Developing a Novel Approach for Integrating and Blending an Effective Emulsion Viscosity Model

This paper aims to develop a new, effective emulsion viscosity model by researching various correlations available from open literature. The approach is to blend and adjust these correlations to create a robust model that better characterizes oil-continuous and water-continuous liquid mixtures. The scope of the work includes integrating a phase inversion point calculation and defining a blending method to ensure a smooth and continuous transition between pure liquid phases when estimating effective liquid emulsion viscosity. The technique involved blending and adjusting six correlations for emulsion viscosity, yielding the effective viscosity for oil or water continuous regimes. A calculated inversion point obtained from a published correlation was used to determine the transition between the two regimes. The new model was run in real-time while testing an inline Multiphase Flow Meter (MPFM) at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in May 2023. Robust characterization of effective liquid viscosity in emulsion systems is crucial for reliable multiphase metering, as it directly impacts the calculation of liquid and gas rates via the effective Reynolds number (Re). The results of this study highlight the practicality and robustness of this new emulsion viscosity ensemble model. The observed improvement of gas and liquid rates compared to the reference emphasizes the practical impact of this model in enhancing MPFM measurement accuracy.