RI 5920 Effect On Cricondenbar And Other Phase-Boundary Pressures Of Adding Light Hydrocarbons, Nitrogen, And Carbon Dioxide To Oils And Gas-Condensate Fluids ? Summary

The phase-boundary pressure required to maintain a natural hydrocarbon fluid in a single phase must be considered in planning the recovery of reservoir liquids by miscible-phase processes. The change in the phase-boundary pressure at reservoir temperature that results when a light component or a mixture of light components is added to a reservoir fluid is an especially important consideration. The cricondenbar pressure (maximum phase-boundary pressure) and the critical pressure are unique correlated pressures that have been utilized to calculate the change in phase-boundary pressure that may result when the composition of a reservoir liquid is altered by an additive. In this study one reservoir oil and three gas-condensate fluids are used as examples. Correlations pertaining to the critical and cricondenbar states in chapters 4 and 5 of Bureau of Mines Monograph 10 (3)5 were used to demonstrate how butane and lighter components added to these reservoir fluids affect their phase-boundary pressures.