However, when a flowrate increases above this threshold, the water phase is effectively reduced, as it is carried by the oil phase due to interfacial friction.Ĭorrosion is typically not an issue at low water cuts because all of the water tends to be entrained by the flowing oil (water-in-oil dispersion). This causes separation of the water phase due to gravity effects and phase slippage, especially in the upward-sloping pipeline sections. In crude oil pipelines, water starts to accumulate excessively when the operating flowrates drop below a critical (threshold) flowrate. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF INCLUDING FLOW MODELLING IN CORROSION ASSESSMENTS? Find out more in this article by ROSEN experts Ashwin Pinto, Paul Westwood and Jozef Soltis from ROSEN UK and Nadia Jerez from our South America region. As a result, ROSEN was able to advise the client on the optimal cleaning frequency and pig configuration to (i) maintain sufficient cleanliness of the pipeline, (ii) control its internal corrosion and (iii) maintain the highest production efficiency. Flow simulations were performed for the purpose of optimizing the cleaning strategy by performing sensitivities on cleaning frequency and improved pig design. Additionally, since the adopted operational cleaning strategy was no longer suitable for the purpose of maintaining the integrity of the pipeline, the study also involved an assessment of the effectiveness of cleaning activities, including the type of cleaning tools and the cleaning frequency. As an output of the corrosion management plan implemented for a crude oil pipeline, the operator requested ROSEN to conduct a flow modelling study to establish optimum flow conditions to prevent or minimize water separation and accumulation and thus use pipeline flow conditions as a tool to control internal corrosion.