Grantee Research Project Results

Locating Oil-Water Interfaces in Process Vessels

EPA Grant Number: R827015C015
Subproject: this is subproject number 015 , established and managed by the Center Director under grant R827015
(EPA does not fund or establish subprojects; EPA awards and manages the overall grant for this center).
Center: HSRC (1989) - Western HSRC
Center Director: McCarty, Perry L.
Title: Locating Oil-Water Interfaces in Process Vessels
Investigators: LoPresti, Peter G. , Manning, Francis S.
Institution: University of Tulsa
EPA Project Officer: Aja, Hayley
Project Period: June 14, 2001 through November 30, 2001
RFA: Integrated Petroleum Environmental Consortium (IPEC) (1999) RFA Text |  Recipients Lists
Research Category: Hazardous Waste/Remediation , Targeted Research

Objective:

Crude oil is always produced with connate water, and the water-to-oil ratio is often greater than 10 to 1. In the field, the well stream is first separated into its three phases: natural gas, crude oil, and produced water. Unfortunately, crude oil and produced water often form stable emulsions that severely impede the oil-water separation. Development of a thick emulsion or rag layer between the oil and water phases is the precursor to an upset. Such upsets reduce production and increase the emissions to land, water and air. The current method of using floats to sense the oil-water interface in separators, treaters, and desalters fails when the emulsion layer thickens.

The current goal is to assess the capability of a new technique for locating the oil/water inferface and measuring the thickness of any rag layer inside production vessels. The technique consists of locating any oil/water or oil/emulsion or emulsion/water interfaces using fiber-optic pressure sensors. The relative amounts of oil and water present at any location can be obtained by calculating the bulk average density form the veritcal pressure profile. In pure water, the pressure increases by 0.433 psi per foot of vertical depth compared to 0.38 psi for a clean 38° API crude oil. Therefore the pressure gradient must be measured to 0.01 psi/ft. Recent work by LoPresti [1, 2] indicates that this can be achieved using fiber pressure sensors.

This work aims at improving the current fiber optic sensors to achieve real-time measurement of the pressure profile in a test column. Differential measurements of pressure will be obtained using the repsonse of fiber Bragg gratings to applied strain. A shift in the wavelength reflected by the grating can be translated into a physical shift in a focused spot of light using a diffraction graing, CCD camera, appropriate optics, and computer processing. Using the appropriate transducers, pressure from the weight of the oil or water can be translated to a fiber strain larger than the rexolution limit of the system.

Supplemental Keywords:

RFA, Scientific Discipline, INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION, Sustainable Industry/Business, Sustainable Environment, Environmental Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Technology for Sustainable Environment, Economics and Business, Ecological Risk Assessment, Technical Assistance, Ecology and Ecosystems, pollution prevention, Environmental Engineering, chemical waste, clean technologies, cleaner production, hazardous emissions, petrochemicals, oil production, hazardous waste, pollution control, IPEC, fiber optic pressure sensor, innovative technology, oil water separation, technology transfer, bioremediation

Progress and Final Reports:

Final Report

Main Center Abstract and Reports:

