Analysis of Crude Oil Electrostatic

Desalters Performance
Alireza Bahadori , G. H. Montazeri, Sh. Bahadori
National Iranian south oil co. Ahwaz, Sh. Ayatollahi, shiraz
University
bahadori. a@nisoc. com

9th Iranian Chemical Engineering Congress

Iran University of Science and

Technology
23-25 November, 2004

Abstract:
New Equations determined treating rate and treating temperature for Dual polarity
electrostatic desalters and AC conventional electrostatic desalters. Temperature and
treating rate are 2 important factors for dehydration and desalting. Production of wet
crude had been a growing field problem in Iran. The need to treat wet crude was felt
for quite some time. Application of right technology and installation of proper
desalting facilities were needed to solve this problem. Thus it was decided to install
electrostatic desalting plants progressively in Iranian fields. By end of 2003 more than
20 plants with a total capacity of 1. 2 million stbbl/day of treated crude has been
installed.

Keywords: Crude Oil, Electrostatic Desalters Performance

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Introduction
Due to salt water production a number of wells had to shut in for lack of treating facilities.
The water produced with crude in Iran contains salts in the concentration of 150000 to
220000 ppm. In almost all cases, the salt is found dissolved in the water that is dispersed in the
crude oil.
Electrostatic crude desalting systems are used in Iran, the system employs chemical
demulsifiers heat and an electrostatic field to dehydrate the crude.
The installation of desalting plants within the existing facilities in Iran called for considerable
changes for utility systems. These changes in the facilities and other utility systems. These
changes have successfully been carried out. The performance of the majority of desalting plants
have been tested and found satisfactory.
Salt water is present in the crude in the form of emulsion. When the produced formation water
is highly saline as in the case in Iran then straight dehydration is not the solution and the crude
is to be desalted as well. Dehydration means removing only that water which is in the crude
when crude is produced. The term desalting means addition of comparatively fresh water to the
crude, this addition of fresh water dilutes the original brine so that the salt content of the water
that remains after treatment is within acceptable limits.
Therefore, the process adopted in Iran for treating wet crude is a combination of dehydration
and desalting. The following factors are beneficial in the treatment of emulsions and the
removal of water from crude oil [1].
These are:
1-chemical
2-heat
4-electrostatic field.
1- Chemical
chemical additives are demulsifiers generally injected in the oil up stream of the dehydration
system. The use of demulsifiers with a gravity separation device such a three phase separator
or setteling tank can successfully remove as much as 95 percent of the produced water present
in the oil. Removal of the remainder of the water droplets through coalescence and gravity
separation is also enhaced by the use of demulsifiers. The removal of this treatment water is
many times more difficult than the separation of so called free water
2- Heat
Heat aids in the dispersion of the emulsifying agents into the oil phase after they have been
chemically displaced from the water droplets. Heat also adds energy to the system creating
thermal currents and water droplet movement. This droplet movement will increase coalesence
through random collision. Heat addition results in thermal expansion of the water droplets
which helps in rupturing the film envelope and also reduces the oil viscosity to allow faster
settling of the coalesced water droplets.

9th Iranian Chemical Engineering Congress (IChEC9), Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), 23-25 Nov., 2004

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Where additional heat is required there is no substitute. However excessive use of heat can be
uneconomical.
It is seen that droplet falling velocity is one of the decisive factor in efficient dehydration and
optimum results are obtained when the viscosity of oil is between 5 to 10 centistokes.
Normally the viscosity of oil at room temperature is much higher than this value. Therefore,
addition of heat is essential and it is a function of crude characteristicts.
From the viscosity-temperature relationship of various iranian crudes, it was noticed that in
different areas the treating temperatures shall have to be different depending on the crude oil
mixtures. However, the best test is in the fields and the optimum temperatures for treating can
be arrived at with experience.
The droplet diameter is the most important single parameter to control to aid in water settling
since this term is squared in the settling equation. A small increase in diameter will create a
much larger increase in settling rate. It would be extremely rare to have laboratory data of
droplet coalescence for a given system. Qualitatively we would expect droplet size to increase
with retention time in the coalescing section, and with heat input, which excites the system
leading to more collisions of small droplets. Droplet size could be expected to decrease with
oil viscosity, which inhibits the movement of the particles and decreases the force of the
collision.
3- Electrostatic field [2]
Coalescing of the small water drops dispersed in the crude can be accomplished by subjecting
the water in oil emulsion to a high voltage electrical field. When a non-conductive liquid (oil)
containing a dispersed conductive liquid (water) is subjected to an electrostatic field, the
conductive particles or droplets are caused to combine by one of three physical phenomena.
1- The droplets become polarized and tend to align themselves with the lines of electric force.
In so doing, the positive and negative poles of the droplets are brought adjacent to each
other. Electrical attraction brings the droplet together and causes them to coalesce.
2- Droplets are attached to an electrode due to induced charge. In an AC field, due to inertia,
small droplets vibrate over a large distance than larger droplets promoting coalescence. In
a D-C field the droplets tend to collect on the electrodes forming larger and larger drops
until eventually they fall by gravity the electric field tends to distort and thus weaken the
emulsifying film.
Whatever the actual mechanism, the electric field causes the droplets to move about rapidly in
random directions, which greatly increases the chance of collision with another droplet. When
droplets collide with the proper velocity, coalescence occurs. The attraction between water
droplets in an electric field is given by:

KE 2 (d m )
S4

F =

(with s d m )

(1)

9th Iranian Chemical Engineering Congress (IChEC9), Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), 23-25 Nov., 2004

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This equation indicates that the greater the voltage gradient the greater the forces causing
coalescence. However, experimental data show that at some gradients the water droplet can be
pulled apart and a strong emulsion can be developed. For this reason electrostatic treaters are
normally equipped with a mechanism for adjusting the gradient in the field.
Most electrostatic treaters use an electrode section. The flow path in an electrostatic treater is
the same as horizontal treater. The only difference is that an AC or DC electrostatic field is
used to promote coalescence of the water droplets. Field experience tends to indicate that
electrostatic treaters are efficient at reducing water content in the crude below the 0. 5-1%
basic sediment and water (BS&W) level. This makes them particulary atractive for desalting
applications. However for normal crude treating 0. 5 to 1% BS&W is acceptable [2].

