Enhancing Heavy Crude Oil Flow in Pipelines through Heating-Induced Viscosity Reduction in the Petroleum Industry

The process of transporting crude oil across pipelines is one of the most critical aspects of the midstream petroleum industry.In the present experimental work,the effect of temperature,pressure drop,and pipe diameter on the flow rate of heavy crude oil have been assessed.Moreover,the total discharge and energy losses have been evaluated in order to demonstrate the improvements potentially achievable by using solar heating method replacing pipe,and adjusting the value of the initial pressure difference.Crude oil of API=20 has been used for the experiments,with the studied pipelines sections connecting the separator unit to the storage tank operating at a temperature of 25℃-100℃,pressure drop of 3,4,5,and 6 kg/cm^(2),and with pipe diameter of 4,6,and 8 in.The results show that on increasing the temperature and/or the pressure drop,the flow rate through the pipeline becomes higher,thus raising the total pumping energy(as the pipe diameter increase),while energy losses increase from the last separator to the storage tank in the field.A pipe diameter increase can also produce a growth of the total pumping energy(i.e.,energy losses increase).The results of the present analysis suggest that employing an optimal temperature(50℃)is needed to ensure good performance.

Study on the in situ desulfurization and viscosity reduction of heavy oil over MoO_(3)–ZrO_(2)/HZSM-5 catalyst

Heavy oil is characterized by high viscosity.High viscosity makes it challenging to recover and transport.HZSM-5,MoO_(3)/HZSM-5,ZrO_(2)/HZSM-5 and MoO_(3)–ZrO_(2)/HZSM-5 catalysts were developed to promote in situ desulfurization and viscosity reduction of heavy oil.The physical and chemical properties of catalysts were characterized by XPS,XRD,TEM,NH3-TPD,etc.The effects of temperature,catalyst type and addition amount on viscosity and composition of heavy oil were evaluated.The results showed that the presence of MoO_(3)–ZrO_(2)/HZSM-5 nanoparticles during aquathermolysis could improve the oil quality by reducing the heavy fractions.It reduced viscosity by 82.56%after the reaction at 280℃ and catalyst addition of 1 wt%.The contents of resins and asphaltic in the oil samples were 5.69%lower than that in the crude oil.Sulfur content decreased from 1.45%to 1.03%.The concentration of H2S produced by the reaction was 2225 ppm.The contents of sulfur-containing functional groups sulfoxide and sulfone sulfur in the oil samples decreased by 19.92%after the catalytic reaction.The content of stable thiophene sulfur increased by 5.71%.This study provided a basis for understanding the mechanism of heavy oil desulfurization and viscosity reduction.

Rheological properties and viscosity reduction of South China Sea crude oil

The rheological properties of South China Sea （SCS） crude oil were studied. A group of synthetic long-chain polymers, including octadecyl acrylate-maleic anhydride bidodecyl amide copolymer （VR-D）, octadecyl acrylate-maleic anhydride bioctadecyl amide copolymer （VR-O） and octadecyl acrylate-maleic anhydride phenly amide copolymer （VR-A）, were employed to serve as viscosity reducers （VRs）. Their performance was evaluated by both experimental and computational methodologies. The results suggest that the SCS crude oil has low wax content yet high resin and asphaltene contents, which lead to high viscosity through formation of association structures. Additionally, the SCS crude oil appears to be a pseudoplastic fluid showing linear shear stress-shear rate dependence at low temperature. Interestingly, it gradually evolves into a Newtonian fluid with exponential relationship between shear stress and shear rate at higher temperature. Synthetic VRs demonstrate desirable and effective performance on improvement of the rheological properties of SCS crude oil. Upon the introduction of 1000ppm VR-O, which is synthesized by using octadecylamine in the aminolysis reaction, the viscosity of SCS crude oil is decreased by 44.2% at 15 ℃ and 40.2% at 40℃. The computational study suggests significant energy level increase and shear stress decrease for VR-containing crude oil systems.

