Remediation of rag layer and other disposable layers in oil tanks and storage equipment

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11920091-B2
Application number	US-202218088685-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 26, 2022
Priority date	Jun 12, 2017
Publication date	Mar 5, 2024
Grant date	Mar 5, 2024

Abstract

The subject invention provides microbe-based products, as well as their use to improve oil production and refining efficiency by, for example, remediating the disposable layers in oil tanks and other oil storage units. In preferred embodiments, the microbe-based products comprise biochemical-producing yeast and growth by-products thereof, such as, e.g., biosurfactants. The subject invention can be used to remediate rag layer and/or other dissolved solid layers that form in water-oil emulsions. Furthermore, the subject invention can be used for remediating solid impurities, such as sand, scale, rust and clay, in produced water, flow-back, brine, and/or fracking fluids.

First claim

We claim:

1. A method of demulsifying and desalting recovered crude oil fluids, comprising:
applying to the recovered crude oil fluids a composition comprising Starmerella bombicola or Wickerhamomyces anomalus yeast, wherein said recovered crude oil fluids are stored in an oil storage tank and comprise one or more impurities and a water-oil or oil-water emulsion,
mixing the composition and the recovered crude oil fluids in the oil storage tank until the water-oil or oil-water emulsion demulsifies into a water phase and a hydrocarbon phase and the one or more impurities separate from the hydrocarbon phase, and
extracting the water phase and the one or more impurities from the hydrocarbon phase, wherein the one or more impurities comprise dissolved solids.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein mixing is performed using an air pump or an agitator.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the crude oil fluids comprise heavy crude oil.

4. The method of claim 1 , used to remediate an amount of rag layer present in the crude oil fluids.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the composition is applied to the crude oil fluids in an amount equal to or greater than the amount of rag layer in the crude oil fluids.

Assignees

• Locus Solutions Ipco Llc

Inventors

• Farmer Sean
• Alibek Ken
• Adams Kent
• Karathur Karthik N

Classifications

• C10G32/00 Primary

  Refining of hydrocarbon oils by electric or magnetic means, by irradiation, or by using microorganisms · CPC title

• B01D17/047

  with separation aids · CPC title

• C02F1/50

  by addition or application of a germicide or by oligodynamic treatment {(C02F1/4606, C02F1/467, C02F1/76 take precedence)} · CPC title

• C02F3/347

  Use of yeasts or fungi (C02F3/322 takes precedence) · CPC title

• C09K8/58

  Compositions for enhanced recovery methods for obtaining hydrocarbons, i.e. for improving the mobility of the oil, e.g. displacing fluids · CPC title