The successful design and operation of a multiphase production system must consider the entire system, from the reservoir to the separators, and beyond. To assure that the entire system can be designed, built, and operated successfully and economically, system designers must consider and/or control reservoir characteristics and production profiles, produced fluids properties and behavior, the design of major system, operating strategies, and other system variables.

Important system parameters established as part of this system design effort include flow diameters (tubing and flowlines), maximum and minimum production/flow rates, insulation (tubing, flowlines, wellheads, trees, and manifolds), chemical injection and storage requirements, flow blockage intervention needs, strategies, and techniques, host facility requirements (flow receivers, fluids handling, pigging, blockage prevention/intervention/remediation capability, etc.), and capital / operating costs.

Flow Assurance
Flow Assurance encompasses the thermal-hydraulic design and assessment of multiphase production/flow systems as well as the prediction, prevention, and/or remediation of flow stoppages due to solids formation and/or deposition, particularly due to hydrates and waxes. In all cases, Flow Assurance must consider the capabilities and requirements for all parts of the system throughout the entire producing life of the system.

Operability
In effecting a system design, the entire system from the reservoir to the separators (and possibly beyond) has to be considered to determine applicable operating parameters, flow diameters, flow rates, insulation for tubing, flowline, and manifold, chemical injection requirements, host facilities, intervention needs and techniques, operating strategies and procedures, etc. to assure that the entire system can be built and operated successfully and economically. All production modes including startup, steady state, rate change and shut-in throughout the system life-cycle, must be considered.

Operating strategies and procedures for successful system designs are robust. That is, they are developed with system unknowns and uncertainties in mind and can be readily adapted to work with the system that is found to exist, even when that is different than assumed during design.

INTEC has made significant contributions in the assessment of system operability issues and in developing operating strategies to avoid the formation of hydrate or wax plugs at any time during system operation. These capabilities have been developed on long-offset, deepwater, subsea development projects for several clients. INTEC's capabilities in this area continue to evolve.