Problems Associated with Flow Assurance Solids in Production

Where do deposits form in a production system?

Field observations have shown that solid deposits can form almost anywhere in the production system,
in reservoir formations, perforations, along production tubing and downhole equipment, in the
wellhead, flowlines, topside installations and equipment, processing facilities, and storage tanks

Locations where incompatible fluids commingle or where system parameters like temperature and
pressure significantly change, driving the system thermodynamically toward solids precipitation, are
vulnerable to solids deposition.

Solid deposits are operational challenges due to their peculiarities, which include the following:

 Solid deposits are quick forming and quick impacting

 They are severely impacting even at very small concentrations
 They are diverse and perpetually changing.
 May require complex mitigation programs

Flow restrictions
The stereotypical impact of solids deposition in a production system is restricting the flow of the
produced fluids

The problem usually begins with a thin film of deposits that quickly grows into thick layers that internally
coat the production tubulars and equipment, causing a reduction of their internal dimensions and
resulting in fluid flow restrictions, which are reflected as pressure drop and decreased productivity.

Formation Damage

Solid deposits can form in the reservoir, clogging the small fluids flow channels in the reservoir rocks or
the pore throat, causing what is known as formation damage.

Physicochemical, chemical, hydrodynamic, biologic, and mechanical processes often lead to the
mobilization, generation, migration, and deposition of fine particles, which, in turn, cause formation
damage in petroleum-bearing formations.
Figure 1: Formation damage mechanisms

In the case of reservoir damage, the most commonly used measure of formation damage in a well is the
skin factor, S.

If the skin factor is known, the pressure drops across the damaged zones can be estimated by

[
∆ P skin =
141.2 μβ
K ][ ] ( )
q
h
s (1)
Production tubular flow restrictions and blockages

Solids deposition is a common problem in production tubulars, i.e., tubing, risers, and flowlines in oil and
gas fields

Figure 2: Solid deposit blockages in pipelines from Egyptian oilfield

Solids formation affects pressure drop in the tubulars due to many mechanisms, including the following:

(a) Particles transportation: solids transportation with the fluids, causing changes in the fluid
properties and flow regimes, consequently causing pressure drop.

(b) Particle interactions: the transported solid particles can have different types of interactions that
cause pressure drop, most commonly: particle-particle interactions (collisions), particle-fluids
interactions, and particle-pipe wall interactions.

(c) Changes in surface roughness: When the particles deposit on the pipe wall, they cause changes in
the surface roughness. In turbulent flow, which is the most encountered flow industrially, the
friction loss primarily depends on the pipeline surface roughness.

(d) Changes in conduit internal dimensions: solid deposit layers normally coat the internal surfaces
of conduits and equipment, leading to changes in their internal dimensions, which causes significant
pressure drop.
 Pressure drop due to solids transportation and interactions

Not all the precipitated solids have the opportunity to stick to the pipe wall and accumulate in
layers, but some of them can be conveyed with the flowing stream circulating in the production
system until they reach dead-ends or final terminals

∆ Pt =∆ P f + ∆ P s (2)
∆ Pt is the total pressure drop

∆ P f is the pressure drop due to fluid flow

∆ P s is the pressure drop due to solids transported in the fluids

The effect of transported solids on pressure drop increases with increasing concentration of the
transported particles, which in petroleum production systems is given by a high rate of solids
precipitation, or high rates of sand and fines production from unconsolidated reservoirs.

Various types of interactions take place with particles suspended in a flowing fluid, including
particle-particle interactions, particle-fluid interactions, and particle-pipe wall interactions

Particle-particle physical interactions include

 Interparticle attraction promotes the formation of flocs and aggregates. This phenomenon
occurs mostly in fine particle suspensions.
 Hydrodynamic interactions give rise to viscous dissipation in the liquid.
 Particle-particle contact brings into play frictional interactions.

The fluid-particle interaction force can be divided into five main contributors

 Buoyancy force.
 Local fluid acceleration force, which is parallel to the mean acceleration of the fluid.
 Drag force, which acts in the direction of the fluid-particle slip velocity.
 Virtual mass force, which is parallel to the relative acceleration between the phases.
 Lift force, which is normal to the slip velocity

Two types of friction losses are encountered when solids are transported with fluids in pipelines

Mechanical friction (created through the contact between the solid particles and the pipe wall and it
can be permanent or random) and viscous friction (created due to the existence of solid particles in the
near wall layer of the carrying liquid as addition to the fluid viscous friction losses)

Generally speaking, the pressure loss due to solid-fluid transport depends on:

 Solids concentration: the pressure drop increases with increasing solid particle concentration
 Solid particle size: the smaller particle size will have lower pressure drop at lower velocities and
higher pressure drop at higher velocities, compared to larger sized particles
  Flow pattern and flow rate: the different flow regimes have significant effects on pressure drop.
Flow regimes of solids transported in fluids can be classified into settling and non settling
regimes or more effectively can be classified into homogeneous, heterogeneous, and bedload
and each one has an effect on pressure drop

In the case of a homogeneous flow regime, the particles are uniformly distributed throughout the pipe
cross-section, which is the case with small or fine particle sizes, and the pressure loss in this case can be
calculated on the basis of the rheological behavior of this suspension which can be generally calculated
by the Darcy and Weisbach equation.

