Surge Suppressor Failure Notification in Downhole Drive Systems
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electrical surge suppression systems in downhole equipment, such as ESPs, lack effective notification mechanisms for surge suppressor failures, leading to prolonged exposure to power anomalies and increased risk of equipment damage and operational interruptions.
Innovation Solution
A system that includes a surge suppressor configured to provide remote notifications to well operators upon failure, using a monitor coupled to the surge suppressor to detect failure and communicate via phone, email, or other means, along with a local indicator to alert personnel at the site, ensuring timely remedial actions can be taken.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a surge suppressor is installed in a VSD to protect against power surges, then the reliability of the drive system is improved, but there is no indication when the surge suppressor fails, leaving the system vulnerable to damage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the surge suppressor includes a monitor that continuously checks its own operational status and provides real-time information about its health. When the surge suppressor detects that it has failed to suppress a surge or is no longer functional, it sends a signal through the communication interface to notify operators. This closed-loop feedback system ensures that the failure status is immediately known, allowing operators to take corrective action before damage occurs to the VSD or downhole equipment.
2Loss of time
If remote notification capability is added to the surge suppressor, then the response time to failures is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The surge suppressor is designed with multi-functionality by integrating several components into a single device: surge suppression circuitry, status monitoring capability, and communication interface for remote notification. This universal design allows the surge suppressor to perform multiple functions (protecting against surges, monitoring its own status, and communicating failure information) without requiring separate dedicated devices for each function, thereby minimizing the overall increase in system complexity while achieving rapid failure notification.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for providing notifications to monitoring systems that are remotely located from a well upon failure of a surge suppressor in a drive system for equipment used in the operation of the well. In one embodiment, an ESP system is installed in a well. A VSD having a surge suppressor is coupled between a power source and the ESP system. The surge suppressor is monitored to detect a failure of its surge suppression capabilities. In response to detecting a failure, a notification is provided to a monitoring system that is located remotely from the well. The notifications may be provided via phone call, email, text message or other means. The surge suppressor may also provide a local indication of the failure. The VSD may be configured to continue operation despite the failure of the surge suppression capability.