Toma de decisiones mediante el uso de un algoritmo para analizar los sistemas de producción de hidrocarburos

This paper shows an algorithm that allows to automate the procedures of nodal analysis and flow optimization in a hydrocarbon production system. The procedure of nodal analysis is highly useful in flow wells, intermittent wells or in wells with artificial production systems. The nodal analysis evaluates a production system divided into two basic components: flow through vertical piping or production piping, and flow through horizontal piping or discharge line. For the prediction of each component's behavior, the pressure drop in each component is obtained. In order to obtain the pressure drops, nodes in different important points within the production system must be assigned; therefore, production expenses can vary and, by using a suitable calculation method, the pressure drop between two nodes is calculated. Then, a node is selected and the pressure drops are added to or subtracted from the initial pressure point or departure node, until obtaining the solution node. The results obtained when using the algorithm have allowed to update both procedures, obtaining advantages such as improvement in response time, among others. This analysis is a crucial point when making decisions related to production costs in any oil company.