R827015    HSRC (1989) - Western HSRC

Subprojects under this Center: (EPA does not fund or establish subprojects; EPA awards and manages the overall grant for this center).
R827015C001 Evaluation of Road Base Material Derived from Tank Bottom Sludges
R827015C002 Passive Sampling Devices (PSDs) for Bioavailability Screening of Soils Containing Petrochemicals
R827015C003 Demonstration of a Subsurface Drainage System for the Remediation of Brine-Impacted Soil
R827015C004 Anaerobic Intrinsic Bioremediation of Whole Gasoline
R827015C005 Microflora Involved in Phytoremediation of Polyaromatic Hydrocarbons
R827015C006 Microbial Treatment of Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material (NORM)
R827015C007 Using Plants to Remediate Petroleum-Contaminated Soil
R827015C008 The Use of Nitrate for the Control of Sulfide Formation in Oklahoma Oil Fields
R827015C009 Surfactant-Enhanced Treatment of Oil-Contaminated Soils and Oil-Based Drill Cuttings
R827015C010 Novel Materials for Facile Separation of Petroleum Products from Aqueous Mixtures Via Magnetic Filtration
R827015C011 Development of Relevant Ecological Screening Criteria (RESC) for Petroleum Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Exploration and Production Sites
R827015C012 Humate-Induced Remediation of Petroleum Contaminated Surface Soils
R827015C013 New Process for Plugging Abandoned Wells
R827015C014 Enhancement of Microbial Sulfate Reduction for the Remediation of Hydrocarbon Contaminated Aquifers - A Laboratory and Field Scale Demonstration
R827015C015 Locating Oil-Water Interfaces in Process Vessels
R827015C016 Remediation of Brine Spills with Hay
R827015C017 Continuation of an Investigation into the Anaerobic Intrinsic Bioremediation of Whole Gasoline
R827015C018 Using Plants to Remediate Petroleum-Contaminated Soil
R827015C019 Biodegradation of Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Salt-Impacted Soil by Native Halophiles or Halotolerants and Strategies for Enhanced Degradation
R827015C020 Anaerobic Intrinsic Bioremediation of MTBE
R827015C021 Evaluation of Commercial, Microbial-Based Products to Treat Paraffin Deposition in Tank Bottoms and Oil Production Equipment
R827015C022 A Continuation: Humate-Induced Remediation of Petroleum Contaminated Surface Soils
R827015C023 Data for Design of Vapor Recovery Units for Crude Oil Stock Tank Emissions
R827015C024 Development of an Environmentally Friendly and Economical Process for Plugging Abandoned Wells
R827015C025 A Continuation of Remediation of Brine Spills with Hay
R827015C026 Identifying the Signature of the Natural Attenuation of MTBE in Goundwater Using Molecular Methods and "Bug Traps"
R827015C027 Identifying the Signature of Natural Attenuation in the Microbial Ecology of Hydrocarbon Contaminated Groundwater Using Molecular Methods and "Bug Traps"
R827015C028 Using Plants to Remediate Petroleum-Contaminated Soil: Project Continuation
R827015C030 Effective Stormwater and Sediment Control During Pipeline Construction Using a New Filter Fence Concept
R827015C031 Evaluation of Sub-micellar Synthetic Surfactants versus Biosurfactants for Enhanced LNAPL Recovery
R827015C032 Utilization of the Carbon and Hydrogen Isotopic Composition of Individual Compounds in Refined Hydrocarbon Products To Monitor Their Fate in the Environment
R830633 Integrated Petroleum Environmental Consortium (IPEC)
R830633C001 Development of an Environmentally Friendly and Economical Process for Plugging Abandoned Wells (Phase II)
R830633C002 A Continuation of Remediation of Brine Spills with Hay
R830633C003 Effective Stormwater and Sediment Control During Pipeline Construction Using a New Filter Fence Concept
R830633C004 Evaluation of Sub-micellar Synthetic Surfactants versus Biosurfactants for Enhanced LNAPL Recovery
R830633C005 Utilization of the Carbon and Hydrogen Isotopic Composition of Individual Compounds in Refined Hydrocarbon Products To Monitor Their Fate in the Environment
R830633C006 Evaluation of Commercial, Microbial-Based Products to Treat Paraffin Deposition in Tank Bottoms and Oil Production Equipment
R830633C007 Identifying the Signature of the Natural Attenuation in the Microbial Ecology of Hydrocarbon Contaminated Groundwater Using Molecular Methods and “Bug Traps”
R830633C008 Using Plants to Remediate Petroleum-Contaminated Soil: Project Continuation
R830633C009 Use of Earthworms to Accelerate the Restoration of Oil and Brine Impacted Sites