In the case of a heterogeneous flow regime, the particles are not uniformly distributed throughout the
pipe cross-section, representing the transport of coarser particles, and the pressure drop may be
calculated by the modified (extended) Durand equation (Eq. 3)

[ [ ] ] ( DL )(3)
1.5
1 gD
83 m v 2 s f f √ D
2
( ρ −ρ ) ρ C
3
∆ P= m
C o+ 1 f ρ f 2 v

Where

∆ P=pressure drop due ¿ coarse particles

f =friction factor
v=fluid velocity
L= pipe length
C o=delivered total concentration ( vol % )

ρ f =density of fluid

ρ s=solids density

C D =drag coefficient

D= pipe diameter
m=correlation factor that depends on the particle diameter
m
g=gravity constant (9.8 2
)
s
For a more generic formula of the Durand equation that covers poly-dispersed mixtures of solids-liquid,
which covers homogeneous and heterogeneous cases, the following equation (Eq. 4) presented by
Weber can be used:

[ [ ] ] (L)
1.5
1 gD
83 m v 2 s fs f √ D
( ρ −ρ ) ρ C ( 1−C f ) Co +1 f ρfs 2 v 2m D (4 )
3
m
∆ P=

Where

C f =homogeneous part of particle ¿ ¿

ρ fs=density of enriched fluid

Pressure drop due to changes in surface roughness

Friction loss is another means of interaction between flowing fluids and the pipe walls, and it represents
energy consumption or pressure drop.

Pressure drop due to friction in turbulent flows like those encountered in oil and gas systems
predominantly depends on surface roughness.

Hence, another way solid deposits are affecting the pressure drop in a pipe by changing the surface
roughness occurs when they are deposited on the internal surface of that pipe.

Many correlations have been used to describe the surface roughness of a pipeline, including but a more
convenient one is the correlation developed by Haaland.

( ) [( ) ( ) ]
n 1.11 n
1 1.8 6.9 k
=− log + (5)
√f n ℜ 3.75 d

Pressure drop due to changes in conduit dimensions

When the solids reach their resting velocity, they deposit on the pipe wall, and thereafter they gradually
grow from thin films to thick layers, resulting in reduction in the internal diameter of the pipe, and that
consequently causes significant pressure drop.

The pressure loss in the case of uniform deposit layers will be different from non-uniform scale layers.

In the case of a uniform deposit layer inside the pipeline, the pressure drop can be calculated from the
Poiseuille formula
 8 ηLQ
∆ P= 4
(6)
π ( r−t )
Where

∆ P=pressure drop
L=length of pipe
Q=volumetric flow rate
r =pipe radius
uniform
t=thickness of the deposits layer (assumed ¿ be )
L
η=coefficient of viscosity of the fluid

Figure 3: The formation of even and uneven solid deposit layers and their effects on the fluid flow

In heat exchangers, pressure loss is considered more critical than the loss in heat transfer due to fouling.

The deposited layer roughens the surface, diminishes the inner diameter, and raises the outer
dimension of the tubes, causing an increase in pressure drop

Pressure drop inside a tube of a heat exchanger under fouled and clean states can be correlated
according to

= ( )( )
∆ p f f f d f qf 2
∆ Pc f c d c q c
(7)

Where

f =friction factor, d =tube diameter, q =flow rate

(NB: subscript f stands for fouled tube and c stands for clean tube)
If the mass flow rates under clean and fouled conditions are considered to be the same, the previous
equation becomes

( )
5
∆ pf f f df
= (8)
∆ Pc f c d c

The thickness t f of the deposit layer can be obtained from

[ (
t f =0.5 d c 1−exp
dc )]
−2 k f R f
(9)

Where d c =fouled tube diameter and R f =fouling factor

Equipment impairment and failure

Field operators always encounter valves, pumps, separators, flowmeters, and other downhole and
topside equipment that requires maintenance or replacement due to solids build-up that degrades their
performance

Heat transfer equipment impairment and failure

Deposits accumulation on surfaces in many industries causes drastic reduction in heat transfer rates in
equipment such as boilers, steam generators, evaporators, exchangers, engine jackets, cooling towers.

