American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2022 - 77

Richards attributes part of automation's
popularity to its growing affordability.
" At VanZandt, we often work with customers
to retrofit existing sites that are
too marginal or peripheral to a company's
core business to justify long-term investments, "
he reports. " The key is understanding
the customer's goals and recommending
options that balance visibility
and control with cost. "
Many retrofit projects are motivated
by ever-lower emission limits. " In the
Permian, changing regulations have dramatically
lowered the amount of total
volatile organic compounds that can be
emitted not only by location, but by individual
devices. These lower limits come
with more onerous reporting regulations, "
Richards relates.
" To reduce emissions and simplify reporting,
it often makes sense to replace
pneumatic valve actuators-which vent
gas every time they open and close the
valve-with electric ones, " Richards advises.
" Installing electric actuators powered
by a small solar panel can cost less than
devoting manpower and time to documenting
minor pneumatic leaks, and electric
actuators come with the side benefit
of tying into computer systems and providing
greater visibility. "
For compact locations, instrument air
can offer a lower-cost alternative to electric
actuators, Richards continues. " Electric
power is preferred when a site has access
to clean power, but we sold a lot of automated
air compressor skids in 2021 and
expect that to continue, " he says. " When
a site moves to instrument air, the pneumatic
components can stay. Only the
power source changes, so when a site is
small enough for the compression system
to distribute air efficiently, pneumatics
can be quite cost-effective. "
Vortex Meters For Gas Lift
As automation moves forward, so does
the equipment it controls, Richards assures.
As a case in point, he cites skids for controlling
gas lift injection rates. " Historically,
these skids required a meter run
behind the control valve, " Richards mentions.
" Today, we are replacing the meter
run with a vortex meter to save $2,000$10,000
for each application. "
Richards compares the vortex meter
with an indestructible iron skillet. " There
Skids for controlling gas lift injection rates are one of many areas benefiting from improvements
in automation and equipment. VanZandt Controls LLC says the latest skids
replace the meter run that traditionally would go behind the control valve with a vortex
flowmeter that costs less to install and requires no maintenance.
are no moving parts and no maintenance, "
he explains. " The meter can run for 10
years or more without a significant change
in its K value or reliability. There is no
need to periodically replace orifice plates
and almost no chance of particulate matter
or paraffin clogging the line. "
Vortex meters work by measuring the
vortices generated by a small obstruction
(a stationary shedder bar) in the flow
path. Richards says the meters excel in
gas and produced water applications.
" Once they see how robust the meters
are, customers often convert similar applications
to vortex meters across the
field, " he reports.
The vortex meters work well in sandprone
situations, Richards mentions. The
devices also handle wet gas, so when
customers began asking for ways to measure
the amount of gas captured by vapor
recovery units, VanZandt developed a
vortex-based metering tube that costs far
less than a meter run, he relates.
VanZandt generally recommends vortex
flowmeters from Schneider Electric, for
which the company serves as the master
distributor in the Permian Basin, the Eagle
Ford, the Texas Panhandle and Oklahoma.
The company's meter is accurate, reliable
and affordable, as well as easy to tie into
supervisory control and data acquisition
systems, Richards assesses.
" Schneider has been a fantastic partner, "
Richards praises. " When supply chain issues
come up, as has often happened during the
past two years, they work with us to solve
problems and take care of customers. "
Vapor Recovery
With operators of all sizes zeroing in
on managing emissions from production
operations, vapor recovery units have
quickly become a standard component
on the lease site, particularly in new pad
developments where production from
multiple wells is aggregated at central
tank batteries, according to John Senor,
product manager at SCS Technologies in
Big Spring, Tx.
" The greatest demand for VRUs is on
multiwell tank batteries in greenfield
projects, " he says. " If there are a lot of
wells tied into a tank battery, the vapor
volumes provide good economics for
capturing and compressing the gas, and
justify routing gas sales pipeline infrastructure
to the area. "
The ability to eliminate fugitive emissions
and minimize flaring while capturing
an otherwise lost revenue stream makes
VRUs a strategic fit for companies looking
both for improved financial metrics and
ESG performance. SCS VRUs are turnkey
JANUARY 2022 77

American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2022

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