(148d) Developing a Comprehensive Transient Hydrate Formation Model: From Laboratory to Field Applications

Gas hydrates pose the major flow assurance problem in the production and transportation of oil and gas. Managing the formation of gas hydrates is central for safe and continuous operation. In this talk, we will provide an overview of the Center for Hydrate Research and its efforts toward better understanding the formation and agglomeration of hydrates in multiphase flow. The talk will discuss the projects in the Center aimed at quantifying how hydrates can be managed by first understanding the fundamental processes for nucleation, growth, agglomeration, deposition, and plugging, knowledge in these areas that have been accumulated over decades of research. While still a work in progress, significant advances have been made in describing the hydrate formation in oil-dominated, water-dominated, and gas-dominated systems. One of the end goals of our effort is to develop the knowledge and tools to manage hydrates, as opposed to avoidance, in the production and transportation of oil and gas.