Saturday, August 9, 2014

Advantages Of Paraffin Removal Oil Wells

By Tanisha Berg


Since the introduction of paraffin-based crude oils, one of the setbacks met is the buildup of asphaltenes in the pipelines which interferes with the flow of crude oil in the transportation process. This accumulation of asphaltenes have resulted in huge losses being incurred in many wells to extents that some have been pushed out of production. Paraffin removal oil wells is therefore of great importance.

Even though millions of dollars have been channeled towards research aimed at finding a cure to this problem, a universal solution has not been found as of yet. This has been the case mainly because an effective control of asphaltenes is normally hampered by the uncertainty of the composition of the deposit especially because of the difference in molecular structure of the various crude oils.

Profit making and high production is the aim of every company. For this reason, an oil production company can consider use of many mechanisms that are there to do away with asphalt emulsion on their oil channels and storage areas. Some of the methods that can be used is by using coiled tubes and also scrapping. This will prevent wax build up along the piping.

Apart from using coiled tubes and scrapping mechanism to prevent waxing on oil pipes, another mechanism that can be employed is the use of chemicals to remove the waxing along the pipes and also storage tanks. Chemicals can be chosen depending on the nature of waxing that has build-up on the pipes. This will indeed increase your production and efficiency.

In case the impurities are inside pipes, it might be impractical to use mechanical or heat methods. In such cases, use of hot water or steam is most appropriate since water can easily move through pipes taking away the impurities with it.

Chemical remediation is another method that can be used in the removal of asphaltenes. This method is effective as it helps in the removal of the impurity and then stops further buildup of impurity. This method cannot however be used alone and it has to be complemented with other methods such as the mechanical method. In effect this method will be very expensive as well as well as will contribute to destruction of the environment. It is thus used as a last resort where other methods have failed to work.

Another and most important technique is use thermal means to remove kerosene wax that has developed along the piping. This is where the pipes are subjected to great and higher degree temperatures that melt the wax inside the walls of the pipes. However this method is only usable to metallic pipes and which cannot be easily melted by fire and severe heating.

It is evident that there is a wide variety of approaches to use when it comes to removal of asphaltenes in a crude oil well. It is therefore advisable to critically analyze all the available options critically and choose a method that that fully satisfies your need. This will put into consideration the costs involved as well as the desired results.




About the Author:



No comments: