Clariant Oil Services
SCALETREAT FES
CLARIANT OIL SERVICES
innovation assured.
value delivered.
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CLARIANT OIL SERVICES – innovation assured. value delivered.
16.04.2015
Iron Sulfide: The Challenges
– Sulfide scales create flow assurance challenges from:
- Producing wells
- Perforations
- Flowlines
- Water handling vessels
- Filters
- Meters
- Pumps
- Injection wells
– The surface of FeS scale is oleophillic, resulting in emulsions
– Integrity risks are common due to FeS forming a cathode to the tubulars
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16.04.2015
FeS Causes Well Failures
In some fields, FeS will cause well failure necessitating “pulling” a unit to perform:
− Tubing replacement
− Rod replacement
− Pump replacement
The cost of well failures includes:
− Lost production while the well is down
− Cost of repair (labor and equipment)
Days between well failures due to FeS*
350
300
250
200
180
150
100
50
0
Average
*Example from West Texas Field
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CLARIANT OIL SERVICES – innovation assured. value delivered.
16.04.2015
Root Causes of Deposition
Iron
• Typical in mature, high water cut, sweet and/or sour wells and
water handling systems
• Corrosion of mild steel
• Carried from the reservoir
Iron
Sulfide
Sulfur
• Typical in mature water flooded fields where biological
control is more challenging
• Sour production
• Sulfate reducing bacteria
“Alkaline” pH
• Occurs in low CO2 producing wells tend to be higher in
alkalinity
• pH > 6.5 leads to more severe formation
• Can be influenced often by alkaline chemicals (e.g. scavengers)
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16.04.2015
Current State-of-the-Art Prevention Methods
– Control can involve a variety of chemistries:
- Chelating agents (e.g. EDTA, THPS + Ammonium Chloride)
- Scavengers (e.g. triazine)
- Surfactants (e.g. anionic and non-ionic polymers)
- Biocides (e.g. Isothiazalones, Quaternary ammonium salts, THPS, Glutaraldehyde)
- Corrosion inhibitors (e.g. Amido amines, Imidazoline, Quaternary ammonium salts)
- Sulfide scale inhibitors – (Carbonate and Sulfide inhibitors e.g. phosphorous containing polymeric compounds,
Polycarboxylates)
- Treat periodically using dissolvers like Acid or Acrolein
– The formation of Iron sulfides involves complex mechanisms and difficult to reproduce in the laboratory
– A detailed understanding of root causes is required to develop the appropriate chemical mitigation
“cocktail”
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16.04.2015
Investing in the Advancement of Iron Sulfide Technology
– Clariant Oil Services invested considerable research into
understanding Sulfide scales. As a result…
- SCALETREAT FeS was developed to offer a novel
and innovative approach over classic chemistries
- SCALETREAT FeS truly inhibits sulfide scale
formation at much lower dose rates
- Designed for continuous, low-level injection,
SCALETREAT FeS controls the Iron Sulfide and other
sulfide scales and can dramatically increase the
running days of wells
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CLARIANT OIL SERVICES – innovation assured. value delivered.
16.04.2015
The Innovation: SCALETREAT FeS
A low-dose, continuous injection Iron Sulfide Scale Inhibitor
– Unique and patented chemistry that specifically targets and inhibits
sulfide scales of iron, zinc and lead
Days between well failures due to FeS
– Field proven, SCALETREAT FeS offers the following advantages:
350
- High performance with significant advantages over existing
chemistries, such as THPS and Acrolein
- Dissolves existing iron sulfide deposits at low (continuous injection)
concentrations
310
300
250
200
180
$ Benefit
150
100
50
0
- Improved economics over existing continuous treatments
- Effective over a broad range of temperature, pressure and salinity
conditions
Before Treatment
After Treatement
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16.04.2015
Case History: Field Application
– Sidestream set up on the outlet of a FWKO in a complex US field
– Monitoring was via online electrodes and post-removal analysis (EDX & XRD)
LPR Probe Point
Outlet Line (returning
to Pump Suction)
Inlet Line (from Pump
Discharge)
Chemical Injection Point for SCALETREAT FeS
Turbine Flow Meter
*FWKO = Free-Water Knockout; EDX = Energy Dispersive X-Ray (Analysis); XRD = X-Ray Diffraction; LPR = Linear Polarization Resistivity
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CLARIANT OIL SERVICES – innovation assured. value delivered.
16.04.2015
Case History: FeS Deposition Timeline
Blank (no chemical)
THPS Formulation
SCALETREAT FeS
Establish a baseline
High concentration THPS-based
chelant
Innovative polymeric sulfide
scale inhibitor
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CLARIANT OIL SERVICES – innovation assured. value delivered.
16.04.2015
FeS Deposition Results
Mass of
Deposit (g)
Organic Content
[%]
Water Soluble
Scale [%]
Carbonate
Scale [%]
Iron Sulfide [%]
Relative Cost*
Blank
3.671
22
1
3
74
10
THPS Formulation
0.531
93
2
1
4
3
SCALETREAT FeS
0.310
96
1
1
2
0.5
Trial Stage
Blank
THPS Formulation
*Relative cost considers the total costs, including lost production and chemical costs
SCALETREAT FeS
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16.04.2015
SCALETREAT FeS Can Reduce Deferred Oil losses
Acid Only
Continuous SCALETREAT FeS Injection
Deferred Oil losses saved
Oil Production Rate
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deferred oil
deferred oil
Cumulative Water Production
– A typical production profile with
periodic acid stimulations will
incur oil losses in between
treatments
– Application of continuous
inhibition using SCALETREAT
FeS will not incur deferred oil
losses due to Iron Sulfide scale
as scale deposition is
completely prevented
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CLARIANT OIL SERVICES – innovation assured. value delivered.
16.04.2015
Choose With Confidence
Customers tell us they choose Clariant Oil Services for our proven expertise, business understanding and drive to
support their goals, as well as our:
– Impeccable safety record
– Environmentally-acceptable chemical technologies
– Local content with global best-in-class technology
– Positive contribution to sustainability programs
– Collaborative and reliable partnerships
– The benefits of continuous global R&D
– Flexibility and adaptability
Choose Clariant Oil Services, and ensure innovation and value are delivered
to your operations