The offshore pilot test of a submerged production system (SPS) encompassedthe entire spectreum of SPS equipment, which was designed for use in waterdepths to 2,000 ft. Results show that deepwater installation techniques arepracticable, deepwater maintenance machinery is competent to repair anoperating system, with some modifications, the SPS is suitable for commercialapplication. Introduction The purpose of the submerged production system (SPS) is to provide a meansof producing offshore fields in water depths beyond the practical capability ofbottom-founded, surface-penetrating structures. The SPS is an integrated suiteof equipment designed to satisfy the life-cycle requirements for producing asubsea field from developmental drilling through field abandonment. Thisintegrated suite of equipment spans from the completion interval of the wellsto the transfer of produced fluid into a common-carrier pipeline or shuttletanker. The prototype version of the SPS used for the pilot test included atleast one representative piece of every type of oceanfloor equipment requiredfor a commercial application. The subject of this paper is a discussion of SPScapabilities from both functional and maintenance viewpoints followed by adescription of the offshore pilot test performed to validate the SPS concept.The pilot test description covers the prototype SPS equipment, test objectives, conduct of prototype SPS equipment, test objectives, conduct of the test, and, finally, conclusions that were made following an evaluation of testresults. SPS Functional Capabilities The SPS is a full-capability production system. Fig. 1 depicts the system'smost general equipment configuration. The template unit shown on the seaflooris the major component of the system. The fluids produced by the wells andgathered by the template produced by the wells and gathered by the templateunit are routed via pipelines and an articulated production riser to a surfaceprocessing facility for production riser to a surface processing facility forstorage and disposal. The drillship shown in Fig. 1 is used both for installingthe template and for drilling the development wells. Among the designrequirements that apply to all SPS equipment are that they be simply, highlyreliable, and have a long life expectancy. One of the most salientcharacteristics of the SPS is that it eliminates the need to expose personnelto the ocean-floor environment during personnel to the ocean-floor environmentduring installation, operation, maintenance, and (at field abandonment)recovery of the subsea equipment. Surface-controlled, electrohydraulic, supervisory control equipment is used to control and monitor the ocean-floorequipment remotely. On command from the surface, hydraulic power is switched tooperate valve actuators and diverter actuators in the manifold. Allflow-control valves - such as downhole safety valves, master valves, wingvalves, and pipeline block valves - are fail-safe closed and pipeline blockvalves - are fail-safe closed and require the presence of hydraulic pressure toremain open. The monitoring capability provides sufficient information to (1)determine the performance of a well, (2) generate appropriate workoverprograms, and (3) troubleshoot an equipment malfunction in preparation formaintenance. An automatic, fail-safe preparation for maintenance. An automatic, fail-safe safety system monitors the manifold and the control equipment. If anoperating parameter exceeds its preset limit, a preplanned course of action ispreset limit, a preplanned course of action is initiated automatically toreturn the equipment to a safe operating condition, usually to shut in all orpart of the wells. JPT P. 899
The offshore pilot test of Exxon’s Submerged Production System (SPS) has reached a successful conclusion. This pilot test encompassed the entire spectrum of SPS equipment, spanning from the well completion intervals to, but not including, common surface processing and storage facilities. Since the SPS is designed to meet all the life cycle needs of a subsea field, one of the objectives of the pilot test was to evaluate both the techniques and the equipment used to install, operate, and maintain a prototype version of the SPS. The equipment under test was designed for use in water depths up to 2000 ft, but with minor modifications it is capable of operating in significantly greater depths. Evaluation of pilot test results has shown that the deep water installation techniques are practicable and that the deep water maintenance machinery is competent to repair any failures likely to occur in an operating system. One of the most significant problems in conducting the pilot test was achieving adequate quality control during equipment manufacture. The test results have demonstrated that, with relatively minor modifications, the SPS is suitable for commercial application.
Natural climate solutions (NCS) have been proposed to mitigate climate change by removing CO2 from the atmosphere and increasing organic carbon storage in ecosystems. Adoption is required at global scales, but implementation of NCS have been limited by the lack of a systematic framework to prioritize ecosystem restoration or conservation at local and regional scales. Current carbon sequestration policies at the national scale often fail to consider local and regional ecological feedback systems and tradeoffs among finite natural resources. These have unintended effects on the carbon permanence of ecosystems, defined as the residence time of carbon (C) before release to the atmosphere as CO2. By combining estimates of soil organic C stocks, land use, projected precipitation changes, and landscape-level analysis of carbon and water flux in Oregon and Washington, we show that NCS efforts should be prioritized in natural areas with low soil C stocks and projected future precipitation increases. On the other hand, conservation may be more appropriate for regions with high soil C stocks and projected decreases in precipitation. Our consideration of geography acknowledges the ecological and socioeconomic challenges to NCS implementation and allows for the identification of high-priority sites for NCS. This protocol can be adapted at local and regional scales to guide policy for targeting the highest-priority locations for implementation of NCS.
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