SSD – ING-IND/27, 4 CFU (42 hours)
Teacher: prof. Samir Bensaid (collaborators Prof. Giuseppe Pipitone and Prof. Micaela De Michela)
LEARNING CONTENTS PRESENATION
The course is devoted to the study of the processes performed at the well head to separate and then treat the gas and liquid streams; fluids transportation included. In particular, theoretical and practical case studies will focus on natural gas treatments (removal of water and acidic molecules) as well as oil stabilization (removal of sulfur-containing molecules). In addition, in a safety-related context, the fundamentals of accident analysis and their management are provided.
EXPECTED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Aim of the course is providing a critical knowledge on the processes carried out on oil and gas streams to allow for their transportation in safety conditions and guarantee stable downstream operations. The student will also develop a quantitative understanding of the phenomena thank to the use of simulation software.
PROGRAMME
The following list shows the main subjects tackled during the course:
- Formation, removal, and prevention of hydrates in natural gas
- Natural gas sweetening
- Natural gas dehydration
- Crude oil sweetening
- Sulfur recovery (Claus process)
- Natural gas transportation through in-shore and off-shore pipelines
TEACHING METHODOLOGY
The course is divided between theoretical (24 hours) and practical (18 hours) lessons. The former have the goal of analyzing the stabilization of oil and gas looking at the used facilities, the process conditions used to perform the upgrade steps and the safety management (tools and methods, root cause investigation, human factors, safe and unsafe conditions as accident precursors); the latter is focused on the quantitative consequences of the theoretical issues reported in the first part, using a simulation software to evaluate realistic case studies.