The thermal conductivity of most of the deposits is considerably less than that of steel, and the
consequence of such deposits, even extremely thin ones, is an insulating effect

Q=UA ∆ T m (10)
Where Q=rate of heat transfer ; U =heat transfer coefficient ; A=heat transfer surface area ;
∆ T m=log meantemperature difference between fluids

In order to efficiently transfer a given number of Btusthrough a heat exchange surface in a given period
of time, it is necessary to maintain a certain temperature differential.

If scale forms, this differential temperature has to be higher in order to compensate for the insulating
effect of the deposits layers due to the lower thermal conductivity of deposits compared to steel

Table 1 shows the thermal conductivity of metals and those of some solid deposits that are found in oil
and gas fields.
 Table 1: Thermal conductivity of metals and foulants

The change in the deposit layer morphology has significant impact on the heat transfer process. Under
clean conditions, the overall heat transfer coefficient, U c , is given by the sum of the individual thermal
resistances.

1 Do 1
=
U c Di α i( ) 1
+ Rw + (11)
αo

α i and α o= inside and outside tube convective heat transfer coefficient; Rw =thermal resistance of the
metal wall; D i = inner diameter; D o = outer diameter

Fouling in heat exchangers is traditionally expressed using the concept of a fouling resistance or the
fouling factor R f (or fouling resistance), which represents the resistance to the flow of heat due to the
buildup of a fouling layer on the tube surfaces of the heat exchanger.

1 1
Rf= − (12)
Uf U c

Another generalized way of expressing the fouling resistance is by using the resistance to heat flow
across a solid surface, which is given as
 x
R=
λ
xm
For metal pipe wall Rw =
λm
Xf
For deposits R f =
λf
The total resistance to heat flow will be the sum of the individual resistances, which is given by

RT =[ x o / λ o ]+ [ xi / λ i ]+ [ xm / λm ] + [ 1/α o ] + [ 1/α i ]

Or

RT =r 1 +r 2 +r 3 +r 4 +r 5

Where

RT = total heat flow resistance.

r 1 = heat flow resistance of the process-side film.

r 2 =heat flow resistance of the deposit layer (the process-side fouling). r3 ¼heat flow resistance of the
exchanger tube wall.

r 4 =heat flow resistance of the deposit layer (the water-side fouling).

r 5 = heat flow resistance of the water-side film

In other words: tube-side fluid, tube-side scale, tube metal, shell-side scale, and shell-side fluid

Figure 4: Schematic of the total heat flow resistance in heat exchanger tube

Pumps impairment and failure

In pumps, the deposit can accumulate in the different compartments, i.e., impeller, casing, suction
strainer, or bearings, causing serious reduction in the effective diameters inside these compartments,
increase in friction losses, and general loss in performance and efficiency.

For proper operation of the pump, the NPSHa must be greater than the NPSHr ; if not, the pump will
not only produce little or no flow, but will cavitate and may quickly self-destruct.

The problem is that NPSH is not a fixed or constant value, and can be affected by friction losses in the
piping, which are affected by the flow rate and the degree of fouling

Fouling results in a drop in NPSHa and, consequently, in the margin between the NPSHa and NPSHr

The point where this margin reduces to a minimum positive value is specified as the maximum flow rate,
Qmax
The fouling of the suction header causes a steeper drop in the NPSHa curve and this reduces the Qmax
flow rate

Figure 5: Effect of fouling on NPS H a and flow rate

Another way of affecting the pumps occurs when the deposits accumulate in pipelines and different
locations in the system that are related to the pump design and specifications, which exerts extra
resistance on the pump (affects NPSH values) and leads to lower performance or early failure of the
pump

Fouling of gas compressors is another example of fouling in pumping equipment. Solids contamination
of the compressor impeller blades changes their aerodynamic shape, roughens their surfaces, and
reduces the gas flow, thus reducing the flow coefficient and finally causing a drop in the compressor
overall efficiency

Figure 6: Effect of compressor fouling on the compressor efficiency characteristic for a given compressor
non-dimensional speed

Compressor foulants include mineral scales, hydrocarbons, glycol, and oil and grease from the
compressor lubricating system. Different types of deposits can form in compressors, including inorganic
scales such as carbonate, sulfide, chloride scales, and organic deposits

Separation equipment impairment and failure

Deposits can impair other production equipment like separators, slug catchers, strainers, and amine and
glycol units

In separators, solids deposition leads to plugging of separator bridles, hydrocyclone liners, and level
control valves, solid loading in overboard water, poor oil-water interface, loss of retention time in
separators, and plugging of reject lines of the produced water treating vessels

Fouling of mist eliminators in slug catchers pushes them to their limit and they become inefficient.

