Glossary
- Cryogenic fluids: fluids that are obtained by cooling down gases to greatly reduce their volume hence facilitating their transportation onshore (by pipelines) or overseas (cryogenic ship tankers). Cryogenic fluids include LNG (liquefied methane at -162°C), LPG (liquefied propane at -42°C/liquefied butane at -1°C).
- Deep water range: -500m to -1000m.
- EPC: Engineering, Procurement and Construction.
- Flow Assurance: this expression includes all issues important to maintaining the flow of oil & gas from reservoir to the processing facilities (platform, FPSO).
- FEED: Front- End Engineering Design. Basic Engineering.
- FPSO: Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading. Converted ship or specific floating unit used to process crude oil or gas and to temporarily store oil and gas products prior to shipping onshore.
- Gas hydrates: stable forms of ice occurring when water and small gas molecules combine at temperature around 20°C (68°F) and pressures of 10-20MPa (1450-2900psi) ( and above. Hydrates can ultimately lead to pipeline blockage.
- HP/HT: High Pressure/ High Temperature.
- JIP: Joint Industry Program. A JIP is a temporary joint venture set up to carry out extensive research and development with the financial support of companies interested in having a particular technology developed.
- J-lay: installation method with a vertical tower that gives a J-shape to the pipeline during the laying operation.
- LNG: Liquefied Natural Gas (liquefied methane at -162°C).
- LOI: Letter of Intent. It is a document outlining an agreement between two or more parties before the agreement or contract is finalized.
- LPG: Liquefied Petroleum Gas (liquefied propane at -42°C or liquefied butane at -1°C).
- Pipe-in-pipe (PiP): double wall pipeline made of an inner pipe inserted into a protective carrier pipe. The annular space between the 2 pipes contains insulation material protected from the external pressure by the carrier pipe.
- Riser: pipeline(s) used to convey the oil and gas products from the seabed flowlines to the surface facilities or to inject fluids (liquids or gas) into the well.
- S-lay: offshore installation method with an horizontal firing line and usually several working stations that give a S-shape to the pipeline during the laying operation.
- Tie-back: connection of a satellite field to the existing facilities dedicated to one field.
- Ultra deep water range: beyond 1000m.
- Wax and paraffins: crystalline compounds made of either paraffin hydrocarbons (C18 - C36) known as paraffin wax and naphtenic hydrocarbons (C30 - C60). They deposit on the pipe walls during fluid flow and can lead to pipeline blockage (unless proper insulation is applied on the pipe walls).
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