HOUSTON, Nov. 8, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- MicroSilicon announced today that one of its joint research projects received international recognition at the IChemE Global Awards Event in October 2021. Established in 1994, the IChemE Awards celebrate chemical, process and biochemical engineering excellence and attract interest from all over the globe. The awards are widely recognized as the world's most prestigious chemical engineering honors. The winning project was a joint submission between Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Microsilicon that had been initiated by ADNOC and Rice University, Texas, and which was subsequently spun-off to launch the MicroSilicon company.
MicroSilicon built on the original idea of real-time asphaltene monitoring to create the Quantum-RF* System. The system combines electron paramagnetic sensing with real-time dielectric and conductivity measurements to enable an operator to monitor dynamic changes of well fluid chemistry as the fluid exits the wellhead and enters surface production systems. Operational issues traditionally related to fluid sampling can be minimized by plumbing the Quantum RF device directly into the production line, with readings continuously taken from a side stream, thereby avoiding the inconvenience, cost and potential risk of repeated fluid handling. The Quantum-RF System itself has already received international recognition, including being nominated for Best Digital Transformation Technology at 2018 World Oil Awards ceremony.
The specific research project that won the IChemE award related to the use of the Quantum-RF* System to determine and monitor asphaltene levels in real-time and to use that asphaltene information as part of an integrated asphaltene management system. ADNOC determined that changes in asphaltene level in the surface oil changed corresponded to indications of in-well precipitation and consequently anticipates significant cost savings in its chemical management program through the use of this device.
"The Quantum-RF System addressed a challenge we had with real-time chemical analysis for flow assurance purposes, namely whether a real-time device could have the resolution needed to detect small changes in asphaltene concentration," said Dr Dalia Abdallah, ADNOC Onshore Technology Manager, who gave the presentation at the Award ceremony. "By recording data every few hours over a series of wells, we could monitor the device's responsiveness to naturally changing fluid conditions and also gain in-sights on fluid properties of the different wells."
The innovative design of the Quantum-RF sensors had been extensively tested previous to its Middle East deployments, with operations in over 130 US and Canada wells, as well as accuracy comparisons of over 100 oils by an independent third-party organization. In Abu Dhabi, the Quantum-RF system has collected data from over thirty wells over the course of a year.
Media Contact
John Lovell, MicroSilicon Inc, +1 8324591210, [email protected]
John Lovell, [email protected]
SOURCE MicroSilicon Inc
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