MXPA06007576A - Surfactant-flocculant additive for treating connate-water obtained from the crude oil dehydrating process. - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is related to a surfactant-flocculant additive composition useful in the treatment of connate-water obtained from the crude oil dehydrating process resulting from exploitation wells. The composition includes a mixture of chemical products comprising a cationic surfactant agent having a low molecular weight, a polymeric flocculant agent having an average molecular weight, isopropyl alcohol as an association medium for the aforementioned components, and hydrogen oxygen as a vehicle, said components substantially reducing the effects caused by the deficient cleaning process in systems for filtering water and grease content dragged by the dehydrating process; additives for allowing water streams to freely flow are used due to the filtrating process performed at the batteries for separating crude oil, the aforesaid action being verified by the pressure falls registered at the container tank outlet, which is obtained by the perfect conjunction formed by dispensing the composition of the present invention, thus overcoming in behaviour and costs the current additives, where the components thereof were laboratory tested by separate in order to select the optimum components regarding the surfactant and flocculant agents.

Description

SURFACTANT-FLOCCULANT ADDITIVE FOR THE TREATMENT OF CONGENITAL WATERS OBTAINED FROM THE DEHYDRATING PROCESS OF OILS RAW DESCRIPTION TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a composition of a surfactant-flocculant additive to be used in the treatment of congenital waters obtained by the dehydration processes of crude oils obtained from the exploitation wells, which is composed of a mixture of products chemicals comprised of a low molecular weight cationic surfactant (850 to 1000), a polymeric flocculating agent of average molecular weight (1000 to 1500), isopropyl alcohol as a means of association between the two aforementioned components and hydrogen oxygen as carrier; which allow to reduce considerably the effects of poor cleaning in water filtration systems and entrained fat content of the dehydration process, due to the filtration process found in the raw oil separation batteries it is necessary to use additives capable of allow the free flow of water currents which is verified in the pressure drops registered at the exit of the container tanks; this is obtained by the perfect conjunction that is formed by the dosage of the composition object of the invention.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The congenital water that is obtained in the dehydration processes of the crude oils that come out of exploitation wells, presents very severe properties, due to a high content of particles; such as salt and inorganic sediment, which is why it is very difficult to carry out the treatment of this water that severely affects the transport pipes (pipes), accessories and containers; so it is necessary to apply a chemical treatment that allows to decrease the resistance of these when passing through the water filters; therefore, it is necessary to carry out this treatment at room temperature in the shortest possible time to the water supply pipes when passing through the filters.

In order to carry out the elaboration of the present invention, reference is made to the following patents related to the flocculating agent process: The patent MX 196,668 is related to a process for the preparation of high efficiency flocculating agents by the polymerization of water-soluble ethylenic unsaturated monomers, as is the case of acrylamide.

The polymerization of acrylamide has been the object of many investigations, finding great diversity in the applied processes. The U.S. patent 4,103,080 refers to the preparation of high molecular weight polymers using solutions or emulsions of unsaturated ethylenic monomers such as acrylamide and acrylic acid by carrying out the polymerization at a temperature between 60 and 70 ° C. This causes a rapid decomposition of the polymerization initiator and a large number of short chains occur.

The process of the U.S. patent No. 4,042,772, contemplates the use of a water-in-oil polymerization emulsion as appropriate for the production of acrylamide and acrylamide-acrylic acid polymers.

The U.S. patents 3,509,113 and 4,020,256, describe the polymerization of unsaturated ethylenic monomers using redox polymerization catalysts.

The U.S. patent No. 3,332,922 establishes an acrylamide polymerization process in which the concentration of free radicals is kept constant by adding the reducing component of the redox pair in a gradual and controlled manner.

British Patent No. 1,242,551 describes a manufacturing process of partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide by carrying out the polymerization and hydrolysis simultaneously at a pH of 13 to 13.5 and at a temperature of 90 ° C and adding a redox catalyst for the polymerization.

By copolymerization of sodium acrylamide-acrylate it is difficult to obtain polymers with the required molecular weight and soluble in water.

The present invention protects a process for preparing high efficiency flocculating agents since it meets the aforementioned conditions in terms of average molecular weight and easily soluble in water.

The following related patents were also considered for the surfactant additive process: The U.S. patent 4,446, 054, relates to the de-emulsification of water-saturated surfactant oil which comprises treating such emulsions with a demulsifier in conjunction with an amine, preferably a polyalkenylamine. In the fields of oil production, additional oil can be recovered from a formation saturated with water. This technique of oil recovery involves the injection of water to the production formation of secondary and tertiary oil saturated with water and thus displace the oil.

