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System
Info
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Developments
in materials technology have led to the use of corrosion resistant
alloys for surface and subsurface applications in the oil and gas
industry. This technology has revolutionized the industry in terms
of utilizing metallurgical solutions to corrosion problems versus
conventionally used chemical corrosion inhibitors. Currently, there
is a wide range of available alloys to choose from for these applications.
The
Socrates-B development effort, spanning over thirty months,
has produced a significant software system that aids in making decisions
related to evaluation of different CRA materials in non-production
environment. It is a sister program of the Socrates™
system for selection of CRAs in production environments. Socrates-B
can be used to evaluate CRAs in three types of non-production environments,
completion fluids, stimulation acids and injected water. The Socrates-B
system assesses the severity of each of these environments to determine
applicable CRA materials for service. It also determines a steel
corrosion index indicative of the potential corrosion rates in a
particular environment.
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Details
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The
earlier versions of SOCRATES B system selected CRAs through material
evaluation at five hierarchical levels:
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CRA
evaluation based on mechanical strength parameters, heat treatment/cold
work and hardness limitations |
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Material
selection based on characterization of the environment in terms of
operating pressure, temperature, pH, H2S, Chlorides, Elemental Sulfur,
aeration, Gas to Oil Ratio and Water to Gas Ratio/water cut |
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CRA
evaluation for stress corrosion cracking (SCC), hydrogen embrittlement
cracking (HEC) and sulfide stress cracking (SSC) |
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CRA
evaluation for resistance to pitting corrosion |
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Selection
of final set of materials based on application related constraints. |
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The current Windows implementation is more flexible in that the user
can use and apply constraints at any specific level without regard
to the hierarchy. Socrates comes equipped with a database of about
155 alloys that can be accessed by the user from the Socrates
interface. Further, the system comes with a cost analysis module that
allows the user to compare costs of utilization of different alloys. |
| Benefits |
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Microsoft®
Windows based tool that can run on most common personal computers. |
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Easy
to use graphical interface makes using the system a simple task. |
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Cost
analysis module facilitates comparison of project cost when using
different materials. |
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Can
be easily installed on any stand-alone or network system compatible
with Windows/Windows NT/Windows for Work groups/Windows-95, 98,2000,
XP operating system. |
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Can
lead to significant reduction in time spent assessing corrosion and
can be a means for obtaining cost-effective automated solutions. |
