Page 1
.
Gas
Gas
meter
W ell
Separator
Gas
sample
Oil
W ater
Stock tank
Oil
sample
W ater
sample
Page 2
.
Fluid with
GOR=1200scf/sbbl
Fluid with
GOR=1260 scf/sbbl
2936 psia
3017 psia
0.574 g/cm3
0.563 g/cm3
0.831
0.829
1512 scf/sbbl
1621 scf/sbbl
2.509
2.607
Therefore every action should be taken to ensure that the gas and liquid flowmeters are
properly calibrated, that they function properly and that all the necessary information is
recorded. Omissions or erroneously recorded data may render a series of samples
useless. Every sample should be accompanied with data sheets filled with all the
information required to evaluate a posteriori its quality and as well as the sampling
conditions.
When the oil rates are reported at tank conditions, attention should be paid in the PVT
laboratory to measure accurately the separator liquids shrinkage factor by flashing a
part of the sample at the tank conditions reported at the time of sampling.
Example:
An oil with a high hydrogen sulphide content is produced through the primary separator
that operates at 250 psia and 120OF. The oil flowrates are measured at the tank.
Simulated runs for this used two scenarios for the prevailing tank temperature: 60OF and
100OF. The calculations showed that the separator liquid shrinkage factors would take
values of 0.844 and 0.818 respectively that represents a difference of 3.1%. This
difference will influence the separator gas to separator oil ratio that will be used for
recombination.
In the laboratory the field reported gas flowrates should be corrected using laboratory
measured compressibility factors and specific gravities. It is also strongly recommended
to measure in the lab the Z-factor of the separator gases particularly when permanent
gases are present because the deviations between the actual values and the computed
ones can be significant.
Page 3
.
Example:
For an oil with a high permanent gas content (H2S, N2 & CO2) the Z-factor of the
separator gas phase was predicted, using correlations to be 0.892 at 485 psia & 150 F.
When the Z-factor measurement was performed in the Lab it gave a value of 0.85. I.e. a
deviation of the order of 5% which directly affects the accuracy of the reported gas
flowrates
If there is chemical injection of glycol, methanol or wax inhibitors upstream of the
separator, the injection should be stopped and sufficient time allowed for the chemicals
to be purged from the separator. If it is not practical to operate without chemical
injection, then the chemical used and injection rate must be recorded and a sample sent
to the PVT laboratory with the samples.
Page 4
.
Vacuum
gauge
Sampling
bottle
Vacuum
pump
Power cord
The first method requires a vacuum system to be available at the wellsite with a suitable
vacuum gauge to determine if the vessel is evacuated to the required level. The
connecting line between the separator and the sample container should be purged with
separator gas. The gas is then left to flow into the vessel for short period until the
separator pressure is obtained.
Page 5
.
From separator
Pressure
gauge
P
3
2
1
Sampling
bottle
The second method consists of filling the container with the separator gas by opening
the top valve and purging it by throttling with the bottom valve. The container should be
kept warm during the purge to avoid any condensation of the gas in the vessel in or
otherwise the sample will not be representative. The sample is collected after several
cylinder volumes of gas have been purged through the system.
The third method requires that the sample cylinder is filled with brine and its top valve is
subsequently opened to the separator gas outlet while the bottom valve is opened to
withdraw the liquid. When all the liquid is displaced, the valves are closed and the
container is ready for shipment. This method is not recommended due to the solubility in
the brine of inorganic gases (e.g.CO2, H2S) as well as, to a lesser extent, of the light
hydrocarbons present in the sample.
The minimum number of separator gas samples in 20-litre bottles depends on the GOR
and separator pressure but the general rule is as follows:
o If the GOR < 1500 scf/bbl, then 2 bottles are required.
o If 1500 < GOR < 3000 scf/bbl , then 3 bottles are required.
o
Page 6
.
Example:
As an indication of the volume of surface gas required for recombination, it is quoted
that in order to produce in the laboratory cell 500 cm3 of a lean gas condensate at its
dew point pressure (e.g. 5000 psia), roughly 20 litres of gas taken from a separator
operating at 100 psia and 100OF are necessary.
Corrosive gases such as H2S or CO2 can react chemically with the steel containers
particularly if water is also present and due to this fact it is recommended that the gas
stream is carefully dried before it enters the container. API RP 44 lists recommended
specifications for gas-dehydration tubes. In addition, gases like the hydrogen sulphide
are readily adsorbed by the surface active points of the walls of the sampling chamber
whereas nitrogen diffuses through the metal lattice. Measurement of the gas
composition, when these gases are present, should be performed at the wellsite
immediately after sampling. This minimises their loss in the fluids composition that can
otherwise render ansour sample sweet after transportation and storage
A way to tackle this problem is to fill the chamber with the gas to be sampled and allow
some time for the walls to become saturated with the adsorbed gases before it is
evacuated and filled again with the sample. In this case considerably smaller losses can
be expected. Alternatively a non-reactive sample cylinder coated in the same material
as the NRS can be used.
