Chapter 5

Field Processing of Crude Oil

INTRODUCTION
The complex nature of wellstreams is responsible for the
complex processing of the produced fluids (gas, oil, water,
and solids). The hydrocarbon portion must be separated
into products that can be stored and/or transported. The
nonhydrocarbon contaminants must be removed as much
as feasible to meet storage, transport, reinjection, and dis-
posal specifications. ltimate disposal of the various
waste streams depends on factors such as the location of
the field and the applicable environmental regulations.
The overriding criterion for product selection, construc-
tion, and operation decisions is economics.
!igure "-# is a comprehensive picture of the individual
unit operations carried out in field processing. $s stated
in %hapter #, all the various modules shown will not all
be present in every system. !urthermore, the modules
used in a given application may not be arranged in the
exact se&uence shown, although the se&uence is, in gen-
eral, correct. The selection and se&uencing of modules is
determined during the design phase of field development.
'esign bases are discussed first, followed by a review
of typical processing operations. The. scope of processing
and some precautions for reducing emulsion problems
are described next. The final section deals with environ-
mental considerations.
DESIGN !SES
(mportant design parameters include the feed or well-
stream composition, pressure, temperature, and flow
rate. These .properties can and do change with time in a
manner often difficult to predict, but they are neverthe-
less very important. The e&uipment selected should be
sufficiently flexible and/or ade&uately si)ed to operate
the well in the face of these changes in feed flow rate and
composition over the life of the field.
As stated in %hapter *, wellstreams must be sampled
and analy)ed with great care if the analyses are to serve as
a reliable design basis. +ven then the wellstream composi-
tion used in design must be viewed realistically. The li,eli-
hood that the actual feed to the processing e&uipment will
be identical to the design-basis feed is remote. -roduction
is usually from a combination of wells that may each have
differing compositions. %omposition may also vary from
)one to )one in a given formation. The producing pattern
(i.e., number of wells and flow rate from each) will also
probably be different from that originally envisioned.
In addition, wellstream compositions will change as
reservoir pressure declines. -ressure decline with produc-
tion in reservoirs is a much studied phenomenon, which
is difficult to predict because of the nonuniforrniry and
un,nown geometry of the reservoir.
$nother important factor in the field processing of
crude oil is the type of reservoir drive. The three common
types of drive are summari)ed in Table "-#. Table "-#
also summari)es how the gas-oil ratio (GOR), water-oil
ratio (WOR), and reservoir pressure vary with time as the
formation is produced. In addition, the oil rate will gen-
erally fall. .eservoir engineers must forecast these impor-
tant production characteristics. /us,at (#010) points
out that under limited production rates, gas-drive fields
are usually partial water-drive. .
Artiflciallift may be used when the natural drive pres-
sure declines or is absent, such as by pumping the oil
with a deep-well pump or by gas injection into the well-
bore to provide 2gas lift.2 (n the case of very viscous,
dense crude oils, steam may be injected to provide a rea-
sonable flow rate of produced oil.
It .is often advantageous to supplement the original
reservoir drive mechanism by the injection of water or
3#
Figure 5-1 General Field-Processing Scheme
gas into the reservoir. (n the past, such practice was
resorted to after pressure decline, and the procedure was
,nown as secondary recovery. /ore recently, the injection
process may begin very early in the life of the field,
almost from the beginning of production, in the so-
called pressure maintenance. 4olume 5 will discuss in
depth both the processes and e&uipment re&uired for
injection water treatment6 !igure "-# shows a typical
treatment se&uence involving treating vessels and pumps.
7ater-drive fields will exhibit a continuous, and, in
many cases, a dramatic increase in the water-oil ratio.
8olution-gas drive fields or gas-cap drive fields will
exhibit pressure decline and accompanying production
decline with time. 9as injection or reinjection may be
desirable to optimi)e fluid recovery.
Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) may be practiced to
increase the percentage of the in-place oil that is recov-
ered. /any methods have been considered, but the
main methods in use today are the injection of gas (car-
bon dioxide or nitrogen), chemicals (polymers, micellar-
polymer solutions), or steam (thermal flood). $s dis-
cussed in %hapter 1, +:. practices can cause severe
Table "-* Typical 8urge !actors
8ervice !actor
!acility handling primary production from its own
emulsion problems.
-ressure and flow rate changes will affect the design of
oilfield facilities including the selection of vessel and. pipe
si)es and of compressor horsepower, or even the need for
compression. 'esign of e&uipment based solely on initial
production conditions can lead to inade&uate si)ing
and/or omission of vital e&uipment. 9enerali)ations are
platform
!acility handling primary production from another
platform or remote well in less than #"; ft.
!acility handling primary production from another
platform or remote well in more than #"; ft.
!acility handling gas lifted production from its own
platform
!acility handling gas lifted production from another
platform or remote well
*;<
5;<
1;<
1;<
";<
very difficult6 each project must be analy)ed to consider
its peculiar characteristics, including both the early and
late production patterns expected.
-rocessing e&uipment must also be si)ed to handle
short-term flow variations. (n the absence of specific data
(the surge factors suggested in Table "-* =$-( .- #1+,
#00#>) can be used.
$ll of the foregoing factors are important in the field
handling of the crude oil. $nticipation of each or any of
them is important in planning the production facilities.
