Basic Surface Production Operations

Description

The purpose of this course is to present an overview and fundamental understanding of the wide range of oilfield production handling and treatment equipment. The student should learn not only what but how field fluid treating equipment works. The fundamental principles of fluid behavior are first introduced and then applied to all of the various equipment and systems comprising production operations. Emphasis is on understanding the internal workings inside the piping, valves, and vessels. 

A major goal of this course is also to improve communication among the technical disciplines, field and office in order to enhance operational efficiencies, lower costs and improve production economics. Example step-by-step exercises are worked together with the instructor to drive home the important points. Daily sessions include formal presentation interspersed with directed discussion and problem-solving.

Objectives

By the end of this course participants will learn:

• The physical properties and phase behavior of crude oil and natural gas that govern production operations
• Field processes for treating and conditioning full well stream production for sales or final disposition
• An introduction to the wide range of equipment used to process, treat, transport, and store oilfield produced fluids
• The basics of oilfield corrosion prevention, detection, and treatment
• How to determine and minimize pressure drop in pipelines, valves and pressured vessels Internal workings of separators, pumps, compressors, valves, and other treating equipment
• An overview of the processes and equipment used to handle acid gases
• A basic understanding of a wide range of produced fluid volume measurement and metering devices
• A description of treating equipment whether located downhole, on the surface, offshore platform or seafloor

Target Audience

• Beginning level production engineers
• Operations and facilities engineers
• Petroleum engineers
• Production managers and field production supervisors
• Surface equipment technicians
• Technical or supervisory personnel who interact with field facility engineers
• Operators                 

Production Operations Outline

The course covers the following topics:

• Properties of produced fluids: Impact of pressure, temperature and fluid on key hydrocarbon parameters and fluid behavior
• Valves: API valves, chokes, regulators, and flow control devices, principle of operation and effect on fluid condition
• Safety systems: surface safety control systems, relief valves, pressure ratings, API recommended practices
• Flow lines, manifolds and gathering systems: material selection, pressure drop considerations, line sizing, corrosion, noise and erosion concerns, full well stream production, two and three phase fluid flow, pigging, slugs, foam and emulsions
• Mechanical equipment: Pumps, compressors, heaters, sour and acid gas treating, pressured vessels, storage facilities and other surface and subsurface treating and fluid handling equipment
• Gas separation and treating: two and three phase separation, free water removal, treatment of emulsions, hydrate prevention and treatment, vapor recovery, gas conditioning for sales, injection or field usage
• Oil and water separation and treatment: two and three-phase separation, emulsion breaking, asphaltenes, solids control, removal of residual oil in water and water in oil to meet pipeline specifications or injection and disposal requirements, hydro cyclones and new water and oil treating equipment
• Fluid measurement and instrumentation:  Liquid and gas metering using positive displacement meters, orifices, sonic meters, mass measurement meters, three-phase flow measurement, and new metering devices
• Acid gas treatment: field handling and treatment of sour and acid gases, safety considerations, API standards
• Corrosion: fundamental principles, detection, prevention and treatment
• Treating facility innovations: up to date description of new equipment for handling high pressure/temperature, three-phase flow from subsea and remote locations