US 12,065,921 B2
Standalone demulsifier testing for crude oil
Sulaiman A. Jutaily, Khobar (SA); Murtala Ahmed Mohammed, Dhahran (SA); and Salah A. Al-Mulhim, Dammam (SA)
Assigned to Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA)
Filed by Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA)
Filed on Dec. 15, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/552,086.
Prior Publication US 2023/0184076 A1, Jun. 15, 2023
Int. Cl. E21B 43/34 (2006.01); B01D 17/04 (2006.01); G01K 13/12 (2006.01); G01L 9/00 (2006.01); G01S 7/285 (2006.01); G01S 13/76 (2006.01)
CPC E21B 43/34 (2013.01) [B01D 17/042 (2013.01); G01K 13/12 (2013.01); G01L 9/0091 (2013.01); G01S 7/285 (2013.01); G01S 13/76 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An apparatus for testing a demulsifier of crude oil, the apparatus comprising:
a vessel configured to be pressurized and heated at a well site to match desired process conditions at which the demulsifier is to break an emulsion of the crude oil, the vessel comprising:
a first end;
a second end configured to mount on a stand;
an inlet pipe comprising:
a first inlet configured to receive the crude oil;
a second inlet configured to receive the demulsifier, wherein the inlet pipe is configured to mix the crude oil and the demulsifier to form a mixture of the crude oil and the demulsifier; and
an outlet configured to discharge the mixture to an internal cavity defined by the vessel;
an outlet pipe configured to discharge the mixture from the vessel;
a first port configured to couple to a pressure transmitter; and
a second port configured to couple to a temperature transmitter;
a heater surrounding at least a portion of the vessel, the heater configured to provide heat to the mixture within the internal cavity defined by the vessel; and
a guided wave radar coupled to the first end of the vessel, wherein the guided wave radar is configured to generate a reference pulse of microwave energy and detect a surface echo reflected from the mixture within the internal cavity defined by the vessel.