$nalysis of existing facilities is also re&uired6 in fact,
this tas, is underta,en far more often than the original
design. The same comments previously.made with respect
to- initial design also apply e&ually well to analysis.
-.:%+88(?9 :-+.$T(:?8
As shown in !igure "-#, the individual phases (gas, li&uid
hydrocarbon, li&uid water, and solids) should be sepa-
rated from @each other as early as practical. -hase separa-
tion is discussed in detail in %hapter 3. (ndividual
streams can then be treated with less technical difficulty
and more economically. Aardey and Bin Cadid (#0D0)
8ourceE $-( .- #1+. #00#. .eprinted courtesy of the $merican -etroleum
(nstitute
illustrate how lab and field tests performed before con-
struction can identify and minimi)e future production
and processing problems such as scaling, foaming, emul-
sion formation, wax deposition, and hydrate formation.
-rocessing of the separated streams is now reviewed
briefly because many of the individual unit operations are
discussed in detail in subse&uent chapters.
9as -rocessing
$s shown in !igure "-#, gas processing begins with treat-
ing, if necessary, to remove the acid gases-hydrogen sul-
fide and carbon dioxide. Both gases are very corrosive
when li&uid water is present and hydrogen sulfide is most
toxic. +nvironmental regulations almost always prohibit
the release of significant amounts of hydrogen sulfide to
the surroundings. %onversion to elemental sulfur is
becoming increasingly necessary.
9as sweetening usually uses a&ueous solutions of var-
ious chemicals. Therefore, sweetening will precede dehy-
dration. 'ehydration is often necessary to prevent the
formation of gas hydrates, which may plug high-pressure
processing e&uipment or pipelines at high pressure and at
temperatures considerably higher than 5*F! (:F%).
9as that contains considerable amounts of li&uefiable
hydrocarbons (ethane or propane and heavier) can pro-
duce condensate upon compressing or cooling. The con-
densate may cause difficulty in pipelining or subse&uent
processing. !ield processing to remove these natural-gas
li&uids (?9G), sometimes referred to simply as conden-
sate, may be economical or may be re&uired to meet a
hydrocarbon dew-point specification. (n remote loca-
tions such processing is generally avoided if possible.
.ecovered condensate may, in turn, have to be stabili)ed
by removing dissolved gaseous components to obtain a
transportable product.
!inal disposal of the gas stream depends on the sit-
uation. +arly in the life of a remote field, before the
availability of a pipeline, the gas may simply be flared.
It is becoming more common to conserve the gas by
compression and reinjection into the formation with a
view to its eventual recovery and sales. %onservation is
often demanded by law6 permits to flare are usually
temporary and granted only during the initial start-up
of production. +nvironmental restraints may also pre-
vent flaring especially if the gas contains any hydrogen
sulfide.
The common situation is to flow the natural gas into
a pipeline for sales. 9as pipelines have operating pressure
levels of the order of H;;-# ;;; psia to allow economical
transport in pipes of reasonably small diameter.
%ompression of the gas to pipeline inlet pressure may be
re&uired.
4olume #, %hapter " discusses field processing of nat-
ural gas in considerable detail.
:il -rocessing
$fter free water removal, produced oil often contains
excessive residual emulsified water. Treating, also called
dehydration, is re&uired to reduce the water content to a
value acceptable for transportation or sales. 'ehydration
should be accomplished using the most economic com-
bination of four factors or techni&ues6 namely, residence
time, chemical addition, heat, and electrostatic fields.
%hapter H discusses dehydration in detail. 'ilution water
must occasionally be added to reduce the salt content of
the residual emulsion (i.e., the sales crude oil) to a suit-
ably low level. 8uch desalting is described in %hapter D.
(n the nited 8tates, desalting is usually performed in
the refinery6 overseas, desalting is sometimes performed
in the field.
Aydrogen sulfide in crude oil is limited to reduce han-
dling and transportation difficulties because of its
extreme toxicity and corrosiveness. 9as stripping or heat-
ing is usually used for hydrogen sulfide removal or sweet-
ening as is discussed in %hapter 0.
rude oil sta!ili"ation refers to lowering the vapor
pressure to a value that will allow safe handling and
transport. 4apor pressure control is obtained by stage
separation, reboiled distillation, or a combination of the
two. 'uring stabili)ation some of the more volatile
hydrocarbons are removed as vapor and this gas phase
entrains hydrogen sulfide and other volatile sulfur com-
pounds from the sour crude oil. $dditional sweetening
may not be re&uired. 8tabili)ation is discussed fully in
%hapter 0.
7ater -rocessing
-roduced water (usually saline) is a waste material, but
processing is often necessary to render the water suitable
for disposal to the surroundings. :ften additional water,
fre&uently sea water, is also processed for waterflooding.
These two separate water processing schemes are both
shown in !igure "-#.
:il removal is the first treatment for produced waters.
:il-in-water emulsions are difficult to clean up due to
the small si)e of the particles, as well as the presence of
emulsifying agents. 8uspended solids may also be present
in the water. Types of e&uipment used for removing oil
and solids includeE
I :il s,immer tan,s
I -late coalescers
I $ir flotation tan,s
I Aydrocyclones
I !iltration units
Before reinjection, the produced water is usually fil-
tered, deaerated if necessary, and treated with biocides.
The major goal, of course, is to prevent reservoir plugging.
