A Simple Mechanistic Model for Void-Fraction and Pressure-Gradient Prediction in Vertical and Inclined Gas/Liquid Flow

Abstract

Summary A new mechanistic model for two-phase flow in vertical and inclined pipes was proposed on the basis of the drift-flux approach. The proposed model, unlike the other mechanistic models [Ansari et al. (1994); Xiao et al. (1990); Zhang et al.(2003)] that incorporate a system of nonlinear equations to solve, uses an explicit equation for liquid-holdup prediction, thus reducing computation time significantly. Coupled with some simplified assumptions on pressure/volume/temperature (PVT), such a simple form of a liquid-holdup-prediction formula enables an analytical integration of the pressure gradient in two-phase flow along the pipe. This procedure is used usually to speed up the calculation of bottomhole pressure (BHP) for a large number of wells for oil-production-optimization purposes (Khasanov et al. 2006). The drift-flux approach can predict liquid holdup for bubbly flow quite accurately. However, for slug flow, it usually underestimates the void fraction. Because slug flow is the most common flow in producing wells, this leads to the pressure drop being overestimated significantly; this can be proved by comparing computational results to the experimental data and mechanistic models. Small gas bubbles in liquid slugs should be accounted for when predicting liquid holdup for slug flow more accurately. Gas in the slug body is considered by adding a proper term to the void-fraction expression. This term is based on the correlation for liquid holdup in the slug body. The model was evaluated with Rosneft's field data and the Tulsa University Fluid Flow Projects (TUFFP) databank. The model was evaluated by comparing it with three mechanistic models for multiphase flow.