Results of Field Trials of a New Type of Electrical Submersible Pump, the Hydraulic Diaphragm ESP, from Coal Bed, Conventional Gas and Conventional Oil Wells Applications in the US
Leland Traylor, Pumping Solutions Inc.
Pumping Solutions Incorporated has developed and tested a new type of Electrical Submersible Pump that uses a positive displacement, hydraulically activated diaphragm pumping mechanism in place of the traditional centrifugal pump. This paper presents the field trial results and lessons learned from over 80 real world field installations in coal bed, conventional gas, and conventional oil wells, with data documenting solids handling, gas characteristics, electrical efficiency, and pump performance. Test results show significant improvements over conventional rod, PCP, centrifugal and other types of artificial lift in solids handling, gas lock characteristics, electrical efficiency, production economics and low volume/deep pump performance. The paper also discusses the issues associated with the use of this new technology, and the basics of the pumping system itself.