LedaFlow Improvements to Flow Technology (LIFT)

LedaFlow Improvements to Flow Technology (LIFT) is a joint industry project to identify areas for model improvement and ensure the industrial functionality and quality of LedaFlow.

Managed by KDI with support by SINTEF for experimentation and code improvements the project has entered its fourth phase (LIFT IV) with four operator partners: ConocoPhilips, Total, ExxonMobile and Woodside.

LIFT IV

Participants

ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, Woodside

Project period

2024-2026

Interested in joining the fourth phase of the LIFT project? Please contact us!

LIFT III

Participants

ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, AkerBP, TotalEnergies, Woodside

Project period

2021-2023

Main R&D achievements:

Improved slug bubble velocity predictions in flowline-riser configurations, which is important for slugging predictions in deep-water fields.
Implementation of a custom deposition model though the UDF framework.

Tools funded by the project and released to the LIFT participants:

A tool that estimates the contributions of the uncertainties in the closure relations to the overall uncertainty of LedaFlow simulations.

LIFT II

Participants

Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ENI, Lundin, TOTAL, Woodside

Project period

2016 – 2020

Main R&D achievements:

Implementation of slug coalescence and wake effect in the LedaFlow Slug Capturing® model, which gives better predictions for slug length and slug frequencies.
Implementation of a new dispersion/emulsion framework that allows the user to manually control the entrainment/deposition time scales.

Tools funded by the project and released to the LIFT participants:

A R&D version of LedaFlow Q3D, a multiphase flow simulation technology that extends beyond LedaFlow commercial technology which is 1D (1-dimensional).
A tool to compare simulation results obtained with different versions of LedaFlow that also supports comparison with external data, like field data or results from other simulation tools.

LIFT I

Participants

Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Shell, Statoil, TotalEnergies, Woodside

Project period

2013 – 2016

Main R&D achievements:

Experimental campaign to collect data on the Joule-Thompson effect in thermal valves.
Improvement of annular interface friction model at low liquid hold-ups.
Implementation of a new flow regime, churn flow.
Implementation of a new framework for user defined functions (UDF).
Introduction of a slip correction in the hydrodynamic model.
Validation and improvement of LedaFlow’s thermal model against experimental data (temperature for each phase).