BTO 3263 OFFSHORE ENGINEERING

Semester 1 2022 / 2023

EXPERIMENT 1/ 2 / 3

Title of Experiment : Equilibrium Flash Separator

Date of Experiment : 6/4/2023
Instructor’s Name : TS. DR. NORIDA BT RIDZUAN / MR. SHAHRUL AZUAR
Group No. : 01
Section : 01
Members of Group :4

STUDENT NAME MATRIC CARD NO

MUHAMMAD AZIZI BIN JAMAL TH20007

MUHAMMAD ADAM BIN AHMAD ARIFF TH20025

AIMIELYA FARISHA NASUHA BT AHMAD FIRDAUS TH20032

MUHAMMAD AIMAN BIN ABDUL RAHMAN TH20055

FACULTY OF CHEMICAL & PROCESS ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY

UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA PAHANG

 LAB REPORT EVALUATION RUBRIC
BTO3263 (OFFSHORE ENGINEERING)

Unacceptable Poor Average Good

Item Assessed
(0) (1) (3) (5)
Score
PART A: ● Very little background information or information is ● Some introductory information, but still missing ● Introduction is nearly complete, missing some minor ● Introduction is complete and well written; provides all
incorrect OR, does not give any information about some major points. OR, gives little information points. necessary background principles and theory for the
INTRODUCTION
what to expect in the laboratory report experiment. Present a concise lead-in to the laboratory
(Keywords: Related Theory, Principles, Process)
experiment.

PART B: ● No flowchart presented. ● Method flowchart is nearly complete but still ● Method flowchart is explained with sufficient detail; ● Method flowchart is complete. Logical and easily
● Not sequential. Most steps are missing. missing some important experimental details. some lack detail or are confusing. Mostly easy to followed. The description of the procedure is
METHODOLOGY FLOWCHART
follow. complete.
(Keywords: Experiment Procedure)

PART C: ● Data are very poorly organized or presented in an ● Data is organized and presented in an appropriate ● Data is organized and presented in an appropriate ● Data is well organized and presented in an appropriate
inappropriate manner or missing altogether. manner. Major errors or omissions may be present. manner. Minor errors or omissions may be present. manner.
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
(Keywords: Data & Table Presentation)

PART D: ● Only mention the results ● Attempt to discuss but failed miserably. ● Elucidation and supported by the proper graph. ● Elucidation and supported by
without meaningful discussion. ● Examples of calculation were provided but contain ● Examples of calculation were provided but contain proper graph and with logical explanations.
RESULTS & DISCUSSION
(Keywords: Experiment Summary, Data ● No example of calculation was provided. major flaws. some minor flaws. ● Correct and complete example of calculation was
Processing with Calculation & Graph or etc) provided in a proper way.

PART E: ● No conclusion was given. ● Conclusion missing the important points. The ● Conclusions regarding major points are drawn, but ● All the important conclusions have been clearly made.
● No recommendation was given to improve the conclusion is too general. some are misstated, indicating a The conclusion is precisely stated and relates to the
CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
experiment. ● Several recommendations have been given but they lack of understanding. study.
(Keywords: Experiment Summary,
are too general and not contributing to the ● Several recommendations have been stated and they ● Recommendations given significantly contribute to the
Recommendation)
experiment’s improvement. have partially contributed to the experiment’s experiment’s improvement
improvement.

* ORGANIZATION / NEATNESS ● Not following laboratory report format. Not well ● Contents show enough knowledge but still a few ● Follow report format of writing; all needed sections ● Follow laboratory report format of writing; all needed
(Total pages, Arrangement) organized. Contents show lack of knowledge. concept and ideas are loosely connected. present. Well organized. sections present. Tables and figures are correctly
drawn and numbered. Excellent organized and easily
followed

* TIMELINESS ● Laboratory report handed in more than one week ● Up to two (2) days late ● Handed in one (1) day late ● Laboratory report handed in on time
late

TOTAL MARKS (35 Marks)

