VALIDATION REPORT FOR 2-PHASE LINE SIZING

PART 1

A. INTRODUCTION
This is a report to validate the 2-phase line sizing spreadsheet used on the MPNU Slot
Addition Project. It explains the steps, criteria and standards applied in sizing the 2-phase
line.

B. CRITERIA FOR SIZING A 2-PHASE LINE (API RP 14E PAGE 23)

• The 2-phase fluid velocity should not exceed the erosional velocity
• The minimum velocity should not be less than 10 ft/s to minimize slugging of
separation equipment.

C. PROCESS DATA
Operating conditions of the 2-phase line will be derived from the Heat and Material Balance
prepared from HYSYS simulation. This will also be used for the purpose of validating the
calculation procedure described in this report.

D. 2-PHASE LINE SIZING:

1. Erosional velocity
The erosional velocity is determined using equation 2.14 (API RP 14E, Page 23)

C
Ve = ...............................D.1
ρm

Where: Ve = Erosional velocity, ft/sec.

C = Empirical constant
ρ m = Gas / liquid mixture density at flowing pressure and
temperature, Ib/ft3
2. Mean Density
The density of the gas / liquid mixture is calculated using equation 2.15 (API RP 14E
Page 23).

12409 S l P + 2.7 S g P
ρm = ..........................D.2
198.7 P + RTZ

Where: ρ m = Mean density, Ib/ft3

P = Operating pressure, psia
Sl = Liquid specific gravity (water = 1; use average gravity for
Hydrocarbon-water mixtures) at standard conditions.
R = Gas / liquid ratio, ft3/bbl
T = Operating temperature, °R
S g = Gas specific gravity at standard conditions
Z = Gas compressibility factor, dimensionless

3. Minimum Cross-sectional Area

This is the area required to avoid fluid erosion. It is determined from equation 2.16 (API
RP 14E, Page 23.)

ZRT
9.35 +
A= 21.25 P ...........................................D.3
Ve

Where: A = Minimum pipe cross-sectional flow area required, in2/1000bbl

liquid per day.
4. Pressure Drop
Using equation 2.17 (API RP 14E, Page 24), the pressure drop is determined thus;

0.000336 fW 2
∆P = ............................................D.4
di ρm
5

Where: ∆P = Pressure drop, psi/100ft

d i = Pipe inside diameter, in
f = Moody friction factor, dimensionless
ρ m = Mean density, Ib/ft3
W = Total liquid plus vapor rate, Ibs/hr

NOTE: The use of this equation D.4 should be limited to 10% pressure drop due to
inaccuracies associated with changes in density.

5. Mean Liquid Specific Gravity

Per API RP 14E, Page 47,

Ql S l 1 + QW S l 2
Slm = ........................................D.5
Ql + QW

Where: Slm = Mean liquid specific gravity

Ql = Oil flow rate, bbl/day
S l1 = Specific gravity of oil
QW = Produced water flow rate, bbl / day
S l 2 = Specific gravity of water / oil mixture
6. GOR
The GOR is the ratio of gas flow rate to the oil flow rate (API RP 14E, Page 47)

Qg
GOR = .............................................D.6
Ql

Where: Q g = Gas flow rate, ft3 /day

Ql = Liquid flow rate, bbl/day

7. Fluid Velocity
Per API RP 14E, Page 48, fluid velocity is determined using the formula:

Vt
V= .............................................D.7
Π × (d i
4 12) 2

where: V= Fluid velocity, ft/sec.

Vt = Total volume flow, ft3/sec.
di = Inside diameter, in.

8. ρV 2 Calculation

ρ is the mean density, Ib/ft3

V is the fluid velocity,ft/s.
9. Minimum Required Line Size

4A
d= .....................................D.9
Π

where: A = Minimum pipe cross- sectional area,in2

 PART 2

A. VALIDATION OF EXCEL SPREADSHEET

This manual calculation is performed to validate the 2-phase line sizing excel spreadsheet
shown in attachment 1. The calculation is based on the solved example in API RP 14E
(example A1), in which a gas condensate flow line was sized (see attachment 2). This
calculation is to validate the selection of a 3’’ line for the final flow conditions.
.