8eawater is by far the most commonly used in#ection
water for pressure maintenance because of its obvious
abundance. nfortunately, its poor water &uality
demands extensive treatment. As shown in !igure "-#,
seawater (8 first treated with shoc, biocides to ,ill all
organisms and then filtered. 'issolved oxygen is
removed either by chemical scavengers, by gas or vacuum
stripping, or by catalytic reaction with hydrogen. This
reduces the corrosivity of the water dramatically and
inhibits growth of aerobic slime-forming bacteria in the
wellbore. Then the water is sterili)ed either by ultraviolet
radiation or additional biocide injection to ,ill bacteria
and other micro-organisms. /icro-organisms can cause
corrosion, plugging oflines and reservoir formation roc,,
and they can also produce A
*
8 in the formation
(:stroff, #0H0). 8cale inhibitors are also added before
injection into the formation.
4olume 5 will discuss field processing of both pro-
duced and injection waters. (n a massive waterflood (over
1;;,;;; bwpd) , treatment of injection and produced
waters represents a major cost that often exceeds that of
treating the crude oil.
Sand Treat"ent
8and and other solid material may gather in any of the
previously mentioned e&uipment in locations where the
velocity and turbulence in the li&uid stream is low, such
as in the bottom of tan,s or on coalescer plates. .emoval
of the sand by some type of jetting no))le or similar
arrangement may be necessary. 8and removal is some-
times carried out by centrifugal cone desanders ($rnold,
#0D5). The sand itself may have adhering oil or emulsion
that re&uires washing before discharge to the surround-
ings. .emoving sand from separators is discussed in
%hapter 3.
!u#iliar$ E%uip"ent
(n addition to the previous operations, shown in !igure
"-#, additional e&uipment is re&uired for important
ancillary functions. These are now reviewed briefly.
$est separators with appropriate gas and li&uid flowrne-
ters are often provided for periodic measurement of the
production rate from individual wells or groups of wells.
8uch testing is often a legal re&uirement. $ppropriate
flowlines, valves, and manifolds must be provided so that
the desired wellstreams can be isolated and passed
through the test production separator. This e&uipment
can become &uite elaborate if many wells are involved.
(n the nited 8tates, total oil production is usually
measured in lease automatic custody transfer (%A$) units
that measure oil production volume as well as 8J7 con-
tent. Turbine meters are sometimes used overseas. %rude
oil measurement is discussed in detail in %hapter ##. 9as
production rate is generally measured in orifice-meter
installations as is described in 4olume l.
Automatic safety systems are a necessary and integral part
of any oilfield facility. $de&uate protection must be pro-
vided against all unsafe conditions including overpressure,
li&uid overflow, overheating in fired heaters, unwanted
sources of ignition, and so forth. .ench et al. (#005) pre-
sent an offshore case history that illustrates safety consid-
erations. 8afety systems and other instrumentation are dis-
cussed further in %hapter #". 4ent and flare facilities are
re&uired for the safe removal and disposal of gas evolved in
both normal and emergency operation. -ressure relief and
flaring are discussed in %hapter #3.
.ecovery of natural gas li&uids from waste vapor is
often practiced by use of so-called vapor recovery units
(&R') , consisting of compression and cooling e&uip-
ment as is discussed in %hapter #1. +mission limitations
are ma,ing vapor recovery mandatory in many cases.
:ther additional operations include such items as
electrical power generation, instrument air supply, as well
as fire, drin,ing, and sanitary water supplies, and sewage
disposal.
PROCESSING 8%:-+
(n a given facility, the scope of processing depends on the
nature of the well fluids, the location and si)e of the field,
availability of gas and electricity, the comparative sales
prices for gas and crude oil.
Nature of the &ellstrea"
Key variables include the nature of the reservoir drive,
the water-oil ratio (7:.) , the gas-oil ratio (9:.) or
alternatively the gas-li&uid ratio (9G.) , and the nature
of the crude oil (:$-(, pour point, etc.). $s previously
detailed, the type of drive determines how the ratios of
gas, oil, and water are expected to vary during the life of
the field. (f large increases in water production are
expected, then suitable steps should be ta,en. This tradi-
tionally involves selecting a si)e safety factor.
8i)e !actors. (n the /iddle +ast a factor as high as *
has been used because of the large flows (1;;,;;; to
H";,;;; bopd are not uncommon) and the ready avail-
ability of land. :ffshore (e.g., the ?orth 8ea) where it
will be essentially impossible to install additional pro-
cessing vessels at some future time because of the severe
space and weight restrictions, si)e factors usually vary
between #." and #.H". (n (ndonesia, where natural water
drives occur, a si)e factor of #." is common. (n the
nited 8tates where flows are comparatively very small
and small units readily available, there has been a great
tendency to design for present needs. %hanges can be
made later to fit future trends.
%urrent thin,ing advocates small si)e factors to mini-
mi)e up-front construction costs because predicted well
production capacities are often optimistic. $t worst, pro-
duction is deferred, not lost.
$rtificial Gift. 7ellhead pressures will be low and
crude oil stabili)ation is not a major concern. The gas-oil
ratio determines if there is sufficient, almost free, gas for
fuel at the desired pressures. /odern gas turbines can
Wellhead
re&uire fuel at *;;-1;; psig. Aigh-pressure, high-:$-(
crudes re&uire vastly different processing than =ow-:$-(
crudes produced by steam drive. :f course, high pour-
point crude oils cannot be allowed to 2set up.2 This is
discussed further in %hapter #5.
