Computational Fluid Dynamics Simulation of a Crude Oil Transport Pipeline: Effect of Crude Oil Properties

Abstract

Transporting crude oil inside a pipeline is a common process in the petroleum industry. Crude oil from different sources has different properties due to terrains and climates which cause the transport profile to change during operations. In this study, the computational fluid dynamics model was developed using computer language code. The governing equations were employed to study the effect of crude oil properties such as crude oil density and viscosity on the transport profile using the 24 factorial experimental design. A good agreement between the developed numerical model and commercial software suggests that the proposed numerical scheme is suitable for simulating the transport profile of crude oil in a pipeline and predicting the phenomena affecting conditions. The result showed that the heat capacity and density of crude oil had statistical significance to the transport profile at 95% confidence level. The heat capacity had the most significant effect on wax appearance. Therefore, the physical properties of crude oil should be modified to prevent the occurrence of wax inside the crude oil pipeline.