Wax Deposition Introduction

Wax deposition introduction
• What is wax?
• How is it formed?
• Why wax control?
• Where wax will form?
• How much wax will form?
• How fast wax will form?
• How wax deposition can be prevented?
Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

9/27/21 1
Engineering, HCMUT, Vietnam
q Why wax control?
• Pipe stuck
• Wall roughness increases
• Pressure drop
• Production decreases
• Economic loss
Accurate wax deposition modeling is of high importance
o Underestimation: risk of pipe stuck

o Overestimation: too high pigging frequency, hence unnecessary operational
cost
o Accurate wax predictions may lead to suitable pigging programs for
pipelines, and less wax inhibitors can be used
9/27/21 2
q Wax related concepts: 3 important ones
• Wax Appearance Temperature (WAT): is the temperature where wax starts to drop
out in the liquid bulk fluid in an observable amount and may deposit on the surface of
the pipe wall. In other words, WAT tells whether wax will deposit in a pipeline and
approximately where this appears
• Pour point : is considerably lower temperature than WAT, and it is described as the
lowest temperature at which a liquid remains pourable. In oils the pour point is
generally increased by high paraffin content. Waxes will start to precipitate as
temperature decreases, and at some point the precipitates accumulate to the point
where the fluid no longer can flow
• Wax content: amount of wax that will precipitate in excess acetone at approximately -
25 °C.
Note: Keep in mind that wax deposition only occurs when the temperature of the deposition surface in a
pipe, not the average oil temperature, is below the oil WAT.

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Determination of WAT value by viscosimetry
Readings of viscosity were taken at each decrease of 2 °C, from 60 to 15 °C, at a 0.1 °C/min
cooling rate.

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q Wax porosity
• The wax layer found on the pipe wall will never consist of only wax.
• A certain fraction will consist of other substances, mainly trapped oil.
• The concentration of oil in a wax deposit is also called the wax porosity.

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Wax deposition control
q How to know if there’s wax inside pipeline?
• Pressure monitoring: pressure – time and pressure – distance log
• Tracer injection: Unsealed radioisotopes are radioactive solid, liquid or gas which
follow the fluid in the pipeline. Then, sensitive radiation detectors, which are placed
on the outside surface of the pipeline, detect the tracer when it flows in the pipe.
Based on this, the wax volume in the pipeline can be estimated
q If there’s wax, what to do: prevention & remedies
q Wax control measures: 4 principal methods

• Pigging
• Pipeline insulation
• Chemical injection
• Active heating

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q Chemical injection
• Types: inhibitors, dispersants and dissolvers.
• Used for long distance pipe
• In order to successfully remove a plug, it is vital that the inhibitor has the right
concentration at the right place.
• Certain chemicals may be used for plug melting, because they generate heat when
mixed.
• Combining chemicals with depressurizing or use of coil tubing may increase the
probability
q Active heating for the inhibitor to reach the plug
• Heating results in increased temperatures, which moves the system out of the wax
stable region.
• Due to heating, plugs may be melted.
• In order to achieve an efficient melting of wax, temperatures must be 20 °C higher
then WAT
• How? Bundles or electrical heated flowlines ; Hot flushing consists of hot fluid being
pumped into the pipeline. Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum
9/27/21 7
q Pipeline insulation
• Insulation limits the temperature loss, which eliminates the need of continuous wax
inhibition or regular pigging.
• More effective with short line
q Pigging
• Requirement for long line
• Frequently pigging which leads to a smoothing of the rough wax layer and removes
wax back into the oil
• The selection of pig type depends on wax properties and operating parameters,
though it is said to be more an art than science.
• There is a danger of getting the pig stuck inside the pipeline during pigging. This may
be caused by the deposit being too hard or the wax layer is too thick.
• Wax simulations are used to determine the pigging frequency. The software provides
estimates of where wax deposition takes place and approximately how much wax that
will deposit. In addition, the thickness of the wax layer at the pipe wall is predicted.
• By comparing the simulation result with an operational criterion, the pigging
frequency is determined. Pham Son Tung,
9/27/21
Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum
8
Wax deposition mechanisms
q Molecular diffusion:
• Molecular diffusion acts as soon as the temperature of the wall reaches the WAT.
• At that temperature the oil is saturated with wax in solution and wax precipitates out.
• Wax precipitation leads to a concentration gradient between dissolved wax in the
turbulent core and the wax remaining in the solution at the wall.
• Due to concentration gradient, dissolved wax diffuse towards the wall where it is
subsequently precipitated.
Fick’s law:
n is the mass flux of dissolved wax molecules to the pipe wall (kg/s
m2),
ρwax is the density of solid wax (kg/m3)
dC/dr is the concentration gradient of dissolved wax in the laminar
sub-layer with respect to distance (per metre).
The wax solubility coefficient, dC/dT, describes the solubility of wax
components as a function of the temperature of the bulk oil (per °C)
dT/dr is the radial temperature gradient close to the wall (°C/m).
DM is9/27/21
the molecular diffusion coefficient ofPham
dissolved
Son Tung,wax molecules
Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum
9
(m2/s)
Wax deposition mechanisms
q Shear dispersion:
• Shear dispersion concerns already formed particles settling on the cold pipe surface
due to
• roughness of the wall and intermolecular forces.
• Wax crystals in the oil will migrate towards the wall where they deposit, because of
the lower velocity near the wall compared to the center of the pipe.
• At the wall the wax may form a deposit on its own or link with wax which is already
deposited by molecular diffusion
• Shear dispersion becomes important when the precipitated wax content in the
turbulent core is high
• Increasing shear rate leads to more wax particles dispersing toward the wall, but the
corresponding increase in wall shear stress may cause the looser held deposits to be
stripped from the wall

