A numerical model to assist with the selection of non-metallic piping materials for offshore developments

Abdullah Alsaddah, Mohammed K. Almedallah, Stuart R. Clark, Stuart D.C. Walsh

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference PaperOther

2 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The oil and gas industry is moving towards the use of non-metallic pipeline material, such as reinforced thermoplastic and flexible piping, for applications in offshore fields. However, these materials have certain pressure and diameter constraints that require careful analysis prior to deciding on the appropriate piping material to be installed. The objective of this paper is to suggest an integrated approach that considers the reservoir properties, well path and the field pipeline network to determine the operating pressure and diameter that is ultimately used to select the appropriate pipeline material for offshore field developments. The proposed integrated model uses a series of three optimization techniques to determine the optimum field development architecture, which includes the allocation of wells, pipeline network configuration and well path optimization. The model starts by applying a continuous optimization technique to find the optimum subsurface and surface network. It then uses a graph-theorical approach to find the optimum pipeline route based on an appropriate minimum radius of curvature while considering the presence of obstacles in the seabed. From the results of this optimization, a dynamic nodal analysis is applied to determine the optimum operating conditions of the field (e.g. pressure and well rate). Finally, mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) is used to optimize the pipeline diameter subject to constraints based on the maximum pressure and pipeline size of different non-metallic pipeline materials. Analysis of the model results demonstrates that ignoring any of the reservoir, wellbore and surface facility components results in an underestimation or overestimation of the operating conditions of the field, which subsequently leads to incorrect selection of pipeline materials. Therefore, an integrated approach is necessary to evaluate the non-metallic piping applications in the oil and gas industry.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationInternational Petroleum Technology Conference 2020
PublisherInternational Petroleum Technology Conference (IPTC)
Number of pages15
ISBN (Electronic)9781613996751
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2020
EventInternational Petroleum Technology Conference 2020 - Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
Duration: 13 Jan 202015 Jan 2020
http://ipptc.org/2020/index.html

Conference

ConferenceInternational Petroleum Technology Conference 2020
Abbreviated titleIPTC 2020
Country/TerritorySaudi Arabia
CityDhahran
Period13/01/2015/01/20
Internet address

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