Gow-9:. :il. -rocessing may be as simple as that
shown in !igure "-* (Krys,a eta(), #0H3). 'issolved nat-
ural gas is released in one or more separators in series, fol-
lowed by emulsion treating and storage. The oil is
metered as it is pumped to the carrier, whether it@s tan,er,
barge, or pipeline. 7ater is cleaned up for local dis-
charge. 9as may be vented or flared if no compression
facilities or pipeline is available or economical6 subject, of
course, to environmental regulations.
'ry, 8weet 9as. -rocessing may also be very simple,
as shown in !igure "-5 (Krys,a eta(), #0H3). %ondensate
?9G are separated out first, followed by compression
:f necessary) , glycol dehydration, metering, and deliv-
ery to the pipeline. Aydrocarbon condensate may be
injected into the gas pipeline or transported separately.
Aigh-9:. %rude :il. -rocessing is more complex,
because the large amounts of both@ oil and gas re&uire
that each be recovered for sales. $ typical flow sheet is
shown in !igure "-1 (/addox et al., #0H0). 8tage sepa-
ration of oil and gas with gas recompression is practiced.
Both streams may re&uire further processing before sales,
such as removal of hydrogen sulfide and water. The oil
may re&uire emulsion treating andlor desalting. ?ote
that any condensate formed in the coolers following the
compressors is recycled bac, into the appropriate separa-
tor. This scheme produces only two product streams-
crude oil and natural gas-but the recycle increases com-
pression horsepower considerably as is discussed later in
%hapters 0 and #H.
Gocation of the !ield
9eographical location and production flow rates of the
crude oil, gas, and brine determine the design and oper-
ation of the oil-treating facilities. (n the nited 8tates,
geographical location can vary from reasonably accessi-
bility (%$, G$, :K, TL) to offshore (9ulf of /exico,
%oo, (nlet) to comparatively remote (?orth 8lope,
.oc,y /ountains).
(f there are only a few, isolated wells, each may have
its own wellhead processing facilities. :n the other hand,
if there are many wells, it will generally be advantageous
to produce through a gathering system to a central pro-
cessing facility. !or a moderate-to-high-9:. oil, where
considerable gas is evolved, the central plant is often
referred to as a GO*+ (gas oil separation plant), although
other important operations are carried out.
Aerring and Titsworth (#0H") considered the pros
and cons of various processing alternatives for a high-
9:. crude oil in a remote location. !igures "-", "-3,
and "-H show three possible schemes that are used in
Figure 5'( Separation with Vapor Recompression (Maddox et al., 1976)
industry today. !igure "-" depicts minimum field pro-
cessing with high-vapor-pressure crude oil pipelining. $
larger pipeline is re&uired for the oil than for the pipelin- ing
of the low-vapor-pressure crude of !igures "-3 and
"-H. These latter figures show pipelining of atmospheric
crude oil. %ondensate is recovered from the gas and is
either pipelined separately (!igure "-3) or two-phased
with the gas (!igure "-H).
+latform processing is an extreme case of remote pro-
cessing. It is safe to say that as little is done as possible on
platform because of the high cost and low allowable
weight of platform facilities. (n the early days of offshore
production, very little processing was done on platform.
'evelopment of the ?orth 8ea area has displayed
increasingly complex offshore processing.
H* !ield -rocessingof %rude :il
Cewhurst, #0D3). This misfortune re&uired dec, eleva-
tion in #0DH and construction of a protective barrier
around the complex in #0D0 (8ula,, #00#). !looding
with seawater was started in #0D1 (%ur)on, #0D1),
expanded in #0DD, extended in #0D0, and optimi)ed in
#00; (8ula,, #00#). +,ofis, has produced D01 million
barrels of oil and *.D trillion scf of gas (net after injec-
tion) in its first *; years.
-enic, (#0D5) has summari)ed the situation succinctlyE
... A systems approach should be used to establish the
&uality of gas and li&uid to be produced on the plat-
form, the platform separation-processing system design,
the gas and li&uid transportation system design condi-
tions, and the processing facilities at the terminal of each
transportation system.
:nshore facilities deserve e&ually close attention.
Production )olu"e
The capacity of oil-treating hardware can range from #
well (e.g., a small1-ft vertical treater) to a 55;,;;; bopd
(in one vessel) central facility. To repeat, large flow rates
ma,e complex processing economically attractive6 small
flows can only justify the simplest treating.
%entral facilities are invariably better as is docu-
mented by $moco (+gan, et al., #0H0) and +xxon
(Blanscet and Gewellen, #0D#). These two studies enu-
merate the many advantages of consolidating and
automating field facilitiesE
#. (ncrease oil production due to earlier detection of
wells being down.
*. (ncreased water injection at lower unit treatment
costs.
5. 'ecreased labor costs due to a 1;< decrease in
manpower.
1. 'ecreased well expense.
". +nergy conservation due to increasing vapor
recovery.
3. /ore efficient operation including savings in fuel
cost and maintenance.
H. (mproved operational flexibility and surveillance
capability.
