SPE Projects, Facilities & Construction
Volume 6, Number 1, March 2011, pp. 21-26

SPE-130464-PA

Deployment, Monitoring, and Optimization of a Scale Inhibitor and Associated Corrosion Inhibitor Within a Deepwater Subsea Facility Offshore Brazil

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DOI  More information 10.2118/130464-PA http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/130464-PA

Citation

  • Jordan, M., Linares-Samaniego, S., and Santos Afonso, M. 2011. Deployment, Monitoring, and Optimization of a Scale Inhibitor and Associated Corrosion Inhibitor Within a Deepwater Subsea Facility Offshore Brazil. SPE Proj Fac & Const  6 (1): 21-26. SPE-130464-PA. doi: 10.2118/130464-PA.

Discipline Categories

  • 4.6.4 Scale
  • 5.1.4 Monitoring and Control
  • 5.3.5 Scale, Sand, Corrosion, and Clay Migration Control
  • 5.3.6 Produced Water Management and Control

Keywords

  • Scale, Corrosion, Monitoring, Real time

Summary

This paper presents field results and lessons learned from an floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel, offshore Brazil where a scale and combination scale inhibitor (SI) and corrosion inhibitor (Cl) has been applied subsea to control both the deposition of scale and associated corrosion.

The paper outlines the problems encountered when the initial scale-inhibitor formulation was deployed in the field related to materials compatibility with the subsea manifold and the steps taken to develop and monitor an improved formulation. Problems that can affect product application in a subsea environment--including deposition of suspended solids within the chemical, hydrate formation, and incompatibility of the chemicals with umbilical material and produced fluid--will all be addressed. The laboratory methods used to select the product along with measurement methods used in the field are also discussed. The validation of the laboratory selection methods in the field required the development of a monitoring program to establish baseline control and to assess the degree of protection from scale deposition and corrosion across the process.

The use of novel real-time scale monitoring, as well as water-chemistry tracking, proved vital to understanding the efficiency of flow assurance within the processes and understanding how treatment rates of the scale inhibitor and corrosion inhibitor could be optimized.

This paper will outline in detail the particular issues associated with chemical injection to a subsea facility, many of which are currently being developed in the Gulf of Mexico, offshore West Africa, and offshore Brazil. This case study is a good example of lessons learned and sharing of best practices from another oil basin.

© 2011. Society of Petroleum Engineers

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History

  • Original manuscript received: 25 March 2010
  • Meeting paper published: 26 May 2010
  • Revised manuscript received: 11 August 2010
  • Manuscript approved: 16 August 2010
  • Published online: 1 March 2011
  • Version of record: 3 March 2011