B. GENERAL DATA
Line pressure, P 1500 psig (1514.7 psia)
Temperature, T 120°F (580 R)

C. GAS PROCESS DATA

Gas flow rate, Qg 10mmscfd
Specific gravity 0.65
Dynamic viscosity 0.81

D. LIQUID PROCESS DATA

Oil flow rate, Ql 200 bbl/day
Specific gravity 0.80
Dynamic viscosity 1.28 cP
Water flow rate 1500 bbl/day
Water specific gravity 1.08

E. PIPE DATA
Nominal diameter 3 in
Piping class D
Size / Schedule 3-XXS
Roughness 0.0019
Empirical constant, C 100
Internal diameter 2.3 in
F. CALCULATION

1. Mean Liquid specific gravity.

From equation D.5,

S L ( mean ) = Q L S L1 + QW S L 2

Q L + QW

(200 × 0.80) + (1500 × 1.08)

S L ( mean ) =
200 + 1500

160 + 1620
S L ( mean ) =
1700

1780
=
1700

S L (mean ) = 1.0471

2. GOR
From equation D.6,

GOR = 10mmscfd
200bbl / d + 1500bbl / d

GOR = 5882.3529 ft3/bbl

3. Mean Density
From equation D.4,

12409 S l P + 2.7 S g P
ρm =
198.7 P + RTZ
 (12409)(1.0407)(1514.7) + (2.7)(5882.3529)(0.65)(1514.7)
ρ m=
(198.7)(1514.7) + (5882.3529)(580)(0.81)

19679320.18 + 15637049.89
ρm =
300970.89 + 2763529.392

ρ m = 11.5243 Ib/ft3

4. Total Mass flow

W = 3180Q g S g + 14.6QL S L

W = (3180)(10)(0.65)+14.6(1500+200)(1.0471)
20670+25986.54

W = 46,659.022 Ib/hr

5. Pressure Drop
From equation D.4,

∆P = 0.000336 fW 2
di 5 ρ m

∆P = 0.000336 × 0.002 × (46,656.54) 2

(2.3)5 × (11.5243)

∆P = 14628.31591
741.743

∆P = 19.7 psi/100ft
6. Erosional Velocity
From equation D.1,

C
Ve =
ρm

Ve = 100

11.5243

= 29.4573 ft/s

7. Fluid Velocity
From equation D.7,

V= Vt
Π / 4 × (d i / 12) 2

= 1.12
(3.142 / 4) × (2.3 / 12) 2

V = 38.813 ft/s

8. ρV 2

ρV 2 = 11.5243 × (38.813) 2

ρV 2 = 17,360.77 Ib/ft/s2
9. Minimum Pipe Cross-sectional Area

A= 9.35 + ZRT / 21.25 P (from equation D.3)

Ve

A = 9.35+ (0.81)(5882.3529)(580)/(21.25)(1514.7)
29.4573

A = 3.2321 in2/1000 bbl/day

A = 3.23 in2/1000 bbl/day × (1500 bbl/day + 200 bbl/day)

= 5.494 in.

10. Minimum Required Line Size

From equation D.9,

d= 4A / Π

d = 4 × 5.49 / 3.142

d = 2.64 in

Friction factor
The friction factor used for the purpose of this validation report was taken from API RP 14E
sample calculation.
There is no basis for establishing the friction factor used in the sample calculation since the
viscosity of the fluid is not stated in the example thus making it impossible to establish the
Reynolds number to be used on Moody friction factor graph.
For all other cases, the Moody friction factor shall be determined from the iterative solution
developed by Colebrook or Olga friction factor correlation which also gives the same answer
as Colebrook. (See GPSA-chapter 17 page 4.)

ε
= (− )2 log10 (
1 2.51
Colebrook: + )
fm 3 .7 D Re fm

20000ε 1000000 1 / 3
Olga: f = 0.0055[ 1 + (( )+ ) ]
d Re

CONCLUSION
The 2-phase line sizing excel spreadsheet and the manual calculation gave the same results as
shown in API RP 14E Appendix A sample calculation.

REFERENCES
• API Recommended practice 14E – Offshore Production Platform Piping
System
• GPSA Engineering Data Book.

ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1: Excel spreadsheet for 2-phase line sizing
Attachment 2: API RP 14E, Appendix A.
Attachment 3: GPSA Section 17.
 Revision: 0
CAKASA
Date: 18-Sep-08
Cakasa Nig. Company Ltd. Issued By: O.I
Client: Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited Checked By: O.O
Project: Ubit GA & GC Slot Addition Project Approved By: O.O
2-PHASE LINE SIZING - API 14E
Input
Description Unit
General Data
Line Number -
Hysys Stream Number - API 14E Initial API 14E Final API 14E Final
Line pressure psig 4500 1500 4500
o
Temp F 120 120 120
Gas Process Data