7hile obviously superior from the engineering view-
point in the nited 8tates, consolidation of an entire
field can re&uire lengthy negotiations to obtain approval
and cooperation of all parties.
Fuel and Electricit$'!*aila+ilit$ and )alue
$ssociated gas is the rule rather than the exception, and
optimum use of such gas depends on the volume, sales
price, and proximity of the nearest gas pipeline. 7ith the
possible exception of the heavier %alifornia crudes, pro-
duced gas is more than sufficient to meet fuel re&uire-
ments in the field. Aowever, sour gases can pose severe
corrosion and pollution problems.
$ny semblance of uniti)ing re&uires electrical power
for lighting, G$%T units, electrostatic treaters, and so
forth6 and these larger volume facilities probably account
for 0;< of the .8. production. Aowever, there are indi-
vidual wells, usually located in remote areas, where elec-
tricity is still not available.
Co"parati*e )alue of ,ight
and -ea*$ -$drocar+ons
The relative value of light and heavy hydrocarbons can
vary dramatically depending on the mar,et for the gas
produced. The worldwide trend is to reinject associated
gas for reservoir pressure maintenance or to use it for
?9G or G?9 plant feeds. Aowever, it is often more
profitable to reinject the associated gas heavy ends into
the crude oil. .etaining these hydrocarbons in the final
stoc, tan, oil (2spi,ing2) re&uires a fairly sophisticated
process scheme such as multistage stabili)ation, and
recompression, drying, and chilling of the gas streams as
is discussed in %hapter 0. /ultistage separation reduces
crude-oil volumetric shrin,age, gravity loss, and emul-
sion problems.
E"ulsion Pre*ention
:pinion is divided on whether emulsions are present in
the formation, but there is no doubt that they do form in
the well string or in surface facilities. Two obvious steps
can alleviate the problem. !irst, eliminate turbulence and
shearing wherever possible. 8econd, remove the water and
gas from the oil as soon as possible in the surface facilities.
nfortunately, these options are not always available6
therefore, in many cases, it becomes necessary to treat the
emulsions inevitably formed. The major sources of emul-
sion formation are now summari)ed.
Flo.ing &ells/ %onsiderable agitation is usually caused
by gas coming out of solution as pressure is decreased. This
gas also causes turbulence as it flows through perforations,
!ield -rocessing of %rude :il H5
screens, fittings, cho,es, sharp bends in the tubing and lead
lines, and other restrictions.
The turbulence can be reduced, but not prevented, by
the installation of a larger cho,e or by holding a higher
bac, pressure on the downstream side of the cho,e.
Ta,ing one large pressure drop across a single cho,e gen-
erates the very intense agitation that so often produces
stable emulsions. Two or three smaller pressure drops are
far superior from the emulsion viewpoint.
$ downhole cho,e usually causes less emulsification.
(n fact, it often decreases the stability and amount of the
emulsion produced becauseE
#. There is less pressure differential across a downhole
cho,e.
*. 'ownhole temperatures are usually considerably
higher than surface temperatures. Aeating brea,s
emulsions as is described in detail in %hapter H.
5. There is straight line flow for a long distance
downstream of the cho,e, and correspondingly less
turbulence.
(n some cases the inconvenience of a downhole cho,e
is offset by the economics of less emulsion treating (i.e.,
reduced usage of demulsifying chemically and/or less fuel
for heating).
9as-lift 7ells. +mulsification is caused mainly at two
places6 namely, at the point where the gas is introduced
into the flow string and at the wellhead.
7hen intermittent gas-lift is used, the emulsion usu-
ally is created at the wellhead or in the surface e&uip-
ment. 7hen continuous gas-lift is used, much of the
emulsion is formed downhole at gas injection points. (n
determining the method of gas-lift that will be most
efficient, the operator should consider emulsion prob-
lems that will be encountered and how they can best be
treated.
- -umping 7ells. The greatest source of emulsifica-
tion is in the pump and tubing. The following are some
causes of turbulence in pumping wellsE
#. Gea,ing standing valves, traveling valves, plungers,
cups and other pump parts.
*. 9as production in pumping wells that causes con-
siderable turbulence in the narrow passages of the
pump.
5. -ounding of the pump that causes the rods to whip
and create additional turbulence.
8ources of turbulence can be minimi)ed by using a
good pump that has close tolerances, oversi)e standing
and traveling valves, and proper speed and length of
stro,e. :n gas-producing pumping wells, a gas anchor
usually will reduce the turbulence.
!low Gines. -rincipal sources of turbulence in mani-
folds and gathering lines are pumps, valves, and fittings
in which the flow direction changes abruptly. It seems
li,ely that the turbulence produced in straight sections
will often be sufficient to result in emulsion formation,
especially in the case of gas-li&uid flow.
:ther 8ources. :ther places where emulsions occur in
production e&uipment are lea,ing dump valves on separa-
tors, free-water ,noc,outs, and settling tan,s. Aowever,
these usually can be corrected relatively easily.
+?4(.:?/+?T$G %:?8('+.$T(:?8
$ vital consideration in the field processing of crude
oil in the nited 8tates is the complex nature of envi-
ronmental regulations currently in effect. The situation
is made difficult because federal and state regulations
are still evolving (/oritis, #00#). 8imilar rules have
been or will be established in other nations around the
world.
