This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will evaluate the feasibility of developing a multiphase flowmetering and characterization system for oil industry. New developments in reservoir management and production techniques have resulted in the requirement for multiphase flowmeters to replace conventional test separators. The proposed system will include three advanced multiphase flow instruments: (1) a multi-electrode electromagnetic flowmeter (MEEFM), (2) a X-ray attenuation technology, and (3) an electrical impedance tomography (EIT). The first instrument will provide liquid phase velocity information, while the latter two will provide phase distribution information. The innovation of this development is to further improve these technologies and judiciously combine them to realize non-intrusive online multiphase flow measurements. The Phase I study will demonstrate the feasibility of this development. During the future Phase II development, a solid engineering design of a prototype flowmeter will be carried out. The success of the proposed study will provide a reliable instrument for industrial process monitoring as well as a useful tool for multiphase flow research.
The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is to meet requirements of online, continuous and non-intrusive multiphase flow measurements in the oil industry, as well as many other industries. The proposed flowmetering and characterization system enables accurate monitoring of multiphase pipe flows in industry, and aids researchers to study multiphase flow phenomena. The innovative development will significantly improve the performance and reduce the cost of existing multiphase flowmetering systems. Following the trend of replacing test separators and removing test lines and manifolds in the oil industry, the proposed multiphase flowmetering system will have a substantial economic impact on the infrastructure and operation of oil fields. The proposed flowmeter can also be utilized in the petroleum, chemical, food, and biochemical process industries.
Online, continuous and non-intrusive multiphase flow measurements are necessary in many industries, particularly in the oil and gas industry. Measurement of multiphase flowrates in the oil industry is required to facilitate reservoir management, field development, operational control, flow assurance, and production allocation (Department of Trade and Industry, UK, 2003). The conventional way of performing these tasks is to use multiphase gravity based test separators with single-phase flowmeters. Such an expensive test separator metering system is only moderately accurate, requires high maintenance and field personnel intervention, occupies valuable space on a production platform, and takes a long time for each run because a stabilized flow conditions are required. Developments in reservoir management and production techniques have resulted in the requirement for two/three-phase flowmeters to replace test separators. For the past two decades, considerable effort has gone into developing MultiPhase FlowMeters. In general the use of multiphase flowmeters will increase production and recovery, lower cost, and improve metering performance. Prices of the presently available commercial multiphase flowmeters are approximately a factor 5-10 lower than test operators. In particular, these cost benefits are significant for offshore applications. However, there is no universal multiphase flowmeter that can cover a full range of multiphase flow conditions, since the output of an oil reservoir may vary greatly. Additionally, most of the newly developed multiphase flowmeters require flow preconditioning such as partial separation and homogenization. With the non-intrusive nature, the proposed system may directly be used in the bulk pipeline, completely avoid the cost of building the test line, and show a considerable advantage over existing flowmeters for water-rich multiphase flows. The proposed system is an excellent candidate of being a multiphase flowmeter in a future oil production system. The proposed system can measure both the velocity and phase distribution information so as to characterize the multiphase flow and calculate flowrates. The proposed system mainly consists of a multi-electrode electromagnetic flow measurement system, electrical impedance tomography, and X-ray attenuation measurement system, as shown in figure 1. During the Phase I/IB, a preliminary multiphase flowmeter system was assembled. Data processing algorithms were developed and programmed. The performance of the novel flowmeter was extensively evaluated under single/two/three-phase flow conditions. The fundamentals of the system, which are laid in solid theoretical principles, were verified in the Phase I experimental study. The feasibility of the proposed system was fully established. If the Phase II proposal is funded, a pre-production version of the realtime multiphase flowmeter system will be developed. Following the trend of replacing test separators and removing test lines and manifolds in the oil industry, the proposed multiphase flowmetering system will have a substantial economic impact on the infrastructure and operation of oil and gas fields. The proposed flowmeter can also be utilized in the petroleum, chemical, food, and biochemical process industries. Built on our expertise in industrial process tomography, the proposed system will complement the existing tomography instruments being marketed by En’Urga Inc.
