Petroleum Production Processes Research Articles

Occupational Exposure Estimate of Benzene and the Effectiveness of Control Measure in Gabon’s Gasoline Storage and Distribution Facility

The processing of petroleum products in gasoline storage and distribution facility for loading operation, has caused the generation of vapor emissions sources. Benzene is one of those vapor emissions that workers are likely to be exposed at high exposure level during conducting out specific tasks such as loading gasoline to various petroleum storage transport modes. This results in many problems on human health such as cancer and non-cancer diseases. However, the estimate of benzene exposure to indicate the control measures has not been fully explored in previous researches. In this study, the occupational exposure estimate of benzene in Gabon’s gasoline storage and distribution facility was investigated by using a quantitative and predictive exposure inhalation model; to estimate benzene concentration before and after applying control measures. The results indicate that the benzene concentrations varied between 9.46 mg/m³ and 187 mg/m³ for short term and has the value of 187 mg/m³ for long term. The implementation of control measures including using vapor recovery system, chemical filter mask and improving worker’s behavior might contribute to significantly reduce benzene concentration to the range of 4.52 – 29.08 mg/m³ for short term and down to 4.55 mg/m³ for long term. This almost meets the Agency Governmental Industrial Hygienists standard, in which occupational exposure limit for short term and long term exposure is 8.1 mg/m³ and 3.16 mg/m³, respectively.

The influence of cross diffusion on magnetohydrodynamic flow of Carreau liquid in the presence of buoyancy force

The flow of magnetohydrodynamic Carreau liquid with the Brownian moment, thermophoresis and cross diffusion effects is investigated numerically. The buoyancy persuades on the flow is contemplated in such a way that the surface is neither perpendicular/horizontal nor wedge/cone. This is very helpful in the design of jet-engine. The equations govern the flow are transmuted using acceptable similarity variables and numerically solved by recruiting Runge-Kutta based Newtons method. The graphical results are obtained to discuss the stimulus of flow, thermal and concentration fields for different parameters of interest. The wall friction, local Nusselt and Sherwood numbers are examined with the assistance of tables. It is noticed that the parabolic flow is controlled by the buoyant forces developed by the temperature difference. Since the flow is laminar, the Reynolds number considered as <1000. This study has applicable in man-made products and various industries like pumps and oil purification, petroleum production, power engineering and chemical engineering processes.

POSSIBLE WAYS TO ENSURE ENERGY INDEPENDENCE OF UKRAINE BY REFORMING THE OIL INDUSTRY

In the time of independence, Ukraine was not able to escape from the energy and transport dependence on Russia, it concerns not only natural gas but also petroleum products, liquefied gas, nuclear fuel and even coal. During the war, this situation is extremely dangerous as it can lead to a paralysis of the national economy in the сondition of a complete blockade of supplies of energy products from Russia or from other countries through russion territory, as well as the impossibility of carrying out military operations to defend the territori integrity of Ukraine on the case of a large-scale war. Since the energy sector of Ukraine is very large and can not be fully considered in the same work, in this article the research of the oil industry of Ukraine, namely: natural reserves of oil, the market of oil and petroleum products, processing and consumption of petroleum products by the national economy has been conducted. This issue is extremely important today because in a wartime, uninterrupted and timely supply of petroleum products is a vital condition for conducting effective military operations and rebuffing aggression on the part of Russia.

The effect of inter-grain contact material on the dynamic fracture of short glass bead chains under impact

Impact induced dynamic fracture plays an important role in controlling the compaction behaviour of brittle granular media. Associated effects include dramatic changes to porosity and permeability, especially along earthquake faults, and during mining and petroleum production processes. In this study, using split Hopkinson bar impact experiments on short chains of three glass beads whose contacts are separated by copper shims, we demonstrate that the front bead is much more sensitive to fracture than the rear bead, while the middle bead only damages slightly for the applied impact velocity range. The varying damage level of the rear bead indicates that irregular fracture mechanisms may exist even though the damage level of the front bead is almost the same. Corresponding numerical simulations with a simple brittle damage model for the glass successfully reproduce the crack initiation state of the failed glass beads. Comparisons between the glass bead chain systems, with and without contact materials, clearly indicate that the contact material changes the chain damage patterns, in particular for the middle bead that gets shielded by the shims. The contact material alters the initial contact state of the middle bead and consequently restrains the initiation of cracks, which is governed by the tensile stress near the contact surface. The chain system damage level is also inversely related to the amount of the contact material layers, while the insertion position generates additional effects. The thickness of the contact materials causes a slight fluctuation to the chain damage extent due to complex stress wave reflection and superposition.