The following comments are intended to summari)e
important aspects of environmental regulations and not to
serve as guidelines for compliance. The topic will be
reviewed under the headings of regulations, environmental-
control technology, and compliance.
.egulations
The reauthori)ation of .%.$ (.esource %onservation
and .ecovery $ct of #0H3) loomed as a Mpotentially diffi-
cult problem. 9enerally, oilfield wastes were listed as
exempt in the #0H3 law, placed under 8ubtitle ' for
nonha)ardous substances, and remain so. 8uch a listing
may seem arbitrary, but there seems to be some justifica-
tion from the standpoint of overall ris,. (n the nited
8tates, the petroleum industry is responsible for only
#.D*;/; of toxic releases (Kalavapudi et al., #00#). ?ot all
wastes from drilling sites are exempted (.appold, #00#).
8uch items as unused fracturing fluids and acids, paint-
ing 6astes, service-company wastes, used oils, and used
H1 !ield -rocessing of %rude :il
solvents are not exempt. Audgins (#00*) reviews the uses
of production treating, gas processing, stimulation and
wor,over chemicals in .8. offshore operations. $cute
a&uatic toxicity and solubility data are included.
By far the largest exploration and production waste
stream is produced water (/oritis, #00#). $ large portion
of this water is reinjected, either for disposal, pressure
maintenance, or for enhanced recovery. The 8afe
'rin,ing 7ater $ct (8'7$) of #0H1 and the
nderground (njection %ontrol ((%) established rules
for injection wells.
#. :nly approved wastes may be injected.
*. 'rin,ing water sources must not be endangered.
5. -ermitting of new wells is re&uired before con-
struction.
1. $ll wells must be tested periodically for mechanical
integrity.
?ew draft proposals by +-$ for wells that inject pro-
duced brines and fluids for enhanced oil recovery are
tough6 they re&uire three layers of protection
($nonymous, #005)E
#. $ll new wells re&uired to have surface casing deep
enough to protect water sources of 5,;;; mg/G total
dissolved solids or less.
*. $ casing string cemented through the injection
interval.
5. Tubing set on a pac,er.
/echanical integrity testing of existing wells would be
done according to the number of layers of protectionE
:ne-test every year
Two-test every 5 years
Three-test every " years (the current regulation)
8tudy of all wells within one-&uarter mile of any injec-
tion well is re&uired to identify those that might provide
a vertical path to an underground source of drin,ing
water. (f so, remedial action would be re&uired.
:ther means of produced water disposal include
evaporation or percolation in pits, or release to surface
waters. .elease to surface waters is controlled by the
?ational -ollutant 'ischarge +limination 8ystem
(,+-E*) under the %lean 7ater $ct. 8uch release is
generally not permitted. nlined pits for the discharge
of oil and gas waste products are being closed in the
nited 8tates, 8outhwest ($nonymous, #00*).
:perators are re&uired to submit closure plans for alter-
native systems for handling waste fluids and cleanup of
the existing installations. Testing of nearby water wells
is re&uired.
9as emissions are restricted by many regulations,
notably the #00; %lean $ir $ct $mendments (AAA).
These regulate emissions from internal-combustion
prime movers that produce volatile organic substances,
nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and
particulates. BTEX (ben)ene, toluene, ethyl ben)ene,
xylenes) emissions for T+9 dehydration units is of great
current concern and a classic example of how operating
practices are being changed to reduce emissions.
$nother regulated class is that of fugitive emissions.
These emissions are hydrocarbon vapors that lea, from
compressor seals, valves, pumps, flanges, pressure-relief
valves, meters, storage tan,s, and so forth (True, #00#6
%olyer and /eyer, #00#). Ben)ene content of these
vapors is of particular concern.
/easurement or estimation of fugitive emissions is
re&uired. /yers and !erry (#005) discuss the applicable
laws for storage tan,s. 7agoner (#00;) describes open
and closed floating-roof tan,s and the calculation of
losses. 8mall above ground and buried tan,s (up to
#;,;;; gal) are subject to specific regulations
(.a,oc)yns,i and Gong, #005).
$verage emission factors are available for estimating
emissions from process components (8chaich, #00#), but
.oss (#005) recommends bagging and monitoring for
more accurate estimates. se of average emission factors
may grossly overestimate such losses.
$ recent concern in petroleum processing is the pres-
ence of naturally occurring radioactive materials, or
,OR. (9ray, #00;, #005). $s explained in %hapter *,
the source for ?:./ is the radioactive decay of ura-
nium *5D, which is distributed throughout the earth@s
crust. ranium *5D decays to produce radium **3 and
radon ***. ?:./ was first detected in %anada in
#0;1 and in .ussia in the #05;s (.utherford and
.ichardson, #005). .ecent awareness started with .a-
**3 in production scale in a ?orth 8ea field in the
#0D;s and in /ississippi in #0D3. Because radiation
does not affect the human senses, its presence was
detected either indirectly or by accident, as detailed by
9ray (#005).
(n oil and produced water processing, the culprit is
radium which coprecipitates with barium and strontium
sulfates. :ddo and Tomson (#001) state that 5;;,;;;-
#,;;;,;;; ton/yr of ?:./ scale are produced. :ddo
and Tomson also discuss prediction of scaling and means
!ield -rocessing of %rude :il H"
of inhibition. The concentration of produced ?:./ in
this scale is usually low, but it collects in e&uipment over
time. $s long as ?:./ is contained in processing
e&uipment, there is little danger of a health ha)ard to
employees and the public. 7hen e&uipment is descaled
or machined, contamination of e&uipment, personnel,
and surroundings can occur. 8tate agencies are now
defining regulations for the monitoring and disposal of
pipes and e&uipment containing NORM scale.
