Production • Processing • Handling
Remote oil fields place extreme demands on conveyor technology
Robert Kurz describes how the world’s largest progressing cavity pump for crude oil beats extreme conditions.
W
hether in the tundra of Alaska, in the Arabian desert or miles offshore in the middle of the ocean, ever more remote deposits are being tapped in the
constant search for crude oil. Systems are often at the mercy of wind
and weather. Maintenance work is difficult in environments far from human habitation. Robustness is therefore paramount for humans and machines. Te changing consistency of the mixture of oil, water, solids and gas also puts immense stress on conveying systems.
Tat is why the operator of an oil field in the Central Asian desert had a NETZSCH multiphase pump installed. Te world’s largest progressing cavity pump in the industry is able to continue
working even when there are strong fluctuations in the consistency of the material. Integrated heating and a lubricated gasket system were added to the system to beat the extreme weather on site. Sand, water and gas in particular in the unseparated crude oil repeatedly caused issues in the previous conveying system at the mine site in the middle of the Eurasian desert belt. Te fluctuating and changing composition of the pumped material frequently brought the installed centrifugal rotary pumps to a standstill. Te high-energy costs were an additional disadvantage. Te pumps were also not technically adapted to handling slugs - the plugs that develop when a mixture alternately has a high solid content and a high gas content; plugs can cause the material flow to break off which damages the technology. Te oil field
Fig. 1. The engineers focused in particular on the robustness of the components when designing the pump system because of the remoteness of the oil field in the Central Asian desert.
58
www.engineerlive.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74