High Efficiency Compact Separation

Innovative Separation Solutions from Aibel

High Efficiency Compact Separation HECS

Innovative Separation Solutions

There are many challenges when it comes to the design of separators. Some of them include dealing with heavy oils, viscous oils, ageing fields, general uncertainty about what exactly will come up from the earth to be separated, as well as pressure drop and shear from valves, piping or pumps. These challenges have encouraged us to use more sophisticated techniques in order to design separators in the most cost effective and process efficient way. It is only when you know all the influencing elements you can design and build the optimal separation process. Aibel can do in-house characterization and testing of oils in own lab. This combined with expert knowledge of chemistry, sophisticated computer modeling, general overall knowledge of the process as a whole and hands on operational experience means we are able to tackle almost any challenge our customer might have. When combining this with proprietary high-tech internals, we are able to customize separators and separation systems to help our customers to enhance and increase production, reduce operational costs, and cut weight and space requirements. HECS - High Efficiency Compact Separation Our high tech internals portfolio consists of products such as the Vessel Internal Electrostatic Coalescer (VIEC), the Low Water Content Coalescer (LOWACC) and the Inductive Level Measurement System (ILMS). Utilizing these internals has enabled Aibel to introduce the revolutionary concept of moving the electrostatic coalescence effect to the inlet separator. This gives the possibility of removing one or two of the vessels in a conventional separation system.

High Efficiency Compact Separation (HECS)

The VIEC/LOWACC effect
Experience from offshore installations, with oils ranging from 12-40 API, have shown that VIEC (Vessel Internal Electrostatic Calescer) greatly improves both the oil- and produced water quality. LOWACC , (Low Water Content Coalescer) installed downstream the VIEC will remove the remaining water in the oil and ensure export oil quality, (less than 0,5% water in oil) making the traditional electrostatic coalescer superfluous.
LOWACC VIEC

Recent References
Separator systems Ettrick-Bluewater/Nexen, UK, 2007

Vincent-Maersk/Woodside, Aus, 2007 Volve-Maersk/StatoilHydro.Norway,2007 Golfinho II-Saipem/Petrobras, Braz, 2006 Chinguetti-BWO/Woodside, Maur, 2005
VIEC Schiehallion-BP, UK 2008

ILMS

Gja-StatoilHydro, Norway 2008 Valhall-BP, Norway, 2008 Heidrun-StatoilHydro, Norway,2007 Vincent-Maersk/Woodside, Aus, 2007 P-37-Petrobras, Brazil, 2007 Fram East-StatoilHydro, Norway, 2006 P-35-Petrobras, Brazil, 2006 P-34-Petrobras, Brazil, 2005 Al Shaheen, Maersk Oil, Qatar, 2005

Increased production
By installing electrostatic internals in the separator, the water droplets will coalesce and increase in size. According to Stokes law, the settling velocity will increase by the square of the droplet size, meaning that the required retention time for the oil / water separation will be dramatically reduced. This means that in many cases, in an existing separator, production can be increased by as much as 50%. In a new separator, the same effect may enable you to design a much smaller separator.

Heavy oil separation / Emulsions

Due to difficult and stable emulsions, operators often experience the separators to be the bottleneck. Heating, chemicals and additional vessels are often used to solve such problems. However, these solutions create high operational costs as well as causing further strain on the environment. Aibels electrostatic internals for the production separators will break the emulsion without excessive use of chemicals or heat. Our electrostatic internals are therefore particularly useful for heavy oil separation, and in recent years we have gained valuable experience from several deliveries to e.g. Brazil. Our most recent project is the delivery of a High Temperature Vessel Internal Electrostatic Coalescer (HTVIEC) to Petrobras for the Siri field (API 12).

Environmental aspects
By installing Aibels internals in a new or existing separator you will achieve reduced demulsifier consumption, cleaner produced water and thereby reduced discharges of harmful components to sea. In many cases our customers may also experience reduced process heating requirements resulting in less energy consumption and reduced air emissions.

Pictures (From left to right) Aibel lab at Billingstad, Norway CFD computer modelling of separator Separator for Vincent FPSO

About Aibel
Aibel is dedicated to oil and gas Production Facilities Solutions. We engineer, build, maintain, modify and operate production facilities, and offer a portfolio of advanced separation, gas and drilling technology solutions; all to help customers achieve greater production. Well be there. Aibel Technology & Products Bergerveien 12, P.O.Box 81, N-1375 Billingstad, Norway Tel: +47 85 27 00 00 Fax: +47 85 27 35 03 E-mail: sales.products@aibel.com Internet: www.aibel.com