Gas lift system safer, more reliable

Example of the XLift high-pressure gas lift system showing one of the four barrier gas lift valves. (Image courtesy of Schlumberger)

The latest release of the Schlumberger XLift high-pressure gas lift system includes a series of high-pressure barrier gas lift valves that separately serve as qualified safety pressure barriers. Each valve has surpassed qualification tests established by NORSOK (Norwegian Oil & Gas Industry Standards) and Statoil’s Requirements to Well Completions tests. Depending on the specific needs of a particular job, any one of the four valves can be employed.

These new valves allow the XLift system to deliver high-volume optimized injected gas to lift oil wells while also serving as a safer, more reliable pressure barrier between the cased-hole annulus and the production tubing. The system is engineered to withstand high-volume liquid and gas flow rates during well unloading and production while also maintaining a safety seal during well shut-in periods.

An additional feature of the high-pressure gas lift system is the unique reverse-flow check valve that significantly reduces the risk of hydrocarbon migration to the wellbore annulus. It also works in harmony with the production packer and subsurface safety valve to form the primary well control barrier. It has a working pressure of 10,000 psi (680 Bar) and 350°F (177°C) and can be installed on 1 1/2-in.- and 1 3/4-in. diameter gas valves.

When well production characteristics call for the use of gas injection to artificially lift a well, the XLift system can be deployed in a side pocket mandrel during the initial completion stages of a well or by using slickline to install valves in the side pocket mandrels that are already in existing completions.

First dry-air RSS completes test runs

Weatherford International Ltd. has completed the world’s first runs using a rotary-steerable system (RSS) to drill with dry air in the Lower Huron formation in Kentucky. To date, this is the longest single run with RSS technology in a dry air environment and the fastest for the company.

The assembly, which consisted of a Revolution Plus RSS and an EMpulse measurement-while-drilling system with electromagnetic telemetry, successfully drilled a 6,125-ft (1,867-m) lateral section with 4 ¾-in. tools where conventional operations had been limited to a maximum 5,000 ft (1,524 m). The section was drilled in 46.35 hours at an average penetration rate of 132 ft/hr (40 m/hr) in 100% dry air.

“This step forward will expand the potential for cost-effective unconventional gas production by enabling greater production footage from fewer surface penetrations,” said John Niven, Global Service Line Manager for Weatherford’s RSS. “This move will also help operators reach previously inaccessible portions of the reservoir.”

V-Cone Flowmeter simple, economical solution for oil, gas applications

In comparison to traditional DP instruments such as orifice plates and Venturi tubes, the flowmeter’s design is inherently more accurate because the flow conditioning function is built into the basic instrument. (Image courtesy of McCrometer)

With thousands of units installed worldwide during the past 20 years, McCrometer’s V-Cone Flowmeter has proven itself in a wide range of installations, from the most challenging offshore oil and gas applications to refining and chemical plants. It provides a low-installed and low lifecycle cost solution to measuring liquids, gas, or steam, with virtually no maintenance and long life.

The process of selecting and sizing a V-Cone takes only minutes for most standard oil and gas applications. With its highly flexible design, a wide range of custom V-Cone configurations is also available.

The flowmeter operates over a wide flow range of 10:1 with low head loss and supports line sizes from 0.5 to greater than 120 in. Accuracy is +0.5%, with a repeatability of +0.1%. A comprehensive suite of testing is available to meet individual user requirements, including pressure, non-destructive testing, and calibration. The testing of the V-Cone conforms to the American Petroleum Institute’s API 22.2 Testing Protocol for differential pressure flow measurement devices.

The self-conditioning flowmeter is well suited for easy installation in all applications and is ideal where installation conditions are crowded, such as offshore platforms. It requires a pipe straight-run that is up to 70% less than other meters, resulting in significant real estate and installation cost savings that can actually exceed the cost of the instrument itself. Its no-moving parts design provides built-in flow conditioning, which almost eliminates the upstream/downstream straight pipe runs required by nearly all flowmeter technologies. Typical flowmeter installations may

require 10 to more than 40 straight pipe diameters upstream from the meter and five or more straight pipe diameters downstream to eliminate the effects of swirl and other pipeline disturbances caused by valves or elbows that negatively affect accuracy.

The V-Cone conditions fluid flow to provide a stable flow profile that increases accuracy. It features a centrally located cone inside a tube. The cone interacts with the fluid flow and reshapes the velocity profile to create a lower pressure region immediately downstream.

The pressure difference, which is exhibited between the static line pressure and the low pressure created downstream of the cone, is measured via two pressure sensing taps. One tap is placed slightly upstream of the cone, and the other is located in the downstream face of the cone itself. The pressure difference is then incorporated into a derivation of the Bernoulli equation to determine the volumetric fluid flow rate.

Premium frac sand now produced in Texas

Erna Frac Sand LC is showing the world something it hasn’t seen before — Texas frac sand with northern white “Ottawa” characteristics.

In Erna, Texas sandstone is processed very similarly to that of many other sand plants. Only in Erna this sandstone has some very unique characteristics that the Lone Star state is not accustomed to.

The individual sand grains are of unusually high roundness and sphericity, and the pureness of quartz is remarkable, but when thoroughly washed, dried, and sorted, the sand grains reveal the most unique part of all -- the ability to provide conductivity and permeability at levels often only obtained with northern white “Ottawa” sands.

It’s called “Erna Brite” because it combines some of the greatest benefits of both brown sands and white sands. While traditional brown frac sands provide great conductivity at lower closure stress environments, “Ottawa” white sands tend have the upper hand beyond 2,500 psi. For oil and gas operators who require northern white sand in their Texas operations, this means enormous transportation costs and frequent supply dilemmas.

Not only does Erna Brite provide high levels of conductivity in the lower closure stress environments, but it also provides unusually high conductivity in the greater pressures as well. In fact, Erna Brite 40/70 tends to provide even greater conductivity than the average northern white sand.

Erna Frac Sand LC focuses on producing three different sizes of Erna Brite: 20/40, 40/70, and 100 Mesh. There are plans to add 16/30 to the line-up in the near future.

www.ernafracsand.com