Eventos Anais de eventos
COBEM 2023
27th International Congress of Mechanical Engineering
A comparison of droplet breakage in W/O emulsion flow induced by pumping and gas pressurization
Submission Author:
Murilo Zucatelli Elias , ES , Brazil
Co-Authors:
Murilo Zucatelli Elias, Ligia Franco, Rayane Reinholz Boone Corona, Edimilson Kempin Junior, Juliana Thomes Alves Roberti, Rogerio Ramos
Presenter: Murilo Zucatelli Elias
doi://10.26678/ABCM.COBEM2023.COB2023-0293
Abstract
In deepwater oil exploration, stable water-in-oil emulsions form due to the process of pumping from the production well to the platform. Therefore, the aim of this work is to present the behavior of the Droplet Size Distribution (DSD) of water-in-oil (W/O) metastable emulsion as it flows through a laboratory-scale experimental flow circuit induced by two distinct methods: compressed air or mechanical pumping. An experimental flow circuit installed in a laboratory scale presents dynamic similarity to the flow of crude oil in offshore installations based on Weber number. The circuit is equipped with pipe fittings that resemble those employed in actual production plants. The dependence of droplet breakage, evaluated by either pressurized or pumped flow, shows variations in DSD in W/O emulsions with concentrations ranging from 7% to 10%. This analysis considers an initial D[4,3] diameter from 10 µm to 25 µm and repeats the tests for each form of flow induction. The results indicate repeatability in the Weber number, ranging from 0.5 to 7, and different characteristics of the initial DSD
Keywords
Emulsion, droplet breakage, Water-in-Oil Emulsions, Droplet size distributions
