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The use of a self-resonated cavitation jet can speed up salt dissolution and improve the efficiency of natural gas storage cavern construction. It can also increase salt production compared with conventional solution mining. The tool can also reduce debris setting in the cavern's bottom.

The problem of catalyst plugging and blowouts in a continuous catalyst regeneration tower has been solved by installing a restriction orifice in a regeneration gas blower. The solution has allowed units to avoid shutdowns. Over capacity of the blower by 10 percent is seen as the root cause of the problem.

A two-stage supersonic ejector can capture gas leakage from a dry gas seal and reinject it into the fuel-gas line to the gas generators. This device eliminates gas losses and reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

Many oil rigs in Gulf of Mexico were damaged by Hurricane Katrina and Rita, primarily because they were only required to be prepared for Category 2 or 3 hurricanes as per the standards of American Petroleum Institute. Despite the losses, the demand for oil rigs has again picked up because oil and gas companies are confident of being able to absorb the costs based on higher petroleum prices.

A detailed analysis on the effectiveness of mallet gas processing facility that is used for carbon dioxide removal from hydrocarbon gas steams is presented. The facility uses membrane to separate carbon dioxide. The production process is detailed.

The advantages of new meter designs is that it provides real-time, wet gas flow rates that are critical in measuring production from remote and subsea fields. A wet-gas definition that connects the various perspectives and prolongs commercial and scientific progress, is explained.

Annular gas pressure on cemented casing annuli are commonly encountered in the industry worldwide. However, this condition is often referred to in different terms based on the local interpretation of [...]

Damage assessment by in-line inspection and rehabilitation of a sour-gas pipeline in Mexico revealed, among other findings, that ILI data are not always accurate and that metal loss by corrosion [...]

Surfactant creating necessary viscosity To understand the science and capabilities of an important technology, such as the polymer-free fracturing fluid, the product developers say a shift in mindset is required. [...]

Process selection enables marginal development Smaller oil and gas fields often prove marginally economic for development with large multi-leg space frame platforms or floating systems. Hence, such fields often remain [...]

Changes in parameters such as tubing size, wellhead type, and gas lift pressures can improve the profitability of gas-lifted oil wells. As an example, using field data and computer calculations, [...]

A complete instrument upgrade has been completed at the Lamarliquido LPG plant offshore Lake Maracaibo in venezuela. The plant, which dates from the 1960s, needed to be upgraded to compensate for a decrease in the gas-liquid content of the reservoir from 4.5 to 2.9 gal./Mcf. Among the upgrades performed were the installation of fire prevention and control systems, a shutdown system in case of emergencies, a new electronic computer control system, and a dedicated system to control the refrigeration process., The Lamarliquido LPG plant, offshore Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela, has received a major upgrade to its control system after 25 years of pneumatic instrumentation. The plant is now operating fully remote [...]

Radian Corp under contract with the Gas Research Institute tested the Amko-Eppendorf Model CS-200, which analyzes carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide loadings in amine solutions. Radian found that the CS-200 analyzer can be used to optimize natural gas sweetening-units. Analyzers can help reduce regenerator-steam flow rates, resulting in savings of $200,000 to $300,000 per year for amine units., Tests of an on-line analyzer at measures hydrogen sulfide ([H.sub.2]S) and carbon dioxide ([CO.sub.2]) loadings in amine solutions have indicated the analyzer, when properly installed, calibrated, and maintained, provided accurate [...]

Directional drilling has been used to relocate two high-pressure gas pipelines operated by NOVA Corp.'s Alberta Gas Transmission below an unstable slope in a remote area of northeast Alberta (Fig. [...]

Overall drilling penetration rates nearly tripled, and drill bit life nearly doubled compared to conventional bits when specially designed natural diamond and polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) bits were used during [...]

The natural gas dehydrator used in the North Sea's Frigg gas field has performed beyond its design specifications. The unit has consistently been operated at below minimum recommended operating temperatures and pressures, and gas flow rates have been consistently exceeded. The operational limitations of the unit have been stretched as process plant conditions have changed since the plant's 1977 start-up., Operating conditions on the Frigg gas field in the North Sea have exceeded those for which its natural-gas dehydration unit was designed. The unit is located on the field's central [...]

The proper design of gas flare systems for gas processing plants and petroleum refineries is discussed. Design aspects covered include liquid knockout drums, liquid seal drums, ground flares, ignition systems and vapor recovery systems. Minimization of flare noise due to combustion, venting and steam injection is also discussed., Gas flare systems include many features that enhance safety and reduce atmospheric emissions. This concluding article in a two-part series on gas flares looks at the proper use of liquid [...]

Multiple-zone, dual-casingless completions combined with epoxy-coated sand to control sand production have increased gas reserves in Union Pacific Resources' McFaddin field of Victoria County, Tex. Sand production in this field [...]

Gordon W. Brown Refining Consulting Services Englewood, Colo. David Roderick Western Slope Refining Co. Fruita, Colo. Andrew Nastri NaTec Resources Inc. Dallas Western Slope Refining Co., a subsidiary of GaryWilliams [...]

Cyclone-type separators score high in comparative tests Full scale performance tests of four types of gas-liquid separators have indicated a cyclone-type separator can have a catch-efficiency rate which approaches 100%. [...]

The world's first technology advancement for multilaterals (TAML) level 6 intelligent completion could help steer the industry to develop similar installations for new wells and reentry applications. The primary incentive [...]