Sampling the Separator Liquid Phase
In recent years there has been a QHSE initiative to eliminate the field the use of mercury
for separator liquid sampling bottles. Sample cylinders, such as the CSB, with an internal
piston and mixing device are in most common use today. Separator liquid is purged
through a line between the bottom of the separator oil sight gas and the top of the CSB.
The sampling is then performed by displacing the piston with separator liquid at a
constant separator pressure. To avoid flashing the sampled oil, the bottom valve of the
bottle should be opened slowly or preferably, a back pressure regulator can guarantee
that the pressure in the chamber does not fall below the sampling pressure. If flashing
does take place in the bottle, the sample will still be valid as long as the fluid remained
monophasic while passing through the cylinders top valve.
Page 7
.
Separator oil
sight glass
Black
valve
Vacuum
pump
OIL
730cc
oil
bottle
70cc
of gas
660cc
of oil
Pressure
gauge
Hydraulic
pump
7
8 Blue
valve
9
6
Graduated
flask
730cc of
hydraulic
oil
Evidently, all connections used to conduct fluid from the separator to the sample
container must be carefully purged with separator oil to avoid contamination of the
sample with air. Before shipment, a gas cushion should be created for safety reasons as
it was explained earlier for bottom hole samples.
When the liquid yield at the surface is very small (e.g. lean gas condensate reservoirs)
the liquid phase is not produced continuously and sometimes is withdrawn from the
separator only after the test. Two risks are associated with this practice:
1. The collected gas was generated from the equilibrium that was prevailing at
the time of sampling whereas the oil sample exhibits an average oil
phase composition over the long flow period. Even if an average GOR is
used for recombination, the recombined fluid might not be truly
representative of the original mixture.
2. The long oil retention time in the vessel might have cause compositional
Page 8
.
If the separator oil sample contains quantities of water either in free form or in the form
of emulsions, the aqueous phase has to be separated and removed from the
hydrocarbons in the PVT lab before recombination is attempted.
Possible Problems Encountered during Surface Sampling
Inadequate Phase Split in the Separator
Oil and gas well test separators are horizontal cylindrical vessels equipped with two
separation sections. The inlet or primary separation section is located in the gas filled
portion of the vessel and is designed to dissipate the momentum of the incoming flow
stream so that the liquid continuous phase may fall free from the gas phase and enter
the lower liquid collection section. In the secondary separation section, which consists
of the bulk of the gas filled space, the remaining droplets are removed by the mist
extractor. The effluent gas from a properly sized separator should contain normally no
more than 0.1 gal of liquid/MMscf14. In addition, due to the inadequacy in separation,
liquid entrainment can be provoked at high gas velocities by:
o momentum transfer from the gas to the stationary liquid phase and to the
associated pressure variations on the gas/liquid interface (waving)
o creation of gas-liquid emulsions (foaming)
The separator pressure can be adjusted to minimise any liquid carryover at the gas
outlet. The chart below helps to determine this pressure according to the theoretical gas
capacity of horizontal separators.
Page 9
.
2000
1800
1600
1400
200
150
From chart ( 1 , 2 , 3 )
Theoretical gas capacity = 40 MMcf/D
-12
1200
1100
1000
900
800
100
90
80
70
60
-8
-4
0
-10
Pressure
(psig)
Gas capacity
(MMcf/D)
700
50
600
40
500
+4
400
30
+8
-8
300
20
-5
15
-4
-2
+12
Liquid depth (in.)
Origin: center line
+8
+10
Chart based on
30
50
60
150
10
9
8
7
6
+2
+4
+6
200
4
3
17.5
20
22.5
25
ft : 1.37
ft : 1.47
ft : 1.57
ft : 1.67
L
10
0.56
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
When standard test separators installed on high deliverability wells fail to achieve
adequate separation between the two hydrocarbon phases and/or avoid liquid reentrainment, a misty flow regime instead of a single phase one reigns in the separators
gas outlet. This is known as "liquid carry over" and the reported gas flow rates can be off
because current gas meters malfunction when the liquid content exceeds a certain limit.
Inevitably, the liquid flow rates measured at the same time on the other flow line will be
wrong as well.
Similar type of problems due to inefficient separation in the primary surface trap at the
prevailing conditions can be encountered in the separator oil flow line. When testing
reservoir fluids of low oil yield and the retention time of the liquid phase in the vessel is
short enough to bring the gas-liquid interface close to the separator oil outlet, gas
bubbles can be carried into the liquid flow line. This is known as "gas carry under" and in
addition to altering the composition of the equilibrium oil phase it could also influence
the quality of the meter readings.
Page 10
.
This failure of the primary separator to perform its function of adequately splitting the
equilibrium phases has the two serious consequences for sampling:
o the reported surface gas and oil flow rates are measured inaccurately
o the quality of the recovered surface samples becomes questionable
Inaccurate flow rates and/or the use of separator phases not in thermodynamic
equilibrium leads to recombined samples which not representative of the original
reservoir fluid.
