De-oiling High-Temperature Oil Water Feed Using Pressure Vessel
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Solution Overview
Problem
The oil industry faces inefficiencies and energy consumption due to the need for cooling and reheating high-pressure, high-temperature oily water feeds, which often results in heat exchanger fouling and additional infrastructure requirements, especially when processing fluids that require hot water outputs.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilize a phase separator and pressure vessels to separate oil and water at temperatures above the boiling point without cooling, using a gas blanket to maintain pressure and prevent boiling, eliminating the need for pre-cooling and post-heating, and allowing for a thermodynamically passive processing system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the feed is cooled with a heat exchanger before de-oiling treatment, then the temperature is reduced to below boiling point, but energy is consumed and heat exchanger fouling occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the pressure parameter of the system to raise the boiling point of water, allowing the feed to be maintained at temperatures above 100°C without boiling. By operating the pressure vessel at elevated pressure (e.g., 2-10 bar), the water remains in liquid state at higher temperatures, eliminating the need for cooling while preventing phase change that would cause flashing and energy loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention removes the cooling step entirely from the process by directly injecting the high-temperature feed into a pressurized vessel. This extracts the unnecessary cooling operation that caused energy consumption and heat exchanger fouling, while the pressure vessel directly handles the hot feed for de-oiling treatment.
2Stability of the object's composition
If cooling and reheating is performed to maintain water in liquid state, then water remains liquid, but additional infrastructure and energy consumption result
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the pressure parameter to fundamentally alter the phase behavior of water. By maintaining the pressure vessel at elevated pressure, water remains in liquid state at temperatures that would normally cause boiling. This single parameter change eliminates the need for complex cooling and reheating infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention merges the pressure maintenance function with the de-oiling treatment process. The pressure vessel serves dual purposes: maintaining water in liquid state and providing the environment for effective de-oiling, thereby combining what would otherwise require separate cooling/reheating infrastructure into a single integrated system.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the feed is cooled before treatment, then boiling is prevented, but heat exchanger fouling and additional infrastructure are required
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the pressure parameter to raise the boiling point, allowing the feed to remain thermally stable in liquid state without cooling. This eliminates the heat exchanger fouling problem by avoiding the temperature reduction step where fouling occurs, while maintaining phase stability through pressure control.
4Stability of the object's composition
If cooling is applied to prevent boiling, then water remains liquid, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the pressure parameter to eliminate the need for cooling. By operating at elevated pressure, the system allows water to remain in liquid state at high temperatures without energy-consuming cooling, thereby maintaining liquid state stability while eliminating cooling energy consumption.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach reduces energy consumption and infrastructure needs by maintaining high-temperature water in a liquid state within the system, minimizing flashing and eliminating the need for additional heat exchangers, while effectively separating oil and water without fouling issues.
Implementation Method 1
a phase separator having a restriction to effect a phase separation of oil and water in the feed
Implementation Method 2
produce an agitated mixture
Implementation Method 3
a pressure vessel operating at a pressure sufficient to maintain in a liquid state water that is at a temperature above the boiling point of water
Implementation Method 4
Supplying a gas blanket at or above 500 kPa to the pressure vessel
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for de-oiling a feed comprising oil and water. The feed has an input temperature above the boiling point of water and an input pressure sufficient to maintain the water in a liquid state. In at least one embodiment, the method comprises pumping the feed with a motive pump through a phase separator having a restriction to effect a phase separation of oil and water in the feed and produce an agitated mixture, supplying the agitated mixture from the phase separator into a pressure vessel operating at a pressure sufficient to maintain in a liquid state water that is at a temperature above the boiling point of water, removing an oil phase from the pressure vessel, and removing a water phase from the pressure vessel.