Isobaric Pressure Exchanger Manifold for Hydraulic Fracturing
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Solution Overview
Problem
High-pressure, high-volume pumps used in hydraulic fracturing operations experience accelerated wear and erosion due to the properties of fracing fluids, leading to increased costs and decreased efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The use of isobaric pressure exchangers (IPX) to transfer pressure from a less viscous and less abrasive fluid, such as water, to the fracing fluid, reducing the wear on high-pressure pumps and extending their lifespan, while an integrated manifold system with multiple IPXs simplifies and reduces the complexity of hydraulic fracturing operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If high-pressure, high-volume pumps are used to directly pump fracing fluid, then hydrocarbon production can be increased, but the pumps experience accelerated wear and erosion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an isobaric pressure exchanger as an intermediary device between the pump and the fracing fluid injection system. The pressure exchanger allows pump discharge to pressurize fracing fluid without direct contact between the pump and abrasive fracing fluid, thereby extending pump life while maintaining high productivity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the high-pressure generation function from the pump system by using the pressure exchanger to transfer pressure from pump discharge to fracing fluid. This separates the pump from direct exposure to abrasive fluids while maintaining the necessary pressure for hydrocarbon production
2Reliability
If multiple separate systems are used for pressure exchange and fluid handling, then pressure transfer can be achieved, but equipment complexity and congestion increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the pressure exchange manifold and fluid handling systems into an integrated assembly. The manifold combines multiple pressure exchange chambers and fluid pathways into a single unified structure, reducing equipment congestion while maintaining efficient pressure transfer capabilities
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated manifold system performs multiple functions simultaneously: pressure exchange, fluid distribution, and system integration. This multi-functional design eliminates the need for separate dedicated components for each function, thereby reducing overall system complexity
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 approach extends the life of high-pressure pumps, reduces maintenance costs, and increases hydrocarbon production rates by efficiently handling viscous and abrasive fracing fluids with minimal mixing and equipment congestion.
Implementation Method 1
isobaric pressure exchangers (IPX) to transfer pressure from a less viscous and less abrasive fluid, such as water, to the fracing fluid
Data Source
AI summary
A system includes an integrated manifold system including multiple isobaric pressure exchangers (IPXs) that each includes a low-pressure first fluid inlet, a high-pressure second fluid inlet, a high-pressure first fluid outlet, and a low-pressure second fluid outlet. The integrated manifold system includes a low-pressure first fluid manifold coupled to each of the low-pressure first fluid inlets and configured to provide low-pressure first fluid to each of the low-pressure first fluid inlets, a high-pressure second fluid manifold coupled to each of the high-pressure second fluid inlets and configured to provide high-pressure second fluid to each of the high-pressure second fluid inlets, a high-pressure first fluid manifold coupled to each of the high-pressure first fluid outlets and configured to discharge high-pressure first fluid, and a low-pressure second fluid manifold coupled to each of the low-pressure second fluid outlets and configured to discharge low-pressure second fluid.