Calcium Carbonate Scale Control in Industrial Water Systems

Author(s):  
Peter Koutsoukos
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Spicka ◽  
Lisa Holding Eagle ◽  
Chris Longie ◽  
Kyle Dahlgren ◽  
AJ Gerbino ◽  
...  

Abstract The Bakken formation is well known for producing brine very high in total dissolved solids (TDS). Halite, calcium carbonate, and barium sulfate scales all can pose substantial production challenges. Trademarks of Bakken produced brine include elevated concentrations of sodium (>90,000 mg/L), chloride (>200,000 mg/L), and calcium (>30,000 mg/L), contrasted against low concentration of bicarbonate (50-500 mg/L). In the past 3 years, operators have experienced unexpected instances of severe calcium carbonate scale on surface where produced fluids from the production tubing commingled with the gas produced up the casing. Initially treated as one-off scale deposits despite the application of scale inhibitor, acid remediation jobs or surface line replacement were typical solutions. As time has passed, this issue has become more and more prevalent across the Bakken. Investigation of this surface issue discovered a most unexpected culprit: a low TDS, high alkalinity brine (up to 92,000 mg/L alkalinity measured to date) produced up the casing with the gas. When mixing with the high calcium brine typically produced in the Bakken, the resulting incompatibility posed remarkable scale control challenges. The uniqueness of this challenge required thorough analytical work to confirm the species and concentrations of the dissolved ions in the brine produced with the gas. Scale control products were tested to evaluate their abilities and limitations regarding adequate control of this massive incompatibility. The theory that corrosion contributed to this situation has been supported by a unique modelling approach. Once corrosion was identified as the likely source of the high alkalinity brine, corrosion programs were instituted to help address the surface scaling. This paper highlights the evaluations conducted to fully grasp the severity of the incompatibility, the theories put forth to date, work conducted to try to replicate the phenomena in the lab and in models, and chemical programs used in the field to address corrosion and scale. While not known to exist in other oilfield basins, conventional or unconventional, this discovery may have implications for the broader industry if similar situations occur. The possible explanations for why this may be happening may have implications for scale control, asset integrity, and potentially even the methods by which wells are produced.


2005 ◽  
Vol 96 (4) ◽  
pp. 1451-1459 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Shakkthivel ◽  
D. Ramesh ◽  
R. Sathiyamoorthi ◽  
T. Vasudevan

2004 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Macadam ◽  
S.A. Parsons

This paper focuses on developing a reproducible method for reducing calcium carbonate scale formation on heated surfaces where scaling can cause serious problems. It is known that calcium carbonate precipitation is sensitive to impurity ions, such as iron and zinc, even at trace concentration levels. In this paper two sets of experiments are reported. The first experiments were undertaken to investigate the effect of zinc, copper and iron dosing on CaCO3 nucleation and precipitation. Results from the experiments showed that the most effective inhibitor of CaCO3 precipitation was zinc and the effect was linked to dose levels and temperature. Copper and iron had little effect on precipitation in the dose range investigated. The second trial was undertaken to translate the precipitation data to scale formation. These tests were undertaken at 70°C. 5 mg.L-1 zinc dose reduced the scale formation by 35%. The effect of iron on calcium carbonate scaling rate was not significant. The physical nature of the material on which the scale is formed also influences the scaling. The scaling experiment was also used to investigate the effect of different surface material (stainless steel, copper and aluminium) on CaCO3 scale formation. Copper surface scaled the most.


2010 ◽  
Vol 96 ◽  
pp. 35-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Ding ◽  
Jun Ping Meng ◽  
Xu Hong Zhang ◽  
Li Juan Wang ◽  
Qing Guo Tang

Multiple copper-zinc alloy was used to treat water in order to restrict the formation of hard scale during heating process. Trace amounts of metal ions were dissolved from the alloy under the action of tiny battery corrosion, which took part in the crystallization of calcium carbonate crystal. The ion migration rules and its effect on the crystal structure of water scale were studied. The ICP test results show that after immersion in the water for 20 min, the zinc ion concentration increased to 0.35 mg•L-1 compared with contrast group. The simulating experiment of the scale crystal growth demonstrated that the calcium carbonate scale after treated with the alloy showed a transformation from calcite to aragonite, and the ratio of calcite to aragonite changed from 1:0.125 to 1:2.30. Meanwhile, the heat transfer efficiency was increased to 2.19%.


Heliyon ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. e03506
Author(s):  
K. Palanisamy ◽  
K. Sanjiv Raj ◽  
S. Bhuvaneswari ◽  
M. Rajasekaran ◽  
V.K. Subramanian

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