Experimental investigation of the effects of various parameters on viscosity reduction of heavy crude by oil-water emulsion

The effects of water content, shear rate, temperature, and solid particle concentration on viscosity reduction （VR） caused by forming stable emulsions were investigated using Omani heavy crude oil. The viscosity of the crude oil was initially measured with respect to shear rates at different temperatures from 20 to 70℃. The crude oil exhibited a shear thinning behavior at all the temperatures. The strongest shear thinning was observed at 20℃. A non-ionic water soluble surfactant （Triton X-100） was used to form and stabilize crude oil emulsions. The emulsification process has significantly reduced the crude oil viscosity. The degree of VR was found to increase with an increase in water content and reach its maximum value at 50 % water content. The phase inversion from oil- oil emulsion occurred at 30 in-water emulsion to water-in- % water content. The results indicated that the VR was inversely proportional to temperature and concentration of silica nanoparticles. For water-in-oil emulsions, VR increased with shear rate and eventually reached a plateau at a shear rate of around 350 s^-1. This was attributed to the thinning behavior of the continuous phase. The VR of oil-in-water emulsions remained almost constant as the shear rate increased due to the Newtonian behavior of water, the continuous phase.

Drag reduction by linear viscosity model in turbulent channel flow of polymer solution

A further numerical study of the theory that the drag reduction in the turbulence is related to the viscosity profile growing linearly with the distance from the wall was performed.The constant viscosity in the Navier-Stokes equations was replaced using this viscosity model.Some drag reduction characteristics were shown comparing with Virk's phenomenology.The mean velocity and Reynolds stress profiles are consistent with the experimental and direct numerical simulation results.A drag reduction level of 45% was obtained.It is reasonable for this linear viscosity model to explain the mechanism of turbulence drag reduction in some aspects.

Numerical Study on Viscosity Reduction in Mining Heavy Oil by Circulating Hot Water

Viscosity reduction is an important process in mining heavy oil.To predict the temperature variation and viscosity variation of heavy oil in flow direction,computational fluid dynamics(CFD) was adopted to simulate the process of heat transfer and flow in this paper.Moreover,an objective function,namely viscosity reduction efficiency,was established to analyze the effect of viscosity reduction.The results indicate that circulating hot water can reduce viscosity significantly,and that the effect of viscosity reduction depends on the inlet temperature and inlet volumetric flow rate of hot water.There is a maximum temperature of heavy oil in flow direction.With the inlet volumetric flow rate of 2.0m3/h and the inlet temperatures of 60,℃,70,℃ and 80,℃,viscosity reduction efficiencies are 94.6%,96.7% and 97.3%,respectively.With the inlet temperature of 70,℃ and the volumetric flow rates of 1.5m3 /h,2.0 m3/h and 2.5m3/h,viscosity reduction efficiencies are 94.4%,96.7% and 97.2%,respectively.

Synthesis of Hierarchical Porous Fe_(2)O_(3)/Al_(2)O_(3) Materials and Study on Catalytic Viscosity Reduction of Heavy Oil

Fe_(2)O_(3) nanoparticles were first dispersed in a sol solution containing an aluminum component introduced by an initial doping method.Composite catalyst Hierarchical Porous Fe_(2)O_(3)/Al_(2)O_(3) materials(HPFA)were then synthesized through a sol-gel method via phase separation.The performance of HPFA was compared with that of Fe_(2)O_(3) nanoparticle catalysts.The structure of the composite catalyst was characterized by scanning electron microscopy,X-ray diffraction,N_(2) adsorption/desorption,and crush strength testing.The results showed that the Fe_(2)O_(3) nanoparticles could be loaded into the porous skeletons of Hierarchical Porous Al_(2)O_(3) materials(HPA)to achieve a uniform dispersion while avoiding agglomeration,which improved the mechanical strength of the porous materials significantly.The HPFA was then used as a catalyst in the hydrothermal viscosity reduction process of Tuha heavy oil,and the viscosity reduction was investigated.The viscosity reduction rate of HPFA was 81%,which was better than that of the Fe_(2)O_(3) nanoparticles(56%)and HPA(47%).

Synthesis and mechanism analysis of a new oil soluble viscosity reducer for flow improvement of Chenping heavy oil

Oil soluble viscosity reducers have gradually attracted the attention of petrochemical research due to their cleanliness and high efficiency.Considering the high viscosity and non-Newtonian fluid properties of Chenping heavy oil found in China,a series of new oil soluble viscosity reducers with different proportions and molecular weights were prepared by free radical polymerization using octadecyl acrylate,2-allylphenol and N-methylolacrylamide as monomers.The viscosity reducer was applied to different types of heavy oil and found that it exhibited a better effect on heavy oils with high asphaltene content.The test of rheological behavior of heavy oil with additive was performed at wide range of shear rate(3–90 s^(-1))and temperature range(30–100°C).The apparent viscosity reduction rate was up to 70.09%,which was better than the industrially relevant ethylene–vinyl acetate copolymer under the same test condition.In addition,the effect of viscosity reducers on the components of heavy oil and the energy change of the system simulated by molecular dynamics simultaneously was investigated.The consistency of the simulated and experimental results show that the effect of viscosity reduction closely related to the crystallization process of wax and the viscosity reducer can reconstruct the surface structure of asphaltene and diminish the connection of benzene ring.

