Threat · Flow Assurance
Emulsions
Water droplets dispersed in the oil, or oil in water, held stable by natural surfactants such as asphaltenes and by fine solids in the crude.
What it does
High shear at chokes, valves and other flow restrictions mixes oil and water into smaller droplets that are harder to separate. The most common treatment is heat plus a chemical demulsifier, followed by settling.
Basics
| Stabilized by | Asphaltenes, natural surfactants, fine solids |
| Made tighter by | High shear at chokes and valves |
| Treatment | Heat, demulsifier, settling time |
| Chemical selection | Bottle tests |
Common failures
- Oil leaves the treating system out of spec for water
Troubleshooting
- Symptom
- Water in the sales oil rises
- Likely cause
- Emulsion not breaking
- What to check
- Bottle test demulsifiers and review heat and chemical dose