'ecommissioned e&uipment may have to be disposed of
as radioactive waste, which is a complicated process.
ntil now, such e&uipment has not even been surveyed
for radioactivity.
(n gas processing the main problem is caused by
gaseous radon that tends to collect (along with its
radioactive daughter products), especially in cryogenic
plants, and cause various difficulties. (8ee 9ray =#00;,
#005> for details.) 9ray (005) states that ?:./ does
not generally constitute a serious health ha)ard if han-
dled properly.
The 9ulf of /exico (GO.) :ffshore %ontinental
8helf (O*) .egional :ffice of the /inerals
/anagement 8ervice (..*) published a Getter to
Gessees and :perators (LTL) on ?ovember *;, #00;,
and another clarification GTG on 'ecember ##, #00#.
These two GTGs are intended to provide operators with
interim guidelines for the reporting, disposal, and trans-
portation of produced ?:./. The +-$ .egion VI
final 7estern :%8 general ?ational -ollutant 'ischarge
+limination 8ystem (,+-E*) -ermit ;#-#0-0*)
re&uires operators to test waters for .a-**3, .a-**B,
gross alpha radiation, and gross beta radiation on the fol-
lowing schedule.
duced sand, dec, drainage, and domestic and sanitary
wastes. The rules would apply to existing and new plat-
forms.
En*iron"ental Control Technolog$
$s noted by 7ojtanowic) (#005), petroleum proces-
sors have in the past relied primarily on waste-
management technology (W.$). The difficulty with
7/T is that it addresses a problem that is already
present and may involve extensive and expensive pro-
cessing in its remediation. 8uch difficult problems as
subsurface migration of oil and toxicants may be
involved.
7ojtanowic) urges the development of environmental
control technology (E$) and gives examples. (n the
chemical process industry, the techni&ue is referred to as
waste minimi"ation. (n government regulatory language
+%T is referred to as source reduction. The idea is to use
the ingenuity of the oil producer to battle the waste man-
agement problem before it occurs by producing less ha)-
ardous waste,
7ojtanowic) broadens the methodology of +%T by
describing its general techni&uesE
I 8ource reduction (waste minimi)ation)
I 8ource separation (removal of pollutant)
I .ecycling (confine the stream within the process)
I %onfinement (lea, prevention)
I .euse (after recycling and source separation)
Ais innovative approach to environmental regulations
and compliance is commendable.
o to
";; to
more than
";; bwpd
1,3;; bwpd
1,3;; bwpd
yearly
&uarterly
monthly
Co"pliance
!ognani (#00*) places the problem of compliance in
proper context.
The 'epartment of Transportation. (-O$) regulates
the transportation of radioactive materials having more
than *,;;; p%i/g radioactivity. /ost :%8 produced
materials exhibit less than *,;;; p%i/g and so are not
regulated by %! -arts 171-1BO. ($-( Bulletin +* =#00*>
discusses ?:./ in detail.)
$ final area to be discussed is offshore platforms. The
+-$ has proposed rules to sharply reduce .8. offshore
platform discharges into the ocean ($nonymous, #00#).
(tems included are oil and grease, toxics, drilling fluids
and cuttings, produced water, well-treatment fluids, pro-
9overnNental =enforcement> efforts, particularly at the
federal level, increasingly focus on opportunities to
impose criminal liability for actions that until relatively
recently would have been subject only to civil enforce-
ment and penalties.
... .ight or wrong, criminal enforcement is viewed as a
more effective deterrent to environmental violations
than is the traditional and somewhat controversial and
inconsistent imposition of civil penalties.
. .. (n this new climate, oil and gas operators and their
personnel must ta,e special care to satisfy environmen-
tal re&uirements.
H3 !ield -rocessing of %rude :il
!ognani reviews the general legal regulations and sug-
gests compliance strategies, especially for independent
producers. $s he states, 2%ompanies should spend their
time, resources, and efforts in operating within the envi-
ronmentallaw, not in defending themselves against crim-
inal or civil prosecutions.2
Re*ie. 0uestions
#. (dentify the individual unit operations or process
modules used in the field processing of crude oil.
*. 'iscuss the correct se&uence for arranging these
modules.
5. 8tate the reasons for stabili)ing, sweetening, dehy-
drating and desalting crude oil.
1. Aow do wellstream flow rate, composition, temper-
ature and pressure vary over the life of the fieldO
7hat parameters cause these changesO
". Gist the important parameters or factors in designing
an oilfield crude-oil processing facility.
3. 7hat can happen if a field facility is designed solely
on the initial wellstream flow and compositionO
H. Aow does analysis of an existing facility differ from
initial design or si)ing of a new facilityO
B. 8uggest a suitable operating pressure for a gas
pipeline.
8upport your recommendation.
0. Gist four techni&ues for dehydrating crude oil.
#;. 8uggest a treatment scheme for a produced water
stream.