 LABORATORY TASKS

1. PART A: INTRODUCTION OF EXPERIMENT

1.1 Briefly explain the background of the experiment in your own words.
When crude oil is extracted from a formation and the pressure below the bubble
point drops, some of the liquid will flash into the gas phase, creating a two-phase
mixture. This is how the Equilibrium Flash Separator Experiment is set up. Usually,
this gas and liquid mixture is sent to separate the gases from the liquids at lowering
pressures by multistage separation. Some industries frequently use flashing systems
because of their capacity to distinguish vapours from liquids. This procedure called
flash separation hence introduces high-temperature liquid from high-lowered pressure
conditions using a flow controller to control pressure. There is just one level of
separation where there is an equilibrium between the partial vapour phase and the
liquid-liquid phase, which is separated.
When a streamline is flashed, various physical events take place and the majority
of them have to do with mass transfer. Vapour has a link with partial pressure that
applies to both the liquid and vapour phases. For bottom hole or recombination
samples of petroleum reservoir fluids, the Equilibrium Flash separator can be used to
measure the gas-oil ratio, relative volume, residual oil gravity, and other relevant data
oils and condensates. The flash separation method is used to investigate the ideal
separator settings. When in use, the instrument studies samples of reservoir fluid with
the aid of additional machinery. The fluid equilibrium in the reservoir When crude oil
is extracted from a formation, some of the liquid will flash into the gas phase, creating
a two-phase mixture as the pressure of the produced crude falls below the bubble
point.
Usually, a multistage separation is used to separate the gases from the liquids in this
mixture of liquid and gas. Operators need to be aware of how reservoir fluids behave
at each separator's operational temperature and pressure in order to improve product
separation and recovery at the lowest possible cost. Hence, in order to determine this
gas-oil ratios, formation volume factor, stock tank vapours, and residual oil gravity as
a function of separator pressure and temperature, reservoir fluids are tested using the
SCADA system Equilibrium Flash Separator. The equipment allows for the
determination of the gas-oil ratio and shrinkage using the flash liberation or
vaporisation techniques. The best separator conditions can be determined using this
information.
2. PART B: METHODOLOGY

Flushing (Cleaning) Process

The power switch is turned on

and verified that all valves are
fully closed.

Hydraulic system P-101 is filled with 5L of

hydarulic oil. Ensure there is always oil in the
tank to prevent pump from running dry.
Thermostatic oil bath is filled with silicone oil.

In prior to starting an experiment, the cleaning process is performed. The

steps are followed as stated;

a) A bucket is prepared at the outlet of MVB-107 and MVB-108.

b) Compressed air is supplied to the equipment and pressure is regulate

to 3 bar using PR-101.

c) Both back pressure regulators BPR-101 and BPR-102 is

turned to fully clockwise.

d) For cleaning purpose, MVB 102, NV-106, MVB-107,

MVB 108, NV-103 and NV-104 are opened.

e) All valves are closed, MVB-103 and MVB-104 are opened and
vacuum pump VP-101 is start to suck all air from T-101 and T-102.

f) Once pressure reached -0.5 bar, VP 101 is switched off and all
valves are closed
First Separation Stage

The initial weight of measuring tube GT-101 is weighted. In order to allow

compressed air enter V 102 and T-101, NV-103 and NV-104 are opened, the
pressure regulator PR-101 is adjusted to 8 bar. Once the pressure reached steady
state, the valves are closed.

Hydraulic system P-101 is switched on, and valve NV-

101 is opened to allow oil enters V-102. Once the
pump stopped by interlock, close NV-101.

Pressure reducing valve PVR-101 and PVR-102 is adjusted to

approximately 70 bar and 1.5 bar, respectively. The piston is
lifted to approximately 2.0L to allow gas enters by rotating the
hand wheel clockwise.

The three-way valve TWV-101 is changed

according to arrow direction. The back-pressure
regulator BPR-101 is adjusted to fully clockwise

The needle valve NV-102 is carefully opened to allow the entrance of

oil until T-101 reached approx. 10 bar (by referring PT-102), the the
NV 102 is closed

Using BPR-101, the pressure is slowly reduced

to approximately 7.5 bar. PVR-102 is ensured
to be below 1.5 bar.

The gas in gasometer is allowed cool to room temperature

and pressure is reduced to atmospheric pressure (0 bar,
referring to PT-104 on SCADA) by lifting piston upwards. The
gasometer reading is recorded
Second Separation Stage
TWV-101 is changer according
to the arrow direction
(upwards). The back-pressure
regulator BPR-102 is adjusted
to fully clockwise
The gas in gasometer allowed to
cool to room temperature. By lifting
the piston upwards, pressure is
reduced to 0 bar (refer PT-104 in
SCADA). The gasometer reading is
recorded
Figure 1.1 : Front view of equipment
Nv-106 is opened in By using BPR-102, the
order to charge the pressure is slowly reduced
oil into T-102 for the to approx. 0 bar. Pressure in
second separation PVR-102 is ensured to be
stage. below 1.5 bar
Drain valve MVB-107 is opened
to allow accurate liquid oil
measurement. The final weight
of tube and oil is measured.
Figure 1.2 : Back view of equipment
3. PART C: EXPERIMENTAL DATA

3.1 Record all the experimental data in the tables below; experiment at room
temperature (26 °C)
● 1st stage separation pressure : 7.5 bar
● 2nd stage separation pressure : 0 bar
● Density of stock-tank oil : 0.884 g/cm3 = 884 kg/m3

Table1: Experiment data at Pressure of 7.5 bar

Gas to Oil
Gas Oil
Ratio
Volume (ml) Temp(℃) Volume (ml) Temp(℃)
1st stage 300 25 70 25 4.29
2nd stage 400 25 50 25 8.00
Total 700 - 50 - -

● 1st stage separation pressure : 10 bar

● 2nd stage separation pressure : 0 bar
● Density of stock-tank oil : 0.884 g/cm3 = 884 kg/m3

