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Contenu archivé le 2022-12-27

MULTIPHASE PUMPING SYSTEM WITH PISTON PUMP FOR CRUDE OIL PRODUCTION

Objectif

Qualify a means for pumping diphasic crude oil directly from well outlets in order to provide the E.E.C oil industry with this new qualified system.
The diphasic piston-type positive displacement pump equipped with vertical cylinders and driven by hydraulic jacks is a flexible and rugged pumping process. It allows to discharge diphasic oil fluids into one single line in any gas/liquid ratio, at a constant pumping cycle, without requiring effluents to be pre-treated or recycled, at very low suction pressure and with a high pressure gain. The amount of gas liquid is measured at each cycle of operation.
This pumping process allows to extend oil field life time and increase yields of oils wells thus enhancing recoverable oil reserves.
The viability of this concept was already demonstrated on reduced models.
The design phase is already completed :
- study of the pumping head
- study of the pumping head/jack connection
- study of the hydraulic jack.
1. INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY
Due to the vertical position of the cylinders and especially the recess in the piston head accommodating, the cylinder head shape, the liquids are collected in the piston head and are lastly evacuated at increasing rates, which helps the solid particles being contained in the fluid to get back in suspension and be evacuated.
Then, when the piston is getting close to top end, the residual dead space is filled with liquids and a small amount of stroke will only be needed to decompress the liquids and cause them to entirely fill the cylinders in the suction phase. As a result of the adjustable pumping rate and the adjustable hydraulic power fluid pressure only the amount of energy required for pumping will be absorbed. It must be noted that the pumping cycle will not change whenever a gas pocket or liquid plug occurs at suction end, which is a very frequent condition in diphasic production.
Since none of its moving parts is external this pump will be quite suitable for subsea application. Its remotely controlled operation is extremely simple: after pumping pressure is set to maximum, the number of strokes (flow) is adjusted as a function of the pressure desired in the separator located at the end of the discharge line.
The whole pumping system operates fully safety, no pressure likely to endanger the discharge line can be generated by the pump: direct proportionality between hydraulic pressure and discharge pressure in the line.
Safety is also provided when the pump is not operating: suction and discharge valves provide a double barrier to prevent fluids in the discharge line from returning to the wells while they allow fluids to flow freely from the well(s) to the discharge line as long as the discharge line pressure is lower than that in the well(s).
Therefore, the whole pumping system is to be considered as innovative.
2. THE CONTEXT IN WHICH THE TECHNOLOGY IS OPERATING
On-land or offshore pumping of multi-phase effluents (water +oil + gas) as close to the oil production well heads as possible, enables to discharge crude oil, with no prior treatment, into one single line to a treating plant located several dozens of kilometers away.
For example, for satellite offshore fields, the existing heavy and expensive surface equipment as required by the usual practices for local separation of major effluents, could be replaced by light floating equipment and later on by subsea equipment.
3. ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF THE TECHNOLOGY
This new concept will make it possible to operate marginal oil fields located within the European Communities and sell associated gas (which is now generally burnt because of high transportation cost) and will therefore make oil supply safer while significantly improving environment.
Investigation and market surveys carried out by IFP show that there are a great number of potential requirements for multi-phase pumps and the oil companies are waiting until such pumps have proved to be efficientand reliable.

Appel à propositions

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Régime de financement

DEM - Demonstration contracts

Coordinateur

FRAMATOME
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TOUR FIAT CEDEX 16
92084 Paris La Defense
France

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