Application of Machine Learning in Gas-Hydrate Formation and Trendline Prediction

Natural Gas production and transportation are at risk of Gas hydrate plugging especially when in offshore environments where temperature is low and pressure is high. These plugs can eventually block the pipeline, increase back pressure, stop production and ultimately rupture gas pipelines. This study seeks to develops machine learning models after a kinetic inhibitor to predict the gas hydrate formation and pressure changes within the natural gas flow line. Green hydrate inhibitor A, B and C were obtained as plant extracts and applied in low dosages (0.01 wt.% to 0.1 wt.%) on a 12meter skid-mounted hydrate closed flow loop. From the data generated, the optimal dosages of inhibitor A, B and C were observed to be 0.02 wt.%, 0.06 wt.% and 0.1 wt.% respectively. The data associated with these optimal dosages were fed to a set of supervised machine learning algorithms (Extreme gradient boost, Gradient boost regressor and Linear regressor) and a deep learning algorithm (Artificial Neural Network). The output results from the set of supervised learning algorithms and Deep Learning algorithms were compared in terms of their accuracies in predicting the hydrate formation and the pressure within the natural gas flow line. All models had accuracies greater than 90%. This result show that the application Machine learning to solving flow assurance problems is viable. The results show that it is viable to apply machine learning algorithms to solve flow assurance problems, analyzing data and getting reports which can improve accuracy and speed of on-site decision making process.