Heavy (low API gravity) crude oils are more difficult to dehydrate than light crude oils. Traditional treatment systems for dehydration of heavy crude oil use large separators and large amounts of heat, in combination with the dosing of large quantities of demulsifier chemicals. The traditional treatment systems are bulky and require large structures / deck area for support.
This paper demonstrates that heavy crude oils can effectively be dehydrated (achieve pipeline BS&W specification) using disc stack centrifuges. Due to the compactness of the disc stack centrifuges and the relatively small hold up volumes, the treatment facility can be made more compact and reduce both the required deck space and structural support load on the structure. P. 371
