NPRA Spring National

March 2006
New Electrostatic Technology
for Desalting Crude Oil
Gary W. Sams PE
Director Research & Development
Kenneth Warren PhD
Chief Process Consultant - Electrostatics
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Desalter Performance Issues
Opportunity Crudes
Heavy crude oils
Increased temperatures
Increased oil conductivity
Soluble Water
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Oil Desalting
Critical Variables include:
Flow, Temperature,
Water Content, Solids
Mix Water Injection Points
Mixing Energy Requirements
Recycle Water Schemes
Electrostatic Field Type
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Process Stages
Chemicals Electrostatic Fields Hydraulics
Coagulation
Requires Chemical Reaction
Flocculation
Assisted by Electrostatic Forces
Sedimentation
Depends Upon Vessel Flow Regime, Drop
Size & Viscosity
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Partnership for Drop Growth
Chemicals Remove the Barriers
Electrostatics Provide the Muscle
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Selection of Electrostatic Fields
AC Conventional & Deep-field
DC (Only with refined products)
Combination AC/DC
Modulated AC/DC Fields
Bi-Modal Modulation
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Electrostatic Forces
Dipolar Attraction: Electrical
force produced by positive
and negative centers on
induced dipoles of water
drops.
Electrophoresis: Electrically
induced movement of polar
bodies in a uniform field
toward closest electrode.
Dielectrophoresis: Movement
of polar bodies induced by a
divergent electric field toward
increasing gradient.
+
-
+
-
+
-
+ +
+
+
-
-
-
-
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Critical Voltage Gradient
x
y
y/x>1.9
Polarized by the electrostatic field
Deforms to a prolate spheroid
Splits when ratio of axes becomes too large
or
Maximum Voltage at which Specified Drop Size Can Exist
2 / 1
) / ( d E
c
<
( - )
( + )
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
AC Electrostatic Dehydrators
Viscous Drag
Weight
Dipolar
Attraction
+
+ -
-
Dielectrophoretic Force *
* Only Exists with Divergent Field
-
+
Electrophoretic
Force
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Dipolar Attractive Force
Between Equal Sized Drops
2
4
6
6 E K
d
r
F

=
F = Force of Attraction
e = Dielectric Constant
E = Electric Field Strength
r = Drop Radius
d = Interdrop Distance
Notice the Limitations:
Very Sensitive to Drop Size
Operates Over Short Range
Critical Voltage Gradient
Cannot Be Exceeded
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Drop Forces in Uniform DC Field
Viscous Drag
Weight
Dipolar
Attraction
Electrophoretic
Force
+
+
-
-
+
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Drop Forces in Non-Uniform Field
Viscous Drag
Weight
Dipolar
Attraction
Electrophoretic
Force
+
Dielectrophoretic Force:
+
-
+ -
Holds Drops in Field Until
Weight Overcomes
Suspending Force
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
}
Bulk Water
Removal
AC/DC Electrostatic Field
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Coalescence in an AC/DC Field
+
Residual Drops from AC Field
- + - +
+
-
-
+
Electrical Ground Reference
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
AC/DC Electrostatic Dehydrator
Separation via Stokes Law Sedimentation
Multiple Coalescing Forces Grow Drops
Brownian Collisions
Dipolar Attraction
Electrophoretic Movement
Dielectrophoretic Movement (Only in Divergent Fields)
Drop Size Cut Point Defined by Balance of Drag
and Weight
Larger Mean Drop Size Than Previous Dehydrators
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Electrostatic Field Terminology
Threshold Voltage Gradient
Voltage Gradient Necessary to Initiate Coalescence
Critical Voltage Gradient
Maximum Voltage Gradient at which a Specific
Diameter Drop Can Exist
Modulation Frequency Affects
Drop Transport as function of oil conductivity
Drop Distortion as function of interfacial tension
Field Strength as function of applied voltage
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Electrophoretic Force = 53 dynes
Drag = Weight = 0.01 dynes
Dipolar Force = 0.004 dynes
Dielectrophoretic Force = 0.002 dynes
Process Conditions
Low Oil Conductivity
750 Micron Cut Point Droplet
5 kV / in Peak Voltage Gradient
0.5% BS&W - Homogeneous
Magnitude of Electrostatic Forces
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Conductivity in Crude Oils
Sources of Conductivity
Excess water in the electrode zone
Polar compounds in the oil
Solids-Stabilized dispersions
Effects of Conductivity Performance Loss
Excessive arcing
Parasitic electric currents to the Interface
Loss of electrostatic field
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
AC/DC Field Decay in Conductive Oils
Increasing Conductivity
V
o
l
t
a
g
e
+
-
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Conductivity Tolerant Designs
Current-limiting Composite Electrodes
Electrostatic Field Modifications
Solids Removal Systems
Mud-wash Systems (Sand Jets)
Interface Sludge Drains
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Composite Electrode Array
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Laboratory Pilot Tests
0.43 0.65 80 5
Diluted
Bitumen
0.29
NA
(Current Limit
Exceeded)
60 31
Arabian
Heavy
0.72 0.92 1.2 1.5 60 15 Maya
Outlet BS&W
%
Composite Electrode
Outlet BS&W
%
Steel Electrode
Flux
(BPD/ft
2
)
Inlet
BS&W
%
Crude
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Pilot Testing Facility
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
High Reactance Transformer
Conventional Transformer Protection
0
20
40
60
80
100
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Voltage, % of Full Scale
C
u
r
r
e
n
t
,