8uggest suitable disposal for the produced water if it
-a dry, sweet natural gas
-a high-pressure, high-9:. crude oil.
l 8, 8elect a particular production facility (e.g., +,ofis,).
Trace its historical development. ?otice the time
frames for discovery, exploration, initial construc-
tion, and later developments.
#0. Gist the major oilfield environmental regulations.
(dentify the largest production waste stream.
*;. 'efine fugitive emissions.
Aow are they controlledO
*#. 'efine ?:./.
Gist the major sources of ?:./ in both crude oil
handling and gas processing.
**. (dentify two approaches to environmental control
technology.
7hich approach do you recommendO
*5. %an .8. oilfield operators expose themselves to crim-
inalliability for violating environmental regulationsO
Pro+le"s
#. /odify the process scheme shown in !igure "-* to
satisfy recent and more stringent regulations.
*. Aow would more rigorous fuel-gas specifications
affect the process scheme shown in !igure "-5O
5. 8uggest a suitable processing scheme for the follow-
ing wellstreamE
%omponent !low ((brnol/hr)
is fresh and if (more li,ely) saline.
##. 7hat water is used most commonly for pressure
maintenanceO
Gist the advantages and disadvantages of your
selection.
8uggest a suitable treatment scheme for your
selected water.
#*. (dentify the major types of auxiliary e&uipment
re&uired in the oilfield.
#5. 8uggest two methods of measuring crude oil.
#1. 7hy are test separators installed offshore in spite of
the severe space and weight limitationsO
#". Gist the factors that must be considered in fixing the
processing scope for a particular facility.
?*
C02
%l
C2
%5
i%1
n%1
i%"
n%"
!"
H20
7ellstream pressure
7ellstream temperature
H1.1
"5.#
0,HD;."
#,;3;.3
H;3.1
0".3
*5H.5
#*0.5
*5;.*
",55D.*
1H0.5
#,;;; psig
#;;F!
#3. 'iscuss the need for si)e safety factors.
Gist typical values for three different locations.
#H. 8uggest suitable processing flow diagrams forE
-a low pressure, low-9:. crude oil
1. $ssume that the wellstream contains produced water.
.evise !igures "-1, "-", "-3 and "-H appropriately.
". 8uggest a suitable processing scheme for the follow-
ing wellstreamE
!ield -rocessing of %rude :il HH
A*;
?*
%;*
%l
%*
%5
i%1
n%1
i%"
n%"
n%3
%omponent !low (lbmol/day)
##3.*
3#D.H
"0D.5
3,"**.H
*,H0".5
*,"0H.;
13H.5
#,1H".D
30D.H
D#D.H
*5*.;
.%.$ # .esource %onservation and .ecovery $ct
.- P .ecommended -ractice
scf # standard cubic feet
8'7$ P 8afe 'rin,ing 7ater $ct
8J7 # sediment and water
T+9 # triethylene glycol (li&uid desiccant for nat-
ural gas)
4. # vapor recovery unit
(% # nderground (njection %ontrol
7/T P waste-management technology
A*8
?B- #1;
?B- #H"
?B- **"
?B- *H5
*3*.3
531."
#,35#.D
#,3"H.*
#,D0".0
7:. # water-oil
References
ratio
?B- 5*1
?B- 5H1
#,***.1
0#1.0
$nonymous (#00#), 2+-$ $ims to %ut :ffshore
?B- 1";
?B- "";
?B- 31"
?B- H";
?B- D0*
?B- #;03
7ellstream pressure
7ellstream temperature
No"enclature
#,53*.D
#,##;.1
#,;#0.D
"00.1
0H#.;
H"1.0
3; psig
H".3F!
-latform 'ischarges,2 Oil J Gas /ournal, 4ol. D0, ?o.
io, p. 1D (/arch #D).
$nonymous (#00*), 2+-$ Tightens +nforcement on
se of nlined -its,2 Oil $ Gas fournal, 4ol. 0;, ?o.
1*, p. 53 (:ctober #0).
$nonymous (#005), 2+-$ 'rafts Tougher (njection 7ell
.ules,2 Oil $ Gas/ournal, 4ol. 0#, ?o. *1, p. 11 (june #1).
$-( .- #1+ (#00#), 2.ecommended -ractice for 'esign
and (nstallation of :ffshore -roduction -latform -iping
8ystems2, "th ed., $merican -etroleum (nstitute, #**; %.
8treet, ?.7., 7ashington, '% *;;;" (:ctober #).
$-( # $merican -etroleum (nstitute
bopd # barrels of oil per day
BT+L # ben)ene, toluene, ethyl ben)ene, xylenes
bwpd # barrels of water per day
%$$$ P %lean $ir $ct $mendments
':T # 'epartment of Transportation
+%T # +nvironmental %ontrol Technology
+:. # enhanced oil recovery
+-$ # +nvironmental -rotection $gency
9G. # gas-li&uid ratio
9:/ # 9ulf of /exico
M 9:. # gas-oil ratio
9:8- # gas-oil separation plant
G$%T # lease automatic custody transfer
G?9 # li&uefied natural gas
GTG # Getter to Gessees and :perators
//8 # /inerals /anagement 8ervice
?9G # natural gas li&uids (condensate)
?:./ # naturally occurring radioactive materials
?-'+8 P ?ational -ollution 'ischarge +limination
8ystem
:%8 # :uter %ontinental 8helf