Process Simulation in Support of Materials Testing & Selection

As offshore oil & gas exploration & production has moved into deeper water, material selection for these high pressure & high temperature environments has become more challenging.   Due to the difficulty of performing materials testing at HPHT conditions, lab tests to qualify materials are often performed at lower pressure & temperature with conditions selected to be at least as severe as the field conditions.  However, the choice of the appropriate field parameter (e.g. acid gas partial pressure vs fugacity vs concentration in the aqueous phase) to match in the lab test is not always straightforward. Moreover, the experimental procedures needed to achieve and maintain the target conditions during the lab test have to be carefully determined. In this presentation, the role of process simulation in designing and interpreting materials tests will be discussed using several case studies.