The patent MX 218,025, refers to a surfactant additive useful in the dehydration of petroleum crude oils constituted by two high added value surfactant chemicals of the polymerized polyol type.

The success of the saturation operation with water depends on the effectiveness with which the water replaces the oil in the pores of the rock formation or sand. One technique used to achieve this displacement is to reduce the interfacial tension between the oil and water phases. The addition of surfactants to the injection fluids reduces the interfacial tension between the oil and water phases. The net result is a better displacement of oil from the pores of the formation.

The U.S. patent 5,942,216, comprises multiple emulsion compositions which consist of an external aqueous phase incorporating a surfactant system capable of forming liquid crystals as an emulsifier. The internal phase consists of a water-in-oil primary emulsion, where the primary emulsion consists of a first topically active compound, a surfactant phase, an oily phase, and water.

The U.S. patent 3,511,882, mentions that certain chemical products such as oxyalkylated adducts of phenol formaldehyde resins, polyalkylene polyamines, are suitable for releasing water resulting from the rapid breakdown of crude oil emulsion.

The U.S. patents 2,792,352 and EP 055233-34 disclose a wide variety of oxyalkylated materials as demulsifiers when resolving water-in-oil emulsions.

Under these concepts, the invention provides an additive that solves the above problems, constituting a composition with a balance of components and optimal properties, which reduces the harmful factors more efficiently, compared to the conventional compositions that have been used.

The present invention provides a surfactant-flocculant additive to be used in the treatment of congenital waters obtained by the dehydration processes of crude oils that come out of operating wells at room temperature, whose novelty resides in the formulation of compounds that outperform in behavior and economy to the current additives for which the evaluation of each of the components was carried out in tests at laboratory level, to select the optimal components such as surfactant and flocculant.

It is therefore one of the objects of the present invention to provide an improved surfactant composition for congenital waters obtained as part of the extraction process of crude oils from exploitation wells that are dehydrated and desalinated and allow to be delivered to refinery within specifications for its processing.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a flocculent composition in the treatment of congenital waters obtained as part of the extraction process of crude oils from exploitation wells that are dehydrated and desalinated and allow to be delivered to refinery within specifications for processing .

The above and other objects of the invention are set forth with greater clarity and detail in the following chapters of the present patent description DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The surfactant-flocculant additive object of the invention has the following formulation with the volume ratios of its components 30 to 60% by volume of a cationic surfactant, 30 to 60% by volume of a polymeric flocculant, isopropyl alcohol in 3 to 15%. % by volume and 10-40% by volume of hydrogen oxide as a diluent.

The procedure by which the surfactant-flocculant additive content described above is obtained comprises the following steps: in a vessel equipped with stirring means the cationic surfactant is placed, the polymeric flocculant is immediately placed, it is stirred homogeneously for a period of 60 min, and then the alcohol is added sopropilico, the agitation is continued until a perfectly homogeneous mixture of the 3 components is achieved and finally the hydrogen oxide is added.

To check the homogeneity of the product, a sample is taken from the dome and another from the bottom of the container, the specific weight of both is determined at 20/4 ° C, and when these are equal, stirring is stopped.

In order to carry out the laboratory evaluation of the surfactant-flocculant additive, specific tests were prepared for each case (pressure drop in a pilot membrane system of 2 microns, determination of fats and oils and determination of suspended solids). diversity of different established dosages of the composition.

The pilot level evaluation was carried out in a simulation system adapted with a pressurized system that allows to observe a pressure drop by means of membranes of 2 microns and later the evaluation of water samples in their contents of fats and oils and suspended solids. The capacity of the tank is 5 liters with 2 samples, one in tank and another at the outlet of the pressurized system, in which 4 liters of water obtained from the dehydration of crude oil were placed, 100 ppm of the composition was dosed Improved, after one hour water samples were taken to check the water quality in the different sections of the system from the tank outlet, so they continued taking samples every hour, until 2 hours of testing.

Below are some examples that are provided in an explanatory but not limitative manner of the practical embodiment of the invention.

EXAMPLES EXAMPLE 1 With stirring means adapted in a vessel, a mixture of 37% by volume of hydrogen oxide with 3% isopropyl alcohol, 30% by volume of a cationic surfactant and 30% of a polymeric flocculant is prepared, obtaining a product, slightly turbid.