As a result, downstream facilities may be exposed to high liquid and solid entrainment in the gas outlet
stream.

Corrosion and mineral scaling are common problems in amine and glycol units.

In addition, charred materials and polymerized materials have been observed in these systems during
regeneration processes at very high temperatures.

Black powder accumulation in gas systems impairs filter systems and increases their maintenance
frequency and cartridge replacement
Flowmeter impairment and failure

Deposition and fouling in flowmeters can occur in different forms as uniform or intermittent layers in
the mechanical internal parts and also on the transducer.

These deposits cause changes in the surface roughness, effective diameter, and attenuation or
alteration of the received signal intensity, and that can significantly degrade the flowmeter accuracy

Black powder (mixture of iron compounds) is known to interfere and affect the metering devices in gas
metering pipelines and stations

Valve impairment and failure

Downhole and topsides valves are prone to scaling and fouling with mineral sales and organic deposits,
which finally leads to loss and their failure

Pressure drop within the valves is considered the major reason for precipitation and deposition of the
solids.

Figure 7: Valve blockage due to calcium sulfate deposits

Figure 8: ZnS deposits plugging the holes of a production choke (left) and choke after cleaning (right)

Mineral scale deposition is widely recognized as one of the most common causes of failure in gas lift
valve check valves.

When the latch becomes coated in scale, intervention operations to replace the failed valve can become
very challenging

All types of deposits are expected to occur in the gas lift mandrels: mineral scales, wax, asphaltenes,
sand, proppants, and cement debris; also, viscous fluids can cause the same issue

Gas lift valves that are stuck open or stuck closed due to mineral scale and other deposits are very
common, which leads to improper operation of the gas lift system, and usually the problem ends up
with changing the gas lift mandrel

Mineral deposits can build up in the inner wall and spring cavities of the SSSV (subsurface safety valves)
and cause serious technical and integrity issues; i.e., scales can cause the flapper to become blocked in
an open or closed state, resulting in the shut-in of the well

Other valves that can be impaired and fail due to deposits include the downhole safety valves (DHSVs),
inflow control valves (ICVs), inflow control devices (ICDs), choke valves

Sand control equipment impairment and failure

Deposits can form in filters, strainers, downhole screens, gravel pack systems, and other sand control
equipment
Accumulated fines, mineral scales, paraffin, and asphaltenes are examples of deposits that can plug
gravel packs

Scale plugging of sand control equipment was reported in horizontal wells in Gulf of Mexico and North
Sea fields

Production chemistry problems induced by solids deposition

Solids deposits not only impair production equipment and restrict fluids flow, but they also extend their
detrimental effects and interfere with production operations to cause larger flow assurance-related
problems, like emulsion and corrosion

Fine solids generally stabilize an emulsion mechanically. Emulsions that are stabilized by solids are called
pickering emulsions

Figure 9: The particles wettability and emulsion stabilization by solids

Wettability

Solid particles also stabilize emulsions based on their wettability. The wettability of solids is widely
determined using the contact angle

The contact angle at the oil-water-solid three-phase contact line is measured through the aqueous
phase

When the water contact angle, θ, is less than 90 degrees, the solid is preferentially water-wet

Similarly, when the water contact angle is greater than 90 degrees, the solid is preferentially oil-wet

Contact angles close to 90 degrees result in an intermediately wetted solid (biwettable) that generally
leads to the tightest emulsions

If the solid remains entirely in the oil or water phase, it will not be an emulsion stabilizer. For the solid to
act as an emulsion stabilizer, it must be present at the interface and must be wetted by both the oil and
water phases
In general, oil-wet solids stabilize a water-in-oil emulsion. Similarly, water-wet solids stabilize a water-
continuous or an oil-in-water emulsion

Examples of oil-wet solids are asphaltenes and waxes, and iron sulfides are more oil wet than the other
mineral scales

Examples of water-wet solids are inorganic scales (CaCO3, CaSO4), clays, sand, and corrosion products

Corrosion problems

Usually when a deposit layer is formed on the metal surface, it works as a protective layer from
successive corrosion processes.

However, this is not always the case, as deposits can actually exaggerate the corrosion problem, in many
different ways

Under-deposit corrosion (UDC) is an aggressive attack that is associated with solid deposits

Figure 10: A case of under-deposit corrosion associated with microbial activity

Generally, there is no single corrosion mechanism that applies to all cases of corrosion occurring under
deposits, since different metals (passive or active), types of deposits (reactive, inert), and corrosive
species (O2, CO2, H2S, H+ , microorganisms) may be involved. However a few examples of UDC
mechanisms exist
Figure 11: Under-deposit corrosion due to differential aeration cell