Flow Rate mmscfd 15 10 10

Specific Gravity - 0.65 0.65 0.65
Compressibility - 0.91 0.81 0.81
Liquid Process Data
Oil Flowrate bbl/day 750 200 200
Specific Gravity - 0.80 0.80 0.80
Water Flowrate bbl/day 0 1500 1500
Water Specific Gravity - 1 1.08 1.08
Pipe Data
Nominal Diameter inch 4 3 4
Piping class. - D D D
Size / Schedule - 4- XXS 3- XXS 4- XXS
Roughness inch 0.0019 0.0019 0.0019
Empirical Constant; C - 100 100 100
Intermediate
Absolute Pressure psia 4514.70 1514.70 1514.70
o
Absolute Temperature R 580 580 580
Total Stream Mass Flow Lb/hr 39,765 46,658.00 46,658.00
Total Stream Volume Flow ft3/s 0.62 1.125 1.127
Friction factor - 0.0196 0.02 0.0196
Internal Diameter (ID) inch 3.152 2.3 3.152
Results
Mean Liquid SG - 0.80 1.0471 1.0471
GOR ft3/bbl 20,000 5,882.35 5,882.35
Mean density lb/ft3 17.75 11.5 11.5
Pressure drop psi/100ft 1.9 19.7 4.0
Erosional Velocity ft/s 23.7 29.5 29.5
Fluid Velocity ft/s 11.48 38.97 20.796
ρv2 Lb/ft/s² 2,340.47 17,504 4,973.2
Minimum Pipe Cross Sectional Area in2 3.77 5.49 5.49
Minimum Required Line Size in 2.19 2.64 2.64
Selected Line Size in 4.00 3.00 4.00
Comments :
Pressure Loss Due to Friction is the sum of the ∆ Pf values calculated for the individual seg-
ments. For gas applications the segmental length may be rela-
Flow is always accompanied by friction. This friction results tively short, as compared to liquid applications, since many gas
in a loss of energy available for work. A general equation for applications involve compressible gases where gas densities vary
pressure drop due to friction is the Darcy-Weisbach2 (often re- with pressure.
ferred to as simply the Darcy) equation. This equation can be
rationally derived by dimensional analysis, with the excep- Friction Factor and Effect of Pipe Roughness
tion of the friction factor, f m, which must be determined ex-
perimentally. Expressed in feet of fluid this equation is: When the fluid flow is laminar (Re<2000), the friction factor
has a direct relationship to the Reynolds number, such that:
2
fm L V
hL = Eq 17-6 fm = 64 /Re or ff = 16 /Re Eq 17-8
2gD
Pipe roughness has no effect on the friction factor in laminar
Converting to pounds per square inch, the equation be- flow.
comes:
Substitution of the formula for Reynolds number, Eq 17-4,
ρ fm L V2
∆Pf = Eq 17-7 into Eq 17-8, yields the following:
(144 ) D (2gc)
64 µe ⎛ 64 ⎞ ⎛ µ ⎞ ⎛ 12 ⎞
It should be noted that the Moody friction factor3, fm, is used in fm = = ⎜ ⎟⎜ ⎟⎜ ⎟ Eq 17-9
the equations above. Some equations are shown in terms of the
DVρ ⎝ Vρ ⎠ ⎝ 1488 ⎠ ⎝ d ⎠
Fanning friction factor, ff, which is one fourth of fm (fm = 4.0 ff). A This expression can then be substituted for the friction fac-
graph of both Fanning and Moody friction factors as a function tor in Eq 17-7, resulting in the following formula for pressure
of Reynolds number appears in Fig. 17-2. loss in pounds per square inch:
The Darcy-Weisbach equation is valid for both laminar and µLV
∆Pf = 0.000668 Eq 17-10
turbulent flow of any liquid, and may also be used for gases with d2
certain restrictions. When using this equation, changes in eleva- Eq 17-10 is commonly known as Poiseuille’s law for laminar
tion, velocity, or density must be accounted for by applying Ber- flow.
noulli’s theorem. The Darcy-Weisbach equation must be applied
to line segments sufficiently short such that fluid density is es- When the flow is turbulent, the friction factor depends on
sentially constant over that segment. The overall pressure drop the Reynolds number and the relative roughness of the pipe,