To evaluate the efficiency of the product thus obtained in the laboratory, the established bottle test methods, to 3 liters of congenital water is added the product obtained previously in 100 ppm is stirred slightly and allowed to react at a temperature of 25 ° C in the established pilot system, at the end a sample of 1 is taken. liter of the water to be treated, from the sample taps established at the tank entrance and at the end of the pressurized system, the amount of fats and oils and suspended solids by spectrophotometric method.

During the evaluation thus carried out for 1 hour, the following results were obtained.

Content of fats and oils in treated water after the 98.0 ppm test without any additive. Content of fats and oils in treated water after the 22.0 ppm test 100 ppm of composition. Pressure drop in the pilot system during the test without any additional 1.72Kg / cm2 Pressure drop in the pilot system during the test 100 ppm of 0.22 Kg / cm2 composition. Solids suspended by spectrophotometric method without any 1.81 ppm additive Suspended solids by spectrophotometric method 100 ppm of 1.53 ppm composition.

EXAMPLE 2 Following the technique of Example 1, but using the following proportions of the components. 20% hydrogen oxide 35% polymeric flocculant 35% cationic surfactant 10% isopropyl alcohol The product obtained is a slightly cloudy clear liquid.

The results obtained were: Content of fats and oils in treated water after 94.0 ppm the test without any additive Content of fats and oils in treated water after 22.0 ppm test 100 ppm of composition. Pressure drop in pilot system during the test without 1.72Kg / cm2 no additive Pressure drop in pilot system during the test 100 0.91 Kg / cm2 ppm of composition. Solids suspended by spectrophotometric method without 1.81 ppm no additives Suspended solids by spectrophotometric method 100 0.82 ppm ppm of composition.

EXAMPLE 3 Following the technique of the additive, but using the following proportions of the components. 15% hydrogen oxide 40% polymeric flocculant 40% cationic surfactant 5% isopropyl alcohol The product obtained is a clear liquid, stable and easy to use, it has the following characteristics Specific gravity 20/4 ° C 1.0335 Kinematic viscosity at 40 ° C, cSt 144.91 The results obtained during the evaluation were: Content of fats and oils in treated water after the 94.0 ppm test without any additive. Content of fats and oils in treated water after the 8.0 ppm test 100 ppm of composition. Pressure drop in pilot system during the test without any 1.72Kg / cm2 additive Pressure drop in pilot system during the test 100 ppm of 0.076Kg / composition. cm2 Solids suspended by spectrophotometric method without any 1.81 ppm additive Suspended solids by spectrophotometric method 100 ppm of 0.28 ppm composition.

In all the examples clean water was obtained. The results presented in the evaluation, which are indicated in the preceding examples, the surfactant-flocculant composition, for congenital waters obtained during the dehydration process of crude oils extracted from exploitation wells, complies with the object of the present invention, since It is of great efficiency to avoid plugging in filters at room temperature.

Claims (6)

NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION Having described the invention, it is considered as a novelty and, therefore, the content of the following clauses is claimed as property.

1. A surfactant-flocculant additive for the treatment of congenital waters obtained from the dehydration process of crude oils, characterized in that it comprises from 30 to 60% by volume of a cationic surfactant; 30 to 60% by volume of a poylimeric flocculant, 3 to 15% by volume of isopropyl alcohol and 10-40% by volume of hydrogen oxide.

2. - A surfactant-flocculant additive for the treatment of congenital waters obtained from the dehydration process of crude oils, in accordance with clauses 1 and 2, characterized in that it comprises: a low molecular weight cationic surfactant (850 to 1000) which is used for the cleaning of congenital water filtration systems.

3. - A surfactant-flocculant additive for the treatment of congenital waters obtained from the dehydration process of crude oils, in accordance with clauses 1 and 2, characterized in that it comprises a medium polymeric flocculant (1000 to 1500) that allows to break the emulsion of congenital water with crude oils extracted from exploitation wells.

4. - A surfactant-flocculant additive for the treatment of congenital waters obtained from the dehydration process of crude oils, in accordance with clauses 1 to 3, characterized in that it comprises, 3-15% by volume of an isopropyl alcohol that is used as a means of Association between the two components the cationic surfactant and the polymeric flocculant.

5. A surfactant-flocculant additive for the treatment of congenital waters obtained from the dehydration process of crude oils, in accordance with clauses 1 to 4, characterized in that it comprises: 10-40% by volume of hydrogen oxide that is used as diluent to facilitate its handling and incorporation to the crude oil when dosed.

6. - A surfactant-flocculant additive for the treatment of congenital waters obtained from the dehydration process of crude oils, in accordance with clauses 1 to 5, characterized in that it prevents plugging of filters at a temperature greater than or equal to 25 ° C.