Extensive laboratory testing and data analyses reveal that the oil and gas industry can reliably estimate foamed-cement sample compressive strength, if the design engineer knows the compressive strength of the [...]

Disposal and biodegradation key issues in fluid selection In 1992, the Sea based Activities Group (SEBA) of the Oslo and Paris Commission (OSPAR) investigated the impact of oil and gas [...]

Dealing with the 'construction gorillas' As offshore exploration moves into ultra-deepwater, the demands placed on accurate hydrocarbon measurement with minimal maintenance, space and weight requirements become increasingly greater. In addition [...]

Cementing casing operations in oil and gas drilling have been made more efficient by the use of off-center rigid centralizers. Caverns in deviated wells can cause hole-cleaning or cementing problems, and rigid centralizers work to maintain a minimum annular space on the low side of such wells. In hole-enlargement areas, drill cuttings can accumulate, leading to flow problems during cement casing operations., The use of off-center rigid centralizers on casing maintains a minimum annular space on the low side of a deviated well improving cementing operations in such wells with hole enlargement [...]

Amoco Production Co is using large-diameter coil tubing strings during gas well drilling to prevent kill fluid damage. The gas is able to flow up the tubing/casing annulus with the coiled tubing string providing a way to blow down the gas well whenever it fills with liquids. A complete summary of how the coiled tubing string is used on gas wells and the benefits and drawbacks of its usage is presented., Amoco Production Co. has used large-diameter coiled tubing strings to avoid damaging gas wells with kill fluids. The coiled tubing is stripped in the gas well under pressure. In Amoco's [...]

Another dual-gradient solution in trial To overcome narrow drilling margins, several artificial mud lift systems are in the development or testing phases. One such system, designed by PSL, is based [...]

Maintaining stand-off distance With the emergence of the semisubmersible tender assist drilling (TAD) unit, tender assist drilling has reached a new level. Since the mid-1980s, drilling contractors and operators have [...]

Case studies show performance The industry's first automated vertical drilling system has been developed. The system has deviation control in multiple applications, ranging from salt drilling to faulted zones and [...]

Huisman-Itrec has extended its multipurpose tower (MPT) concept to handle dual-activity drilling. This follows delivery of the first MPT system last October for installation on Cal Dive's semisubmersible Q-4000, which [...]

Reducing intervention in rig time A common conventional completion practice in well construction is to set a retrievable or permanent production packer to isolate and control pressure and fluids from [...]

Selandia, the latest Maridan 600 autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) built for survey operations down to 600 meters water depths, was due in the Gulf of Mexico after completing a series [...]

TLP, two spars using joints Deepwater plays represent one of the most promising areas of exploration for the oil and gas industry. Beneath the five primary deepwater basins -- US [...]

Avoiding choke manipulation If well control operations could be performed flawlessly, conventional chokes would control the bottomhole pressure within acceptable limits. However, significant variations in the bottomhole pressure occur, primarily [...]

In preparation for fulfilling the contract with PanCanadian Petroleum Ltd. for the Eirik Raude to drill offshore the East Coast of Canada, the rig left Friede Goldman's Pascagoula, Mississippi, yard [...]

IZAR of Spain was awarded a contract to build a 900,000 bbl floating, production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) unit for Belgium's Exmar Offshore. The vessel is scheduled for a January [...]

Atwood Oceanics Pacific Ltd. has entered into a vessel construction agreement with Keppel FELS Limited to build a KFELS mod V enhanced B-class jackup in Singapore. The cantilevered jackup will [...]

In what is believed to be an unprecedented move, two supply ships powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) are to operate in Norway's offshore sector. The motive behind the initiative [...]

China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) Ltd. said the key facility for developing the Wenchang 13-1/13-2 oil fields, Nanhai Endeavor FPSO (floating production, storage, and offloading) vessel, was launched June [...]

Pumps are basic elements of many industrial plants and processes. They also incur major maintenance, service, and replacement costs due to their wilespread use and rapid wear. Sin e 75% [...]

Norway's abandonment season got underway in late May when Statoil's first-ever multi-well subsea template was removed from the Tommeliten Gamma Field by the Saipem crane vessel S7000. The 13 year-old, [...]

Statoil disappointed Norwegian yards by opting for modifications to existing facilities to boost compression capacity on Sleipner West. A new compressor platform was considered, but the partners decided an alternative [...]

ABB Gas Technology is attracting increasing interest for its flare gas ignition system, now in operation on some 15 platforms in the Norwegian sector and other installations around the world. [...]

Shell Exploration & Production Company (SEPCo) has installed a second solid expandable tubular (SET) system in an ultra-deepwater well in Alaminos Canyon 557, utilizing the R&B Falcon Deepwater Nautilus semisubmersible [...]

The offshore industry has been talking about subsea processing for many years, but so far only Norsk Hydro shows any signs of action with its Troll Field trial of ABB's [...]

Immersive technologies the norm in five years The past three years have seen a revolution in the oil and gas industry in the application of visualization technologies to the interpretation [...]

Low seawater penetration key to process Demand on exploration and production is driving the installation of facilities in ever increasing water depths. This drive for production in deepwater and ultra-deepwater [...]

Short and long-term responses Compared to the traditional mooring components, the radically different characteristics of the new fiber ropes represent a potent tool for the designer QL) and widen the [...]

Measurement technologies continued to develop over the years, letting the industry peer behind this steel barrier more effectively. Through-casing resistivity measurement tools recently left the concept phase. Two service providers [...]