


The ViPA, Visual Process Analyser, provides much more than simple oil in water data; with full particle size distributions and concentration measurements for both droplets and solids, all online, the ViPA is a unique tool for full fluid characterisations.
The ViPA can be used anywhere throughout the produced water and sea water treatment processes, from downstream of the first stage separator through all stages of separation and filtration to discharge or injection.
The main application areas for ViPA are produced water injection monitoring, sea water quality monitoring, overboard discharge monitoring and for oily water separation process control.
The ViPA can be used to ensure that separation equipment is always functioning optimally, that chemical usage is managed efficiently and for the early identification of process upsets.
Having true oil droplet size distribution information after the first stage separator can improve the use of production chemicals, optimising dose rates, minimising environmental impact and costs, while maximising their effectiveness. This information also allows the confident specification of all downstream separation equipment and gives genuine information on separation efficiency and status.
Where produced water is re-injected, determining the size and concentration of both oil droplets and solid particulates is a powerful tool to reduce injectivity losses, as the size and concentration of different materials affect the formation's porosity differently. Where the formation is soft and injection has to be maintained at less than fracture pressure this becomes increasingly more important.
Continuously monitoring the oil concentration in overboard water allows operators to improve the quality of water discharged but, more critically, the ViPA's full suite of data on trends in discharge water quality allows pre-emptive action to be taken to maintain the process fluid within the required specifications because the droplet size data and solids data is diagnostic to process problems.
The ViPA can operate continuously on-line at high pressure and elevated temperatures and uses a video microscope in a rugged assembly consisting of a video camera and lens and a light source to examine the discrete particular content of a liquid - solids, droplets and bubbles. Available as hazardous area certified packages and with options for a fully bespoke engineered instrument pack, ViPA is the market leading technology for online water quality measurement in the oil and gas industries.