Masters Degrees (Chemical Engineering)

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Browsing Masters Degrees (Chemical Engineering) by Author "Andre, Antonio Luzaiadio Buco"

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    Investigation of the stability and separation of water-in-oil emulsion.
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009-12) Andre, Antonio Luzaiadio Buco; Els, E. R.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Process Engineering.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study of water-in-oil emulsion stability and separation was carried out for this thesis. The main objectives were as follows: to rank crude oil samples in terms of creating stable emulsions; to assess the effect of the brine pH on emulsion stability; to investigate the influence of different organic acids on emulsion stability; and to determine the efficiency of an electric separator in removing water droplets from a flowing organic liquid. Seven crude oil samples from different sources such as A, C, H, M, P, U, and V were used to investigate the water-in-crude-oil emulsion. Two crude oil blends were also used. Brine solution comprising 4 wt% NaCl and 1 wt% CaCl2 was used. In this study the gravity settling, critical electric field (CEF) and centrifuge test methods were used to estimate the emulsion stability created by the crude oil and crude oil blend samples. The experiments were carried out at 60°C. In the gravity test method, the brine pH, stirring speed, stirring time and water-cut (the fraction of water in the emulsion) were changed in 2IV-1 factorial design. The parameters for the centrifuge and CEF test methods were selected on the basis of the gravity test method. The crude oil samples were ranked in terms of creating stable emulsion in the following order V, U, P, H, A, M and C. The crude oil blends created more stable emulsions than their respective constituents. The ranking order of the crude oil samples did not correlate to asphaltenes, resins, wax or total acid number (TAN). There was a good correlation between the test methods used. There was an increase and decrease in the brine pH when different crude oil samples were in contact with the brine. It is believed that the structure of the surfactants present in crude oil may explain the emulsion-forming characteristics of different crude oil deposits around the world. To account for the effect of organic acids on emulsion stability, different organic acids were used. In this case, a mixture of equal volumes of heptane and toluene (here referred to as heptol) was used as the model for crude oil. The brine solution composition was the same as the one used in the crude oil experiments. Equal volumes of heptol and brine were mixed for a period of time and then separated. The brine pH was changed from acidic to basic. In this regard, gas chromatography and liquid chromatography were used to analyse the concentration of the acids in the brine and heptol samples. It was found that the partitioning coefficient for acids containing a straight-chain hydrocarbon moiety decreased with an increase in molecular weight. However, the partitioning coefficient depended on the structure of the acid. The presence of a benzene ring in the organic acid increased the partitioning coefficient. Organic acids with rings created an interface layer when the heptol sample was mixed with basic brine solution. This confirmed that the emulsion of water and crude oil starts with the formation of a film, and it also provides insight into the formation of naphthenate soap. It is believed that the naphthenic acids that cause stable emulsions have rings. More organic acids should be tested. It is recommended that the interaction of asphaltenes, resins and naphthenic acids should be investigated at different pH levels, temperatures and pressures. The separation of water droplets from a flowing organic liquid was carried out using a direct current (d.c.) electric separator. The separator used centrifugal forces and a d.c. electric field to enhance the removal of water drops from a flowing organic liquid. For this, vegetable oil, crude oil blend and heptane were used as the continuous phase. The experiments were carried out at room temperature (for heptane and vegetable oil) and at 70°C (for vegetable oil and crude oil blend). The flow rate to the separator was kept constant. The separator removed water droplets from flowing organic liquids. A maximum of 97% (at 100 V)of water droplets was removed from the heptane liquid; a maximum of 28% (at 100 V) of water droplets was removed from the vegetable oil at 70°C and 5% (at 100 V) of water droplets was removed from the crude oil blend. The d.c. electric field enhanced the efficiency of the separator in removing water droplets. The break-up of the droplets is suspected to decrease the efficiency of the separator. This separator can easily be installed into existing process lines and does not require much space. However, further improvements are needed in the design of this separator. Emulsions created in the petroleum industries are quite complex to deal with. The identification of the structure of the components in crude oil is a matter that still has to be investigated. An improvement in the techniques may lead to a better understanding of the cause of the ultra-stable emulsion encountered in the petroleum and related industries.