Oilfield chemistry
Field examples from the Bakken Shale and Permian Basin illustrate the benefits of deploying polymer-coated and uncoated scale inhibitors in unconventional wells.
New strategies for protecting metal infrastructure emerge as operators fine-tune a corrosion threat screening process and develop a new method for tracking inhibitor effectiveness.
Interfacial tension keeps oil and water separate by resisting the mixing of their molecules at the surface. Learn how industry experts measure this force to diagnose fluid behavior.
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The challenges for operators in the Eagle Ford have been enormous, which can push chemical management to the back burner. But there is a price to be paid down the road. Operators have recently become more mindful of implementing metric-driven chemical management programs. -
The growing amount of heavy crude processed worldwide has created additional separation challenges, leading some operators to turn to alternative technologies. In some cases, electrocoalescence has been an effective tool to separate oil from water.
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This is the fifth article in a series covering water management in hydraulic fracturing in unconventional resources. The focus of this article is biological control. Additives to improve fracturing conditions can have negative effects on water treatment.
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A wide range of corrosive elements and compounds from a variety of crudes has led to a renewed industry focus on corrosion and the effects it has on pipelines and vessels.
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A relatively small concentration of a defoamer can have a significant impact on the dynamics of multiphase flow within a pipe, but the effect is generally temporary.
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As producers push logistical and technological limits to operate in deeper water and more remote locations, maintaining and repairing offshore structures can present a number of challenges unique to these environments. One of the costliest is corrosion.
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As the world's supply of crude becomes heavier, many of the world’s oil producers will have to think more carefully about heavy crudes and the challenges they pose for processing, storage, and transportation.
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In an SPE webinar, “Foaming in Separators: Handling and Operation,” Wally Georgie, principal consultant at Maxoil Solutions, presented an overview of foam generation and how the design of processes and chemical management can exacerbate its detrimental effects in separators.
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Issues associated with mercury’s presence in hydrocarbon processing systems have become more apparent as deeper and hotter reservoirs (often with higher levels of mercury) were exploited, and with the low-temperature gas processing used for liquefied natural gas (LNG) and natural gas liquids.
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Semoga and Kaji fields experienced reservoir souring and suffered a history of calcium-carbonate (CaCO3) -scale cases before a proper scale-inhibition program was implemented. Problems with a free water knockout discovered continued scale issues, leading to investigation of the reasons.
