Point Thomson Project: Separator Design for High Pressure Gas Cycling

SPE Alaska Section Luncheon BP Energy Center Anchorage, Alaska Barry M. Boos ExxonMobil Development Company Point Thomson Project Engineering Manager Adam Bymaster, ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company Ed Grave, ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company Jerad Naymick, ExxonMobil Development Company November 9, 2010

Project Overview
The Point Thomson project is expected to be the highest pressure gas cycling operation in the world and the first such operation on the Alaska North Slope The high pressure gas reservoir is located in a remote, arctic, and environmentally sensitive area on the eastern Alaska North Slope A cross-functional team from the ExxonMobil Upstream companies was formed to address the key technical issue of high pressure separation

Point Thomson Central Pad March 2010

Resource and Technical Development

The Thomson Sand reservoir contains an estimated 8 TCF of gas The Central Processing Facility (CPF) will be co-located on the Central Pad with a Thomson Sand producer and gas injector well pair
Designed to process 200 MMSCFD of natural gas and 10,000 BPD of associated condensate Recovered liquids are stabilized and exported to a carrier pipeline for ultimate delivery into the TransAlaska Pipeline The gas from the inlet separator is compressed to greater than 10,000 psia for re-injection into the reservoir

High Pressure Separation

Key Technical Issue: The inlet production separator at the CPF will operate at 2,700 psia Separator design and performance at high pressure Potential liquid carryover into downstream equipment could result in damage and critical failure of compressor units

Separation is typically driven by gravitational or centrifugal forces. As pressure increases, the interfacial tension and density gradients between the vapor and liquid phases decrease, which can have a significant impact on the separation characteristics, most notably droplet distribution, droplet shearing, re-entrainment, and film stability.

High Pressure Separation

Technical and Business Impact:
High pressure separation (2,700 psi) will optimize the compression horsepower for re-injection Proposed design utilizes high capacity, compact separation technologies First stage separator is estimated to save 40-55% in footprint and 40+ tons (55%) in weight when compared to a conventional design Proving separation technologies at elevated pressures is essential to the development of remote and marginal oil and gas fields
3D representation of Central Pad and separation module.

Compact Separation Technology

Stage 2: Gas Cleanup and Fine Droplet Removal

Stage 1: Bulk V/L Separation

Deliquidiser Cyclone Deliquidiser Bypass Vertical Scrubber Equipped with High Performance Internals

Incoming Stream

Deliquidiser Liquid Boot

3D concept for high pressure test skid and proposed design for Point Thomson field.

Compact Separation Technology

Inline Deliquidiser High capacity, high separation efficiency Liquid load: 0-10 vol% Gas turndown range: 50% Low pressure drop Open structure, not sensitive to fouling Compact inline design saves considerable weight and space More robust, easily and quickly installed no vessel entry required
(2) Swirl Element (3) Vortex Finder, AntiSwirl, & Expander

(1) Mixer Element

(4) Liquid Boot

(5) Gas Recycle

Image courtesy of FMC Technologies.

How it works: The liquid laden gas stream enters the deliquidiser and is passed through a low pressure drop mixing element (1) to evenly distribute the liquid present in the gas phase. A stationary swirl element (2) brings the stream to rotation, causing the gas to migrate to the center of the cyclone while the liquid forms a spinning film on the inner wall of the cyclone. The gas exits the cyclone through a smaller pipe within the main pipe (3). The liquid enters the annular space between these two pipes and is collected in a vertical boot section (4). A gas recycle (5) is included to promote optimal liquid from gas separation.

High Performance Internals

Evenflow vane inlet
Reduces the momentum of the incoming feed stream, encouraging bulk liquid drop-out Reduces droplet shearing Minimizes liquid re-entrainment at HLL interface Provides even gas flow distribution
SpiraFlowTM Box

Mesh Pad

Wire Mesh Agglomerator

Operated at flooded conditions to promote droplet coalescence Increases efficiency of the downstream mist eliminating assembly Increases turndown capabilities Provides pressure drop, minimizing maldistribution

SpiraFlowTM Demisting Cyclones

Provides high degree of separation of fine droplets Compact, high capacity mist eliminator reduces vessel size and weight

Inlet Vane

Illustration of scrubber internals and gas/liquid flow.

Images courtesy of FMC Technologies.

High Pressure Qualification at SwRI

Southwest Research Institute is the only facility in the world equipped to test at the desired pressures (up to 3,600 psia) Test Location: San Antonio, TX Test Schedule: August-September 2010 Variables: Vessel Configurations Flow Rates Gas Volume Fraction Pressure

Key Goals Ensure Safety Nobody Gets Hurt Qualify the proposed separation technologies at high pressures Quantify liquid removal efficiency of each individual component and the entire system Identify optimal operating window for design Mitigate uncertainty and risk associated with the design and operation

The separation test skid is a scaled down version of the proposed field unit, equipped with the necessary controls, instrumentation, and data acquisition system. The skid is 25ft (L) X 10ft (W) X 17 ft (H) and weighs 17 tons.

High Pressure Qualification at SwRI

Test Conditions Pressure: 1500-2600 psia Temperature: 90F Gas rates: 0.5-2 ACFS Liquid volume fractions: 0.03-20% (0.25-120 gpm) Test fluids Flow loop charged with natural gas and a hydrocarbon mixture with similar fluid properties of field fluid (density, viscosity, low surface tension) Separation Equipment Qualified Achieved required separation efficiency under challenging Point Thomson conditions
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High pressure separation skid during testing at SwRI.

Questions?

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