Evaluation of Red Onion Skin Extract as Inhibitor for Gum Formation in Gas Condensates

Abstract

In the upstream sector, gum in condensate causes significant erosion in value worth millions of dollars per annum and increases operational cost due to high injection concentration of conventional antioxidants. Phenolic compounds are commonly used at low concentrations in the downstream sector to inhibit gum formation in refined petroleum products. However, gum inhibition in condensates, in the upstream sector, requires high concentrations of phenolic antioxidant. Therefore, there is need for cheaper and more effective antioxidants for gas condensates. The present study investigates the use of Red Onion Skin Extract (ROSE) as a natural inhibitor for gum formation in condensate based on ASTM D381. Treatments with ethanolic extracts of red onion skin were carried out on seven gas condensate samples with gum formation tendency. At a dosage of 200ppm red onion skin extract caused a reduction of 17.4% to 99.6% in washed gum content of the condensate samples. The performance of ROSE was comparable to, and in some condensates better than, commercially available catechol. The result obtained using ROSE highlights the need to explore the commercial viability of this application in oil & gas upstream operations.