Mechanism of sulfide effect on viscosity of HPAM polymer solution

The effect of sulfide on HPAM solution viscosity was studied using BROOKFIELD DV-II viscometer,and the interaction mechanism was discussed.The HPAM solution viscosity was investigated through fully reducing sulfide by the addition of hydrogen peroxide oxidation,and the mechanism of increasing polymer viscosity was investigated.The experimental results also show that there is a critical concentration of 15 mg/L.Below it,the loss rate of HPAM solution viscosity increases more rapidly,but becomes slowly above the critical concentration.A theoretical guidance for oilfields to prepare polymer solution using sewage-water by eliminating sulfide,and it is also importance to prepare polymer solution using sewage-water and save fresh water.

The Effects of Dispersed Phase Morphology Induced by Flow on the Bulk Viscosity of HDPE/PA Blends

The apparent shear viscosity （ηα） of a blend composed of 97 wt % high-density polyethylene （HDPE） and 3 wt % polyamide （PA-66） was measured by capillary rheometry at different shear rates, below, near and above the melting point of PA-66, i.e. 240℃, 260℃ and 280℃, respectively. At 260℃ and a high shear rate, ηα of the blend reduced abnormally; and at 260℃, was lower than that at 280℃. The images of etched surface of extrudate observed by the SEM showed different dispersed phase morphology, induced by flow at different temperatures. It is suggested that the formation of fibrillar morphology of dispersed phase is a key factor for the abnormal reduction of ηα for the HDPE/PA blend.

A Model for FeSiMg Alloy Production by Reduction Technique

Ferrosilicon magnesium is basic foundry alloys used for the production of ductile cast iron. Magnesium content plays an important role in the produced alloy grades from dolomite ore. The focus of the present work is to simulate mathematical model to predict magnesium content in the ferrosilicon magnesium, which produced by silicothermic reduction of calcined dolomite. The basic assumptions of this model are: constant low viscosity of molten charge, the reaction is irreversible of second order and the reaction is isothermal. The reaction is based on the following equation: 2MgO+2Si →Mg2Si+SiO2 The results of previous work was found to be in a good coincidence with the predicted values by the model [Mg]=(MgO0)[Si0][eKt[(MgO0)-[Si0]]-1]/ (MgO0)[eKt[(MgO0)-[Si0]]-[Si0]] where [Mg] is the concentration of magnesium metal in ferrosilicon magnesium alloy in mol/L. [Si0] and (MgO0) are the initial concentration of silicon and magnesium oxide in charge in mol/L, while t is time in second, K is the reaction rate constant ( 3.26588x10-7 L Sec-1 mol-1). The predicted values are greater than the experimental values;this may be attributed to the use of concentration instead of the activity. The predicted values of magnesium content in ferrosilicon magnesium alloy are in a good agreement with the experimental results obtained in previous work at low viscosity.

稠油乳化黏度测量曲线与乳液特性的关系

稠油化学驱过程中降黏剂浓度对稠油乳化影响明显,通过测量不同浓度降黏剂的稠油乳状液黏度-时间曲线,以黏度、降黏率为指标分析了黏度曲线与乳液特性的关系。结果表明,当降黏剂的浓度远大于临界乳化浓度时,形成稳定O/W乳状液,黏度低、降黏率大于95%。当降黏剂的浓度大于临界乳化浓度时,形成O/W乳状液,而后随着表面活性剂向油相的迁移,油滴聚并、分层。当降黏剂的浓度与临界乳化浓度相当时,乳状液油O/W转化为W/O,黏度大幅度提高。当降黏剂的浓度小于临界乳化浓度时,只能形成W/O乳状液。

