Hydraulically Assisted ESP Deployment System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current ESP systems require expensive workover rigs for installation, removal, and depth adjustments, leading to high costs and long waiting times due to their short run life and need for frequent changes in response to reservoir pressure and productivity changes.
Innovation Solution
A hydraulically assisted deployment system using a self-powered robotic propulsion mechanism within a pump launcher to deploy and retrieve ESPs without the need for conventional rigs, minimizing surface equipment and reducing deployment and retrieval time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional workover rigs are used for ESP installation and retrieval, then the ESP system can be deployed and recovered, but the operational cost and waiting time increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the ESP deployment function from the conventional workover rig system by introducing a dedicated pump launcher and propulsion system. The pump launcher is a self-contained device that can deploy and retrieve ESPs independently without requiring external rig support, thereby eliminating the time loss associated with rig scheduling and deployment.
Solution Approach 2:
The pump launcher is designed as a self-service system that performs ESP deployment, retrieval, and depth adjustment operations autonomously. The propulsion system within the launcher can independently move the ESP assembly up and down the production tubing using hydraulic actuation, eliminating the need for external rig intervention and reducing operational dependency on expensive workover equipment.
2Productivity
If workover rigs are used for frequent ESP changes, then equipment replacement is possible, but operational costs increase due to rig expenses
Solution Approach 1:
The pump launcher is pre-positioned in the wellhead and remains stationary during ESP operations. The ESP assembly is pre-loaded into the launcher's interior cavity, ready for quick deployment. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need to mobilize and position expensive workover rigs for each ESP change, enabling frequent replacements without proportional increases in operational costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention separates the ESP change operation from the expensive workover rig system by using the dedicated pump launcher. The launcher contains all necessary components for ESP deployment, including the propulsion system and hydraulic actuation mechanisms, allowing rapid ESP exchanges without external rig support and significantly reducing operational downtime and costs.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional deployment systems are used, then ESP installation is possible, but surface equipment footprint and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges multiple functions into the pump launcher: ESP storage, propulsion, hydraulic actuation, and depth control are all integrated into a single compact unit mounted on the wellhead. This consolidation eliminates the need for separate surface equipment such as workover rigs, coiled tubing handlers, and external hydraulic systems, thereby reducing surface equipment footprint and overall system complexity while maintaining full ESP deployment capability.
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
Enables frequent ESP changes and depth adjustments without high-cost rigs, reducing operational time and costs by using hydraulic power for ESP deployment and retrieval, thus optimizing system performance.
Implementation Method 1
A piston device is provided having an outer diameter profile. Communicating with the piston device to control the descent of the electrical submersible pump assembly through the subterranean well can include changing the outer diameter profile of the piston device to change a vector sum of forces applied on the pressure surfaces of the piston device
Implementation Method 2
A propulsion system is activated to move the electrical submersible pump assembly from the pump launcher and into the subterranean well, wherein the propulsion system includes a self-powered robotic system having a propulsion mechanism
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for providing artificial lift to production fluids within a subterranean well includes loading an electrical submersible pump assembly into an interior cavity of a pump launcher. The electrical submersible pump assembly has a motor and a pump. The pump launcher is releasably secured to a wellhead so that the interior cavity is in fluid communication with an inner bore of a production tubing that extends a length into the subterranean well. A propulsion system is activated to move the electrical submersible pump assembly from the pump launcher and into the subterranean well, wherein the propulsion system includes a self-powered robotic system having a propulsion mechanism. The propulsion system can be communicated with to control the descent of the electrical submersible pump assembly through the subterranean well.