Process Measurement & Control Solutions

NOTE 12: Well Testing with a OW-200 and Coriolis Flow Meter
in a 2 PHASE SEPARATOR
Agar OW-201
Oil companies using two phase separators for both
well testing and field allocation have found that
using a combination of Agar Microwave Oil / Water
Monitor and a quality coriolis mass flow meter
with density output will provide a reliable system
and accurate data. This system does not require
maintenance or regular calibration. Traditionally
liquid measurement from a two phase separator
has a flow meter and a water cut monitor. The
signals from these devices are integrated to
provide oil and water production rates. One
of the down sides to this
arrangement is entrained coriolis flow
gas, and the lack of an on- meter
line check of the readings.
The combination of an Agar
and a coriolis mass flow
meter with density output can reduce these
drawbacks. This is especially important in the
marginal fields where some wells may produce
only 5% oil. The oil company needs to have
accurate well data to determine if the well should
be shut in. The resources required to keep up the well test equipment can reduce the profits of a marginal field greatly.

All two phase separators will at some time have an upset that will discharge gas with the liquid (gas under carry) in slugs or
entrained, and will discharge liquid with the gas (liquid over carry). The only way to have accurate well test data and not have
errors caused by incomplete separation is to use a proven Multiphase Flow Meter that is not affected by changing densities
of the fluids, and can handle high volumes of gas. Typically turbine, positive displacement or coriolis meters are used to
measure liquid flow with a two phase separator. Entrained gas in a liquid stream will adversely affect all flowmeters, (in some
cases can damage them) but always causes them to read inaccurately. A coriolis flowmeter will not be damaged by gas, but
the device cannot properly determine flow rate if the gas amount gets too large. Sometimes the last known liquid flow rate
is maintained when the gas amount is too high, but this assumption leads to errors. If a coriolis meter is used for water cut
measurement the entrained gas will appear as oil and will cause an error in reported water by a factor in the magnitude of
10 to 1, simply put, 1% gas will look like 10% oil because of the large density difference between the liquid and gas.

The Agar Water Cut Monitor is not affected by changing density of the oil, or changing salinity for the water. This is very
important because within one field the density of oil and water salinity will change from well to well, zone to zone and over time.
The salinity of water can change regularly in areas of water flood or steam flood. There are many devices on the market that
measure water cut using density, or dielectric. For both these methods, regular calibration of the sensor is required as the
values of density and salinity change. Some oil companies have reported a 2% change in oil density over a 6 month period.
This change in density could be actual well conditions changing, but could also be due to an error in measured density by
the operator. In either case the error for the system is the same. Most oil companies do not have the resources to monitor
the changes in density for all of the wells in their field in order to keep the well test equipment accurate.

APPLICATION NOTE 12
All Agar Corporation Instruments are covered by one or more of the following U.S. Patents: 4,503,383; 4,774,680; 5,099,697; 5,101,163; 5,101,367; 5,263,363;
5,503,004; 5,551,305; 5,589,642; 5,741,977, RE 36,597. Other patents pending in the USA and other countries.
 APPLICATION NOTE 12 - Coriolis

Coriolis flow meters have been proven as accurate densitometers, as well as flow meters. As explained above the coriolis
flow meter will only be able to report water cuts as well as the oil company has determined the density of the oil and water.
By using the combination of the Agar Microwave Water Cut Monitor and a coriolis mass flow meter with density output, the
oil company will be able to compare the reading of the two instruments and achieve a very high level of confidence that
the system is working well and reduce problems associated with entrained gas. Since the Agar is not affected by changing
densities or salinities, the reported water cut will always be accurate. This value can be compared to an estimated water cut
from the coriolis flowmeter. The oil company will not expect the coriolis water cut to be as accurate as the Agar OW-200,
but the water cut value will follow the same trend as the Agar as long as both devices are working properly and no gas is
present. If not, the readings will start to diverge. At this point, the operators can investigate what has happened. Without
this check, the operator would not have any idea that the system was not working until a periodic sample was taken and
analyzed for water cut.

If the 2-phase separator is under-sized and gas is

being discharged with the liquid (gas undercarry),
there will be errors in the well test data - Total
Volume, Net Oil, and Net Water.

Agar has developed a low cost, low gas multiphase

flow meter (the MPFM-50, shown to the left) for
these types of applications. Please see MPFM-
50 on Agars web page (http://www.agarcorp.com/
ProductBrochures.html).

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ER No. 5024; SL0022 Rev -