稠油化学复合冷采技术研究与应用

我国稠油储量可观,其中60%的是深层稠油,而主流的蒸汽吞吐等热采技术采收率不足20%;稠油资源开发潜力极大,积极探索新的开采方式以提高采收率是石油领域高质量发展的必然选择。本文着重阐述稠油化学复合冷采技术体系构建及其现场应用,为中深层稠油的新型绿色低成本接替技术发展提供有效方案。在分析稠油组分的基础上,细致剖析稠油结构致黏机理,包括化学降黏机理、降低启动压力梯度机理、提高驱油效果机理在内的提高采收率机理,以丰富理论认识。面向工程应用亟需,从水溶性降黏剂分子设计与合成、自组装调堵剂研发两方面出发,突破稠油绿色化学驱油体系。基于发展的稠油化学复合冷采技术,完成了3个稠油油田示范工程应用,在提高产油量、控制含水率方面取得了良好成效。进一步梳理了分子采油理论与技术、渗流理论与数值模拟技术等方面的后续发展要点,以为深层稠油的绿色高效开发接替技术研究、稠油化学复合冷采技术推广应用研究等提供启发和参考。

抗220℃高温两性离子聚合物降黏剂的制备与性能

针对当前高温高密度水基钻井液流变性调控难题,基于分子结构优化设计和单体优选,制备了新型抗高温两性离子聚合物降黏剂HP-THIN。通过正交实验与单因素实验相结合的方法,对HP-THIN的制备条件进行了优化。采用红外光谱仪、乌氏黏度计和热重分析仪等分别对HP-THIN的分子结构、热稳定性以及相对分子质量进行表征和测定,研究了HP-THIN在220℃超高温条件下对淡水浆、盐水浆、含钙浆和高密度复合盐水浆等不同类型钻井液基浆的降黏性能。在室温下,测试了HP-THIN对基浆黏土颗粒吸附能力、Zeta电位和粒径的影响,并与国内外同类产品(Polythin和xy-27)进行了对比。结果表明,合成降黏剂HP-THIN的反应温度为60℃,反应时间为3 h,引发剂用量和链转移剂用量均为反应单体总量的1%,单体总质量分数为30%;单体AM、AA、AMPS、PTM物质的量比为1.9∶7.5∶2.1∶1。该聚合物的分子结构中含有设计官能团,其黏均相对分子质量约为8211,且具有较好的热稳定性。220℃老化后,HP-THIN在最优加量(0.3%)下对淡水基浆、盐水基浆、含钙基浆和高密度复合盐水基浆的降黏率分别达86%、72%、73%和51%,HP-THIN对不同类型钻井液基浆的高温降黏效果均优于国内外同类产品,相对于xy-27和Polythin,降黏剂HP-THIN对基浆黏土吸附能力强、Zeta电位绝对值大、黏土颗粒尺寸小,可以更好地消除黏土颗粒间网状结构,降低钻井液黏度,具有良好的应用前景。

表面活性剂对水驱普通稠油油藏的乳化驱油机理

为了研究乳化降黏驱油剂对不同渗透率的水驱普通稠油油藏的驱油效率和孔隙尺度增效机理,选取了烷基酚聚氧乙烯醚(J1)、α-烯基磺酸盐类表面活性剂(J2)、十二烷基羟磺基甜菜碱(J3)、J3与烷基酚聚氧乙烯醚羧酸盐复配表面活性剂(J4)作为驱油剂,开展了4种驱油剂一维驱油和微观驱油模拟实验,明确了乳化降黏驱油剂在孔隙尺度的致效机理。结果表明,降低界面张力对提高驱油效率的作用大于提高乳化降黏率。在油藏条件下,乳化降黏驱油剂需要依靠乳化降黏和降低界面张力的协同增效作用,才能大幅提高驱油效率。乳化降黏驱油剂的乳化能力越强、油水界面张力越低,驱油效率增幅越大。当化学剂乳化降黏率达到95%时,油水界面张力从10^(-1)mN/m每降低1个数量级,化学剂在高渗透和低渗透岩心中的驱油效率依次提高约10.0%和7.8%。乳化降黏驱油剂注入初期通过降低界面张力,使得高渗透岩心和低渗透岩心中的驱替压力分别为水驱注入压力的1/2和1/3,从而提高注入能力。注入后期大块的原油被乳化形成大量不同尺寸的油滴,增强原油流动性,提高驱油效率。乳化形成的界面相对稳定的稠油油滴,能暂堵岩石的喉道和大块稠油与岩石颗粒形成的通道。油滴的暂堵叠加效应,使高渗透和低渗透岩心的驱替压差分别为水驱压差的5.2倍和32.3倍,大幅提高了注入压力,从而扩大平面波及面积。降黏驱油剂驱油实现了提高驱油效率的同时扩大波及范围。研究结果为水驱稠油开发用驱油剂的研发提供参考,为大幅提高水驱普通稠油采收率奠定基础。

