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Abstract During 2012, BakerHughes, ConocoPhillips and Nexen Inc. continued their research partnership [Waldner 2011] with a new experimental test program focused on the thermal performance of Electric Submersible Pump (ESP) systems for Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) applications, which was completed in the high-temperature flow loop at C-FER Technologies. Accurately monitoring the internal temperature of the ESP motor is a key consideration when trying to increase the operational longevity of an ESP system for any application; however, as the SAGD process develops, understanding this temperature profile has become more critical. This test program included several tests at various fluid temperatures and ESP operating conditions that helped determine the thermal performance of the ESP motor. Another unique aspect of this test program was the incorporation of two different temperature monitoring methods at approximately the same position on the internal and external base of the ESP motor: one internal probe positioned near the motor windings via a fiber optic sensor and one external skin temperature RTD positioned on the motor surface to monitor this important temperature differential. This paper presents the equipment and instrumentation used, and demonstrates some of the more interesting test results, thus providing further insight into the thermal performance of this ESP motor under representative SAGD conditions between 220°C (428°F) and 250°C (482°F).
- North America > United States > Texas (0.46)
- North America > Canada > Alberta (0.28)
ABSTRACT: In 2008 the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) awarded Contract No. 070F 01 C1 for Lake Mead Intake No. 3 – Shafts and Tunnel to a joint venture between Impregilo SpA and SA Healy, the Vegas Tunnel Constructors. Following award, the 9m diameter, 185m deep access shaft and 20m wide, 10m high and 50m long TBM launch chamber were successfully constructed. Difficult conditions encountered in the original starter tunnel during 2010 resulted in its abandonment and sealing in early 2011. Vegas Tunnel Constructors commenced excavation of a realigned starter tunnel thereafter to allow the installation and erection of the 7.22m diameter 190m long Herrenknecht AG Dual Mode Mixed Shield TBM. This paper describes the ground conditions encountered during the excavation of the realigned starter tunnel, discusses the excavation production data and summarizes the support system employed to successfully complete the starter tunnel. 1. INTRODUCTION1.1. Site Location Lake Mead Intake No. 3 project site is located in the Lake Mead National Recreational Area, approximately 30 km east of Las Vegas, Nevada, USA see Figure 1 below. 1.2. Necessity for the Third Intake Declining water levels in Lake Mead over the past decade, caused by drought and increased demand, has driven the need for the construction of a new deep intake to protect the region against prolonged drought conditions that could render one of the existing two intakes inoperable. Created by the construction of the Hoover Dam in the 1930s and supplied by the Colorado River, at a volume of around 32 cubic kilometers when full Lake Mead is the largest man-made reservoir in the U.S., straddling the Nevada-Arizona border. Water from the Colorado serves 25 million people in seven states, including the residents of Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Phoenix.
- Geology > Rock Type (1.00)
- Geology > Structural Geology (0.69)
- Geology > Geological Subdiscipline > Geomechanics (0.68)
- Energy (1.00)
- Consumer Products & Services > Food, Beverage, Tobacco & Cannabis > Beverages (1.00)
Abstract The ESP system is an important artificial lift method commonly used for medium- to high-flow-rate wells for subsea developments. Multiphase flow and viscous fluids can cause severe problems in pump applications. Free gas inside an ESP causes operational problems and lead to system failures. Under two-phase flow conditions, loss of pump performance or gas lock condition can be observed. Under viscous fluids, the pump performance degrades as well. This paper provides a model on the effects of viscosity and two phase (liquid & gas) fluids on electric submersible pumps (ESPs), which are multistage centrifugal pumps for deep boreholes. The theoretical study includes a mechanistic model based on Barrios (2011) for the prediction of the degradation due to bubble accumulation. The model comprises a one-dimensional force balance to predict occurrence of the stagnant bubbles at the channel intake as a main cause of deviation from homogeneus flow model. The testing at Shell's Gasmer facility revealed that the ESP system performed as theoretical over the range of single flowrates and light viscosity oils up to Gas Volume Fractions (GVF) around 25%. ESP performance observed gas lock condition at gas fraction higher than 45%. Homogeneous Model has a fairly good agreement with pump performance up to 30% GVF. Pump flowrate can be obtained from electrical current and boost for all range of GVF and speed. Correlation depends strongly in fluid viscosity and pump configuration. The main technical contributions of this study are the determination of flow patterns under two important variables, high viscosity and two-phase flow inside the ESP to predict operational conditions that cause pump head degradation and the beginning of bubble accumulation that lead to surging Barrios (2011). For similar applications, pump performance degradation can be predicted in viscous environment and two-phase flow conditions.
Integral Pod Intake for Electrical Submersible Pumps
Rooks, Mark K. (Saudi Aramco) | Snyder, Kristopher (Baker Hughes Incorporated) | Wilson, Lyle (Baker Hughes Incorporated) | Fleming, James (Baker Hughes Incorporated) | Mack, John (Baker Hughes Incorporated) | Wisnewski, Matt (Baker Hughes Incorporated)
Abstract Electrical submersible pumping (ESP) system performance is limited by the amount of free gas that could be tolerated before gas-locking would occur. Gas-locking of a pump generally causes a catastrophic failure of the ESP system because the pump no longer is moving fluid, which keeps the ESP from overheating during normal operation. Understanding of the phenome-non of head degradation and gas-locking in a pump is well known and has been documented and presented in numerous SPE papers in the past. The net result of excessive gas at the pump intake is that the gas can potentially accumulate into a long continuous column in the pump, impeding the pump's ability to generate discharge pressure. Gas-locking occurs when the pump is unable to lift the fluid column in the tubing above. In cases where the pump does not actually gas-lock, at the very least the pump will suffer head degradation and low efficiency when high vapor-to-liquid ratios are being pumped. Due to the impact of free gas by volume on ESP performance, the industry has made extensive efforts to address this problem. Two important approaches have been developing technology that either separates the gas from the fluid prior to entering the pump inlet, or creating gas handling pumps which can pump larger gas by volume percentages of up to 70 percent before pump head degradation and gas-locking occurs. Within Saudi Aramco, ESP applications have become a major contributor to meet our artificial lift requirements. In these applications, Saudi Aramco has avoided the potential issues that occur when free gas is present at the pump inlet by ensuring the pump intake pressure remains above the bubble point pressure of fluid being produced. Although this mode of operation has prevailed thus far; it is anticipated that an ever increasing number of applications will see the presence of gas at the ESP intake. Additionally, one of the leading causes of ESP failures within Aramco is directly attributable to the electrical system consisting of the packer penetrator, motor lead cable, and motor pothead. To address these challenges, Saudi Aramco has collaborated with Baker Hughes to develop the integral pod intake (IPI) system. The IPI system is a new patent-pending concept initiated by Saudi Aramco that incorporates the shroud hanger for an encapsulated pod system as part of the intake, constructed as a single assembly including the seal, electrical penetrators, and electrical conduits extending to the seal base. This paper will discuss the background and development of the IPI system in terms of how it addresses the issues that occur when free gas is present at the ESP pump. The system's ability to eliminate the electrical integrity problem between the packer and motor pothead will also be covered. A field trial is planned to begin this year in Saudi Arabia and the results will be made available for the 2013 ESP Workshop or in earlier publications within SPE.
- Government > Regional Government > Asia Government > Middle East Government > Saudi Arabia Government (1.00)
- Energy > Oil & Gas > Upstream (1.00)