Research theme: Hydrates, Flow Assurance & Phase Equilibria

Hydrates, Flow Assurance & Phase Equilibria

Theme lead: Prof. Bahman Tohidi

Research projects

• Evaluation of Low Dosage Hydrate Inhibitors (May 2012-Apr 2015)
  Key topics: KHI and AA evaluation, KHI removal, sour systems, rheological behaviour
• Hydrate Safety Margin Monitoring & Early Detection (Apr 11-Mar 13)
  Key topics: Improving the existing techniques for safety margin monitoring and finding new techniques for early detection
• Gas Hydrates and Flow Assurance (Dec 2011-Nov 2014)
  Key topics: Low water content systems, inhibitor distribution, hydrates in sour systems
• Impact of Common Impurities on Carbon Dioxide Capture, Transport and Storage (Oct 2011-Sep 2014)
  Key topics: Phase behaviour and properties of CO2-rich systems, Saline water-CO2 systems
• PVT and Phase Behaviour of Reservoir Fluids (Jun 2012-May 2015)
  Key topics: CO2-oil systems, limits of GC, HPHT IFT, specific heat, water content, viscosity
• Hydraflow: A Multi-Phase Cold Flow Assurance Solution (Oct 2012-Sep 2014)
  Key topics: high water-cut systems, rheological measurements/modelling, small scale rheometer and large scale flow loop investigations

Gas hydrates could form in numerous hydrocarbon production and processing operations, causing serious operational and safety concerns. In the natural environment, suitable conditions for methane hydrate formation can be found in some marine and deep lake sediments, and in the subsurface of arctic permafrost regions. Current estimates suggest that the energy held in this form is twice that of total fossil fuels, a vast untouched natural gas reserve.

This International Centre for Gas Hydrate Research at Heriot-Watt University addresses various aspects of flow assurance and gas hydrate research, including: avoiding gas hydrate, wax and asphaltene problems in petroleum production and transportation, design and testing of low dosage hydrate inhibitors, hydrate monitoring and early warning systems and the natural occurrence of hydrates in sediments.

Further areas of interest include positive aspects of gas hydrate technology, such as their application in processing and transportation of hydrocarbon fluids, including CO₂ or H2 capture and transport, role of hydrates in subsurface storage of CO₂ and the potential of natural gas hydrates as a source of energy.

The research team consists of 22 staff and students with expertise in Chemical, Petroleum, Mechanical, and Electronic Engineering, Geology/Geo-Chemistry, Physics/Geo-Physics, Radio-Physics, Polymer and Chemistry from more than 10 nationalities. The Centre has extensive experimental facilities housed in two well equipped laboratories and operating over a wide temperature and pressure range (-90 to 200°C and up to 2000 bar).

The recent addition of a new lab and a high pressure flow loop has considerably expanded the capabilities of the research group to conduct tests in real flow line conditions.

The group has close collaboration with the industry through 4 Joint Industry Projects with some 21 industrial sponsors. It also provides consultancy and short courses to the industry.