%

o
f

F
u
l
l

S
c
a
l
e
Operating
Range
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Low Reactance Transformer
Permits Voltage Modulation
0
20
40
60
80
100
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Voltage, % of Full Scale
C
u
r
r
e
n
t
,

%

o
f

F
u
l
l

S
c
a
l
e
Operating Range
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Modulated AC/DC Benefits
Modulation Improvements:
Added Coalescing Power
More Effective on Smaller Drops
Enhanced Drop Growth
Higher Water Tolerance
Tolerant of Conductive Oils
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Advanced Electrostatic Field Modulation
Established Technology
Slow Speed Modulation (as in EDD)
Shifts Size Distribution to Larger Drops
Latest Technology
Pulse Modulation (1 to 20 Hz)
Oscillates Drop Surfaces
Base Frequency (800 to 1600 Hz)
Used to Limit Field Decay
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Benefits of Bi-Modal Dehydration
Pulse & Base Frequency
Energizes Drops at Resonant Frequency
Deformed Drops Coalesce More Readily
Allows Adjustment for Physical Parameters
Pulse Modulation - Interfacial Tension,
Density, Viscosity
Base Frequency - Oil Conductivity
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Resonant Frequency Oscillation
Electrophoretic movement becomes oscillatory and deforms drops
Surface free energy counters interfacial tension
Drop surface becomes highly reactive
Coalescence enhanced by reduced energy barrier
High frequency electrostatic field applied
Marangoni Effect produces localized circulation in drop
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Dual Frequency

Field Results
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0 20000 40000 60000 80000 100000 120000
D
u
a
l

P
o
l
a
r
i
t
y

(
A
C
/
D
C
)

w
/

C
o
m
p
o
s
i
t
e
D
u
a
l

F
r
e
q
u
e
n
c
y

(
B
i
-
M
o
d
a
l
)

w
/

C
o
m
p
o
s
i
t
e
Capacity (BOPD)
O
u
t
l
e
t

B
S
&
W

(
%
)
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Dual Frequency Technology
Sustains electrostatic field
Optimizes frequencies based on crude
Improves droplet mobility
Increases droplet coalescence
Achieves reduced water content
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Dual Frequency

Advantages
Reduced outlet BS&W by 30 to 95%
Tested on oils between 17 & 40 API.
Reduces outlet salt by similar amounts
Easy retrofit to existing AC/DC dehydrators
or desalters
Easily optimized to process conditions.
NPRA Spring National
March 2006
Leadership in Electrostatic Technology