Table 2 : Experiment data at Pressure of 10 bar

Gas to Oil
Gas Oil
Ratio
Volume Temp. Volume Temp.
1st stage 320 25 81 25 3.95
2nd stage 440 25 55 25 8.00
Total 760 - 55 - -
Calculation

a) Density of Stock-tank oil : mass of oil/ volume of oil

Mass of oil = mass of measuring cylinder with oil - mass of empty cylinder

= 107.96g - 63.75g

= 44.21g

Volume of oil 2nd = 50ml

stage

Density of stock-tank oil = 44.21g/50ml = 0.884g/ml = 884 kg/m3

Gas-Oil ratio 1st stage = 300ml/70ml = 4.29

Gas-Oil ratio 2nd stage = 400ml/50ml = 8

b) Density of Stock-tank oil : mass of oil/ volume of oil

Mass of oil = mass of measuring cylinder with oil - mass of empty cylinder

= 107.96g - 63.75g

= 44.21g

Volume of oil 2nd = 50ml

stage

Density of stock-tank oil = 44.21g/50ml = 0.884g/ml = 884 kg/m3

Gas-Oil ratio 1st stage = 320ml/81ml = 3.95

Gas-Oil ratio 2nd stage = 440ml/55ml = 8

4. PART D: RESULTS & DISCUSSION

4.1 Sketch the graph based on the data obtained in Table 1 to Table 2

Figure 2.1: Volume of Gas at Different Pressure

Figure 2.2: Volume of Oil at Different Pressure

4.2 Briefly discuss the exper2.2mental results in Tables 1 to 4 to support your discussion
statement.

From table 1 and table 2, the density of stock-tank oil for experiment A and B
is 884 kg/m3. Meanwhile, Gas-Oil Ratio in experiment A for 1st stage is 4.29
and for the 2nd stage is 8.00. Gas-Oil Ratio in experiment B for 1st stage is 3.95
and for the 2nd stage is 8.00. Figure 3 shows that the volume of gas is increased
on both stages on the different pressures, which is 20 ml on the 1st stage and
40ml on the 2nd stage. Figure 4 shows that the volume of the Oil also increased
from the 1st stage to the 2nd stage which is 11ml on the 1st stage and 5 ml on
the 2nd stage.

The difference in the volume occurs because of the different pressure applied
on experiment A and Experiment B. When we apply more pressure, the volume
of oil and gas coming out from the reservoir also increases.

The Gas-Oil Ratio of the experiment A and B on the 1st stage show a decreasing
value from 4.29 to 3.95, but on the 2nd stage, the value of the (GOR) remains
the same. This data shows that when we apply more pressure on the first stage,
more oil will come out rather than the gas as the value of (GOR) decreases. But,
on the 2nd stage. we can see that the (GOR) value remains constant, it means
the pressure did not affect the value of the (GOR) on the 2nd stage.
As the value of the Gas-Oil Ratio is high, it shows that the gas coming out from
the reservoirs is higher than the oil. As the (GOR) value is maintained on the
2nd stage after the pressure is applied on the first stage it means the volume of
gas and oil are the same on the 2nd stage.
5. PART E: CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Why do we need to measure the Gas Oil Ratio (GOR) of crude oil in the oil and gas
industry? Give THREE (3) reasons.

1. Production Optimization: The GOR is an important indicator of the oil and gas
reservoir's productivity. By measuring the GOR, oil and gas companies can determine
the optimal production rate and adjust it accordingly to maximize production. An
accurate GOR measurement also enables companies to optimize production methods,
such as artificial lift, which can enhance the overall recovery of hydrocarbons.
2. Economic Analysis: The GOR is a crucial factor in economic analysis, particularly in
the estimation of reserves and the financial viability of a field. GOR data provides
critical information for reservoir modeling, which helps companies estimate the amount
of recoverable oil and gas and forecast future production. This information is essential
for investment decisions, project planning, and budgeting.
3. Safety: The presence of gas in crude oil poses several safety risks. High GOR values
indicate that the crude oil contains a significant amount of gas, which can increase the
risk of gas blowouts, explosions, and fires during production and transportation.
Regular measurement of GOR ensures that safety protocols are in place to manage these
risks, protecting workers and the environment.

5.2 What can we conclude from this experiment?

Pressure plays a main role in the volume of the Gas and oil that come out from
the separator.

5.3 Do you think your experiment is in line with the theory? If YES, what is your
recommendation for improvement? If NO, explain why.
As the pressure increases, the (GOR) also will increase and stay on the same
value after certain pressure is reached. The experiment shows that the (GOR)
increases and maintains the same value, so the experiment is in line with the
theory. Our suggestion for this experiment is that the machine needs to be
repaired as the oil is leaking from it and makes the data inaccurate.

6. REFERENCES

• Model 2353 Equilibrium Flash Separator | Chandler Engineering. (n.d.).

https://www.chandlereng.com/products/reservoiranalysis/phase-behavior/model-2353

• Fanchi, J. R. (2002). Fluid Properties. Elsevier EBooks, 87–107.

https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-075067522-2/50006-9