New Artificial Lift Solutions Currently Impacting the Oil and Gas Industries
- Written by NewsServices.com
If you were to drill down to the most basic definition of an artificial lift, it would be the use of artificial technological means and/or sophisticated equipment to increase the flow of crude oil from an existing production well. You do this by using a mechanical tool that’s known as a velocity string or pump. Or you increase flow by “decreasing the hydrostatic column” via the injection of gas into crude oil at a specific distance down the well.
An artificial lift for oil and gas is said to be required with wells that possess insufficient pressure in the reservoir to bring or lift the fluids (in this case oil) to the surface. But lifts can be used in naturally flowing wells also to increase and speed up production, thus maximizing profits.
With oil and gas prices spiking due to new US policies banning drilling on federal lands combined with the war between Russia and Ukraine, the need for increased production on existing wells has never been more important. A new study recently looked at some startup companies and emerging technologies that are currently working on some creative solutions for the ongoing problems in the energy sector.
That said, here are some new artificial lift solutions that not only appear to be promising, but that are getting the oil and gas industry’s full and undivided attention.
Electric Submersible Pumps
Oil wells that have become marginal and/or idle, still have product in them that can be extracted with use of an artificial lift. New tech that can make artificial lift possible includes electric submersible pumps, hydraulic pumping systems, gas lifts, and also subsurface pumps and rod pumps.
Sensors measure the temperature and pressure inside the marginal well. The lift operations will often combine various artificial lift techniques to “maximize well productivity” to achieve optimal results.
Electro-Centrifugal Pumping
Say the experts, some of the advantages to centrifugal pumps are their high flow-rate capacities along with their relatively simple engineering. You can combine a gas lift system with a surface operating horizontal centrifugal pump which is said to add a “boost of energy” to the process.
Along with the assistance of variable speed drives, an electro-centrifugal pumping operation can be controlled to achieve maximum artificial lift. The technique is said to be especially suitable for wells that are nearly all used up. Some companies are developing new and innovative gas lift solutions “as an alternative approach to achieve artificial lift.”
Permanent Magnet-enabled Artificial Lift
Along with the declining fossil fuel reserves and the growing demand for environmental controls, crude oil manufacturers are finding themselves maximizing the productivity of existing wells rather than exploring new reserves, some of which exist on federal lands. Technological advancement in the oil industry is enabling companies to better optimize their artificial lift capabilities.
One example of this are motors that are powered by permanent magnets. The magnets are said to be more energy efficient and possess higher output when compared to more traditional submersible pumps and induction motors. Startup companies are reputed to be developing permanent magnet motors as a cost cutting solution for the artificial lift process.
Fiber Optic Sensing for Gas Lift Optimization
Experts assert that low-flow wells initially allow reservoir fluids to build up inside the tubing prior to the injection of gas which extracts the oil. This process is what’s referred to as “intermittent gas lift.” It’s engineered to enable maximum productivity in a low-static reservoir pressure situations which allows for oil manufacturers to save on production costs.
New startup oil companies are said to be especially interested in developing fiber optic sensing gas lift solutions for extracting petroleum hydrocarbons from existing, nearly depleted and marginal oil wells.
Rod Pumps
Said to be constructed of a simpler design system that other artificial lifts, rod pumps are easily interchanged between several wells at low production costs. Also, they are capable of pumping an existing well down to extremely low pressures, “depending on the depth.” Not only are rod pumps efficient, but they are simple to operate in the field.
Another clear advantage of rod pumps is that they are designed to lift viscous and high-temperature oils. With these benefits in mind, companies should take a very serious look at rod pump technology for creating artificial lift in existing marginal oil wells.
It should be noted that the above artificial lift solutions represent only a fraction of the many promising lift technologies presently being explored in today’s energy-starved environment.
