CFD Simulations of Oil-Water Flow Behavior in Horizontal Pipe Separator

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Srinivas Swaroop Kolla ◽  
Ram S. Mohan ◽  
Ovadia Shoham
Keyword(s):  
Flow Behavior ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Water Mixture ◽  
Hexahedral Mesh ◽  
Cfd Simulations ◽  
Mixture Flow ◽  
Horizontal Pipe ◽  
Vof Model ◽  
Oil Water ◽  
Grid Convergence Index

Abstract Horizontal Pipe Separators (HPS©) are used for separation of oil and water especially in subsea environment owing to its simplicity, installation, and operation. In the present work, the flow phenomena in the HPS with 0.0762m ID and 10.3 m long separating oil and water with specific gravities of 1 and 0.857 is simulated and analyzed using ANSYS Fluent 16. Hexahedral mesh with boundary layers has been done utilizing ANSYS design modeler for this analysis. A grid independence study is performed on 3 different mesh grids using grid convergence index. 3-D simulations are carried out using a Hybrid Eulerian-Eulerian Multifluid VOF model for watercuts ranging from 20 to 80% and a mixture velocity of 0.08 m/s. The CFD simulations analyzed the effect of watercut on the oil-water mixture flow behavior and the entry region required for the oil and water to separate in the HPS. These simulation results are validated against acquired experimental data by Othman in 2010. These simulations provide an insight to understand the effects of diameter, watercut, and mixture velocities on the performance of HPS to aid in its design and scale up/down studies.

scholarly journals Experimental investigation of coarse particles-water mixture flow in horizontal and inclined pipes

2014 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 241-247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pavel Vlasák ◽  
Zdeněk Chára ◽  
Jan Krupička ◽  
Jiří Konfršt
Keyword(s):  
Dominant Mode ◽  
Solid Particles ◽  
Coarse Grained ◽  
Water Mixture ◽  
Mixture Flow ◽  
Horizontal Pipe ◽  
Pressure Drops ◽  
Steel Pipes ◽  
Inner Diameter ◽  
Inclined Pipes

Abstract The effect of solid concentration and mixture velocity on the flow behaviour, pressure drops, and concentration distribution of coarse particle-water mixtures in horizontal, vertical, and inclined smooth stainless steel pipes of inner diameter D = 100 mm was experimentally investigated. Graded basalt pebbles were used as solid particles. The study revealed that the coarse-grained particle-water mixtures in the horizontal and inclined pipes were significantly stratified. The solid particles moved principally in a layer close to the pipe invert; however for higher and moderate flow velocities, particle saltation became the dominant mode of particle conveyance. Frictional pressure drops in the horizontal pipe were found to be markedly higher than in the vertical pipe, while the frictional pressure drops in the ascending pipe increased with inclination angle up to about 30°.

Experimental and Simulated Studies of Oil/Water Fully Dispersed Flow in a Horizontal Pipe

2019 ◽  
Vol 141 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
D. S. Santos ◽  
P. M. Faia ◽  
F. A. P. Garcia ◽  
M. G. Rasteiro
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Drop ◽  
Drag Coefficient ◽  
Cross Section ◽  
Numerical Study ◽  
Liquid Paraffin ◽  
Water Mixture ◽  
Horizontal Pipe ◽  
Dispersed Flow ◽  
Oil Water ◽  
Mixture Viscosity

The flow of oil/water mixtures in a pipe can occur under different flow patterns. Additionally, being able to predict adequately pressure drop in such systems is of relevant importance to adequately design the conveying system. In this work, an experimental and numerical study of the fully dispersed flow regime of an oil/water mixture (liquid paraffin and water) in a horizontal pipe, with concentrations of the oil of 0.01, 0.13, and 0.22 v/v were developed. Experimentally, the values of pressure drop, flow photographs, and radial volumetric concentrations of the oil in the vertical diameter of the pipe cross section were collected. In addition, normalized conductivity values were obtained, in this case, for a cross section of the pipe where an electrical impedance tomography (EIT) ring was installed. Numerical studies were carried out in the comsolmultiphysics platform, using the Euler–Euler approach, coupled with the k–ε turbulence model. In the simulations, two equations for the calculation of the drag coefficient, Schiller–Neumann and Haider–Levenspiel, and three equations for mixture viscosity, Guth and Simba (1936), Brinkman (1952), and Pal (2000), were studied. The simulated data were validated with the experimental results of the pressure drop, good results having been obtained. The best fit occurred for the simulations that used the Schiller–Neumann equation for the calculation of the drag coefficient and the Pal (2000) equation for the mixture viscosity.

