Method and Apparatus for Maintaining Predetermined Cyclone Separation Efficiency

This invention relates to a method of and apparatus for separating phases of a multi-phase liquid.

Particularly, but not exclusively, the invention concerns separation of a water component from an oil-water mixture such as the production liquid from an oil well head. Characteristically, such liquid contains substantial quantities of gas and water in admixture with oil components and as a first step in the production process it is usual to undertake a separation process which has as its object to remove substantial quantities of the gas and water so as to obtain an output liquid in which the oil at least predominates and at least the water component is reduced to a relatively small fraction.

Conventionally, the above described separation is effected in a separation tank in which the water component settles to the bottom of the tank, from which it can be readily drawn off. Such tanks are, however, bulky, heavy and generally inconvenient of use, particularly in circumstances, such as on off-shore oil platforms, where space and weight constraints are important factors.

It has been proposed to use cyclone separators for separating oil and water components from a mixture thereof, and such separators are coming into increasing use because of the considerable efficiency they can possess and the generally smaller and lighter separating facilities which can be constructed using them. Principally, however this use is confined to separating processes further removed from the initial separating process above described. In that regard, the water component, once removed by the initial separating process, will contain some residual oil, typically a few percent, and it is in the separation of this residual oil that cyclone separators have thus far found principal application.

The failure of the cyclone separator to thus far become widely used for the initial separation of water from production liquid, notwithstanding the advantages to be attained from such use, arises because it has not been found possible to design cyclone separators which can effectively operate on the production liquid. In part, this is because it appears generally more difficult to design effective separators for dealing with high oil concentrations ("dewatering" separators) than it is to design separators for dealing with high concentrations of water ("de-oiling" separators). In part too, the problem appears to arise because of the greater variation in composition of the production flow liquid as compared to the relatively lesser variation in composition of the liquid upon which deoiling separators usually operate. De-oiling separators typically operate on a liquid which is predominately water with a few percent oil and they are effective to reduce the oil content to a few tens of parts per million. On the other hand, dewatering separators may be called on to separate an oil/water mixture having a water content varying between 20 to 70%. At least adaptions of designs suitable for deoiling applications can be made effective for mixtures with water contents at the lower end of the last-mentioned range, but these may not always be effective for handling water contents at the upper end of this range.

An object of the present invention is to provide separating apparatus, and a method of separating, utilizing cyclone separators and which permits the aforementioned problem to be at least partly ameliorated.

In one aspect, the invention provides a method of separating components from a liquid mixture by use of a cyclone separator comprising the step of adding to said mixture a quantity of at least one said component whereby to improve the efficiency of separation.

In another aspect the invention comprises a method of separating components from a liquid mixture by use of a cyclone separator, comprising determining the efficiency of separation of at least a first of the components from the mixture and upon determination that the efficiency has departed from a predetermined efficiency adding to the incoming mixture to the separator a quantity of one of said components to tend to cause said efficiency to be reverted to said predetermined value.

The invention also provides, in a further aspect, separating apparatus comprising a cyclone separator having inlet means for a liquid to be separated and at least two outlets for outlet of respective components of said mixture, which components differ in density, said apparatus further including supply means for supply of a quantity of one of said components and means for selectively mixing an amount of said one component from said supply means to said mixture prior to admission to the separator. The apparatus may include control means adapted to effect admixture of said one component to the mixture in a fashion tending to maintain constant the separating efficiency of at least a first of the components comprising the mixture.

The apparatus may include sensing means positioned to be subjected to the flow of said first separated component, for sensing the purity thereof, and the control means being responsive to the sensing means to vary the quantity of admixed said one component.

The method and apparatus of the invention may also be adapted to effect additions of a selected one of more than one of the components or to effect addition of different components. Similarly the control means may be responsive to purity sensors positioned to sense the purity of more than the first said separated component.

The invention is further described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing, the single FIGURE of which is a schematic representation of a separating apparatus constructed in accordance with the invention.

The separating apparatus 10 shown comprises a cyclone separator 12 having an inlet 14, for inflow of a multi-component liquid to be separated, an overflow outlet 16, for outflow of a lighter component of the inlet liquid, and an underflow outlet 18 for outflow of a heavier component of the inlet liquid. In this case, the inlet liquid is shown as comprising production liquid 22 from an oil well (not shown). This liquid is conveyed via a duct 20, having two mixing valves 24, 26 therein to the separator inlet 14. If necessary, a pump may be included in the duct 20 to bring the pressure and volume flow of the inlet liquid to values suitable for the operation of the separator 12.

The separator may be designed along similar lines to the deoiling separators described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,237,006, 4,576,724 and in International application PCT/AU85/00010, for example, although some modifications may be desirable in order to take account of the fact that it may be desirable to optimise the separator for operation on inlet liquids having somewhat higher oil concentrations than these separators are generally optimised for. Particularly, the overflow outlet 16 may require considerable increase insofar as the cross-sectional area thereof is concerned.

