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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Experimental investigation on the performance of Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) operating with unstable water/oil emulsions

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Author(s):
Vieira Bulgarelli, Natan Augusto [1] ; Biazussi, Jorge Luiz [2] ; Verde, William Monte [2] ; Perles, Carlos Eduardo [2] ; de Castro, Marcelo Souza [1] ; Bannwart, Antonio Carlos [1]
Total Authors: 6
Affiliation:
[1] Univ Estadual Campinas, Sch Mech Engn, Sao Paulo - Brazil
[2] Univ Estadual Campinas, Ctr Petr Studies, Sao Paulo - Brazil
Total Affiliations: 2
Document type: Journal article
Source: JOURNAL OF PETROLEUM SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING; v. 197, FEB 2021.
Web of Science Citations: 0
Abstract

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) is one of the most commonly used artificial lift methods in petroleum production, due to its capacity to operate in several conditions with two or three-phase flows. When the ESP operates with emulsion flow, its performance is degraded, and operational instabilities occur. Therefore, this paper aims to carefully investigate phase inversion and to present, by the first time, the effective viscosity of unstable mineral oil/water emulsions, within the ESP. The first part of this work analyzes the phase inversion phenomenon for two oil types in three viscosities, five ESP rotational speeds, and three mixture flow rates. Logistic functions were fitted using the dimensionless head as a water cut function to determine the phase inversion within the ESP. The continuous phase inversion model, developed for emulsion pipe flow, did not present a satisfactory agreement to flow conditions tested. An indirect method to determine the emulsion effective viscosity within the ESP was proposed, which was obtained from the water/oil emulsion performance curves. The viscous performance data were used to determine the parameters of a dimensionless head empirical model for the tested ESP. Thus, the calculated values were compared with the effective viscosity obtained with oil and water emulsions, as well as the ESP performance, operating with emulsion and oil, which provides similar values for low rotational speeds. The different behavior of the effective viscosity between the pipeline flow and within the ESP was observed for water-in-oil emulsions and may be related to the high centrifugal field in the ESP. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 17/15736-3 - Engineering Research Centre in Reservoir and Production Management
Grantee:Denis José Schiozer
Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Research Centers in Engineering Program