Non Equilibrium Phases produced in the Primary Separator
It is often assumed that as soon as the well effluent enters the three phase separator its
thermodynamic equilibrium adjusts instantly to the prevailing pressure and temperature
conditions. This assumes that the mass transfer of the components between the two
phases is completed right away and the required residence time allows for the
segregation of the phases (gas from oil and oil from water).
It should be considered, however, that the effluent in the upper parts of the production
tubing flows in the diphasic regime and is subjected to a form of differential vaporisation
process at varying temperature conditions. Despite the turbulence that is created, the
flow pattern irregularities due to slug flow, that prevails in 80-90% of the cases, may not
help to bring the effluent to thermodynamic equilibrium at the inlet of the separator.
The mass transfer between the phases through which thermodynamic equilibrium is
established, takes place through the interfaces. The largest possible contact area
between the phases is required in order to accelerate the process. Once the phases are
predominantly segregated after entering the vessel, in some cases, full equilibrium may
never be attained. Although research has to be conducted to investigate the influence of
time in establishing thermodynamic equilibrium, laboratory tests can be used to verify
whether the recovered samples are or are not equilibrium phases at the field reported
conditions15,9.
Surface samples obtained from a separator, which operates at non-thermodynamic
equilibrium conditions, can still be used for PVT analysis if they have been recovered
simultaneously and a GOR value is available at the time of sampling.
Page 11
.
The liquid carryover sampling technique is known in the field as Isokinetic Sampling16,
although the term strictly means the withdrawal of fluid through a probe at the same
vectorial velocity as the non disturbed stream upstream of the probe.
There are various systems in use one of which is the Isokinetic Gas Sampling System
(IGSS). The IGSS was developed after a theoretical review of existing isokinetic
sampling systems followed by proof of concept flow loop experiments using a water
mist in air at Schlumbergers Clamart product centre.
The flow loop tests established an experimental maximum absolute error in carryover
concentration of +/- 1.5*10-5 l/hr and clearly demonstrated the importance of establishing
a true isokinetic condition at the tip of the sampling probe in order to representatively
sample the mist flow. The chart below compares the known level of carryover in the loop
with the measured carryover by sampling at isokinetic and non-isokinetic conditions.
Page 12
.
1 .2
Q tota l=4 0 0 sm / hr
1
0 .8
0 .6
0 .4
0 .2
0
0
0 .5
1 .5
2 .5
The IGSS design is, in effect, a miniature second stage separation process with features as
follows:
o Sampling probe position at exit of gas outlet line to ensure there are no errors
due to liquid carry-over deposition on the inner walls of the 6" gas line or
additional liquid as a result of gas condensation in the 6" gas line.
o True isokinetic flow conditions are established with a flow controller that
matches the separator gas line velocity.
o Real time measurement of liquid carryover allows the calculation of the
corrected separator GOR for the duration of the stabilised flow through the well
test separator.
o The separation process provides a dry gas sample free of liquid carry-over and a
liquid carry-over sample for the subsequent PVT recombination study.
Please refer to attached flow schematic of the IGSS.
Page 13
.
Page 14
.
L.E. Steele & G.E. Adams A review of the Northern North Seas Beryl Field
After Seven Years Production, SPE 12960
2.
W.G. Riemens, A.M. Schulte, L.N.J de Jong Birba Field PVT Variations Along
the Hydrocarbon Column and confirmatory Field Tests, JPT, January 1988,
pp83-88
3.
4.
5.
A.R. Smits, D.V. Fincher, Katsuhiko Nishida, O.C. Mullins , R.J. Schroeder and
Tsutomu Yamate: In-situ Optical Fluid Analysis as an Aid to Wireline Formation
Sampling, SPE Formation Evaluation, June 1995, pp91-98
6.
7.
Peresg, Alvaro M.M, Macias-Chapa, Luis, Serra, Kelsen,V. and Reynolds A.C:
Well-Conditioning Effects on Bubblepoint Pressure of Fluid Samples from
Solution Gas Drive Reservoirs, SPE 18530
8.
W.D. McCain Jr and R.A. Alexander: Sampling Gas Condensate Wells, SPE
19729, 1989
9.
10.
J.W. Amyx, D.M. Bass and R.L. Whiting. Petroleum Reservoir EngineeringPhysical Properties, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1960
Page 15
.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
Hoffman, A.E, Crump, J.S and Hocott, C.R:Equilibrium Constants for a GasCondensate System
16.
W.D. Riley, R.P. Walters, S.D. Cramer, F.X. McCawley: Isokinetic Technique for
Sampling Geothermal Fluids in Two-Phase Flow, SPE 7885
17.
18.
19.
Page 16
.
Surface Sampling
Sampling point
Isokinetic Sampling
Probe
Separator
Dry Gas
Liquid
Container
Control
Valve
Flowmeter
Sampling Point
Liquid carry-over
Sampling Point
SMART
Data Acquisition System
Stores liquid flowrate data
IG Sampling Controller
Controls isokinetic flowrate
Processes liquid flowrate data
? Oilphase, November 99
17/17