Study on the Performance of a Compact Compound Oil/Gas/Water Separator for Offshore Oil Industry

High-efficiency separation of the oil/gas/water mixtures is a significant issue in offshore oil industry. To reduce the total cost by means of reduction in weight and space compared with conventional separators, a novel compact compound oil/gas/water separator is developed. The research works on oil-gas-water separation by compound separating techniques is described in this paper. The innovative separator is a gravity settling tank with helical pipes within and T-shaped pipes outside. Both experiments and numerical simulations are presented to study the separating performance and efficiency of the helical pipes, which are the main part of the separator.

Multiphase Flow Measurement in the Offshore Oil Industry

In recent years, considerable research has been conducted into the development of a three-phase flowmeter suitable for use in an offshore environment, and oil/gas/water three-phase metering becomes an important aspect in multiphase flow measurement. This paper discusses the importance of three-phase flow measurement in offshore oil industry, describes the current development in this area, and points out the principal strategies which may be used to meter three-phase flow.

Assessment of environmental fate and effects of discharges from offshore oil and gas operations /

"WH-553"--Cover.

Characterization of wood biochar and evaluation of its adsorption potential for removal of sulphate from produced water in offshore oil and gas industry

This thesis analyses the potential of wood biochar as an adsorbent in removal of sulphate from produced water. In worldwide offshore oil and gas industry, a large volume of waste water is generated as produced water. Sulphur compounds present in these produced water streams can cause environmental problems, regulatory problems and operational issues. Among the various sulphur removal technologies, the adsorption technique is considered as a suitable method since the design is simple, compact, economical and robust. Biochar has been studied as an adsorbent for removal of contaminants from water in a number of studies due to its low cost, potential availability, and adsorptive characteristics. In this study, biochar produced through fast pyrolysis of bark, hardwood sawdust, and softwood sawdust were characterized through a series of tests and were analysed for adsorbent properties. Treating produced water using biochar sourced from wood waste is a two-fold solution to environmental problems as it reduces the volume of these wastes. Batch adsorption tests were carried out to obtain adsorption capacities of each biochar sample using sodium sulphate solutions. The highest sulphur adsorption capacities obtained for hardwood char, softwood char and bark char were 11.81 mg/g, 9.44 mg/g, and 7.94 mg/g respectively at 10 °C and pH=4. The adsorption process followed the second order kinetic model and the Freundlich isotherm model. Adsorption reaction was thermodynamically favourable and exothermic. The overall analysis concludes that the wood biochar is a feasible, economical, and environmental adsorbent for removal of sulphate from produced water.

Mortality of Migratory Birds from Marine Commercial Fisheries and Offshore Oil and Gas Production in Canada

There is an imminent need for conservation and best-practice management efforts in marine ecosystems where global-scale declines in the biodiversity and biomass of large vertebrate predators are increasing and marine communities are being altered. We examine two marine-based industries that incidentally take migratory birds in Canada: (1) commercial fisheries, through bycatch, and (2) offshore oil and gas exploration, development, and production. We summarize information from the scientific literature and technical reports and also present new information from recently analyzed data to assess the magnitude and scope of mortality. Fisheries bycatch was responsible for the highest levels of incidental take of migratory bird species; estimated combined take in the longline, gillnet, and bottom otter trawl fisheries within the Atlantic, including the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and Pacific regions was 2679 to 45,586 birds per year. For the offshore oil and gas sector, mortality estimates ranged from 188 to 4494 deaths per year due to the discharge of produced waters resulting in oil sheens and collisions with platforms and vessels; however these estimates for the oil and gas sector are based on many untested assumptions. In spite of the uncertainties, we feel levels of mortality from these two industries are unlikely to affect the marine bird community in Canada, but some effects on local populations from bycatch are likely. Further research and monitoring will be required to: (1) better estimate fisheries-related mortality for vulnerable species and populations that may be impacted by local fisheries, (2) determine the effects of oil sheens from produced waters, and attraction to platforms and associated mortality from collisions, sheens, and flaring, so that better estimates of mortality from the offshore oil and gas sector can be obtained, and (3) determine impacts associated with accidental spills, which are not included in our current assessment. With a better understanding of the direct mortality of marine birds from industry, appropriate mitigation and management actions can be implemented. Cooperation from industry for data collection, research to fill knowledge gaps, and implementation of mitigation approaches will all be needed to conserve marine birds in Canada.

Working in verticalized platform vessel: an ergonomic approach in the oil industry

In this paper we point some aspects of workers activities in offshore units in the oil industry. These units became more verticalized and have a greater number of operating systems. Our goal is to present the main difficulties that workers face in these units.

Proposed 1985 Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas lease sale offshore the south Atlantic states : OCS sale no. 90 : draft environmental impact statement /

"MMS 84-0007"--Cover.

What drives the commodity price beta of oil industry stocks

We test theoretical drivers of the oil price beta of oil industry stocks. The strongest statistical and economic support comes for market conditions-type variables as the prime drivers: namely, oil price (+), bond rate (+), volatility of oil returns (−) and cost of carry (+). Though statistically significant, exogenous firm characteristics and oil firms' financing decisions have less compelling economic significance. There is weaker support for the prediction that financial risk management reduces the exposure of oil stocks to crude oil price variation. Finally, extended modelling shows that mean reversion in oil prices also helps explain cross-sectional variation in the oil beta.

