The Aker Solutions sand cleaning system has been designed to efficiently clean out remaining oil from the separated sand. It is used as a post treatment after either online desanding with desander cyclones or after jetting of production separators.
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Advantages of the Aker Solutions sand cleaning system
- Combination of jetting and sand cleaning in closed loop, without disturbing main separation process
- Adapt to handle all operating pressures in the separator
- Automated or manual operation
- Minimized utilization of valves and pumps in slurry service
- Compact system, easy to fit existing process
- Patented and well proven flushing and solids removal system from the accumulator
- Fit to handle all sand production rates
Both online desanding system and jetting systems can be connected to the sand cleaning system. The design of the system is based upon Aker Solutions online desanding and jetting systems, but it can be designed for any desanding and jetting systems. After treatment in the sand cleaning system the sand is ready for disposal.
The system guarantees typical requirements for sand disposal: Oil in sand: < 1 percent wt. The capacity of the san cleaning system can be designed to fit the customers needs and requirements.
Principle of Operation
Sand is dumping either continuously or batch wise from desander vessel and/or jetted from SandPanTM Jetting System in production separator to a sand cleaning vessel. This vessel consists of a top part containing desander liners, and a bottom part, which is an accumulator. Sand from several separators and/or desander vessels can be dumped into one sand cleaning vessel.
When the sand level in the sand cleaning vessel reaches its target level, the package is isolated from the separators and desander vessels. The sand is then washed through a closed loop between the package and a jet water vessel (a separator may be used as jet water vessel). The sand is run several times through the desander cyclones. The oil is
leaving with the water at the top of the cyclones while sand is dumping down in the accumulator part of the sand cleaning vessel. Water from a jet water vessel is pumped by booster pumps to act as motive fluid to the eductor, which sucks out sand from the sand cleaning vessel in order to send it back to the desander cyclones at the top of the vessel.
After an ascertained time (typically 30 - 60 minutes) the sand cleaning is stopped and the water in the desander is exchanged with clean service water. The clean sand is then flushed and disposed to the dump caisson by the use of clean service water. Following this, a new jetting operation can then be started.