Helical Blade Gas-Liquid Separator for ESPs
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Solution Overview
Problem
Electrical submersible pumps are not suitable for high gas-to-oil ratio wells, leading to production losses due to irregular gas flows and insufficient wellhead pressure, and surface multi-phase pumps require significant upgrades and equipment.
Innovation Solution
An electrical submersible pump assembly with a liquid-gas separator assembly upstream of the pump intake, featuring a helical blade that separates gas and liquid through centrifugal force, allowing gas to vent to the surface while oil is pumped to the surface, eliminating the need for large rotating equipment and surface upgrades.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If an electrical submersible pump is used in a high gas-to-oil ratio well, then the pump can provide boosting pressure to overcome surface back pressure, but the pump becomes ineffective due to irregular gas flows and high gas content exceeding pump handling capacity
Solution Approach 1:
The pump system is segmented into two functional parts: a gas separator assembly that handles gas removal and a pump assembly that handles liquid pumping. The gas separator includes a separator body with a gas outlet and a liquid outlet, allowing gas and liquid to be separated before the liquid enters the pump. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function, resolving the contradiction between providing boosting pressure and maintaining reliability in high gas-to-oil ratio conditions.
2Adaptability or versatility
If surface horizontal multi-phase pumps are used to handle high gas-to-oil ratio wells, then gas and liquid can be handled together, but significant upgrades to surface facilities and installation of large rotating equipment are required
Solution Approach 1:
The gas separation function is extracted from the surface facility and integrated into a downhole separator assembly that is installed with the submersible pump. The separator body is positioned above the pump intake, with openings that allow gas to escape while liquid enters the pump. This extraction of the gas handling function to the downhole level eliminates the need for complex surface multi-phase pumping equipment and facility upgrades, while maintaining the ability to handle high gas-to-oil ratio wells.
3Reliability
If additional special pump stages are installed to handle mixed fluids in high gas-to-oil ratio wells, then pumping can be effected at 60% gas content, but pumping becomes ineffective when irregular flows of 100% gas occur
Solution Approach 1:
Gas separation is performed as a preliminary action before the liquid enters the pump intake. The separator body with its openings allows gas to escape from the liquid mixture before the liquid is pumped. This preliminary gas removal ensures that only liquid enters the pump, maintaining reliable pumping capability regardless of the gas-to-oil ratio in the well, and eliminating the need for additional special pump stages to handle gas-liquid mixtures.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution enables efficient pumping in high gas-to-oil ratio wells by separating gas and liquid downhole, improving pump efficiency, preventing gas slugs, and allowing tailored boosting to overcome surface back pressure, thus enhancing production and reducing losses.
Implementation Method 1
Due to the centrifugal force present while the mixture flows through the channel, oil will be kept away from the openings in the sidewall, while gas will be pressed to flow through such channels.
Data Source
AI summary
An electrical submersible pump assembly for use in a well, including a well having a high gas-to-liquid ratio has a motor, a hollow, tubular drive shaft which drives the pump, and a liquid-gas separator assembly upstream of the pump intake. The liquid-gas separator has a hollow tubular portion, which communicates with the open, lower end of the drive shaft, openings through its sidewall, and a closed lower end. The sidewall also includes at least one outwardly extending projection shaped for urging liquid contained in a liquid/gas mixture flowing towards the pump outwardly, away from the sidewall openings. Preferably, the outwardly extending projection comprises a helical blade which, using either the well casing or a separate sheath, defines a helical channel through which the oil-gas mixture flows prior to reaching the pump intake. The centrifugal force in the channel forces the oil component away from the openings and forces the gas component through the openings, where such gas may be vented to the surface.