Dispute resolution across platforms : offshore gambling industry & EVE online

Contemporary online environments suffer from a regulatory gap; that is there are few options for participants between customer service departments and potentially expensive court cases in foreign jurisdictions. Whatever form of regulation ultimately fills that gap will be charged with determining whether specific behavior, within a specific environment, is fair or foul; whether it’s cheating or not. However, cheating is a term that, despite substantial academic study, remains problematic. Is anything the developer doesn’t want you to do cheating? Is it only if your actions breach the formal terms of service? What about the community norms, do they matter at all? All of these remain largely unresolved questions, due to the lack of public determination of cases in such environments, which have mostly been settled prior to legal action. In this paper, I propose a re-branding of participant activity in such environments into developer-sanctioned, advantage play, and cheating. Advantage play, ultimately, is activity within the environment in which the player is able to turn the mechanics of the environment to their advantage without breaching the rules of the environment. Such a definition, and the term itself, is based on the usage of the term within the gambling industry, in which advantage play is considered betting with the advantage in the players’ favor rather than that of the house. Through examples from both the gambling industry and the Massively Multiplayer Role-Playing Game Eve Online, I consider the problems in defining cheating, suggest how the term ‘advantage play’ may be useful in understanding participants behavior in contemporary environments, and ultimately consider the use of such terminology in dispute resolution models which may overcome this regulatory gap.

Vendors' perspectives of coordination in the information technology offshore outsourcing industry : An exploratory study from the Philippines

This study investigates how offshore information technology (IT) service providers (vendors) coordinate work with their clients (employers) in order to succeed in the global IT offshore outsourcing industry. We reviewed literature on coordination studies, interviewed offshore service providers in the Philippines, and used thematic analysis to analyse coordination practices from the point of view of these individual vendors in a newly industrialized country. We used Olson and Olson's framework on 'collaboration at a distance' as a lens to structure the results. The study provides an understanding of vendors' individual attitudes towards the coordination of distributed work and draws attention to how differences in power affect the work situation of vendors, and by implication all stakeholders. We offer this insight as a way to enhance existing CSCW frameworks, by imbuing them with the perspective of non-equal relationships. The study found that vendors were generally able to produce outputs that satisfy their clients, however these results were only achieved because individuals were willing to take risks and make sacrifices in their personal lives. The relationship was further characterised by a complex interplay between the client's control of the overall work arrangements and the vendors' ability to establish a level of autonomy in their work practices and their flexible use of coordination tools.

Mechanics of a grip system of three-key-board hydraulic tongs developed for offshore oil pipe lines

This paper carries out the analysis of mechanics of a grip system of three-key-board hydraulic tongs developed for offshore oil pipe lines which has been successfully used in oil fields in China. The main improvement of this system is that a lever frame structure is used in the structural design, which reduces greatly the stresses of the major components of the oil pipe tongs. Theoretical analysis and numerical calculation based on thirteen basic equations developed Show that the teeth board of the tongs is not easy to slip as frequently happens to other systems and is of higher reliability.

Aprimoramento da política pública ambiental da cadeia produtiva de óleo e gás offshore no Brasil: o descomissionamento das tecnologias de exploração

A Constituição Federal brasileira de 1988 elevou o meio ambiente sadio e a qualidade de vida das presentes e futuras gerações à categoria de direito fundamental. Esse fato jurídico modifica todas as propostas normativas e de execução de políticas públicas até então vigentes, e exige uma adequaçãodas atividades produtivas para atender a esse novo ideal voltado para uma sociedade sustentável. A presente tese analisa a atividade petrolífera offshore, dando ênfase à fase do descomissionamento da exploração do petróleo, a fim de estudar os mecanismos legais regulatórios incidentes sobre a desativação do sistema de produção, momento em que se constata uma grande vulnerabilidade ambiental. Trata-se de demonstrar a tese de que o sistema legal brasileiro sobre o descomissionamento é inconsistente em relação às normas de direito ambiental e do modelo de desenvolvimento sustentável constitucionalmente instituído. O objetivo central é contribuir para o aprimoramento das políticas públicas de exploração do petróleo, visando consolidar o sistema legal brasileiro sobre o tema, bem como valorizar as questões ambientais no processo de descomissionamento. Através de uma metodologia qualitativa, é identificado, inicialmente, o cenário da indústria petrolífera para discutir o conceito de desenvolvimento sustentável, verificando como ele está sendo incorporado pelas políticas energética e ambiental do país. Em seguida, é descrita e analisada a estruturação e quais são as experiências internacional e brasileira sobre o descomissionamento. Após essa etapa cognitiva, passa-se a detalhar: o arcabouço institucional-legal do descomissionamento da indústria do petróleo no Brasil, com base nos princípios de direito ambiental; a infraestrutura estatal para a consolidação de um novo marco regulatório para essa etapa da produção; a política nacional de resíduos sólidos e o instrumento do licenciamento ambiental. Ao término desse processo, são formuladas duas propostas complementares de instrumentos legais, voltados para a consolidação da regulamentação do descomissionamento da indústria do petróleo offshore, baseado nas orientações do direito ambiental. A tese é concluída com considerações gerais sobre as propostas formuladas, a fim de aprimorar o arcabouço jurídico da indústria do petróleo, visando à proteção ambiental e ao fortalecimento do modelo de desenvolvimento sustentável instituído com a Constituição Brasileira de 1988.