Statoil slug control

Gisle Otto Eikrem, Statoil RDI

Guest lecture at NTNU -24/3- 2014

Outline
Riser slugging
Slugging in gas-lift wells
Slug control
Slug control at sgard A

Riser slugging
Riser slugging cyclic
unstable flow. Liquid
blockage at riser foot,
pressure build-up, blow out,
back-flow

Stabilized riser fow

Stabilized by feedback
control from subsea
pressure (Schmidt et.al.
1979)

Slugging

Uneven flow: liquid slugs and gas bobbles in multiphase pipelines

In slug control we simplify to two main types of slug flow:
small slugs (< 5 min. periode): limited effect on receiving facilities
Often hydrodynamic or short terrain induced, water slugging
severe slugs (10-180 min. periode): can result in shut down
Riser slugging, well slugging, transient slugging during start-up

Fixed choking, Riserslugging

Active slug control, Even flow

Examples from experiments at Sintef Lab at Tiller

Hydro dynamic slugs

Made when waves hit the top of the pipe, liquid blocks
gas flow, wave tops combine to slugs
Short slugs with high frequency (typ. 10-20 seconds)
Gas rate, liquid rate, pressure, gas volume,
topandraphy decide degree of slugging
May trig riser slugging

Example from Tiller.

Stable Single Gas- Lift Well

Production
choke
Oil
Gas lift
choke
Gas in

Tubing

val

Reservoir

_., ,.
Statoil

Multiphase Video I

Video of controlled multiphase flow

Stable flow

Unstable Single Gas- Lift Well

Production
choke

Oil
Gas

lift
Gas in

Annulu :

Tubing

Reservoir

Multiphase Video II

Video of severe slugging in gas lift well

Gas- Lift Wells

Total Production for Unstable Well
350

Production (m /hour)

300

250

200

150

100

50

0
0

8
Time (hour)

10

12

14

16

Effects of slug fow

Reduced production
Large variations in liquid rates into 1st stage separator
Level variations: alarms, shut downs
Bad separation/water cleaning:
WiO: carry- over, emulsions
OiW: hydro cyclones do no handle rate variations well
Pressure pulses, vibrations and eqipment wear
Fiscal rate metering problems
Variations in gas rate
Pressure variations high pressure protection gives shut down
Liquid carry over into gas system
Flaring

Fiscal gas rate measuring problems

Gas- Lift
Wells

Production from Gas-Lift Well

80

Production (m /h)

70

60

50

40

30

Stable Production
Unstable Production

20
0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

Choke Opening (-)

0.7

0.8

0.9

Methods for for slug reduction and handling

Design changes for new projects
Increase processing capacity, f.ex. separator size
Slug Catcher (expensive and space demanding)
reduced
Increase velocities by reduced pipe diameter: several pipes or
prod. by increased pressure drop
Gas lift in riser- foot or in

100-1000 MNOK/pipe?

well

Operational changes and procedures for existing fields

Topside choking: increase receival pressure, reduces prod.
Shut in wells

100 MNOK/year/pipe?

Slug control, where active use of topside choke is used to

Reduce and avoid slug flow

0.5-2 MNOK/pipe?

Advanced control of receiving facilities to improve handling and reduce

consequenses of slugs

Model based control

(MPC)

1-3 MNOK/pipe?

Slug control
Objectives of slug control:
1. Improved regularity: stabile rater and redusert risiko for trip
2.

Reduced pipeline pressure: increased and prolonged tail

production and increased recovery

Available inputs:
fast topside choke (f.ex. < 3 min closing time)
Measurements:
subsea pressure transmitter (< 20 km away, time delay, etc)

pressure up- and downstream topside choke

multiphase meter, or densitometer and diff.press., for topside choke

Solution: active control to stabilize pressure and rates and to smear

out transient slugs during start- up/rate changes

Oil out

Gas in

Injection
valve

Reservoir

_., ,.
Statoil

Control

Pressure Setpoint

Structure
u On
choke

..... ...
Oil out

Gas in

Tubing

_., ,.
Statoil

n
j
e
c
t
i
o
n
v
a
l
v
e

Reservoir

_., ,.
Statoil

Shell Gas- Lift Laboratory

Production
Tubes
Control Panel

Shell Gas-Lift
Laboratory, Rijswijk, the
Netherlands

Reservoir
Valve and
Gas Injection

Pressure (bara)

Experiment DHP Control

Downhole Pressure
3
2.8
2.6
2.4
2.2
2
0

10

15
20
Time (min)

25

30

35

15
20
Time (min)

25

30

35

Valve Opening
Opening (-)

1
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0

10

Productio
n
Production (kg/min)

3.2

Production from Laboratory Gas Lift

Well Production wo/ Control
Production w/ Control

3
2.8
2.6
2.4
2.2
2
1.8
50

60

70

80

90

100

Valve Opening (%)

