JAWAHARLAL NEHRU TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY HYDERABAD B.Tech IV SURFACE PRODUCTION OPERATIONS Previous Question Paper (October/November - 2020 - R16)

Production facilities are surface installations designed to process, store, and transport hydrocarbons from the reservoir to the point of sale. They are categorized based on their location and processing capability:

• Wellhead Facilities: Located at the well site, these include the Christmas tree, flow lines, and initial separation equipment to manage pressure and control flow.
• Gathering Stations: These facilities collect fluids from multiple wellheads through a network of flow lines. They perform primary separation of oil, gas, and water.
• Central Processing Facilities (CPF): Large-scale plants where fluids from multiple gathering stations are treated to meet pipeline specifications, including dehydration, desulfurization, and stabilization.
• Storage and Export Facilities: These include tank farms for crude oil storage and pumping/compression stations for transporting hydrocarbons to refineries or markets.
• Offshore Platforms: Specialized structures (fixed, floating, or subsea) that integrate drilling and processing equipment to handle production in marine environments.

Offshore platform design requires careful consideration of environmental and operational factors:

• Environmental Loads: Platforms must withstand wave forces, wind, currents, and potential seismic activity.
• Water Depth: Determines the structural type, such as fixed jackets for shallow water or Tension Leg Platforms (TLP) and FPSOs for deep water.
• Logistics and Safety: Considerations include helideck requirements, emergency evacuation systems, and supply vessel accessibility.
• Weight and Space Constraints: Offshore space is limited and expensive, requiring compact, modular processing equipment.

Gas Lift is an artificial lift method used to increase production by reducing the hydrostatic pressure in the wellbore. High-pressure gas is injected into the production tubing, which mixes with the reservoir fluid, lowering the density of the fluid column. This reduction in weight allows the reservoir pressure to push the fluid to the surface more effectively. The process involves a compressor station, gas injection lines, and gas lift valves installed on the tubing string to regulate the flow of injected gas.