9/27/21 10
Wax deposition modelling

9/27/21 11
Wax deposition modelling: Matzain
The total wax deposition rate is expressed as:
The diffusion constant of wax in oil is given by Hayduk-Minhas (1982) correlation:

%).* Where:
𝑇 %.'( 𝜇 +! #).(,%
𝐷!" = 13.3𝑥10 #$ M is the molecular weight of solvent
𝑉-).(%
9/27/21 12

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9/27/21 15
Example
How to calculate?
𝑑𝑤"
𝑑𝑇
(http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/0104-6632.20160334s20150023)
9/27/21 16
Exercise 7
Determine the wax deposition thickness over time with the following data:
Parameters Symbol Value
Density liquid (kg/m^3) rl 871
Velocity liquid (m/s) vl 1.3
Inside diameter before wax deposit (m) dw 0.2413
Vicosity liquid (Pa.s) ml 0.233
Matzain constants C1 15
Matzain constants C2 0.055
Matzain constants C3 1.4
Thermal conductivity (W/m.C) kl 0.181
Bulk temperature (C) Tbulk 40
Wall temperature (C) Twall 20
Heat transfer coefficient (W/m^2.K) hwall 4.28
Diffusion coefficient in (m^2/s) Dw 5.05E-09
17
Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering, HCMUT, Vietnam 9/27/21
q Various types of pigs
The pigs can then be grouped into 3 categories;
• Utility pigs
• In-line Inspection Tools
• Gel pigs
Utility pigs
ILI - MFL
9/27/21 18
q Utility pigs
• Cleaning pigs: these are equipped with brushes or blades to remove the dirt which accumulate in
the interior walls of the pipeline.
• Sealing pigs: these may be spheres, solid cast polyurethane or mandrel type pigs. Can be
combined with cleaning

