A Dynamic Simulation Assessment for Relocating Flare System into Separated Platform Utilizing Idle Subsea Main Oil line

KLB is an offshore platform that consists of production wells and two train gas lift compressors. During well intervention, the KLB operation team must turn off the flaring system due to potential flare radiation of more than 500 BTU/hr-ft2at the working area and gas dispersion more than 50 %-LEL at the flare tip. The relocation of the KLB flaring system to the nearest platform keeps the KLB gas lift compressor operating during this activity. The relocation scenario can maintain the KLB platform production of 700 BOPD. KLA Flowstation is the nearest platform to the KLB. It is separated one kilometer, connected by an idle subsea oil pipeline, but there are no pigging facilities due to limited space at the KLB platform. Therefore, the comprehensive assessment to relocate the KLB flaring system is a) Flare system study using Flare Network software to simulate backpressure and Mach Number at tailpipe in the KLA and KLB flaring system; b). Dynamic transient simulation using Flow Assurance Software to calculate backpressure, liquid hold up, and slugging condition in the flare KO drum; and c). Flare radiation and dispersion study. The initial condition of the idle subsea oil pipeline was full of liquid as the preservation for a pipeline to prevent a further oil spill in case of a leak during the idle condition. The dewatering process for the idle subsea pipeline has been conducted by purging the pipeline utilizes 0.7 MMscfd gas lift with a pressure of 100 psig to displace liquid content to 20 bbl. The transient simulation for gas swapping was conducted at a gas rate of 4.1 MMscfd as the train compressor's flaring condition. The calculated backpressure at the KLB safety valve is 12.3 psig below the required maximum of 30 psig. The calculated liquid surge volume in the Flare KO drum during flaring is 17 bbl and can be handled by surge volume inside the KO drum. The predicted condensation inside the subsea pipeline shows that the maximum operation of the flaring system is limited to 30 days. The radiation and gas dispersion to the nearest facility is within a safe limit. The KLB teams successfully conducted the relocation of the flaring system from the KLB platform to the KLA platform. The result was no interruption of production, no risk of radiation, and no potential explosion during a well intervention. Experience in the last two activities has confirmed that this method can prevent revenue loss of 19 billion rupiahs. This study has initiated a new engineering standard and best practice for flaring systems as opposed to the current practice which states that the flare location shall be at the same location as the production facilities with no pocket piping in between. This study and field experience have proved that the flaring system can be located on a different platform by conducting engineering assessments to ensure process and process safety criteria are within Company and International Standard.

Modeling vapor-liquid-liquid-solid equilibrium for acetone-water-salt system

A compilation of available experimental data for acetone-water mixtures with the reciprocal salt system Na+, K+ || Cl−, SO42− is presented. Significant inconsistencies among experimental data are pointed out. New freezing point measurements are reported for the binary acetone-water system at 12 different compositions. UNIQUAC parameters are determined on the basis of the available data from literature. Modeling results are presented. Vapor-liquid, liquid-liquid, and solid-liquid equilibria together with thermal properties are reproduced well by the model using only 14 parameters. The major drawback of the model is that the calculated liquid-liquid equilibrium regions of systems with KCl and NaCl are larger than the experimentally determined regions. The model is valid in the temperature range from −16 to 100 °C.

Liquid Regions of Lanthanum-Bearing Aluminosilicates

The Al2O3-SiO2, La2O3-Al2O3, and La2O3-SiO2 binary phase diagrams were estimated by Redlich–Kister expression. La4.67Si3O13 (=La4.67(SiO4)3O) was introduced to improve the existing phase diagrams. The Al2O3-SiO2-La2O3 ternary phase diagram extrapolated by Kohler method was optimized. Then, the liquidus of Al2O3-SiO2-La2O3 system at 1600 °C was compared with Al2O3-SiO2-RE2O3 (RE = Rare Earth Elements) systems and experimental results in other literature. The high temperature experiments were conducted in the tube furnace at 1500 °C. Then the field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were employed to verify the calculated liquid region and precipitates phase at 1500 °C. Moreover, the liquidus of binary systems were compared with FactSage results and experiments. The optimized ternary phase diagram shows the relatively reliable region of liquid phase, and it is significant to the seal glass of solid oxide fuel cells and other fields being related to RE containing silicates.