FIG. 17-2
Friction Factors5

17-3
ε/D, which is the roughness of the pipe, ε, over the pipe diame- Examination of the relationships presented by various
ter, D. Fig. 17-2 incorporates the relative roughness of the pipe authors shows that their forms differ primarily in the inherent
into the determination of the friction factor. Fig. 17-3 indicates or specified representation of the transmission factor which
relative roughness and friction factors for various piping ma- defines the energy lost in resistance to flow for various pipe
terials. These figures are based on the iterative solution of the sizes, roughnesses, flow conditions, and gases.
following equation developed by Colebrook.4
To obtain Eq 17-15, which is convenient for general calcula-
1 ⎛ ε 2.51 ⎞ tions, a number of simplifying assumptions have been made.
= −2 log10 ⎜ + ⎟ Eq 17-11
⎯⎯fm
√ ⎝ 3.7 D Re √
⎯⎯fm ⎠ For other than pipeline sections with a very high pressure
gradient, the change in the kinetic energy of the gas is not
Equivalent Length of Valves and Fittings significant, and is assumed equal to zero. It is also assumed
that the gas temperature is constant at an average value for
The pressure drop effects of valves and fittings can be ac-
the section considered; the compressibility factor is constant
counted for by addition of the "equivalent lengths" of the fit-
at the value characterized by the average gas temperature and
tings to the actual piping lengths. This augmented pipe length
pressure; and in the term giving the effect of elevation change,
is then used in any of the following pressure drop calculation
the pressure is constant at the average value. In the range of
techniques. A table of equivalent lengths for a number of rep-
conditions to which pipeline flow equations are ordinarily ap-
resentative valves and fittings appears in Fig. 17-4.
plied, averages are usually sufficiently accurate. Average tem-
Compressibility of Gases peratures are calculated as indicated in Fig. 17-1.
For more accurate values of Z, refer to Section 23. For more The average pressure in the line can be computed by:
approximate calculations, the value of the average compressi- 2⎛ P1 P2 ⎞
Pavg = P + P2 −
3 ⎜⎝ 1 P1 + P2 ⎟⎠
bility factor, Zavg, may be calculated from the following equa- Eq 17-16
tions:
In the absence of field data indicating otherwise, an effi-
1
Zavg = Eq 17-12 ciency factor, E, of 1.0 is usually assumed.
(Fpv)2
The AGA Equations — The AGA Equations were devel-
and oped to approximate partially and fully turbulent flow using
⎡ (Pavg ) (3.444 ) (105) (10(1.785) (S)) ⎤ two different transmission factors. The fully turbulent flow
Fpv = 1 + ⎢ ⎥ Eq 17-13 equation accounts for the relative pipe roughness, ε/D, based
⎣ T3.825
avg ⎦ on the rough-pipe law.4 This equation uses the following trans-
Fig. 17-5 contains a plot of the deviation factor, Fpv, virtually mission factor:
identical to those calculated by this equation. ⎛ 3.7 D ⎞
√1/ff = 4 log10 ⎜
⎯⎯⎯ ⎟ Eq 17-17
An estimate for Zavg at pressures below 100 psi is: ⎝ ε ⎠
1 When the transmission factor for fully turbulent flow is sub-
Zavg = Eq 17-14
1 + 0.0002 Pavg stituted in the general energy equation (Eq 17-15), the AGA
Equation for fully turbulent flow becomes:
0.5

SINGLE PHASE FLOW ⎛ Tb ⎞ ⎡ ⎛ 3.7 D ⎞ ⎤ ⎡ P21 − P22 ⎤ 2.5

Q = 38.77 ⎜ ⎟ E ⎢ 4 log10 ⎜ ⎟ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥ d
⎝ Pb ⎠ ⎣ ⎝ ε ⎠ ⎦ ⎣ S Lm Tavg Zavg⎦
Transmission Line Gas Flow Eq 17-18
Isothermal Flow — The steady-state, isothermal flow be- The partially turbulent flow equation is based on the
havior of gas in pipelines is defined by a general energy equa- smooth-pipe law4 and is modified to account for drag-inducing
tion of the form: elements. The transmission factor for this equation is:
0.5
⎛ Tb ⎞ 1 ⎡ P21 − P22 ⎤ 2.5 Re
Q = 38.77 ⎜ ⎟ E √⎯ ⎢ ⎥ d Eq 17-15 ⎯⎯⎯
√1/ff = 4 log10
1/ff
⎯⎯⎯
√
− 0.6 Eq 17-19
P
⎝ ⎠b f f ⎣ S Lm T avg Z avg ⎦
This equation is completely general for steady-state flow, Substituting √
⎯⎯⎯
1/ff from Eq 17-19 into Eq 17-15 does not pro-
and adequately accounts for variations in compressibility fac- vide an equation which can be solved directly. For partially
tor, kinetic energy, pressure, and temperature for any typical turbulent flow a frictional drag factor must also be applied to
line section. However, the equation as derived involves an un- account for the effects of pipe bends and irregularities. These
specified value of the transmission factor, √ ⎯⎯⎯
1/ff . The correct calculations are beyond the scope of this book and the AGA
representation of this friction factor is necessary to the valid- "Steady Flow in Gas Pipelines"6 should be consulted for a de-
ity of the equation. tailed treatment of partially turbulent flow.

The friction factor is fundamentally related to the energy The Weymouth Equation — The Weymouth Equation,
lost due to friction. In the derivation of the general energy published in 19127, evaluated the coefficient of friction as a
equation, all irreversibilities and non-idealities, except for function of the diameter.
those covered by the real gas law, have been collected into the 0.008
ff = Eq 17-20
friction loss term. d1/3
Empirical methods historically and currently used to calcu-
late or predict the flow of gas in a pipeline are the result of √1/ff = 11.18 d1/6
⎯⎯⎯ Eq 17-21
various correlations of the transmission factor substituted When the friction factor, ff, is substituted in the general en-
into the general energy equation. ergy equation, Weymouth’s Equation becomes:

17-4