Process modelling for control

Complicated and complex to model multiphase fow

nonlinear, partioned system

OLGA is the world leading transient multiphase fow simulator:

must be tuned to reproduce field data

some times not possible to reproduce results (ex. Tordis water slugging)
used to investigate potential for slug fow
not suitable for controller design (black box model, hidden equations)
can be used to test controllers
Simpler models have been developed to reproduce riser slugging:

better suited for controller design

not suited to predict fow regime

Model of Single Gas- Lift

Well

Model of Single Gas- Lift

Well

Valve Opening (-)

Simulation vs. Laboratory

Opening of Production Choke
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2

Pressure (bara)

0
0

10

Time (min)

12

14

16

18

20

Downhole Pressure

3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0

Model
Laboratory
5

10

Time (min)

15

20

25

Statoils slug controller

Controls the pressure at the subsea manifold by the pipeline

inlet
Helps liquid up by opening choke
Limits pressure increase after slug by choking
Pressure controller gives set point to rate controller
Controls flow into separator - ensures even flow
Automatic start-up and shut down of single wells
PB-SP
PC

QP-SP

FC
QP

Topside choke
is used for
control

uP
FT
PSe

Pp T

Topside
choke

Pi
QSub PT
uSub

Subsea
wells

PW

Inlet
separator

Riser
PB

Removes severe slugging

Subsea
choke

Reduces smaller slugs

Multiphase flow test facilities at Tiller

Lab set- up:

3 pipe, 200m length, 15m riser height

Laboppsett

Control valve at riser top

3" rr, 200m, 15 m riser

Riser and parts of pipe in PVC

Reguleringsventil p toppen av

9 densitometers, 6 pressure transmitters

riser

Xoil
and
SF6
Riser
og
flere
rrstrekk
i PVC (gjennomsiktig)
slug types:
9 tetthetsmler,
6 gravity dominated,
hydro dynamic, transient
trykktransmittere Xoil, SF6.

Results from Tiller

Control of inlet pressure, volumetric rate and cascade control.
OLGA slug periode 50- 200 sec verified experimentally
Flow map and valve characteristics
Controller tuning
Control based only on topside measurements, i.e. without inlet
pressure
Slow ventiler: max closing time?

Experiment with inlet pressure controller

Slugging stopped effectively

Step response in closed loop

Slug control in Statoil

Barentshavet
Snhvit

Norskehavet
Heidrun

Norn

sgard A

e Heidrun

Norne

sgard
Tyrihans
Kristin

Statfjor
d

Nordsjen

Snorre
Gullfak

Statfjord C

s
Gullfaks C

Huldra
Huldra

Snorre B

Huldra

sgard Q - 3 types of terrain slugging from well and

riser
Possible slugging in low
point in S-riser with typcal
periode 5 minutes and 1
bar
variation
in
manifold
pressure
(neglectable)
P
T
Q
template

16 km long pipeline

P
T

sgard A test
separator

Possible slugging in
riser with typical
periode 30 minutes and
5-10 bar
variation in
manifold pressure

Well Q-2A

Possibl
e
sluggi
ng in

well with typical

periode 6-7 hours and
20-40 bar variation in
down hole pressure

Pressure variations without slug

control
Pressure downstream
subsea choke varies
from 85-98 barg

Topside choke 53%

Downstream pressure
varies from 220-260
barg
Temperature topside
varies from 25-35 degrees

sgard A slug control 06- 24.11.05

Downstream pressure

Controller
set point
Controlled pressure
downstream subsea
choke

Topside choke in
manual

Control of pressure
downstream subsea
choke

Control of
downstrea
m pressure

Slug control downstream subsea choke

Pressure downstream
subsea choke varies
from 92-94 barg

Downstream pressure
varies from 220-250
Topside choke 20-70%
barg

Tuning slug control of downstream pressure

controller tuning periode

Stability achieved

Fast variations from slugging in S- riser

Pressure upstream topside choke

varies 70-77 barg with 5 min
periode
Downstream pressure +-0.5
barg with 5 min periode
Topside choke 31-35%
with 5 min periode

Oscillations restart when controller is turned off

DHP starts to
oscillate

controller turned off

DHP stabilized at set point

controller in auto

New method to stabilize well Q- 2A

Pressure
controller
(PID)

PC
sgard A test
separator

P
T

Q
template

P
T

16 km long pipeline

Well Q-2A

Even
better

solution to handle well slugging: Downstream

pressure stabilized by control with subsea choke
Set into operation 08.02.2006

Summary
Good results achived at several offshore installations from 2001 with simple PIcontrollers that control inlet (subsea) pressure and rate into receiving facilities
with topside choke simple and inexpensive solution
Qualified technology after more than 5 years in operation
Achives even rates and reduced pipeline pressure and improves regularity and
makes it possible to increase and prolonge production, since it then is possible to
operate closer to given constraints, f.ex. bubble point pressure, max sand free
rate, hydrate temp., etc.
Well: results indicate that it is possible to stabilize wells by control of the
downstream pressure with topside or subsea choke and a PI controller
Extended to handle other types of flow:

Gas dominated flow with surge waves

Start- up slugs

Subsea production facilities