other demulsifiers. Hence, the decision to use these demulsifiers to assess their combined potential and the demulsifier factors, namely, concentration, temperature and time effects on the separated water volume using design of experiments (DOE) approach. The results obtained shows that the selected demulsifiers DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 in a combined form separate more water volume from the crude oil emulsion. Also, the performance of the combined demulsifier is dependent on the combination ratio of the selected demulsifiers. Furthermore, the results depict that the selected (non-combined) demulsifiers and the combined demulsifier factors’ main effects on the separated water volume are concentration, while concentration-time and temperature-time are the factors’ interaction effects for selected and combined demulsifiers, respectively. Again, the magnitude of the main and interaction effects of the combined demulsifier’s factors on the separated water volume is affected by the selected demulsifiers combination ratio. Thus, the combined demulsifier at 0.45mL concentration at a temperature of 90°C for 60 minutes gave a good potential that would necessitate its use for crude oil emulsion treatment in the Niger Delta.},
 year = {2020}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Demulsification of Crude Oil Emulsion in Well X in a Niger Delta Field
AU  - Marian Charles Abatai
AU  - Julius Udo Akpabio
AU  - Anietie Ndarake Okon
AU  - Benjamin Reuben Etuk
Y1  - 2020/09/28
PY  - 2020
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11
T2  - Engineering and Applied Sciences
JF  - Engineering and Applied Sciences
JO  - Engineering and Applied Sciences
SP  - 83
EP  - 91
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2575-1468
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.eas.20200505.11
AB  - Crude oil emulsion is an inevitable phenomenon in hydrocarbon production. Treatment of crude oil emulsion is challenging when the emulsion is stabilized. As crude oil is brought to the surface and pumped to the production facilities, the formation of emulsion increases operating cost. There is a wide array of demulsifiers that are available in the oil and gas industry for the treatment of crude oil emulsion, but one major concern has always been the efficiency of the treatment. No single universal demulsifier can effectively remove emulsion and a combination of two or more is usually expensive. In this study, crude samples were collected from the inlet manifold of a Niger Delta field and bottle tests were conducted with several demulsifiers to select the best chemical demulsifier for use in treating the emulsions as well as the optimum combination. To achieve this objective, twelve different industrial-based demulsifiers were considered which were EXP50, Separol NF-36, Baker-Basf V13-312, Servo CC-8271, Tretolite RP6275, NACCO-Exxon 006-1442, DMO87005, EXP30, AnticorQIT007, AnticorBE027, DMO86634 and DMO81656. It was observed that DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 produced better results based on separated water volume than other demulsifiers. Hence, the decision to use these demulsifiers to assess their combined potential and the demulsifier factors, namely, concentration, temperature and time effects on the separated water volume using design of experiments (DOE) approach. The results obtained shows that the selected demulsifiers DMO87005 and AnticorQIT007 in a combined form separate more water volume from the crude oil emulsion. Also, the performance of the combined demulsifier is dependent on the combination ratio of the selected demulsifiers. Furthermore, the results depict that the selected (non-combined) demulsifiers and the combined demulsifier factors’ main effects on the separated water volume are concentration, while concentration-time and temperature-time are the factors’ interaction effects for selected and combined demulsifiers, respectively. Again, the magnitude of the main and interaction effects of the combined demulsifier’s factors on the separated water volume is affected by the selected demulsifiers combination ratio. Thus, the combined demulsifier at 0.45mL concentration at a temperature of 90°C for 60 minutes gave a good potential that would necessitate its use for crude oil emulsion treatment in the Niger Delta.
VL  - 5
IS  - 5
ER  -

Copy | Download