Cloud point method in crude oil

[Neildeal]

I have had encountered several instances of confusion regarding the proper determination of cloud point in crude oil. I have always adhered to ASTM 2500, placing a specimen in a cooling bath until wax crystals began to form and the crude becomes hazy, from experience the cloud point is about 20 degrees F above the pour point. Working in the Texas Panhandle, I have encountreed production people who have a very different definition of cloud point, suggesting that the specimen must be heated and cooled to room temperature until a haze forms, calling it cloud point and that most crudes have cloud points greater than room temperature? Could someone please provide some insight into this confusion, differences in terminology result in some labs reporting 10F for the cloud point and other labs reporting 83F.

 

[LittleInch]

See something like this

http://sweet.ua.pt/jcoutinho/file/PST_04_30.pdf

Cloud point is quite a difficult thing to judge and will vary between different samples and crudes depending on their composition and paraffin / wax content.

What do you mean by "production people". Only trust the petroleum engineers, the operators on the ground often get confused and also get used to one particular field.

Remember - More details = better answers
Also: If you get a response it's polite to respond to it.

 

[Neildeal]

Thank you for your reply, by "production people", I'm referring to pumpers, transporters, etc. I have personally performed a round robin analysis on a single crude for cloud point, labs in Houston arrived at 10F and labs in the Texas Panhandle arrived at 83F? A very huge discrepancy in the results, which has to do with both labs definition of cloud point and methods used. I'm at a loss for how both methods are used and accepted, yet the results are completely different?