The separator 12 operates in conventional fashion, the liquid 22 being admitted tangentially into an elongate tapered separating chamber in such a fashion as to direct the denser water component 28 out the axially positioned underflow outlet 18 and to direct the less dense oil component 30 out the axially positioned overflow outlet 16. As shown, the outlets 16, 18 are at opposite ends of the separating chamber, the outlet 18 being at the smaller diameter end of the separating chamber and the outlet 16 being at the larger diameter end, towards which end the inlet 14 is likewise positioned.

The separated water from separator 12 is directed from the apparatus 10 via a duct 32, such as for further processing. The separated oil from the separator is directed from the apparatus 10 via a duct 34, likewise for further processing. In practice, gas and other lighter components may likewise be passed in admixture with the oil from outlet 16 to duct 34. Some at least of these other components may be separated by interposition of further separators or other equipment in duct 34, but whether or not such further separators or other equipment are included is not important for the purposes of the present invention.

Ducts 32, 34 include therein respective contaminant sensors 38, 40. Sensor 38 acts to measure the relative degree of contamination of the water flowing in duct 32 by oil, whilst sensor 40 acts to measure the relative degree of contamination of the oil flowing in duct 34 by water. Suitable sensors may operate to measure contamination by measurement of the optical density of the liquids as flowing in the ducts 32, 34 or as flowing through suitable diverter ducts.

Electrical outputs of the sensors 38, 40 indicative of the relevant contaminant levels, are passed on lines 44, 46 respectively to a control device 48.

The apparatus further includes reservoirs 50, 52 which respectively contain quantities of water 28a and oil 30a. These reservoirs 50, 52 communicate with mixing valves 24, 26 via respective further ducts 54, 56. These ducts include respective pumps 58, 60. The valves 24, 26 and pumps 58, 60 are electrically controllable under influence of signals from control device 48 delivered thereto on respective lines 62, 64, 66, 68.

In operation, under conditions where the sensors 40, 38 provide control device 48 signals indicative an increase in contamination of either the oil 30 exiting the separator 12 via outlet 16 or of the water 28 exiting via outlet 18, the control device 48 is effective to operate either pump 60 and valve 24 or pump 58 and valve 26 to pump liquid from the respective reservoir 52, 50 to be mixed via the respective mixing valve 24, 26 with the incoming liquid to the separator, in duct 20.

This control may be effected as desired in accordance with any suitable regime, for example in the instance where the purity of oil emerging from the separator is of primary concern, and it is known that separating efficiency loss, insofar as the outgoing oil purity is concerned, is due to increase in the quantity of oil in the incoming liquid above a predetermined level, the control device 48 may simply be responsive to output from sensor 40 to operate valve 26 and pump 58 whereby to increase the proportion of water in the incoming liquid until such time as the oil outflow contaminant level drops. In such case, the valve 24 and pump 60 may be omitted, or the control device 48 may operate valve 24 and pump 60 only as a secondary control when required. Such additional control may however be required (or may be provided alone) if the characteristics of the separator 12 are such that separating efficiency drops off with low water concentrations in the incoming liquid. In this case, too, it may be desirable to provide a suitable sensor in duct 20 effective to provide an output indicative of the oil/water ratio in the incoming liquid, the control device in that case being responsive to that output to facilitate determination by the control device as to whether addition of oil or addition of water is required to optimise operation. In other embodiments, the sensors 38 and 40 are omitted, the control device operating in accordance with sensed oil/water ratios in the incoming liquid in duct 20 to maintain the oil/water ratio within a desired range, by addition of water or oil to the incoming liquid, as required.

The reservoirs may be maintained topped up by inlet from external water and oil sources, via the inlet ducts 66, 68 shown. Alternatively, as shown, bleed ducts 70, 72 may be provided communicating with oil duct 34 and water duct 32, respectively, these including respective valves 74, 76 which are controlled as necessary by control device 48 to bleed oil and water from the ducts 34, 32 via the bleed ducts 72, 70 to the respective reservoirs 52, 50.

The invention also has application otherwise than for optimising operational efficiency of separator 12 as referenced to varying inlet oil/water concentrations. For example, the separation of production liquid into oil and water components is rendered less efficient where the liquid contains grit or like particles. However, the separation efficiency may in that case be improved by admixture of oil to increase the oil concentration in the incoming liquid. In another aspect, the invention therefore further provides a method of separating components from a liquid mixture by use of a cyclone separator comprising the step of determining the presence of grit or like particles in said mixture and adding to said mixture a quantity of at least one of said components or determining such presence. The invention also provides apparatus for carrying out this method.

Furthermore, the teachings of the invention are especially applicable to separating techniques for separating liquid mixtures having a dispersed phase and a continuous phase where the addition effected to the mixture to be separated is of a liquid which is the same as or similar to that one of the liquids in the mixture which comprises the dispersed phase. Thus, for oil-water mixtures where oil is the dispersed phase, oil is added, whereas for oil-water mixtures where water is the dispersed phase, water is added.

More generally, the invention also contemplates addition of other materials, such as surfactants or the like, responsive to determination of inlet or outlet conditions in a cyclone separator.

The described construction has been advanced merely by way of explanation and many variations and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.