Metallurgical characteristics of refining slag used for high manganese steel

High manganese steel has excellent mechanical properties, which has garnered much attention. Whereas the research on the refining slag used for high Mn steel is very limited. In this study, the metallurgical characteristics of refining slag for high Mn steel were investigated based on thermodynamic calculation with FactSage 6.3 and slag-metal equilibrium reaction in MgO crucible. The calculated liquid zones of T ≤ 1873 K of CaO-SiO2-Al2O3-8%MgO-5%MnO system are located in the middle region of pseudo-ternary CaO-SiO2-Al2O3. For CaO-SiO2-Al2O3-8%MgO-MnO system, the apparent liquid zone at 1873 K enlarges with MnO content in slag increasing, and moves toward the direction of SiO2 and Al2O3 content increasing. For CaO-SiO2-Al2O3-MgO-MnO system, the liquidus zone shrinks with the basicity increasing, and moves toward the direction of Al2O3 content increasing. The measured MnO content in top slag reacted with high Mn steel was much higher than that reacted with conventional steels. In present experiments, the MnO content was around 5% when CaO-SiO2-Al2O3-MgO slag with basicity of 4 was in equilibrium with high Mn steel (Mn = 10, 20%) at 1873 K. The inclusions in master high Mn steel were mainly MnO type. After reaction with top slag, most inclusions transformed to MnO-SiO2 system and MnO-Al2O3-MgO system, in which the MnO content still shared the majority. Thermodynamic calculations show that SiO2 in top slag can be reduced by [Mn] in steel to supply [Si] under present experimental condition, which subsequently reacts with [O] in steel bath to form SiO2.

Analysis on the feasibility of small-scale biogas from palm oil mill effluent (POME) – Study case: Palm oil mill in Riau-Indonesia

The province of Riau has the most significant palm oil plantation in Indonesia which has the potential of the palm oil mill effluent (POME). One way to use this liquid waste is by the anaerobic process into biogas to generate electricity. Based on the assumption of calculated liquid waste can produce biogas about 538 m3 / hour or equal to 4,600 MJ / hour potentially generate electricity about 1 MW. This paper discusses the scheme of the POME Biogas Power Plant project which benefits the palm oil mill which is Built-operate-transfer (BOT) with a duration of 15 years selected as a reference. With this duration obtained IRR of 17.47% higher than at WACC of 15.61% and a payback period of 5.63 years. The 15-year duration gives Investor resilience in case of an increase of loan interest rate to 13% during the repayment period. Also, the use of alternative schemes that may be pursued by biogas products from cleaned digesters is then used as gas fuel to operate diesel generators. Plant Alternative for BOT duration for five years. The project is very feasible to be implemented with a very high IRR (37.56%) score when compared to WACC (15.61%).

Nucleation-limited composition of ternary III–V nanowires forming from quaternary gold based liquid alloys

Analytically calculated liquid–solid composition dependencies for self- and gold-catalyzed InSbxAs1–x nanowires.

Molecular Dynamics Simulation of Liquid Cu-Ni Alloy Using Embedded Atom Method

Molecular dynamics simulation has been performed to explore the thermodynamics and dynamics properties of liquid Cu-Ni alloy based upon developed embedded atom methods (EAM), namely due to G. Bonny. The calculated liquid density shows that the potential underestimates the measured atomic density for Ni-rich composition. The calculated mixing enthalpy predicts the potential underestimates the mixing enthalpy when the concentration of Ni is increased beyond roughly 30 at. %. We make a conclusion from the fact that the G. Bonny’s model is not full perfect in describing the density and mixing enthalpy of Cu-Ni melts at the Ni-rich composition.