扶余油田外围区块生物胶降黏压裂技术试验

扶余油田外围区块原油密度大、黏度高、凝固点高、含蜡量高,采用常规胍胶携砂压裂技术无法有效开采,压裂投产后初期产量较低,达不到效益产能,外围区块基本处于未开发动用状态。为此,研发了生物胶降黏剂体系与压裂工程技术相配套的降黏压裂技术,并进行了实验评价。评价结果显示,该生物胶具有降凝、降黏、防蜡、乳化、驱油等性能,可显著提高原油流动性。现场试验分为生物胶降黏加砂压裂和生物胶降黏不加砂压裂两种技术方式,共在扶余外围及稠油区块累计实施45口井。前置液胍胶造主裂缝+支撑剂+生物胶降黏剂+支撑剂+后置液降黏剂的技术方法应用在新投产的外围及稠油区块,对比老区内部,在储层物性变差的条件下,投产后产油量超设计产能1.6倍,是老区内部的1.4倍。生物胶降黏不加砂压裂技术主要应用在老井二次压裂或多轮次压裂稠油区块或黏度上升井层,同等条件下对比,黏度由压裂前的70mPa·s下降到25mPa·s,增产量是同区块常规压裂的1.3倍。

“双碳”背景下医疗废弃物用于原油流动性改进剂综合性实验设计

为了进一步提高应用化学专业本-硕学段学生的创新思维和综合实验技能,根据新工科建设要求,渗透“医疗废弃物回收与资源化利用”助力“双碳”目标实现这一理念,以废弃口罩为研究对象,设计了系列聚丙烯基原油流动性改进剂综合性实验,评价其降黏效果。该实验将化学基础理论知识用于油田应用化学领域,将实验技能与现场作业相结合,提升学生的专业技能和油田现场适应能力;帮助学生深入了解降黏剂降黏机理,掌握其在不同环境的降黏剂评价方法和数据处理能力,进而提高创造性解决问题的能力。

鄂尔多斯盆地东缘深煤层用一体化变黏压裂液研究及应用

结合深煤层大规模压裂开发工艺要求,研发了一套一体化变黏压裂液体系,该压裂液体系由乳液稠化剂、多功能添加剂等组成,可通过调整乳液稠化剂的浓度实时调整为低黏-中黏-高黏滑溜水体系。实验测试表明,该压裂液体系在速溶、增黏、降阻、耐剪切性等方面表现优异:速溶时间20~30 s;在剪切速率为1 s^(-1)→1000 s^(-1)→1 s^(-1)下表观黏度基本不变;流动剪切下降阻率>70%且变化不大。此外,该体系具有较低的表面张力和较好的防膨性能,表现为对煤岩具有较小的岩心伤害率。配合体积改造压裂工艺,在在鄂尔多斯盆地深煤层压裂开发中得到规模化应用,增产效果良好。

Y区块变流度聚合物驱注入方式优化研究

Y区块属于二类油层,其油层发育、连通状况差异大,开采不均匀。为了更好地开发二类油层,需要进行变流度聚合物驱注入方式优化研究。运用数值模拟方法,进行水驱阶段历史拟合,研究剩余油分布情况,在此基础上设计“梯次降黏”“单一恒黏”“梯次增黏”3种方案进行变流度聚合物驱注入方式优化研究。结果表明:梯次降黏注入方式的效果最好,在水驱的基础上可提高采收率13.29%,比单一恒黏注入方式进一步提高采收率1.92%。研究成果对聚驱开发调整、实现聚驱优化提效有极大的借鉴意义。

可变粘压裂液研究及在深煤层中应用

针对深煤层压裂开发需要,研发一套可变粘压裂液体系,通过粘度、降阻率、表面张力、界面张力等指标优选构建了低粘-中粘-高粘滑溜水体系,并对体系滤失性能、破胶性能和岩心伤害性能进行了评价。实验结果表明:随着体系粘度增加,降阻率先增加后降低;高粘度有助于降低滤失。通过调节破胶剂用量实现破胶可控,对煤岩具有较小的岩心伤害率。配合体积改造压裂工艺,可有效助力深煤层开发。优选的可变粘压裂液具有较好的推广和应用前景。