Dynamic simulation of electrical submersible pumps in different arrangements

Abstract

The proper operation of electrical submersible centrifugal pumps in complex flows such as those involving gas-liquid and liquid-liquid is essential in petroleum artificial elevation to ensure adequate process efficiency. It is also vital to identify changes in the system behavior to plan maintenance and suitable operating conditions obtaining good levels of reliability and profitable production. This Scientific Initiation project (undergraduate student) involves simulating some arrangements of pumps, for example, pumps in parallel and series, to understand the main effects in the system response. Some operational parameters such as rotation, flow, pressure variation, and flow properties will be considered in the simulations. The characteristics of each pump will be considered as input information, and the focus here is in simulations of different arrangements using the respective simplified model of each pump, connecting them using software such as Matlab, Octave, or others. The centrifugal pumps used in this artificial elevation process have their primary characteristic performance determined by the manufacturer using water as a working fluid. In the case of more complex flows (water, oil, and gas), the operating conditions of the pump change significantly. The effects of one individual component in the others are the main interest here, evaluating pressure and flow dynamic oscillations that are important for the overall pumping process. Considerations about some complex effects and simplified models are essential aspects to be considered here. The expected results of this project are a better understanding of the effects of connecting pumping in different configurations and introducing the student to the field of dynamic systems simulation. (AU)