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OTC-4485-MS Evaluation of API RP 14E Erosional Velocity Limitations For Offshore Gas Wells PDF
OTC-4485-MS Evaluation of API RP 14E Erosional Velocity Limitations For Offshore Gas Wells PDF
This paper was presented at the 15th Annual OTC in Houston, Texas. May 2-5, 1983. The material la subject to correction by the author. Permission to
copy is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 words.
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EVALUATIONOF THE API RP14EEROSIONAL
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study. This paper summarizes the initial phase of this study. drop range for high capacity wells is 3,000 to 5,000 ps
Several areas which require further evaluation are identi- These numbers correspond to a value for the constant C
fied. the range 80 to 100. Although there is a very close similarity
between the Bernoulli relationship (Equation (2)) and th
Erosion Mechanisms API empirical criterion (Equation (1)), they should have n
correlation because they represent two completely differen
Erosion is defined as the physical removal of material
phenomena.
from the surface. This is different from corrosion, which
involves material removal by chemical or electrochemical
reaction. The material removal by erosion is caused by one For the case of erosion due to liquid impingement on
or more of the following: surface, the relationship between flow velocity, V (ft/see)
and erosion rate, h (roils per year), can be written as follows
1. Cavitation (bubble collapse) (Appendix 1):
372
OTC 4485 MamdouhM. Salamaand EswarahalliS. Venkatesh 3
where velocity near the tip of a bubble is about equal to the local
relative velocity between the two phases. Similar velocities
T = the shear strength of the inhibitor interface must occur in the roll waves of annular flows. It is very
f = the friction factor difficult without appropriate experiments to identify which of
the above three possibilities is most significant and, hence,
This equation is derived by equating the flow induced shear what is the value of the radial velocity.
stress at the pipe wall with the shear strength of the inhibi-
tor. For most practical cases, ~ equals 8,000 psis and f Rabinowiczl 1 has shown that experimental results of
equals 0.0015,9 Equation (5) can be written as: erosive damage of ductile metals due to solid particle im-
pingement agree reasonably well with the following erosion
~= K(0.65W)V2 (~) ●A. Although Equation (7) offers a sound theoretical basis
gP(m/4dz) ““”””””””(8) to assess the problems of erosion in pipes, it is clear that
several assumptions have to be made to derive design
where equations, such as Equation (12). An experimental pro-
gram should be undertaken to establish the rationalization
h = erosion rate (roils per year, mpy) of these assumptions and verify the values of their corres-
W = sand flow rate (bbl/month; barrel of sand = 945
ponding parameters. Such an experimental program
pounds) should also address the effect of sand erosion on the forma-
V = fluid flow velocity (ft/see)
tion of a protective inhibitor film which is necessary to avoid
P = hardness (psi)
corrosion problems in corrosive wells.
d = pipe diameter (inches)
g = gravitational constant (32.2 ft/sec2) Conclusions
A = correction factor for proper units
1. Erosion damage in gas-producing wells occurs primarily
The value of A in the above units is calculated to be: due to solid particle impingement.
Acknowledgements
Comparison between the predicted erosion rate us-
ing Equation (1O) and experimental data developed as part The authors would like to thank management of
of API -OSAPR- project 2 on sand erosion by Texas A&M Conoco Inc. for permission to publish this paper. The au-
University Research Centeri4 is shown in Table 2. The thors sincerely express their appreciation to Professors
results illustrate the validity of Equation (1O) in predicting Ernest Rabinowicz and Peter Griffith of Massachusetts
sand erosion rates. On the average, Equation (1O)overesti- Institute of Technology for their valuable suggestions and
mates the erosion rates by a factor of 1.44. for giving permission to reference some of their unpub-
lished work. The authors would also like to thank Messers
The result of AP1-OSAPR-project 214 also showed John Wolfe and Fred Gipson and Dr. Richard Vennett for
that for flow infield ells and tees, the erosion rates are about their assistance and advise.
50 percent that in elbows and, therefore, Equation (1O) can
be written as follows: References
‘API RPI 4E, “Recommended Practice for Design and
h=93,000$$ ..:.; . . . . . ..(11) Installation of Offshore Production Platform Piping Sys-
tem,” Third Ed., December 1981.
Substituting the value of P for steel (P = 1.55 x 105 psi) 2Thiruvengadam, A.; Rudy, S. L.; and Gunasekam, M.
and assuming that erosion velocity is based on an erosion “Experimental and Analytical Investigation on Liquid im-
rate of 10 roils per year, Equation (11) can be written as: pact Erosion,” Characterization and Determination o
Erosion Resistance, ASTM STP474, p. 249, (1970).
‘+$ ““”””””””””””””(’2) 3Hancox, N. L., and Brunton, J. H., “The Erosion of Solids
by the Repeated Impact of Liquid Drops,” Phil. Trans.
When W approaches zero, the value of V is limited by Roy. Sot., London, Vol. 260A, p. 129, (1966).
Equation (4), which is for sand-free system. For a pipe with
3-inch diameter, the erosional velocity V (ft/see) can be 4Baker, D. W.; Jolliffe, K. H.; and Pearson, D., “The Resist-
given as a function of the rate of sand production W (barrels ance of Materials to Impact Erosion Damage,” Phil
per month) as follows: Trans. Roy. Sot., London, Vol. 260A, p. 168, (1966).
a-, .
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ITC 4485 ..—------ M.. Salama
Mamrkmh ——.—...—and
—.. —.Venkatesh
—Eswarahalli S. 5
Erosion rate due to a liquid impingement can be calculated Assuming that the allowable erosion rate h is 10 roils per
as follows:i 5 year, the above equation becomes:
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375
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