Emulsion Treatment in the Oil Industry: A Case Study of Oredo Field Crude Oil Emulsion

The formation of emulsion is one of the challenges facing the oil and gas industry today. This is normally encountered when water is dispersed as fine droplets in the bulk of oil. This study presents the treatment techniques used by Nigeria Petroleum Development Company in Oredo field in breaking crude oil emulsion. Wells 2L and 4L were used for the analysis. Crude samples were obtained at the upstream of chemical injection points to ensure the samples were true representatives of the crude from the wells in the field. Chemical demulsifiers (DM1, DM3, DM4, and DM5) were formulated in the laboratory which was used in the treatment of 100ml of emulsion. Results show that DM3 and DM5 were the most effective chemical demulsifiers formulated in the laboratory for Oredo wells 2L and 4L respectively and also, temperature is an indispensable determining factor in the treatment of emulsion.