Rapid Dissolution of Cinnabar in Crude Oils at Reservoir Temperatures Facilitated by Reduced Sulfur Ligands

Mercury (Hg) is present in petrochemical samples, including crude oils, and the processing and use of petroleum products contribute to global Hg emissions. We present a refined theory on geochemica ...

Continuous Wave Ultrasonic Doppler Modeling for Oil–Gas–Water Three-Phase Flow Velocity Measurement

Oil–gas–water three-phase flow is the most commonly seen fluid in petroleum production and transportation process. Flow velocity measurement of each individual phase is important to estimate the production condition and monitor the operation safety. The continuous wave ultrasonic Doppler (CWUD) technique has a high potential to measure the velocity of multiphase flow in a non-intrusive manner. However, this technique lacks proper measurement models for three-phase flow velocity measurement. In this paper, a one-sided CWUD sensor with 1-MHz center frequency was used for transmitting and receiving the acoustical signal that contains rich flow velocity information of the dispersed phases. By analyzing the momentum balance between different phases and modifying a two-fluid model into three-phase flow, a novel theoretical model to estimate the individual phase superficial flow velocity was established. Experiments were performed in a 50-mm inner diameter pipe, and two typical flow patterns (water dominated dispersed plug flow, oil dominated dispersed plug flow) were generated by adjusting the inlet flow rate of the three phases. By analyzing the ultrasound signal, the flow velocity of dispersed phases can be extracted. After using proposed theoretical model, the phase’s superficial velocities can be calculated. The results show that the mean relative error can achieve within 5%. The proposed theoretical model explains the characteristic and mechanism of ultrasound Doppler frequency shift in three-phase flow, which can be applied in similar flow conditions to obtain acceptable accuracy.

The order of calculation and payment of tax on profit of commercial banks in the innovation economy

In the conditions of innovative economy of the tightening of the requirements of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and the crisis of the banking system, in the conditions of a severe shortage of funds in the Russian Federation, taxes and fees levied on credit institutions are one of the main revenue sources of the state budget after the extraction, processing, transportation, warehousing and sale of natural resources-oil, gas and related petroleum products. In practice, the taxation of profits of credit institutions is under the close attention of the state. So, PJSC "Sberbank of Russia" in 2016, took fifth place among the largest Russian taxpayers, losing the leadership of the JSC "NK Rosneft", PJSC "Gazprom", PJSC "LUKOIL" and JSC "Surgutneftegas". At the same time in 2015 PJSC "Sberbank of Russia" has taken only the tenth place. A particularly urgent task in modern conditions is the reduction of the strongly expressed fiscal orientation of taxes and fees and the increase of their motivating role, as well as the strengthening of the legal regulation of fees and taxes as a complex part of the legislation in the field of taxation of Russia as a whole. The article describes taxpayers, the object of taxation on income tax of a commercial Bank. The detailed calculation of the tax base of income tax of PJSC "Sberbank of Russia" by year is presented. The table of calculation of the Bank's income is provided, by results of the analysis it is revealed that the greatest share in structure of the income is occupied by interest income all three years about 90%, however dynamics of development of banking sector and global tendencies dictate growth of Commission income in structure of the General income. Distinct dynamics can be traced clearly. The calculation of expenses for three years of PJSC “Sberbank of Russia” is also presented, the analysis is carried out, conclusions are formulated. According to the results of the work the conclusion about the need for further development of the system of taxation of commercial banks in obligatory correlation with the strategy and objectives of development of other sectors of the national economy of Russia.

Effects of Short-Chain n-Alcohols on the Properties of Asphaltenes at Toluene/Air and Toluene/Water Interfaces

Crude oil asphaltenes contain a wide series of chemical species, which includes the most polar compounds and interfacially active agents from the petroleum. Asphaltenes have been considered to be implicated in foam and emulsion formation during the petroleum recovery and production process. In this work, the interfacial activity of organic solutions containing asphaltene and n-alcohols was investigated. Asphaltene extraction from a 28°API crude oil produced 2.5 wt % of n-pentane precipitated asphaltene (C5I). Dynamic surface and interfacial tensions of asphaltene solutions were assessed by the pendant drop method. Asphaltene films were evaluated at the air-water interface using a Langmuir trough. Results were expressed by means of the interfacial tension time-dependence. Interfacial tension measurements showed alcohols reduce the toluene/water interfacial tension of asphaltene solutions. The interfacial tension was reduced from 23 mN/m to 15.5 mN/m for a 2 g/L solution of asphaltene plus n-butanol. Higher asphaltene concentrations did not affect the toluene/air surface tension. The effects of n-alcohols on the asphaltene surface activity was dependent on the asphaltene aggregation state. n-Alcohols modify the asphaltene film elasticity and the film phase behavior.

