Applications of Multiphase Technologies Optimize Upstream Operations in Saudi Aramco

Abstract

New oil fields are hard to develop and mature oil fields are becoming more challenging and costly to operate. Advances in multiphase technologies have made significant impact on the way oil and gas companies managing and optimizing their upstream oil business. Multiphase technologies, including multiphase pumping, multiphase flow metering and compact separation systems, have been recognized to provide the critical need to alleviate production decline, optimize production operation, and reduce capital and operating costs. In this regard, Saudi Aramco has undertaken a number of new production related initiatives, developments and projects involving multiphase technologies that are deemed to provide advantages in achieving corporate goals and objectives. The company has invested and implemented significant new multiphase technologies with the goal of maximizing production and minimizing capital investment and operating costs. Multiphase Pumping (MPP) technology provides a cost effective option to develop remote and marginal oil field discoveries. MPP showed excellent performance during field test projects and resulted in significant incremental oil production. Applications of Multiphase Flow Metering (MPFM) technology has resulted in significant capital and operating cost savings. Continuous and real-time data has enhanced production and reservoir management, which led to improved total recovery. Compact Separation technology is another area Saudi Aramco is committed to pursue its field implementation. The technology has the potential to de-bottleneck existing facilities capacity limitation, and reduce facility cost for new oil and gas field developments. This paper will provide an overview of the multiphase technologies Saudi Aramco is considering for field applications. It will also discuss Saudi Aramco's experience and future potential applications. The applications discussed have either been implemented or are expected to be implemented in the near future. Introduction Water cut and gas fraction increase with field production over time. In addition, problems can be compounded by satellite fields located long distances from central processing facilities, and multiphase well fluids transported through pipelines crossing locations with hilly terrain. This is due to the added length of the pipelines transporting the well fluids to production stations or process facilities. There are also specific demands by the process systems in term of the optimum operating conditions. This is often dictated by the characteristics and the operating range of the capacity of the separators in terms of the gas flow rate capacity, the gas compression system and the amount of water they can process as water cut increases.

Proposal of a stage-by-stage design method and its application on a multi-stage multiphase pump based on numerical simulations

“…There are some benefits for the application of multiphase pumps, such as increasing production rate in an existing export pipe-line, reducing well-head flow pressure to increase oil and gas recovery, making it possible to produce hydrocarbon from marginal fields without installing new production facilities and reducing cost of surface facility modification. 1 Helico-axial pumps are the most used among several typical kinds of multiphase pumps including centrifugal pumps, semi-axial pumps and twin-screw pumps. 2 It is a rotodynamic pump with free open hydraulic channels which can accommodate solid particles in the flow.…”

Experimental investigation of the flow at the entrance of a rotodynamic multiphase pump by visualization

“…The use of MPPs in oil fields has attracted world-wide attention since it was proposed due to considerable economic benefits to the investor. Nowadays, hundreds of MPPs have been applied in onshore, offshore and submarine oilfields all over the word (Hamoud and Al-Ghamdi, 2008;Humoud et al, 2008).…”

Effect of Superficial Gas Velocity on the Separation Efficiency of Inline Horizontal Swirl Tube Separator

“…Although the technology is fairly new, with some compact separator already installed for field application [2][3][4][5], the lack of information and publication on the separator performance is a problem as highlighted by Hoffman and Stein [6]. Most reports only concentrate on the field application of the separator without discussing the factors that affects the separation performance of the separator.…”