Process Laboratories

Netherlands

High Pressure Flow Loop

Our high-pressure facility for testing at actual scale conditions in 2-Phase and 3-Phase operation using live hydrocarbon fluids, fresh water, high salinity brine and full-scale flow is developed for testing of conventional and compact separation equipment as well as Multiphase- and Wet Gas flow meter testing.

High Presure Flow Loop:

The High-Pressure flow loop offers actual scale testing conditions for research & development and technology qualification of oil & gas processing equipment and instrumentation.
The loop has been successfully used in 2-Phase (Gas/Liquid, Liquid/Liquid) and 3-Phase (Gas/Liquid/Liquid) conventional and compact separation equipment testing as well as in Multiphase- and Wet Gas flow meter testing (Topside and Subsea applications).

With a design pressure of 90 bar (g), this 730m2 duplex SS flow loop can serve up to 60 bar (g) operating pressure, with gas and liquid phases being pumped independently and commingled upstream of the test section after which the phases are separated back into the separate fluid streams.

The test section features 10-inch ANSI 600# connections and a 15m x 6m area (additional space accommodations can be made upon request).

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HP Test Loop

The single phases are accurate metered independently with the accuracy validated by an uncertainty model developed by Norce Research.
The combination of 3-phase operation, live hydrocarbon fluids, high salinity brine and full-scale flow rates makes this the most unique multiphase flow loop worldwide.

The following fluids and gasses can be used in the High-Pressure flow loop:

  • Hydrocarbon gas (e.g. CH4)
  • Gas mixtures including CO2 (e.g. 60% vol. CH4 and 40% vol. CO2)
  • Inert gas (e.g. N2)
  • Hydrocarbon liquids (e.g. Crude Oils with API 22 to API 36)
  • Model Oils (e.g. Exxsol D60, Naphthenic oil)
  • Fresh water, Brine (up to 25% wt or 300 g/l salinity)

To measure the conditions in the High-Pressure flow loop the following Instruments are used:

  • Ultrasonic gas flow meters (Sick)
  • Coriolis mass flow meters (Emerson Elite series)
  • Density measurement (Emerson Elite series)
  • Temperature, Pressure and Differential Pressure transmitters (Rosemount/Yokogawa)
  • Online Gas Chromatograph (Emerson)
  • Nucleonic level measurement (Tracerco)

The Operating Conditions High-Pressure flow loop are:

(*1)   At 99% GVF with minimum oil flow rate.
(*2)   Possible to increase with project specific plant upgrade
(*3)   Possible to increase saturation pressure (main separator) to 70 bar(g) with project specific plant upgrad