EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH OF HEAT GAS-DYNAMICS METHOD FOR PREVENTING HYDRATE FORMATION IN GAS PIPELINES USING CYCLONES

Abstract

The relevance of the study is caused by the need to reduce the amount of gas hydrates in the mixture stream or their complete destruction. In the oil and gas industry, gas hydrates are a negative factor, since they greatly complicate production, transportation and preparation of hydrocarbon raw materials. Under certain thermobaric conditions, hydrates precipitate and accumulate on the walls of vessels, pipelines and in the cavities of the valves, which leads to their wear and increase of hydraulic resistance, and, consequently, to increased energy costs. Existing methods to combat hydrate formation are very dangerous (using methanol to destruct hydrates), very expensive (using hydrate inhibitors) or energy consuming and not effective (heating the pipeline with a specialized cable). Also, accumulation of hydrates can adversely affect metering and metering devices. The main aim of the research is the experimental study of removing ice from a gas stream and its destruction in a specialized installation. Object: autonomous modular installation for combating hydrate treatment. Methods: theoretical methods to justify the patterns of heat and mass transfer, a calculation-analytical method for determining the amount of energy, practical methods for conducting experiments. Results. The laboratory stand was built on the basis of National Research Tomsk Polytechnic University; experiments were conducted for various gas flows with different thermobaric conditions; the main dependences of the quality of separation of ice from the mixture were analyzed; the practical significance of the development was proved; and recommendations were made for creating a prototype. A model for calculating the main structural parameters of a cyclone and a working cavity is considered. A methodology for conducting experiments and techniques for selecting optimal thermobaric parameters is presented.

Keywords

• hydrate formation
• cyclone
• gasodynamic method
• heat and mass transfer
• dynamic