Classifications

• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
  • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
  • E21B43/00—Methods or apparatus for obtaining oil, gas, water, soluble or meltable materials or a slurry of minerals from wells
  • E21B43/34—Arrangements for separating materials produced by the well
  • E21B43/38—Arrangements for separating materials produced by the well in the well
  • E21B43/385—Arrangements for separating materials produced by the well in the well by reinjecting the separated materials into an earth formation in the same well
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D17/00—Separation of liquids, not provided for elsewhere, e.g. by thermal diffusion
  • B01D17/02—Separation of non-miscible liquids
  • B01D17/0217—Separation of non-miscible liquids by centrifugal force
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D17/00—Separation of liquids, not provided for elsewhere, e.g. by thermal diffusion
  • B01D17/02—Separation of non-miscible liquids
  • B01D17/04—Breaking emulsions
  • B01D17/045—Breaking emulsions with coalescers
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D17/00—Separation of liquids, not provided for elsewhere, e.g. by thermal diffusion
  • B01D17/02—Separation of non-miscible liquids
  • B01D17/04—Breaking emulsions
  • B01D17/047—Breaking emulsions with separation aids
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
  • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
  • E21B43/00—Methods or apparatus for obtaining oil, gas, water, soluble or meltable materials or a slurry of minerals from wells
  • E21B43/34—Arrangements for separating materials produced by the well
  • E21B43/40—Separation associated with re-injection of separated materials

