NEL makes further investment in high capacity  wet gas test facility

NEL’s Glasgow laboratory is the UK’s only independent commercial facility that can generate wet gas flows using water and oil simultaneously. As it more accurately replicates the real-world conditions faced by industry, uncertainty is reduced and operators’ financial exposure minimised.

This significant investment in bespoke equipment at the wet gas facility will reduce maintenance time, improve flowrates and optimise control of test points - increasing service reliability and improving test completion times for NEL’s customers. In response to increasing industry demand for testing wet gas flows with simultaneous oil and water loading, the facility is capable of dry gas flowrates exceeding 2000 m³/h, in pressures up to 63 bar, alongside simultaneous water and oil injection rates of 90 m³/h. 

NEL has also launched a Joint Industry Project (JIP), inviting partners to work together to review and drive advancements in wet-gas sampling, and reduce uncertainties. The JIP will address challenges caused by the large volume of gas compared to the very small amounts of liquid present in wet gas flow.

Muir Porter, Group Manager at NEL, said: “This upgrade is part of our continued commitment to help our customers meet growing pressure to remain competitive by minimising test times, while optimising uncertainty of measurement. Using our facility, manufacturers can test meters more accurately and quickly, while operators are assured of independent validation and calibration before they embark on the costly process of installing flow meters.”

The move to subsea production and processing has necessitated the introduction of higher capacity flow meters. Along with the drive to reduce the cost of production through the use of shared facilities, this has generated increased demand for more accurate wet gas metering. NEL’s wet gas facility has been designed to more accurately replicate such increased flowrates, to meet both operator and equipment vendors’ demands for an independent facility for development, verification and validation purposes.  

The wet gas facility upgrade forms part of NEL’s strategic direction to make it the facility of choice for both vendors and operators, supporting the development and verification of instruments for multiphase and wet gas flows. NEL’s flow measurement facilities are the primary flow measurement standard for the UK, under the UK’s National Measurement System (NMS).

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/12102017/nel-makes-further-investment-in-high-capacity-wet-gas-testfacility/