Determination of Flow Patterns for Multi-Phase Flow in Petroleum Production Systems

A comprehensive mechanistic model has been used to determine the flow pattern for gas-oil two-phase flow in pipes of petroleum production system. Depending on operational parameters, geometrical variables, and physical properties of the two phases, the two phases shows a specific flow patterns. For different parameters of the system, flow pattern were compared for wide range of superficial velocities of oil and gas. In a variety of parameters, the inclinational angle and superficial velocities of oil and gas are the most dominant factors in determining the flow patterns for two-phase flow in pipelines. Other parameters such as pipe diameter and fluid properties have a limited effect on the change of flow patterns except for near transition. The mechanistic model is shown to be useful to determine the flow pattern in situations where either an experimental evaluation in a laboratory or reliable correlations are not available.