Effect of wax on hydrate formation and aggregation characteristics of water-in-oil emulsion

In recent years, the formation and aggregation of wax and hydrate under the condition of coexistence has become a hot spot in the safety assurance of deep-water pipeline flow. In order to clarify the influence mechanism of wax and hydrate in deep-sea crude oil under coexistence conditions, the effects of different wax-containing conditions on the nucleation, growth and aggregation characteristics of hydrate in oil-water emulsion were studied by macroscopic and microscopic experimental equipment. The results show that low wax content (0-3.wt%) provides nucleation sites for hydrate formation and thus promotes hydrate formation. High wax content (>3.wt%) inhibits hydrate formation by preventing water droplets from contacting gas molecules. Low wax content (0-3.wt%) significantly reduces hydrate interparticle aggregation. High wax content (>3.wt%) promotes hydrate interparticle aggregation, which changes the flow characteristics of the hydrate slurry. In addition, through further analysis by PVM and high-speed camera, a wax-containing hydrate aggregation mechanism model was established.