Case study – Simulation of paraffin deposition on a pipeline and study of the effect of additives on rheology
Sector: Oil
Customer type: Group
Contact department: Study
The deposition of paraffins from thick crude oils is a recurrent problem during the transportation in the pipeline, requiring very frequent curettage operations to avoid clogging of the line. The Customer wishes to assess the impact of anti-deposition additives by avoiding full-field tests and called on RHEONIS to develop a reliable laboratory technique to quantify the deposition of paraffin under thermal and rheology representative of transportation.
A project to design a complex instrumental module to make the additive benchmark more reliable
In response to this request, RHEONIS has developed an instrumental module adaptable to a rheometer, to simulate flow and thermal conditions representative of pipe transport. The adjustment of a protocol for measuring the amount deposited has made it possible to conduct a comparative campaign of the performance of anti-deposition additives and to formulate recommendations.
The stages of the study were therefore as follows:
- Bibliographic research
- Development of an adaptable geometry on rheometer
- Sourcing of steel tubes specific to the petrochemical industry
- Development of a deposit protocol
- Comparative study of the effect of anti-deposition additives and recommendations
Intervention System Gauge
Efficiently test the influence of anti-deposit additives and coatings
Unlike the "Cold Finger" test for which the shear is not controlled, the device developed makes it possible to investigate the combination of parameters: nature of the crude, additive, transport conditions (shear, thermal), type of tube . The quantities of material are small, the study times are reduced and the results obtained have been corroborated by field observations.
The advantages of instrumental techniques for simulating paraffin deposition
Investigation of the different factors
Study under controlled conditions
Limited material consumption
fast results
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Last Updated on April 7, 2022 by Vincent Billot