Spongy Structures Coated with Carbon Nanomaterials for Efficient Oil/Water Separation

Rapid progress of processing and transportation of oil and petroleum products may cause disaster for environment like oil spill. Oil booms, combustion, and oil skimmer vessels are usually used to clean up the oil spill, but often with poor efficiency and even with undesirable environmental side effects. With obtaining of carbon nanomaterials (CNMs) (graphene, carbon nanotubes) and developing inexpensive technologies for their synthesis it has become perspective to use them for creation of 3D structures which may serve as a hydrophobic sorbents for oil and petroleum products. In this study, sponges coated with carbon nanomaterials were obtained using “dip-coating” method. Walls of commercially available polyurethane (PU) and melamine sponges were coated with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The resulting sponges are characterized by excellent mechanical properties, they are superhydprophobic, and they fully repel water and at the same time selectively absorb oil and organic liquids of different densities. We believe that superhydrophobic and superoleophilic sponges, the walls of which are coated with CNMs, are perspective candidates for reusable sorbents for collection of oil and petroleum products from the surface of water and moreover due to its excellent mechanical properties they can serve as a hydrophobic filtering materials for separation of oil from the surface of water.

Stabilization of Foam Lamella Using Novel Surface-Grafted Nanocellulose-Based Nanofluids.

To solve the potential risk of present oilfield chemistries to subterranean environment, our group contributes to the development of "green" petroleum production processes. This proof-of-concept research studied the well-defined nanocellulose-based nanofluids, i.e., original (NC), AMPS grafted (NC-KY), and AMPS and hydrophobic chains grafted (NC-KYSS), in stabilizing foam lamella for potential use in enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The data showed that the collaboration of the surface-functional nanocellulose considerately improved the foam stability particularly in the presence of hydrocarbons due to the thickened foam film coupled with the molecular interactions at interior lamella. Since the grafted AMPS and alkyl chains, NC-KYSS noticeably enhanced foam quality compared against NC and NC-KY. With the increase in gas pressure, the lamella stabilizing effect of NC-KYSS became increasingly significant. The coflowing behaviors of foam with oleic phase in porous media were examined in a five-spot visualization micromodel (15 cm × 15 cm × 1 cm) and identified using a digital analysis method. The defoaming/destabilizing effect of hydrocarbons was fairly notable in porous media, causing the foam to finger through the formed "oil bank". However, a tough displacement front was constructed when the surfactant synergized with NC-KYSS due to the stabilized foam lamella and 12% of incremental oil recovery was produced.

Palm oil based surfactant products for petroleum industry

In petroleum production process, many problems causing reduced production are found. These include limited oil recovery, wax deposit, asphaltene deposit, sludge deposit, and emulsion problem. Petroleum-based surfactant has been used to overcome these problems. Therefore, innovation to solve these problems using surfactant containing natural materials deserves to be developed. Palm oil-based surfactant is one of the potential alternatives for this. Various types of derivative products of palm oil-based surfactant have been developed by SBRC IPB to be used in handling problems including surfactant flooding, well stimulation, asphaltene dissolver, well cleaning, and wax removal found in oil and gas industry.

Conceptualization of smart solutions in oil and gas industry

Abstract: Technological solutions called “smart wells” and “smart fields” have been applied in petroleum industry for nearly two decades. They aim to improve the knowledge of petroleum production processes, and thereby improve the efficiency of operations. Researchers and companies in pursuit of their goals tend to use one-sided implications and numerous synonyms when describing the substance of the term, which leads to an occasional confusion. In order to study the concept of smart field from a general perspective, a literature review has been conducted, and main characteristic attributes of such solutions have been revealed. Selected marketed products offered by engineering companies have been analyzed as examples of the technology implementation. A definition has been proposed along with its practical implications. Additionally, an attempt has been made to place these solutions in a broad scientific context of intelligence and sustainability in contemporary business processes.

