ANALYSIS OF THE INCLINATION INFLUENCE IN A COALESCER COLUMN FOR OIL/WATER TREATMENT VIA COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS

Abstract

Among the equipments used in the separation of water from oil, bed coalescers stands out. Even after decades of bed coalescer development, the role of some variables, such as apparatus inclination, in its behavior remains underexplored within the field. Thus, using the ANSYS CFX 13.0 software, a modeling was proposed to determine the influence of bed coalescer inclination in the separation rate of oil from produced water. The software analyzes four inclinations relative to the horizontal axis (0°, 15°, 30° and 60°). The results from simulations identified oil accumulating zones and presence of recirculation zones. It also compared the pressure drop throughout the apparatus in all inclinations established, noting that a more favorable state occurs when the bed is at horizontal, presenting higher oil accumulation, fewer vorticity, and lower pressure drop. The less desirable scenario occurs with 60° inclination, displaying a lower separation efficiency, greater pressure drop, and higher turbulence effect.