APPROACH TO MATHEMATICAL MODELING OF THE COST OF APPLYING COATINGS TO PREVENT THE FORMATION OF ARPD

Abstract

The authors explore the topic of operation of main oil pipelines, complicated by the formation and settling of asphalt, resin, and paraffin deposits (wax deposits). It is known that the fallout of paraffin deteriorates the technological characteristics of the pipeline, which has a number of negative consequences from an economic point of view: a decrease in income due to a narrowing of the flow area and the volume of pumped oil, an increase in costs due to the increased load on main pumps. Today, there are many different ways to combat wax deposits, primarily aimed at preventing the fallout or removing formed deposits from the internal surface of an oil pipeline, the effectiveness of which is determined individually for each pipeline due to the complexity in assessing the influence of the rheological characteristics of oil and the geological conditions of the pipeline on the effectiveness of the methods. One of the additional and universal options for combating wax deposits is the use of internal and external protective coatings.The authors have developed a number of models of oil pipelines that use oils from various oil and gas basins, differing in paraffin content, and considering the presence of insulation of various protective coatings (paint and varnish, highly reinforced protective coating (VUS), bitumen-mastic VUS, polyurethane foam) and their combinations. For these models, the Schlumberger OLGA program simulated the operation of the pipeline for 180 days, on the basis of which the maximum thickness of the formed paraffin was estimated, and the specific energy costs for pumping through the pipeline without coating and various types of coating were calculated, after which the calculation was performed main economic indicators of pipeline operation for each option. Based on the calculation results, it was concluded that it is advisable to use one or another coating based on the shortest payback period. This comprehensive assessment demonstrates a methodology for assessing the effectiveness of the use of protective coatings from both a technological and economic point of view and allows us to draw conclusions about the possibility of using one or another option based on the results of the study, depending on the composition of the oil.