This chapter will introduce you to heater treaters. We'll walk through the
basics of separation, types of treaters, and pneumatic and mechanical controls.
A heater treater is the production vessel designed to heat production fluid. When
production fluid is heated, the process of separation is accelerated. The use of
heater treaters to separate crude oil is typically found in the upstream sector.
The emulsion produced from the well is made up of three main elements: oil, gas
and water. The reason we separate these elements is to make them more valuable.
The main goal is to make a natural resource more attractive to the buyer.
Purchasers of crude oil don't want there to be any gas and water in their oil they are buying.
That would hinder them from making the final product that consumers need.
Why are both vertical and horizontal treaters made if they do the same job?
Vertical treaters are a more cost-effective option than horizontal.
Vertical treaters don't require as much pressure to operate as horizontal treaters do.
Vertical treaters reduce the overall footprint of the equipment.
On the other hand, a producer may specify a horizontal treater if they need to
handle higher volumes of fluid. The burner tube in a horizontal treater has
more surface area that comes into contact with the emulsion which allows a
higher flow rate than vertical treaters.
Notice the Kimber products in both pictures.
The vertical treaters use treater valves on the oil and water
dumps while the horizontal treater uses mechanical dump valves.
The other products shown are often used on both vertical and horizontal treaters –
gas back pressure valves, thermostats, and burner valves.
All treaters need to have
some type of burner management system to control the heat. Keeping
a constant temperature in the treater is very important to the separation process.
You don't want things to get too hot, but if they're not hot enough you won't get the separation you need.
Whether the treater is vertical or horizontal all
heater treaters are considered three-phase separators. This means that
all three phases of separation take place – water falls to the bottom of the
treater and is dumped downstream for recycling or disposal. Oil settles just
above the water and is dumped downstream for storage or sales. Gas rises to the
top of the vessel and is piped to a sales line, VRU, flare, or combustor.
Heater treaters are often the last stage of separation before a resource gets stored
or sold so it is important that all three phases get separated.
Operating pressure is a pressure of vessels normally operated at.
Working pressure is the maximum pressure each vessel is rated for
Most modern heater treaters operate at a pressure of up to 125 pounds. Kimray products used on those
treaters have an operating pressure of at least 125 psi. A heater treater can be
operated using pneumatic or mechanical controls. Pneumatic controls are used if
the producer needs to meter fluids. Pneumatic controls can be snap action
which provides more accurate measurement in the metering process.
Pneumatic controls offer more flexibility in sizing as well.
Mechanical controls are still by far the most popular option. They have a lower operating cost and
have minimal emissions when compared to pneumatics you will need to know the
basic flow and connections of a vertical treater when talking with the customer.
The well inlet is where the well stream enters the treater. It may be coming
directly from the wellhead or from another upstream vessel like a free
water knockout which has achieved some initial separation.
The gas outlet is where the gas which rises to the top of the vessel is
removed. It goes to one of two places: flare (or combustion) or sales.
The oil outlet is where the oil which has settled to the middle of the vessel is
processed out for storage and sales. The water outlet on the right side is where
the water which has fallen to the bottom of the vessel is dumped out for
recycling or disposal. Please take the time to familiarize yourself to the
different connections labeled on this picture and the functions of the Kimray products shown.
Thank you for participating in this training.