In the petroleum industry it’s critical that operations run safely and efficiently with controlled, real-time data. Since upstream and midstream operations often are located in remote areas with temperature extremes, oil & gas operators need a partner to provide full solutions with rugged, reliable products that can provide the best in corrosion monitoring and mitigation, chemical optimization and representative sampling to help them maintain seamless and safe operations.
The dangers of hydrogen sulfide
Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas is a colorless, transparent gas with a “rotten egg” smell naturally found in petroleum and natural gas. It’s a significant safety concern for oil & gas plant operators, as well as a major contributor to corrosion.
According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), hydrogen sulfide is a highly flammable and extremely hazardous gas that can irritate the eyes, nose, throat and lungs. High concentrations can cause shock, convulsions, inability to breathe, extremely rapid unconsciousness, coma – and even death. Effects can occur within a few breaths.
Due to its flammable nature, it explodes easily and produces toxic vapors; making it extremely dangerous on oil and gas drilling sites.
Case study: improve safety, lower risks and increase efficiency
To mitigate levels of H2S, scavenger chemicals must be injected into the oil or gas stream. That’s why one of the world’s largest independent oil & gas exploration and production companies added chemical atomizers to disperse chemicals that would reduce risks from H2S and keep operators safe. These atomizers operate easily in all applications, even extreme high-pressure environments, making them the right choice for this customer.
Typically, the chemicals to mitigate H2S are introduced into the process near the top of the line, using variations of open drip tubes. However, this customer believed that a more effective method was possible. The customer chose atomizers with the injection point placed on the pipe center-line. A unique 90° elbow at the tip of the injection point, combined with a low flow atomizing nozzle, provided optimal chemical placement in the pipeline, as well as more even chemical dispersal and efficient usage.
In addition, the plant installed chemical injection and sample quills to inhibit corrosion, along with corrosion measuring systems to monitor corrosion in the system.
The customer chose chemical injection and sample quills that both inject chemicals and collect samples to simultaneously inject viscous chemicals – such as corrosion inhibitors and defoamer agents – into the pipelines, and for sampling gas and liquids from the lines. For injection in a liquid or gas line, the quill tip is placed in the center of the line where maximum velocity exists. For sampling, the flexibility of the quill’s design allows a sample to be obtained from any point between the bottom of the line and the top, depending on the sample to be collected.
For measuring corrosion in the pipeline, the company uses rod-style corrosion coupons in the bottom of the lines. Corrosion coupons measure pitting and metal loss that might occur due to the corrosive content in the gas or liquids. These coupons are cathodically isolated and are used to indicate the effectiveness of the anti-corrosion chemicals.
proper sampling knowledge makes a difference
As this plant discovered, managing dangerous gases and preventing corrosion are critical to maintaining a safe and efficient plant.
If your plant’s sampling system needs an inspection, it’s critical to have an experienced team evaluate and address all your sampling issues. When the monitoring is accurate and contamination is prevented the result is more precise and fewer failures caused by corrosion and contamination exist.
Learn more information about our corrosion monitoring & chemical injection product portfolio.
