Separation Equipment - Selection and Sizing

Introduction

This course covers the different types of separation equipment typically encountered in oil and gas production facilities. Fractionation equipment and produced water treating equipment are not covered in this course. Course Outcomes where the different types of separation equipment are used based on operating conditions and separation performance requirements. Frequent references will be made to how the various types of separation equipment are incorporated into real production facility process flow.

Objectives

By the end of this course participants will learn:

• About the different types of separation equipment utilized in the oil and gas industry and where they are used
• About the separation performance capabilities of the different types of equipment
• How to size the different types of separation equipment
• About new developments in separation equipment design
• How to troubleshoot and debottleneck separation equipment
• How to calculate the wall thickness and estimate the weight of separators
• About the instrumentation and controls used on separation equipment

Target Audience

• Process Facilities engineers

Surface Facilities Outline

The course covers the following topics:

• Fluid properties and phase behavior
• Phase separation processes
• Gas-liquid separation equipment
  • Slug catchers
  • Conventional separators (horizontal and vertical)
  • Scrubbers
  • Filter separators coalescing filters
• Separator internals
  • Inlet devices
  • Mist extractors
  • Baffles, weirs, etc
• Emulsions
• Oil-water separation equipment
  • Conventional 3 – phase separators and free water knockouts
  • Wash tanks
• Oil treating and desalting equipment
  • Mainly electrostatic coalesces
• Mechanical design aspects
  • Pressure vessel codes
  • Wall thickness and vessel weight estimation
  • Material selection
  • Relief requirements
• Operating problems and control