Prediction of Dispersion Viscosity of Oil/Water Mixture Flow in Horizontal Pipes

1988 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.E. Martinez ◽  
S. Arirachakaran ◽  
O. Shoham ◽  
J.P. Brill
Keyword(s):  
Water Mixture ◽  
Mixture Flow ◽  
Horizontal Pipes ◽  
Oil Water

scholarly journals Analysis on a Snow-Water Mixture Flow in a Horizontal Pipe by Three-Layer Model

1989 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 3-15
Author(s):  
HIROSHI TAKAHASHI ◽  
MIKIO SASAKI ◽  
TOSHIO KAWASHIMA
Keyword(s):  
Water Mixture ◽  
Layer Model ◽  
Mixture Flow ◽  
Horizontal Pipe ◽  
Snow Water

CFD Simulations of Low Liquid Loading Multiphase Flow in Horizontal Pipelines

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamidreza Karami ◽  
Carlos F. Torres ◽  
Mazdak Parsi ◽  
Eduardo Pereyra ◽  
Cem Sarica
Keyword(s):  
Volume Fraction ◽  
Flow Behavior ◽  
Liquid Volume ◽  
Stress Profile ◽  
Multiphase Model ◽  
Liquid Holdup ◽  
Liquid Loading ◽  
Hydrocarbon Gases ◽  
Cfd Simulations ◽  
Horizontal Pipe

Low Liquid Loading is a very common occurrence in wet gas pipelines where very small amounts of liquid flow along with the gas, mainly due to condensation of hydrocarbon gases and water vapor. The effects of low liquid loading on different flow characteristics, and flow assurance issues such as pipe corrosion prove the necessity of analyzing the flow behavior in more depth. In this study, CFD simulations are conducted for a horizontal pipe where liquid and gas are supplied at separate constant rates at the inlet. The liquid is introduced at the bottom to help shorten the developing section. The simulations are conducted with Ansys Fluent v14.5 using Volume Of Fluid (VOF) as the multiphase model. The analysis targets, mainly, the shape of the interface, velocity fields in both liquid and gas phases, liquid holdup, and shear stress profile. On the other hand, experiments are conducted in a 6-inch ID low liquid loading facility with similar testing condition. Experiments are conducted with water or oil as the liquid phase for a liquid volume fraction range of 0.0005–0.0020 of the inlet stream. For all cases, several flow parameters are measured including liquid holdup and interface wave characteristics. A comparison is conducted between CFD simulation results, model predictions, and experimental results, and a discussion of the sources of discrepancy is presented. Overall, the results help understand the low liquid loading flow phenomenon.

Shear Effects on Phase Inversion in Oil-Water Flow

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mo Zhang ◽  
Shoubo Wang ◽  
Ram S. Mohan ◽  
Ovadia Shoham ◽  
Haijing Gao
Keyword(s):  
Phase Inversion ◽  
Petroleum Industry ◽  
Continuous Phase ◽  
Production Equipment ◽  
Current Phase ◽  
Dispersed Phase ◽  
Gear Pump ◽  
Water Mixture ◽  
Mixture Flow ◽  
Oil Water

Oil-water dispersed flow, in which one of the phases either water or oil is dispersed into the other phase, which is the continuous phase, occurs commonly in Petroleum Industry during the production and transportation of crudes. Phase inversion occurs when the dispersed phase grows into the continuous phase and the continuous phase becomes the dispersed phase caused by changes in the composition, interfacial properties and other factors. Production equipment, such as pumps and chokes, generate shear in oil-water mixture flow, which has a strong effect on phase inversion phenomena. In this study, based on the newly acquired data on a gear pump, the relationship between phase inversion region and shear intensity are discussed and the limitation of current phase inversion prediction model is presented.

Computational Investigation of Oil Accumulation in a Subsea Deadleg

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Egemen Caglar ◽  
Yi Zeng ◽  
J. M. Khodadadi
Keyword(s):  
Flow Behavior ◽  
Vortical Flow ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Oil Accumulation ◽  
Supply Source ◽  
Horizontal Pipe ◽  
3 Dimensional ◽  
Oil Fraction ◽  
Oil Water ◽  
Two Phases

Abstract Both 2- and 3-dimensional computational studies of two-phase flow within a horizontal pipe with a vertical deadleg placed downstream of an oil/water supply source were considered as part of a model subsea petroleum production system. Two-phase continuity and momentum relations were solved using the open-source computational software OpenFOAM. The unsteady flow behavior of the two-phase dispersed mixture which consists of 90%–10% slurry of 32.8 API crude oil-water at the inlet port (Reynolds number of 2.1 × 105) was investigated. With the 2-D simulations, the effects of the average inlet velocity, diameter of the deadleg and length of the deadleg on the oil fraction within the deadleg and the stagnant zones were studied. Results of the 3-D unsteady simulations exhibited the complex vortical flow field and separation of the two phases that evolved within the deadleg leading to migration of separated oil to the top of the deadleg.

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