The conventional AC
(Alternating Current) electrostatic dehydration system is an efficient method to remove high
salinity formation water from the crude oil stream. This process relies on establishing a high
voltage AC electrical field in the oil phase of dehydrator/desalter vessels (figure 4). The
electrical field imposes an electrical charge on water droplets entrained in the oil stream, thus
causing them to oscillate as they pass through the electrodes During this oscillation the
droplets are stretched or elongated and then contracted during reversal of the imposing AC
electrical field. During this agitation the water droplets co-mingle and coalesce into droplets of
sufficient size to migrate, by gravity, back into the lower water phase of the vessel for disposal.

The Dual Polarity Electrostatic

Treater consists of a pressure vessel with a heating/degassing section and firetubes, an oil
spillover box, and a coalescing section with metered orifice distributors (figure 1, 2, 3). In
place of the conventional alternating current (AC) electrical system, the Dual Polarity Treater
uses a system with both AC and DC fields. The crude oil emulsion enters the Dual Polarity
Treater and flows downward over a hood baffle. Free water separates immediately and is not
heated, which boosts heating efficiency and saves fuel. The hood baffle also helps eliminate
firetube scaling by keeping the free water from coming directly into contact with the firetube.
Oil and emulsion is heated as it flows up past the firetube. Larger water droplets coalesce and
separate, while smaller water droplets continue with the oil as it flows into the coalescing
section. Then, these remaining water droplets are subjected to the AC/DC electrostatic fields,
causing them to coalesce and settle to the bottom of the vessel[3].

This work [4]

A) AC conventional electrostatic desalter :
bbl
) = 0.0784 API 2 0.4164 API + 0.3059
2
day. ft
B) B. Dual polarity Electrostatic desalter

treating rate (

(2)

9th Iranian Chemical Engineering Congress (IChEC9), Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), 23-25 Nov., 2004

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bbl
= 0.0703 API 2 + 1.1796 API 22.6457
treating rate
2
.
day
ft

(4)

treating temperatur e ( F ) = 4.3786 API + 262.5

(5)

Table 1 treating rate in different API gravity[4]

AC Conventional

DC Dual polarity

API

EXPERIMENTAL

EQUATION

EXPERIMENTAL

EQUATION

17. 5

18

17. 0289

21

19. 5267

20

22

23. 3379

29

29. 0663

25

39

38. 8959

50

50. 7818

30

59

58. 3739

75

76. 0123

35

81

81. 7719

106

104. 7578

40

110

109. 0899

140

137. 0183

45

140

140. 3279

170

172. 7938

Table 2- treating temperature in different API gravity[4]

AC Conventional

DC Dual polarity

API

EXPERIMENTAL

EQUATION

EXPERIMENTAL

EQUATION

15

214

210. 1435

205

196. 8210

20

185

187. 8580

175

174. 9280

25

165

165. 5725

148

153. 0350

30

140

143. 2870

128

131. 1420

35

117

121. 0015

106

109. 2490

40

100

98. 7160

85

87. 3560

45

79

76. 4305

70

65. 4630

Results

9th Iranian Chemical Engineering Congress (IChEC9), Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), 23-25 Nov., 2004

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Figure1. Electrode Configuration[3]

Figure2. Electrostatic-Fields[3]

Figure 3 Electro-kinetic droplet movement between DC Electrodes[3]

9th Iranian Chemical Engineering Congress (IChEC9), Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), 23-25 Nov., 2004

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Figure 4. CONVENTIONAL AC ELECTRODE FIELD[3]

The Dual Polarity Electrostatic Treater is designed to operate at temperatures 10 to 15F

lower than a conventional electrostatic treater, and up to 60F cooler than ordinary heater
treaters. The dual polarity electrostatics provide for more complete dehydration. Consequently,
it can process at higher viscosities, which means less heat is required to lower the viscosity of
the oil at processing conditions. It provides sizeable savings in fuel costs for any gravity of
crude oil. For example, with 32. 5F API gravity crude at 10, 000 BOPD and 1, 000 BWPD,
the Dual Polarity Treater achieves a 15F reduction in temperature. The Dual Polarity
Electrostatic Treater may operate at the minimum crude oil inlet temperature, resulting in
additional fuel savings and eliminating the need for a heating system in the vessel amd the
treating rate is more than Ac conventional desalter.
F: attractive force between droplets
K: constant for system
E: voltage gradient
Dm: dimeter of droplet
S:distance between droplets
API: API gravity

References
1. 1-M.L.Chawla Field Desalting of wet crude Society of Petroleum Engineers SPE paper
15711 March 7-10 1987.
2. ken Arnold and M.Stewart Surface production operationsVolume 1, Gulf publishing Co
1991.
3. Natco technical group company literatures.
4. A.Bahadori Process Engineering Data Base Handout National Iranian South Oil
Company July 2003.

9th Iranian Chemical Engineering Congress (IChEC9), Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), 23-25 Nov., 2004