Title: Experimental investigation of rotating self-propelled cavitation jet for efficient mineral scale removal in oil field tubes

Authors: Jiaxiang Wang; Zunce Wang; Yan Xu; Jinglong Zhang; Sen Li; Guangjian Zhang; Mingming Ge

Addresses: College of Mechanical Science and Engineering, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163318, China ' College of Mechanical Science and Engineering, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163318, China ' College of Mechanical Science and Engineering, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163318, China ' College of Mechanical Science and Engineering, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163318, China ' College of Mechanical Science and Engineering, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163318, China ' Kevin T. Crofton Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA ' Kevin T. Crofton Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA

Abstract: Recognising the advantages of the cavitation jet, we propose the utilisation of a rotating self-propelled cavitation jet for tube cleaning. In this study, we conducted a performance experiment involving an organ pipe cavitation nozzle and subsequently carried out tube cleaning experiments using the cavitation nozzle. These experiments explored varying standoff distances and injection angles to determine the most suitable parameters for effective cleaning. Furthermore, we designed the structure of the rotating self-propelled cavitation nozzle and involved tube-scale cleaning experiments to ascertain the impact of pressure and feed speed on the mineral scale cleaning rate achieved by the rotating self-propelled cavitation nozzle. To validate the cleaning performance of the rotating self-propelled nozzle in real-world well-site conditions, we conducted additional cleaning experiments on-site. The findings of this study offer crucial technical support for the efficient and cost-effective cleaning of mineral scale deposits within tubes. [Received: February 11, 2024; Accepted: March 29, 2024]

Keywords: cavitation jet; tube cleaning; rotating; self-propelled; mineral scale; standoff distance; injection angle.

DOI: 10.1504/IJOGCT.2024.140916

International Journal of Oil, Gas and Coal Technology, 2024 Vol.36 No.3, pp.272 - 295

Received: 02 Feb 2024
Accepted: 29 Mar 2024
Published online: 03 Sep 2024 *

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