USE OF TUBING COATINGS AND SCALE INHIBITORS TO PREVENT SCALING

The problem of formation of inorganic scaling in tubing is a common problem in oil production processes. The formation of salts on the inner surface of the tubing leads to a significant narrowing of the flow section of the pipe. An urgent task is to find methods, the use of which will either prevent or reduce the formation of inorganic scaling on the walls of pipes. Methods of removing scaling from the tubing are expensive, time consuming, and require shutdown of the oil production facility. Therefore, it is preferable to use methods for preventing salt formation in tubing. Methods of preventing the processes of scaling in the tubing include physical, chemical and technological. The most common method of preventing scaling is the use of scale inhibitors (chemical method). The use of internal protective pipe coatings (technological method) as a measure to prevent the formation of inorganic scaling on the walls of the tubing is a promising, but not fully studied method. The use of coatings is promising, since in addition to the potential reduction in the formation of scaling on the walls of pipes, their main function is corrosion protection.One of the methods of preventing salt formation in the tubing may be the integrated use of internal protective coatings of the tubing and scale inhibitors. But, since this method is not universal, an individual selection of the most effective coating-inhibitor combination will be required for each oil production facility. Selection of an effective coating-inhibitor combination using pilot field tests is an expensive and time-consuming procedure, therefore, it is necessary to develop a laboratory method to solve this problem. The article proposes a method that makes it possible to evaluate the effectiveness of the complex use of protective coatings and scale inhibitors to prevent the formation of inorganic salts on the inner surface of tubing in laboratory conditions. The results of bench tests for 9 grades of protective coatings and for 6 grades of scale inhibitors (in different dosages) are presented.