Asphaltene Deposition in Production Facilities

Laboratory and fields studies carried out to determine the point of asphaltene precipitation, asphaltene deposition causing operational problems in the Ula reservoir (Norway). Laboratory observations were made on the regimes of deposition as a function of decreasing pressure down to and below the bubblepoint of live crude oil samples. The tubing areas affected by deposition in the field corresponded to those identified in the laboratory and by subsequent pressure and temperature modeling of the wells.