Title: Performance Comparison of a Locally Formulated Demulsifier and a Conventional Demulsifier in Crude Oil Demulsification
Authors: Anthony Ogbaegbe Chikwe, Christian Emelu Okalla and Andra Oluomachi Ihuoma
Volume: 9
Issue: 10
Pages: 56-65
Publication Date: 2025/10/28
Abstract:
Crude oil emulsion formation has been a challenging problem in the oil and gas industry. This is normally formed when water is present in crude oil during production and transportation of crude oil, thus, reducing the quality of the crude oil. This could cause problems to the processing facilities and as well increase the cost of operation as it needs to be treated. In this study, bottle test method was conducted using three conventional demulsifier; xylene, sulphuric acid and commercially available demulsifier (CAD), to compare its efficiency to a locally formulated demulsifier at various temperatures, concentrations and time. It was observed from the results that the commercially available demulsifier (CAD) produced a better result in separating a higher volume of water compared to the other demulsifiers used, as it was able to remove a volume of 3.1ml of water at 60oC and 0.4ml of demulsifier concentration. An economic analysis was conducted on the four demulsifers using the production index, internal rate of return (IRR), payback period and net present value (NPV) as the economic parameters for this study. It was observed from the results gotten that the local demulsifer gave a higher value of NPV, IRR, and PI, indicating the possibility of reducing cost and making it the most lucrative choice.