A smart solution to high viscosity applications in the oil and gas industry

The High Viscosity MIVI from Sofraser allows you to measure the viscosity of your viscous products during the manufacturing process. Thanks to its resonant vibration principle, this exceptionally rugged and precise tool has been proven by decades of use and enables the end-user to monitor the viscosity in their streams from vacuum distillation, cracking, visbreaking and blending operation units. 

Installed in line, it guarantees you an optimal efficiency on industrial, oil processes. Inserted in the Sofraser’s Thermoset viscosity analysers, The High Viscosity MIVI measures viscosity at reference temperature. Measuring residues or bitumen streams at several thousands of centipoises at more than 100°C is an everyday task for these rugged instruments. 

Several thousands of centipoise is not a challenge when you can handle up to one thousand Pa.s. 100°C and even more is a normal operating temperature that can be afforded 24/7 during decades when you can handle up to 300°C temperatures. Process pressures are not an issue for a measuring principle that is applied above 1000 bars. Resistance to abrasion and particles is easy to achieve for a sensor used for monitoring concentrated mineral slurries. Customized coatings and/or alloys for wetted parts improve the resistance against corrosion, faced by Sofraser viscometers in the applications in the chemical industry. Fouling, the long-term phenomenon, is manageable thanks to the natural tolerance of the measuring principle with the vibrating needle and the know-how in monitoring polymers, glues and hot melts. 

Viscosity is a key physical property of petroleum products from crude oil feed stocks to all the end-products. Measuring low viscosity products like gasoline, diesel, kerosene is regularly achieved thanks to the different measuring principles used by the process industry over many decades. 

Nevertheless, and despite these low viscosity streams, the oil and gas industry produces highly viscous products including heavy fuel oils, vacuum distillation bottoms, bitumen and tar. Rather than a few of a centipoise, at process temperature, the high viscosity products can reach hundreds and even thousands of centipoise, at their reference temperatures that can higher than 100°C. This high level of viscosity is also usually combined with presence of particles, corrosive components and eventually subject to fouling. 

This makes the measuring environment much harsher and measuring the viscosity of these streams requires a rugged instrument with features adapted to the task. This is the ideal job for the High Viscosity MIVI for which Sofraser have issued a 7 year warranty.