OPTIMIZATION OF PROGRESSIVE CAVITY PUMP SYSTEMS

IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CLEARWATER HEAVY OIL

RESERVOIR

J.F. LEA P.D. ANDERSON D.G. ANDERSON

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JCPT-88-01-05 HEAVY OIL Optimization of progressive cavity pump systems in the development of the Clearwater heavy oil reservoir J.F. LEA, P.D. ANDERSON Amoco Canada Petroleum Company Ltd. and D.G. ANDERSON Corod Manufacturing Ltd. ABSTRACT Without the application of innovative equipment and operating techniques, a reservoir containing an estimated 40 million m (250 x 106 bbl) of heavy oil-in-place would have remained un- producible. The use of conventional pumping techniques would not have been able to handle the 60 000 mpa.s (centipoise) oil which averages 40% to 50% formation sand by
volume in the first few weeks of production. Progressive cavity pumps provided the most flexible, cost-effective option to exploit this difficult formation. Through the optimization of this unique equipment and associated operating techniques by both the producing and service companies involved, economic development has been made possible. This paper will describe the evolution of the progressive cavity ump system in the development of the Clearwater Formation in the Lindbergh-Elk Point field. Modifications made to the equipment design and techniques to optimize pump sizing and pump
run lives will be discussed. Introduction The Lindbergh-Elk Point Field is located approximately 165 km east of Edmonton md just south of the town of Elk Point a shown in Figure 1. Amoco Canada holds a 1000/o working ins tercet in 6090 ha (23 5 sections) in the Lindbergh field. Develop- ment of the field began in December 1981 with the drilling of the first well in the Lower Cummings Formation of the Mannville Group. The successful production of this first well prompted the drilling of additional wells in 1983 and again in 1984. The drill- ing of these wells resulted in the delineation of
the Sparky and Clearwater formations. Testing of the Clearwater Formation showed its prolific producing capabilities despite its high viscos- ity and produced sand volumes. Previous experience and the characteristics of the reservoir fluids indicated that conventional methods of surface lift would not be successful in this applica- tion. As a result, progressive cavity pumps were employed due to their ability to pump viscous fluid with a high solids content- Keywords; Clearwater Formation, Heavy oil, Progressive cavity pump- Paper reviewed and accepted for publication by the
Editorial Geology and Reservoir Description of the Clearwater Formation The Clearwater Formation is 25 m to 30 in (82 ft to 99 ft) thick _ and consists of a moderately well sorted litharenitic sand. The sand coarsens upward in the deposit and is made up of very fine- to medium-grained and subangular to subrounded particles. This continuous body of sand was deposited along a prograding shoreline in a northwesterly direction. A series of shale-silt Laminations were later deposited over a portion of the area now overlain by the reservoir due to the occurrence of a minor marine transgression.
A calcite cemented sand is often associ- ated with this zone. The sand is overlain by a 1 m (3 ft) thick lignitic coal seam which, in turn, is capped by a Lower Sparky marine shale. A typical set of well logs of the formation is shown in Figure 2. A major system, consisting of long, sinuous channels, removed and reworked the Clearwater sand as a result of regression dur- ing Upper Sparky time. A marine incursion of the Clearwater sea supplied mud which infilled these channels forming updip seals for hydrocarbon reservoirs. Reservoir properties oF the Clearwater Formation can be
found in Table 1. Description of the Progressive Cavity Pump System The progressive cavity pump consists of two major components, the rotor and the stator. The rotor, suspended by the rod string, is the downhole pump's only moving part. It is a single external helix With a round cross section, precision-machined from high- strength steel, and chrome-plated for abrasion resistance. The stator, connected to the tubing string, is a double internal helix with a pitch length double that of the rotor. IL is precision- molded from a synthetic elastomer which is bonded to a steel tube. The
Corod progressive cavity pump is identified by the model number and the number of pump stag@. The model number represents The millilitres of fluid produced per revolution o[ the rotor. The length of a stage is equal to three times the pitch length of a rotor which is defined as the distance between a point on one lobe to the corresponding point on an adjacent lobe of Board of the Journal of Canadian Petroleum Technology