Steam Flow Rate Calculations by a Very Simple Equation

Abstract

Assuming that dry saturated steam behaves like a perfect gas, the steam flow rate discharging at sonic velocity is calculated. The comparison of the calculated flow rate with the well known experiments of Russell James indicates that a constant factor of 1.11 makes a perfect match of both methods. Then, very simple equation is proposed for the dry steam wells of Los Azufres using only lip pressure. The agreement with experimental values is excellent. The equation is extended to other dry steam fields. For wells having steam and water, the same equation can be used to calculate steam flow rate with reasonably good accuracy. However, for better precision, a very simple correction factor renders the equation exact. The proposed equations are extremely simple and as accurate as traditional Russell James correlations.