Abstract: A treater for electrostatically separating emulsified water from oil during longitudinal flow through a horizontally elongated coalescing section has a number of baffles with adjacent electrostatic wing grids therein. The electrostatic wing grids are externally connected to two or more transformers so that a higher voltage may be applied to subsequent grids along the coalescing section. Each of the electrostatic wing grids includes a front face and perpendicular side edges and a perpendicular bottom edge to extend the electrostatic field out beyond the front face, so as to enhance the electrostatic action and more efficiently remove water from the emulsion. The baffles preferably extend downwardly to a water/oil interface, so as to increase the efficiency of the emulsion flowing through the coalescing section and ensure that the electrostatic field is applied to the emulsion.

Abstract: A compact device for coalescing finely dispersed droplets of a conductive fluid emulsified in a stream of nonconductive fluid by the use of a high intensity electric field acting on the emulsion as it flows through a narrow flow gap under non-laminar flow conditions. The emulsion is introduced into the top of a vertically mounted cylindrical vessel or shell, and flows through one or more narrow, annular flow gaps formed between one or more electrodes, or an internal wall of the device. The broken emulsion is discharged from the bottom of the vessel, after having a short residence time in the high-intensity electrostatic field. The flow of the emulsion in the one or all of the narrow, annular flow gaps is non-laminar to provide substantially smaller equipment size, even with emulsions having high water content therein.

Abstract: The treating apparatus and method of the present invention improve the efficiency and reliability of flash treating crude oil by including a recycled oil pumping loop that takes crude oil from a flashing section of a vessel and feeds it to either the inlet of a treater section or through a heater into a connecting pipe between the treater section and the flashing section, thereby eliminating the need of a fired heater in the flashing section.