Industrial application of a linear drive system in a pump testing facility

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An advanced dynamic finite element model is presented that diagnoses the downhole pump performance of sucker rod pumping systems, applicable for any pumping conditions and equipment used. The results are compared to downhole measurements and other evaluation techniques. Buckling is an undesirable phenomenon occurring in sucker rod pumping. It essentially depends on the plunger load, which is a function of time and typically not measured but evaluated by diagnostic tools. Existing diagnostic tools exhibit specific limitations that reduce their applicability and output quality. This paper introduces a diagnostic tool, which can predict the rod string's stress field and its movement not only at the pump plunger but all along the rod string. Moreover, this tool can account for the interaction between rod guides and tubing as well as rod string and tubing. To this end, innovative tube-to-tube contact modeling is applied. The high precision results are accomplished by running a dynamic finite element simulation. The basic principle is to evaluate the plunger load incrementally by consecutively applying restarts of each time step, fully automated and computation time optimized. This publication shows that both the plunger load and the rod string's dynamic behavior can be determined for any given wellbore as long as the borehole trajectory and surface dynamometer measurements are known. The dynamic finite element model is evaluated for a deviated system and a vertical system equipped with two different downhole pump types. Comparing the simulation results with the available downhole measurements and the analytical solution shows an excellent match, whereas the proposed solution provides a considerable amount of details about the overall system's behavior. The evaluation has shown that the performance of standard and novel downhole pump types can be successfully diagnosed in detail, which is just possible under limitations with commercial software solutions. This tool can correctly predict whether or not the sucker rod string is subjected to buckling during the downstroke, which has a considerable effect on increasing the mean time between failures of a sucker rod pumping system. From the economic point of view, this means that the economic limit of a wellbore can be postponed. The novelty of the shown technique is the consideration of the full 3D trajectory and the implementation of only physical properties, result in an excellent accuracy of the output.

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sucker rod pump downhole dynamometer card determination based on a novel finite element method

Eisner¹,

Langbauer²,

Frühwirth³

2021

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“…Fractured formations tend to produce fines along with the reservoir fluid due to the damages initiated during hydraulic fracturing. Serious research was performed in the past to mitigate problems of artificial lift systems, associated with fines production [2], [3], [4] [5], and new technologies [6], [7] and laboratory testing capacities [8], [9] have been introduced. Over the past decade, much time and effort have been dedicated to better understand the key factors that drive an EGS fracturing project towards success.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A holistic review on hydraulic fracturing stimulation laboratory experiments and their transition to enhanced geothermal system field research and operations

Langbauer

Tehrani

Мастобаев

2021

This paper presents a thorough overview of hydraulic stimulation techniques, conducted in laboratories. It further analyses field experiments and ongoing projects for geothermal energy production to investigate if the findings from the lab can be practically applied to the field. Stimulation techniques have been long used in the oil and gas industry as a means to increasing the rock permeability and consequently the reservoir's fluid production rate. Among the different stimulation methods, hydraulic fracturing is known to be the most successful in creating new passageways in the formation. Nevertheless, the benefits of fracturing have been hindered by the handful of events in which poor planning had led to severe seismic activities. Therefore, across the globe, many efforts were dedicated to characterizing fracture creation and propagation in different rocks, not only to provide know-how for further and safer developments in the oil and gas front but also to adapt such findings to the ever-emerging field of geothermal energy recovery. In the course of this work, over 100 papers were studied. The papers included laboratory experiments on various rock types encountered in reservoirs, where parameters such as stress regime, fracture initiation pressure, formation breakdown pressure, volume, and types of fluid injected were monitored. To investigate whether or not such practices had been previously applied in geothermal energy production, a thorough study was also conducted on large-scale experimental setups constructed in the field as well as hydraulic fracturing procedures performed in operational projects, going back as far as a decade. The results show an agreement between laboratory experiments and field operations, yet naturally including individual results from cases where either the lab parameters or field characteristics were extraordinarily unique. Multiple cross-correlations were also performed between different key parameters that play a role in a fracturing process, providing trends that could be intra-or extrapolated for further research and planning. The novelty of this work is the comprehensive analysis of numerous research projects done around the world. As a result, this paper will not only be an informative and yet compacted source of information concerning previous projects, but it also points out the main factors and their relationships which need to be understood to guide a future project to success.

“…The cyclic load changes cause dynamics in the pumping system, which need to be handled by the pump jack [4]. Continuous research on the optimization and improvement of surface and downhole components [5], [6], [7] of the pumping system is performed in the laboratory [8], [9] and the field.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Sucker rod pump frequency-elastic drive mode development – from the numerical model to the field test

Langbauer¹,

Langbauer²,

Frühwirth³

et al. 2021

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A frequency-elastic drive mode for a sucker rod pumping system is introduced to reduce its polished rod peak loads and the total energy consumption. Numerical modeling and an extensive field test verify the concept. The frequency-elastic drive mode is a software solution for variable speed drive systems, which can be applied in the controller and does not require any hardware adjustments. The novel drive mode adjusts the set frequency, sent by the controller to the frequency converter, depending on the actual power requirements. An increase in power consumption results in a reduction of the set frequency, which is proportional to the power consumption increase. A reduction in power consumption results in the opposite effect to achieve a similar pumping speed as for regular operation. The frequency-elastic drive mode is simulated by a numerical model, which covers the entire pumping system. An extensive field test was performed to verify the concept and the numerical model. The simulation and the field test have confirmed the concept of the frequency-elastic drive mode and quantified its saving potential. The evaluation of the field test has shown that the energy-saving potential can reach five percent. In addition, a peak polished rod load reduction of up to three percent was seen. At the tested pumping system the frequency elastic drive mode under optimized parameters yields the best results in terms of total energy savings in the pumping speed range between 7 to 10 strokes per minute. A downhole system efficiency increase was seen for any pumping speed. The numerical model matches the field test data and allows the performance prediction of the novel drive mode for changed parameters and wellbore configurations without extensive field testing. The novelty of the presented paper is the concept of the frequency-elastic drive mode, which is a pure software solution for variable speed drive sucker rod pumping systems. The holistic model includes the entire pumping system and matches the field test data at remarkable accuracy.