O processo de eletrocoalescência na separação de água e óleo em emulsões modelo e de petróleo

Abstract

The electrocoalescence process is widely used in the petroleum industry for separation of water in oil emulsions. However, the understanding of process mechanisms is not yet complete due to the high complexity of the system, which involves electrostatic and dynamic interactions. Thus, this dissertation aims at understanding the relationship between the operating parameters and performance of this process. In order to do that, model and oil emulsions were developed with different stabilities, mean droplet diameters and composition of the oil and aqueous phases, treated in a laboratory scale batch electrostatic equipment, evaluating the effects caused by variations of the voltage, frequency and waveform of the electrical field. Similar results were obtained for the model and oil emulsions. The presence of salt in the aqueous phase, smaller drop diameters and larger surfactant concentrations allowed for preparation of more stable emulsions. The higher values of voltage and frequency were accompanied by lower water content at the end of the process, being observed that there is a limiting voltage value above which this effect is inverted. The effect of the waveform is related to the average voltage value, and consequently to the imposed energy. Therefore, the effect of the waveform on the water removal efficiency is similar to the effect of voltage.