Theoretical and Experimental Investigations of Identifying the Ingredients of an Oil–Water Mixture Based on a Characteristic Fluid Inverse Problem

To identify the ingredients of an oil–water mixture in petroleum production or petrochemicals process, a method based on a characteristic liquid inverse problem was developed by clarifying its real viscosity and thermal conductivity. A heat transfer and fluid flow model for an oil–water mixture was established for tube flow in this paper. By means of the measured temperature distribution in the tube, the thermal physical properties of the oil–water mixture can be obtained by the governing equations in the model according to their characteristics as a Newtonian or non-Newtonian fluid. The fluid characteristic can be deduced by the rheological properties of the oil–water mixture. Both the Newtonian fluid and non-Newtonian fluid governing equations were established to determine the mixture components. Experiments were also conducted to verify the numerical solutions for the ingredients of the oil–water mixture. The comparison between theoretical solutions and experimental results shows that the maximum error based on the suitable fluid model is 3.11 %, which demonstrated the feasibility of the proposed method for estimating the ingredients of an oil–water mixture.

Localization of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and heavy metals in surface soil of Asia’s oldest oil and gas drilling site in Assam, north-east India: Implications for the bio-economy

Abstract The environmental influx of hazardous contaminants viz PAHs and HMs occurs due to oil and gas drilling, and processing of petroleum products in industrial facilities and refineries. This problem plagues crude oil drilling sites as PAHs are an essential component of and HMs coexist with crude oil. We analyzed the spatial distribution of 16 PAHs and 8 HMs in 10 contaminated sites of Assam, a state in India. These included Digboi, where crude oil was drilled in 1867 and the first oil well in Asia that was drilled. The Ʃ16 PAHs in soil were detected with a minimum of 13.48 and a maximum of 86.3 mgkg −1 and Ʃ 8 heavy metal concentrations in the soil ranged between 69.51 and 336.06 mgkg −1 . A negative correlation was detected between the relative concentrations of PAHs and HMs. The results confirmed that the non-biodegradable nature of HMs made them stay in the soil for longer periods of time. In our study, we found that the levels of lead, copper, nickel, and chromium (total) in soil were 73.62, 11.86, 58.97 and 158.66 mgkg −1 . The recovery percentage for PAHs and HMs were in the range of 67–97% and 90–95% respectively. Spatial distribution indices for Phenanthrene/Anthracene, Naphthalene/Acenapthhylene, Chyrsene/Benzo ( g , h , i ) perylene and Fluranthene/Pyrene) calculated for soil samples indicated that the spatial distribution of PAHs in soil is uneven which might be due to variations in contaminates disseminated in soil. Such regionalized concentration has serious implications on the bio-economy both in terms of health and economy, especially since the proximity of crude oil sites to paddy fields and/or tea plantations uniquely marks the landscape of upper Assam.

Research on the prediction model of annular pressure buildup in subsea wells

The temperature difference between hot flowing production (including petroleum & natural gas) and fluid in the sealed annuli leads to annular pressure buildup (APB). The pressure increase could be very high due to the low compressibility of the annulus fluid, thereby endangering the well integrity and casing safety, especially in the HPHT (high pressure high temperature) subsea wells. In this paper, a semi-steady state model is presented to predict APB; the model takes several crucial factors into account, such as the differences of annulus temperature with depths, heat transfer diverseness at various well sections, and the ratio change between isobaric thermal expansion and the isothermal compressibility. The results of the case study demonstrate that APB is directly influenced by production rate, well depth, and annular length. In these factors, APB is most sensitive to the production rate. The higher the production rate, the higher pressure increase in the annuli becomes. The model provides a practical APB prediction method that is beneficial to well integrity and casing safety during petroleum and natural gas production process.

Human factors considerations: Midstream process safety integration

Midstream oil and gas companies are coming into their own. For example, according to Deloitte (2014), “Midstream energy companies’ share of overall market value in the oil and gas industry has already risen, nearly tripling over the last six years.” Midstream operators are becoming the stars of the energy industry, investing $26 billion on new pipelines and facilities in 2012—a drastic increase from the seven billion spent just 6 years earlier [Larsson, Midstream investment in pipeline management solutions, Oil and Gas Monitor, Schneider Electric, 2014].Particularly in the United States due to the success of shale and the increasing possibilities for exportation along with recent accidents and fatalities, more scrutiny is being given to both process safety and the humans in the myriad of midstream systems. In the petroleum industry, midstream activities are often taken for granted. Midstream, the conduit between upstream (retrieval of crude oil) and downstream (the processing of petroleum products), is deceivingly complex and risk‐laden. The process safety issues are many and often the integration of those issues with the elements of crude oil storage and transportation is elusive.“Even the best designed, engineered, maintained, and operated pipelines and modes of transportation can be vulnerable to human failures and organizational complexity” [Smith and Volf, Oil Gas Financ J (2013)]. Human Factors (HFs) is a scientific tool that integrates humans (and their capabilities and limitations) into highly complex processes and systems. This discussion describes how the integration of HFs with process safety in crude oil storage, pipeline management, and transportation preserves human safety, organizational credibility, public goodwill, and infrastructure confidence along with investment maximization and preservation.Each aspect and phase of midstream activities share commonalities with the others and yet each has its own unique aspects and challenges. This article describes HFs integration with process safety in the midstream environment. Issues and considerations common to most facets of midstream enterprises are addressed. In addition, unique components of each of the midstream factors such as pipelines, transportation—rail, ship, and truck—and logistics and technology are discussed from a HFs perspective. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog 34: 320–327, 2015