Definitions

• the present invention relates to the field of fluid treatment extracted from an operating well, particularly in the case where this extracted fluid contains a water-oil mixture (i.e. water-hydrocarbon).
• a water-oil mixture i.e. water-hydrocarbon
• the fluid rising from the well may be relatively turbulent and the water-oil emulsion may be important (ie the size of the oil drops in the well). water can be very fine) thus complicating any subsequent oil / water separation.
• the present invention thus improves the situation.
• the present invention provides a system for treating a mixture from a production well, said mixture comprising a first aqueous liquid and a second oily liquid, the treatment system comprises:
• an extraction tube installed in said well and capable of driving said mixture from a bottom of said well
• a separator capable of separating the first liquid from the second liquid in said mixture, a first end of said tube being connected to the separator, a first injection means capable of injecting a first product into said tube, said first product being capable of improving the flocculation and coalescence of the second fluid in the mixture,
• Any diameter of the tube between said first end of the tube and a second end of said tube is within a range of 10% around a predetermined diameter.
• the separator may comprise a first discharge for aqueous liquid, and wherein the system further comprises a choke able to regulate a flow of liquid exiting said first evacuation.
• the separator may comprise a second discharge for oily liquid, and wherein the system further comprises a choke able to regulate a flow of liquid leaving said second evacuation.
• a larger dimension of the separator may be less than five times the predetermined diameter.
• the processing system may further comprise:
• a bottom pump said bottom pump comprising an inlet and an outlet, the second end of said tube being connected to the output of said bottom pump, a second injection means able to inject a second active product on interfaces water and oil in the mixture in an area upstream of the bottom pump with regard to a circulation of said mixture from the inlet of said bottom pump to the outlet of said bottom pump.
• the second injection means may be able to inject a third anti-deposit product.
• the downhole pump may be a hydraulic pump or a centrifugal hydraulic pump or an electric pump.
• the predetermined diameter may be able to maximize, for a given mixing rate in said tube, an effect of flocculation and coalescence of the oily liquid of said mixture in said tube.
• the separator may comprise a first evacuation for aqueous liquid, said evacuation being connected to an underground reservoir.
• the separator may also comprise a first evacuation for aqueous liquid, said evacuation being connected to an underground reservoir and a pump installed on the surface may be able to pressurize a liquid leaving said evacuation for an injection of said exiting liquid into the underground reservoir.
• the separator may comprise a first evacuation for aqueous liquid, said evacuation being connected to an underground reservoir, the bottom pump may be able to pressurize a liquid leaving said evacuation for an injection of said exiting liquid into the underground reservoir.
• the separator may be a cyclonic separator.
• the separator may be an active separator whose activation speed is independent of a speed of the bottom pump.
• the separator can be installed on the surface or in the well.
• a distance between a wellhead of said well and the separator may be less than 100 meters.
• the first injection means may be positioned in such a way that the injection of the first product is carried out in a first third of the tube comprising the second end of said tube.
• the first injection means may be positioned such that the injection of the first product is carried out in a continuous portion of the tube comprising the second end of said tube, said continuous portion having a length of less than 20 meters.
• FIG. 1 illustrates a particular embodiment of a processing system of a mixture from a production well according to the invention.
• FIG. 1 illustrates a particular embodiment of a system for treating a mixture derived from a production well according to the invention.
• This processing system 100 is installed in a production well 101 previously drilled.
• the production fluid contained in the reservoir infiltrates into the well 101 at the bottom of the well 101a and through perforations 102.
• an extraction tube 103 This tube extends from the surface (ie from the wellhead) to the well bottom 101a or at least up to a side at which the fluid of production exists.
• the well is an eruptive well, it is not necessary to install a well-bottom pump to help raise production fluid to the surface.
• a pump 108 This pump is called a "bottom pump”.
• the pump 108 includes an inlet 108e and an outlet 108s.
• This pump can be in particular a hydraulic pump, a centrifugal hydraulic pump or an electric pump.
• this pump is powerful enough to allow the fluid from the pumping zone (i.e. from the inlet of the pump 108e) to reach the wellhead.
• this fluid may have an "emulsion” appearance.
• This phenomenon is reinforced by the use of a bottom pump.
• the oil contained in the aqueous liquid tends to form gullets of small sizes during back in the tube.
• This separator 104 capable of separating the oil from the remainder of the second liquid liquid in said mixture (ie the production fluid).
• This separator 104 is connected to the upper end 106 of the extraction tube.
• the separator 104 comprises an evacuation 105 for the non-oily liquid.
• a choke 1 10 i.e. closing valve
• This evacuation 105 may be connected to an underground reservoir 1 15 accessible, for example, via an old operating well 1 14 in order to store and evacuate this aqueous liquid.
• the hydrostatic pressure of the aqueous liquid column may be sufficient to apply a pressure capable of injecting this liquid into the tank 1 15. Nevertheless, the tank 1 may also exert a too high back pressure and thus block the injection of the liquid in this tank 1 15.
• a surface pump 1 16 for pressurizing the liquid discharged via this line and able to overcome the counterpressure of the tank 1 15.
• this pressurization is not necessarily carried out using a surface pump: the bottom pump 108 can also allow this pressurization in the event that it is sufficiently powerful and sufficiently sized for an injection liquid from line 105 in the underground reservoir 1 15.
• this separator 104 comprises a drain 1 18 for oily liquid, provided with a choke 1 1 1 able to regulate a flow of liquid discharged by this evacuation 1 18.
• the separator 104 may be a cyclonic separator, for example rotated by means of a device shared with the pump 108 (eg same hydraulic system, same transmission shaft, etc.).
• the separator can be an active separator, it may be useful for the activation speed thereof (eg rotational speed of an active cyclonic filter) to be independent of the pump speed of the pump. background (eg activation rate depending on the density of the oil in the liquid and not the flow rate of the pumped liquid).
• the activation speed thereof eg rotational speed of an active cyclonic filter
• background eg activation rate depending on the density of the oil in the liquid and not the flow rate of the pumped liquid.
• FIG. 1 shows a separator 104 installed beyond the wellhead (ie at the surface), it may be useful to install it in the well in order to allow the installation of the standard well safety mechanisms at the well. above the separator. Indeed, most often, the safety devices create changes in diameter likely to cause turbulent flows within the operating fluid and thus they can disrupt / block the subsequent separation of the oil contained within the fluid d. exploitation.
• a larger dimension (L) of the separator 104 may be less than five times the diameter of the tube 103.
• Optisep compact separator (US 7,462,274 B2).
• the compactness of this device facilitates its resistance to pressure, simplifies assembly and makes easy operations at the wellhead.
• the separator is not too far from the wellhead (for example, 100m): - if the separator is in the well, this avoids the separator being too close to the pump or areas of well turbulence.
• the system benefits from the coalescence and natural flocculation of the oil as it rises back into the tube 103;
• the separator If the separator is out of the well, it avoids a horizontal transport of non-oily fluid and therefore not necessary for production.
• the system further comprises an injection tube 109 for injecting a product into the extraction tube 103 to improve the flocculation and coalescence of the oil in the production fluid.
• Flocculation is the physico-chemical process in which matter suspended in a liquid agglomerates to form larger particles.
• the flocculant may be, for example, metal ions (iron, aluminum) or macromolecules (polyelectrolytes) to promote aggregation.
• Coalescence is a phenomenon whereby two identical but dispersed substances tend to come together.
• the main phenomenon that comes into play is that the material optimizes its surface under the action of the surface tension, so as to reach a minimum of energy.
• the tube 109 is advantageously placed to allow injection into the first third of the bottom tube of the tube 103 (i.e. third comprising the end 107 of the tube). This location allows the product improving the flocculation and coalescence of the oil to act for a long time during the rise of the production fluid.
• the diameter (di or d 2 ) of the tube 103 does not deviate by more than a certain percentage (eg 5% or 10%) around a predetermined diameter over any the height of the tube (ie from the interface 106 to the interface 107).
• the predetermined diameter may be able to maximize, for a given mixing rate in said tube, a flocculation and coalescence effect. In fact, if the diameter is too small for a given flow rate, the velocity of the fluid rising in the tube 103 will be large and the friction induced on the walls of the tube 103 may cause turbulent flows against the flocculation or coalescence.
• an injection line 1 12 passing for example the seal 1 13
• an active product on water-oil interfaces for example a surfactant
• an anti depositing in an upstream zone (101 a) of the bottom pump with respect to the circulation (arrow 1 17) of the production fluid towards the surface.

Landscapes

• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Geology (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mining & Mineral Resources (AREA)
• Thermal Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
• Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
• General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Geochemistry & Mineralogy (AREA)
• Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
• Extraction Or Liquid Replacement (AREA)
• Cyclones (AREA)
• Separation Of Suspended Particles By Flocculating Agents (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

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Family Applications (1)

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Citations (2)

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• 2015
  • 2015-01-30 WO PCT/FR2015/050225 patent/WO2015114275A2/fr active Application Filing
  • 2015-01-30 EP EP15707165.5A patent/EP3102783A2/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2015-01-30 BR BR112016017703-7A patent/BR112016017703A2/pt active Search and Examination
  • 2015-01-30 US US15/115,849 patent/US10900340B2/en active Active

Patent Citations (2)

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