Roxar piloting oil-in-water monitor with Statoil
Posted: 17 May 2006
Roxar reported that its Oil-in-water (OiW) monitor for enhanced water characterization is to be piloted by oil and gas company, Statoil on its North Sea Sleipner A platform.
Following a trial period at three different locations, the Roxar Oil-in-water monitor will be commercially available in January 2007.
The Roxar Oil-in-water monitor provides accurate, real-time information on the amount of sand and oil in water. The monitor is reliable, accurate, is suitable for all environments and has low maintenance requirements.
The Roxar Oil-in-water monitor has been developed in a joint industry project between Roxar, TNO Science and Industry (who patented the ultrasonic measurement technology), Statoil, Eni SpA, Italy’s second largest trading company, Shell and Petroleum Development Oman (PDO).
Through its advanced ultrasonic pulse-echo technology, the Roxar Oil-in-water monitor will distinguish between oil, sand and gas and provide detailed information on the size and amount of sand and oil in the water flow. Statoil will use the Roxar Oil-in-water monitor to measure overboard water discharge from the platform and ensure that it meets environmental requirements for limited or zero oil emissions into seawater.
The Roxar Oil-in-water monitor will provide Statoil with information to make decisions on produced water treatment.
Water volumes to be treated in process facilities is increasing — due to the maturing of the Norwegian Continental Shelf.
The Roxar Oil-in-water monitor will play a vital role in helping Statoil to efficiently monitor the separation process.
The Roxar Oil-in-water monitor has been designed to be reliable, easy to maintain and have a long lifespan.
By using advanced auto diagnostics functionality, the monitor is also able to overcome challenges, such as equipment degradation, scaling and temperature or chemical changes.
Plans are also under development for the monitor to be designed for subsea applications, allowing for water characterization at an earlier stage and enabling the monitor to become an important tool in subsea processing.
“There is no doubt that an accurate, reliable, easy to use and resilient oil in water monitor has been eluding the oil & gas industry for some time,” said Roxar CEO, Sandy Esslemont.
“And yet, with an increased focus on optimizing reservoir performance and the growing number of environmental requirements on discharge, such a monitor has never been more important.
“In partnership with some of the giants of the industry, the monitor will help operators optimize production through the monitoring and controlling of solid particles present in reinjection water and reduce their emissions into seawater.
"In terms of its accuracy and ultrasonic technology, its ability to detect a wide variety of size distribution, its direct measurements - thereby avoiding the need for recalibration, and its reliability and ease of use, there is no current oil-in-water monitor which rivals the Roxar Oil-in-water monitor.”
The Roxar Oil-in-water monitor is based on an advanced ultrasonic pulse-echo technology in which individual acoustic echoes from both solids and oil droplets are analyzed and discriminated to give accurate information on size distribution and concentration.
The ultrasonic pulse-echo technology provides greater accuracy and reliability compared to the majority of today’s oil-in-water monitors which are reliant on optical technology.
The monitor is ‘one size fits all’ and can be fitted on all pipe dimensions, can be inserted and extracted without interference and is suitable for installation in hazardous conditions.
The Roxar Oil-in-water monitor is essential in meeting the tightening requirements on produced water discharge in the North Sea.
Regulations include the 2000/2001 Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR); the UK’s Dispersed Oil in Produced Water Trading Scheme and The Norwegian State Pollution Control Authority (SFT)’s regulations, which calls for zero harmful discharge into the sea.
Through the accurate measurement of oil and sand in water, the Roxar Oil-in-water monitor will bring operators, such as Statoil, closer to zero discharge.
Sleipner A is a fixed platform located in the North Sea in block 15/9, approximately 240 kilometers west of Stavanger, Norway and serving the Sleipner East, Sleipner West and Sigyn gas and condensate fields.
Statoil ASA is a major integrated oil and gas company with its head office in Stavanger and business operations in 25 countries. Production of oil and natural gas on the Norwegian continental shelf is the backbone of Statoil’s business.
Posted by Richard Price, Editor EnergyME.com
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