Oil-in-water emulsion technique enhancement for viscous crude oil flow in pipelines

• Main Author: Muhammad Fawwaz, Abdul Wahab
• Format: Undergraduates Project Papers
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: Q Science (General); TP Chemical technology
• Online Access: http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/12739/1/FKKSA%20-%20MUHAMMAD%20FAWWAZ%20ABDUL%20WAHAB%20-%20CD%209535.pdf; http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/12739/

The production of heavy crude oil is limited due to its high viscosity. It is expected to increase in the future as low viscosity crudes are depleted. The high viscosity lead to the increasing of pump energy as it creates high pressure drop. In order to reduce the viscosity of the heavy crude, it is suggested to mix it with water and optimum emulsifiers to create a lower viscous fluid, oil-in-water (O/W) emulsions. In this study, both chemical and physical properties of O/W emulsion that is prepared by using cocoamide DEA (non-ionic and biodegradable surfactant that synthesis from coconut oil) and two types of conventional chemical emulsifiers (Span 80 and Triton X-100) were investigated. O/W emulsions with three different ratios (50 - 50% and 65 - 35% and 80 - 20%) were prepared at a mixing speed of 2000 rpm with the concentrations of (1.0 wt%, 1.5 wt% and 2.0 wt%) of each emulsifier. These emulsions were tested for relative rates of water separation (stability test), viscosity, shear stress and shear rate at room temperature and stirring speed of Brookfield viscometer. While the droplet size was carried out by using Carl Zeiss Research Microscope and its software. Result shows that Span 80 at 1.0 wt% mixed at each ratio of 50 - 50%, 65 - 35% and 80 - 20% O/W with 2000 rpm mixing speed obtained the most stable emulsions for transportation compared to the other emulsifiers. Demulsification is the process of separation of water from crude oil. Crude oil needs to be separated efficiently and quickly from the water to allow further treatment. This is to ensure the crude oil value can be maximized and the operating cost can be minimized. Demulsifiers (Hexylamine, Cocamide MEA and Dioctylamine) with different concentrations (1.0 wt%, 1.5% and 2.0 wt%) were used for demulsification. The relative rates of water separation were characterized via beaker test.