Investigation of the Flow Characteristics of Methane Hydrate Slurries with Low Flow Rates

Cuiping Tang, Xiangyong Zhao, Dongliang Li, Yong He, Xiaodong Shen and Deqing Liang
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Cuiping Tang: Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
Xiangyong Zhao: Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
Dongliang Li: Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
Yong He: Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
Xiaodong Shen: Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
Deqing Liang: Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China

Energies, 2017, vol. 10, issue 1, 1-15

Abstract: Gas hydrate blockage in pipelines during offshore production becomes a major problem with increasing water depth. In this work, a series of experiments on gas hydrate formation in a flow loop was performed with low flow rates of 0.33, 0.66, and 0.88 m/s; the effects of the initial subcooling, flow rate, pressure, and morphology were investigated for methane hydrate formation in the flow loop. The results indicate that the differential pressure drop (? P ) across two ends of the horizontal straight pipe increases with increasing hydrate concentration at the early stage of gas hydrate formation. When the flow rates of hydrate fluid are low, the higher the subcooling is, the faster the transition of the hydrates macrostructures. Gas hydrates can agglomerate, and sludge hydrates appear at subcoolings of 6.5 and 8.5 °C. The difference between the ? P values at different flow rates is small, and there is no obvious influence of the flow rates on ? P . Three hydrate macrostructures were observed: slurry-like, sludge-like, and their transition. When the initial pressure is 8.0 MPa, large methane hydrate blockages appear at the gas hydrate concentration of approximately 7%. Based on the gas–liquid two-phase flow model, a correlation between the gas hydrate concentration and the value of ? P is also presented. These results can enrich the kinetic data of gas hydrate formation and agglomeration and provide guidance for oil and gas transportation in pipelines.

Keywords: natural gas; hydrate; flow assurance; slurry; sludge; flow characteristics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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