CIC-Erosion: computational tool for predicting erosive wear in transport and production pipelines of hydrocarbons

Abstract

The mechanical integrity of pipeline walls in the system components used in hydrocarbons production and transportation can be compromised by the erosion caused by the continuous impact of suspended solids. The implementation of methods or models to monitor and predict erosive wear is an important tool for the oil industry. The results from simulations and prediction models can aid in the calculation and determination of line sizes and maximum flow velocities to control and regulated wall erosion. In this work, we present a structured and selective calculation methodology to improve the implementation of models and the analysis and interpretation of erosion data for the prediction of erosive wear in transport pipelines. A computational tool (CIC-Erosion) written in C# programming language was developed to bring the methodology to a practical operational state. To develop and assure the operational functionality of the CICErosion tool, the following activities were performed: a) definition of software architecture, b) programming of the user interface and theoretical foundations, c) evaluation of the software operational functionality; using experimental erosion rate data reported in the literature and information from hypothetical case studies. Finally, the capacity to predict the behavior of the erosion calculation methodology was assessed using experimental data from case studies identified in the crude oil production of a field located in Colombia. When the predictive capacity of the software was evaluated, a good agreement between results obtained with the erosion calculation methodology and the experimental data was observed. Therefore, the CIC-Erosion computational tool can be considered an efficient and reliable alternative for the prediction of erosive wear in infrastructure used in the hydrocarbon industry.