Fuzzy fault tree assessment based on improved AHP for fire and explosion accidents for steel oil storage tanks

Fire and explosion accidents of steel oil storage tanks (FEASOST) occur occasionally during the petroleum and chemical industry production and storage processes and often have devastating impact on lives, the environment and property. To contribute towards the development of a quantitative approach for assessing the occurrence probability of FEASOST, a fault tree of FEASOST is constructed that identifies various potential causes. Traditional fault tree analysis (FTA) can achieve quantitative evaluation if the failure data of all of the basic events (BEs) are available, which is almost impossible due to the lack of detailed data, as well as other uncertainties. This paper makes an attempt to perform FTA of FEASOST by a hybrid application between an expert elicitation based improved analysis hierarchy process (AHP) and fuzzy set theory, and the occurrence possibility of FEASOST is estimated for an oil depot in China. A comparison between statistical data and calculated data using fuzzy fault tree analysis (FFTA) based on traditional and improved AHP is also made. Sensitivity and importance analysis has been performed to identify the most crucial BEs leading to FEASOST that will provide insights into how managers should focus effective mitigation.

Developing Thermodynamic Micellization Approach to Model Asphaltene Precipitation Behavior

An little known yet significant issue in petroleum production processes in petroleum reservoirs is asphaltene precipitation/deposition. Asphaltene has not only a fuzzy and vague nature but it also can cause detrimental problems like reservoir blockage and, as a result, low oil recovery. To tackle this issue, many researchers have attempted to monitor asphaltene behavior versus thermodynamic conditions. A thermodynamic micellization approach is implemented in this work to describe asphaltene precipitation behavior for two sample fluids from Iranian reservoirs. First, the basic structures of the addressed approach and different contributions to Gibbs free energy of micellization proposed by Victorov and Firoozabadi (VF) are demonstrated. Second, a detailed sensitivity analysis with respect to the model parameters is performed by utilizing a new calculation strategy. Finally, a comparison between the predicted precipitation curve and the experimental one is illustrated; moreover, comparing our results with those reported by Victorov proves the superiority of the new strategy over the conventional one. The significance of this study shows the effect of each micellization parameter on the asphaltene precipitation behavior curve and illustrates the ability of the micellization approach evolved by VF in monitoring the effect of pressure on asphaltene precipitation using the new calculation procedure. Outcomes from this study could couple with commercial reservoir simulation software to improve precision and integrity for designing robust and effective production units.

Interest of the Theory of Uncertain in the Dynamic LCA- Fire Methodology to Assess Fire Effects

Abstract Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) is the third phase of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) described in ISO 14042. The purpose of LCIA is to assess a product system's life cycle inventory analysis (LCI) in order to better understand its environmental significance. However, LCIA typically excludes spatial, temporal, threshold and dose-response information, and combines emissions or activities over space and/or time. This may diminish the environmental relevance of the indicator result. The methodology, Dynamic LCA -Fire proposed in this paper to complete the International Standard ISO 14042 in the fire field, combines the LCA - Fire method with the Dispersion Numerical Model. It is based on the use of the plume model used to assess pollutant concentrations and thermal effects from fire accident scenarios. In this study, The Dynamic LCA - Fire methodology is applied to a case study for petroleum production process management.

Emulsion Stabilization, Breaking, and Inversion Depends upon Formulation: Advantage or Inconvenience in Flow Assurance

Emulsion type and stability are directly linked to the physicochemical formulation, which controls the interfacial interactions of the surfactant with the oil and water phases. During petroleum production processes, emulsions have to be stabilized, broken, or inverted and the formulation has to be adjusted to attain the required property. This is, in particular, the way to reach a proper rheology that insures the flow. If the formulation is not controlled, unwelcome changes, such as phase inversion, can take place and plug the porous medium or the pipeline through which a multiphase system is transported. Three specific cases still under development are discussed as critically depending upon formulation: displacement in porous medium during surfactant flooding for enhanced oil recovery, heavy crude oil emulsified transport in the pipeline, and control of the gas hydrate slurry in deep subsea transportation.