Gas oil separation plant
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Gas Oil Separation Plant (GOSP) is a type of plant used primarily in the oil industry. The plant processes crude oil from the well head and separates gases and contaminants from the crude for reasons of safety, economy, and environmental protection. This makes the crude economically viable for storage, processing and export.
Produced crude oil is sent to a GOSP to be divided into oil and associated gases, which are then streamed to oil refineries and gas processing plants respectively. The products of these plants are then sent for supply and distribution.
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[edit] Reasons for processing
[edit] Pressure
The raw crude often leaves the well head under very high pressure. Production pressures of greater than 3000 pounds per square inch have been encountered in some fields. The high pressure makes transportation and storage difficult and dangerous.
[edit] Contaminants
Produced crude oil leaving the well head is both sour (contains hydrogen sulfide gas) and wet (contains water). The crude leaving the well head must be processed and treated to make it safe, environmentally acceptable, and economically viable for storage, processing and export.
[edit] Phase separation
It is often appropriate to separate gases and liquids for separate use. This also involves the separation of oily and water liquid phases.
[edit] Gas recovery
It is not appropriate to burn off the gases associated with crude oil. There are also economic reasons for processing and treating the produced crude. Recovering associated gases prevents wasting a natural resource, which was originally flared off.
[edit] Corrosion
There are also other economic reasons for GOSP. Removing contaminants from the crude, such as salt and hydrogen sulfide, protects the plant from corrosion damage. The initial processing of produced crude oil in a GOSP is also required to meet specifications of the crude for export and oil refining.
