Institut Francais Du Pe'trole

Marc Durandeau

Michel Robin

Jacques Jose

Daniel Broseta

Honggang Zhou

The invention concerns a method whereby a fluid sample is brought ( ) at constant pressure Pe and temperature maintaining the heavy fractions, in particular asphaltenes, in dissolved state and/or in stable colloidal state, at the intake ( ) of a capillary passage with high pressure drop. Said sample is forced to flow through the capillary conduit, at an increasing flow rate. The method consists in measuring ( ) the fluid pressure Ps and the fluid flow rate D ( ) at the outlet ( ) of the capillary conduit and in representing the variation curve of the quantity &Dgr;P&equals;Pe&minus;Ps or the quantity D as a function of the other quantity or as a function of time. The deposit pressure, characteristic of the threshold of deposit of heavy fractions, is defined as the value of pressure Ps, which corresponds to a change of the slope in the variation curve of the quantity &Dgr;P or the quantity D.

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Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche, France

Marc Durandeau