Horizontal THREE-PHASE SEPARATORS

Determine the value of Aw/A from Eq. (11).

2. Use Figure 6 to determine the value of Ho/D for the calculated
value of Aw/A.


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3. Determine the maximum oil pad thickness, Ho,max from Eq. (9)
with dm equal to 500 mm.

4. Determine Dmax from Eq. (12).

5. For diameters smaller than Dmax, determine the combinations of
D and L that satisfy the gas capacity constraint from Eq. (13),
substituting 100 mm for dm.

6. For diameters smaller than Dmax, determine the combinations of D
and L that satisfy the retention time constraint from Eq. (17).


7. Compare the results obtained in steps 5 and 6 and determine
whether the gas capacity or retention time (liquid capacity)
governs the separator design.
8. If the gas capacity governs the design, determine the seam-to seam
length of the separator, Ls, from
Ls = L + D/12

If the liquid retention time (liquid capacity) governs the design,
determine Ls from
Ls = 4/3 L
9. Recommend a reasonable diameter and length with a slenderness
ratio in the range of 35. In making the final selection,
considerations such as cost and availability will be important. It
should be mentioned that, in some cases, the slenderness ratio
might be different from the range of 35. In such cases,
especially when the slenderness ratio is larger than 5, internal
baffles should be installed to act as wave breakers in order to
stabilize the gasliquid interface.
Example 1
Determine the diameter and seam-to-seam length of a three-phase
horizontal separator for the following operating conditions:
Oil production rate: 8000BPD
Water production rate: 3000BPD
Gasoil ratio: 1000 SCF/bbl
Oil viscosity: 20 cP
Oil specific gravity: 0.89
Water specific gravity: 1.04
Gas specific gravity: 0.65
Gas compressibility: 0.89
Operating pressure: 250 psia
Operating temperature: 95_F
Oil retention time: 15 min
Water retention time: 10 min
Cd = 0.65
VERTICAL THREE-PHASE SEPARATORS
In summary then, the diameter and seam-to-seam length of vertical threephase
separators are determined as follows:
1. Determine the minimum diameter that satisfies the water
droplets settling constraint from Eq. (22). dm equal to 500 m

2. Determine the minimum diameter that satisfies the gas capacity
constraint from Eq. (23). dm equal to 100 m

3. The larger of the two minimum diameters determined in steps 1
and 2 is then considered as the minimum allowable vessel
diameter.
4. For various values of diameter larger than the minimum
allowable vessel diameter, use Eq. (26) to determine combinations
of diameters and liquid heights.

5. For each combination, determine the seam-to-seam length from
the following:
For D>36 in.
Ls = 1/12 (Ho + Hw + D + 40) ft
For D<36 in.
Ls = 1/12 (Ho + Hw + 76) ft
are acceptable because the slenderness ratio falls between 1.5 and 3
Example 2
Determine the diameter and seam-to-seam length of a three-phase vertical
separator for the following operating conditions:
Oil production rate: 6000BPD
Water production rate: 3000BPD
Gas production rate: 8.0MMSCFD
Oil viscosity: 10 cP
Oil specific gravity: 0.87
Water specific gravity: 1.07
Gas specific gravity: 0.6
Gas compressibility: 0.88
Operating pressure: 500 psia
Operating temperature: 90_F
Oil retention time: 10 min
Water retention time: 10 min
cd: 0.64