9/27/21 19
q Inline-inspection tools
Also called ’intelligent’ or ‘smart’ pigs as they provide information about the conditions as well as the
extent and location of the pipeline problems, which then is used for rehabilitation by the operator
and means for regular examination to maintain a pipeline in good condition.
ILI technologies include the 2 most preferred methods for detecting and measuring metal loss;
magnetic-flux leakage (MFL) and the ultrasonics (U/S).
1. Magnetic-flux leakage ILI tools – the basic principle of this type of technology is by using a
sensor to record variations or leakages of the flux path as the pig travels through the steel
pipeline. A permanent magnet with two poles is fitted on the pig such that its magnetic field is
induced in the pipeline wall and a flux path recorded. The sensor is then placed between the two
poles and detect leakages which are directly related to the wall thickness i.e. areas of metal loss.
Sufficient flux density is required to be induced in the pipeline wall meaning very powerful and
often large magnets are used, this limits the use of MFL tools to thin walled pipelines i.e. in gas
pipelines.
2. Ultrasonics ILI tools – its operation principle is basically the measurement of the time taken by
an echo to travel to and fro through the pipeline wall, which is directly related to the wall
thickness. A transducer is used to emit a pulse of ultrasonic sound which travels at a known
speed through the pipeline. U/SPhamtools have
Son Tung, Ph.D, a limitation
Faculty that is opposite to that of MFL tools as
of Geology & Petroleum
9/27/21 20
they have a minimum thickness for accurate recordings hence they mainly apply ultrasonic
q Gel pigs
These are basically a series of gelled liquid systems, developed to be used in pipeline operations as
mechanical pigs. The gel pigs can either work in conjunction with the mechanical pigs for better
performance or can be pumped into any pipeline capable of accepting liquids.
q Launching
The following procedure to be described is a general guide to pipeline pigging as they vary
depending on the pipeline setup as well as the operation procedures. In some cases or companies,
the pig launcher might be left on stream and in some, it is isolated after the pig has been run
Typical pig launcher

9/27/21 21
q Launching procedure:
The launcher setup has 3 major valves; kicker valve, trap isolation valve and the main line valve. The other 2 valves, the drain and
the vent are fitted on the trap barrel for emptying and pressure balance respectively. The sequence for liquid systems is
described as follows;
1. The isolation valve and the kicker valve are closed.
2. The drain valve is opened and air allowed to displace the liquid by opening the vent valve.
3. When the pig launcher is completely drained (0 Pa), with the vent and drain valves still open, the trap (closure) door is opened.
4. The pig is installed with the nose firmly in contact with the reducer between the barrel and the nominal bore section of the
launcher.
5. The closure seal and other sealing surfaces are cleaned, lubricated if necessary, and the closure door closed and secured.
6. The drain valve is then closed. By gradually opening the kicker valve and venting through the vent valve, the trap is slowly
filled.
7. When filling is complete, the vent valve is closed to allow pressure to equalize across the isolation valve.
8. The isolation valve is opened as the pig is ready for launching.
9. The main line valve is partially closed, thus increasing the flow through the kicker valve and behind the pig. Continue to close
the main line valve until the pig leaves the trap into the main line as indicated by the pig signaler.
10. After the pig leaves the trap and enters the main line, the main line valve is fully opened and both the isolation valve and the
kicker valve closed.
11. The pig launching is complete.

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q Receiving procedure:
• The pig receiver might either be left on stream or isolated as according to the company
policies and operation procedures.
• In this case, the kicker valve is replaced by the bypass valve and the rest of the setup
remains unchanged except the procedure is reverse as compared to the launching.
The information collected during each
run should include the following:
• Type of the pig, date and time of
the pig launch and receipt.
• Deposits Removed: Type and
quantity with photographs for
future reference.
• Pig Condition: All types of damage
from visual inspection with
photographs for future reference.
• Pressure and Flowrate Profiles:
Can indicate amount of deposits
and the main build-up locations.
Typical pig receiver
9/27/21 23
Pigging planning
Workflow

9/27/21 24
Pigging planning
Detailed Workflow
sửa dấu +
thành dấu -
Pig density :
140 kg/m3
=64%
ufriction=0,5

9/27/21 25
Abypass=10%Apipe
m/ngày
t wax daily =
0.064 m / day

9/27/21 26
Exercise 8
Using data from exercise 7, determine the time between 2 pig launchings.
27
Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering, HCMUT, Vietnam 9/27/21

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Wax deposition introduction

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Accurate wax deposition modeling is of high importance

o Underestimation: risk of pipe stuck

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

q If there’s wax, what to do: prevention & remedies

q Wax control measures: 4 principal methods

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

The diffusion constant of wax in oil is given by Hayduk-Minhas (1982) correlation:

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Typical pig launcher

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

Pham Son Tung, Ph.D, Faculty of Geology & Petroleum

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