Accurate flow assurance design is of paramount importance in the production of paraffinic (waxy) crude oils, which are associated with deposition behavior, elevated viscosity, and gelling phenomena. Quality fluid characterization of paraffinic oils requires a precise and accurate understanding of the compositional makeup of the waxy components of the produced fluids and their deposits.
High Temperature Gas Chromatography quantitatively and qualitatively resolves the complete n-paraffin distribution of a crude oil and/or its deposited fractions. High Temperature Gas Chromatography analysis is the accepted industry standard for rigorous compositional characterization of waxes. It provides a key input to simulation and correlation tools for thermodynamic, rheological, and depositional predictions.
The Oilphase-DBR fluid sampling and analysis service in High Temperature Gas Chromatography features a licensed process for concentrating dilute heavy molecularweight components, through a sequence of physical fractionation steps. This process enables achievement of a resolution limit of 0.1 ppm (by weight) for paraffin species, to a maximum carbon number of 90.
The Oilphase-DBR High Temperature Gas Chromatography service complements a full suite of physical-property characterization services for waxy fluids, including wax appearance temperatures, rheological profiles, deposition rates, pour points, and gel strengths, all of which can be evaluated directly under realistic physical and compositional production conditions.
Benefits
- Confirm laboratory measurements of wax appearance temperature and improve wax deposition prediction
- Optimize selection of chemical inhibitors to save on intervention costs
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