Oil production optimization—A piecewise linear model, solved with two decomposition strategies

This paper presents a new method for real-time optimization of process systems with a decentralized structure where the idea is to improve computational efficiency and transparency of a solution. The contribution lies in the application and assessment of the Lagrange relaxation and the Dantzig–Wolfe methods, which allows us to efficiently decompose a real-time optimization problem. Furthermore, all nonlinearities are modeled by piecewise linear models, resulting in a mixed integer linear program, with the added benefit that error bounds on the solution can be computed.The merits of the method are studied by applying it to a semi-realistic model of the Troll west oil rim, a petroleum asset with severe production optimization challenges due to rate dependent gas-coning wells. This study indicates that both the Lagrange relaxation and in particular the Dantzig–Wolfe approach offers an interesting option for complex production systems. Moreover, the method compares favorably with the non-decomposed method.