Deep deployment system for electric submersible pumps

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9255457-B2
Application number	US-201313864322-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 17, 2013
Priority date	Apr 18, 2012
Publication date	Feb 9, 2016
Grant date	Feb 9, 2016

Abstract

A system for deep deployment of electric submersible pumps is described. In an implementation, an electric submersible pump (ESP) power cable has a strength member that enables the ESP power cable to support itself when lowered deep into a well inside a coiled tubing. The self-supporting ESP power cable frees the coiled tubing from having to carry the weight of the ESP power cable, thereby permitting longer runs of coiled tubing to be suspended into the well. The ESP power cable and the coiled tubing can be anchored independently to a wellhead, and a computing device can monitor the weight loads on the ESP power cable and on the coiled tubing.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A system, comprising:
a coiled tubing for placing an electric submersible pump (ESP) in a well;
an ESP power cable inside a hollow interior of the coiled tubing for connecting to the ESP;
a strength member running in the cable to enable the cable to be suspended by anchoring an end of the cable without support from the coiled tubing;
a first anchor to connect an end of the coiled tubing to a wellhead and to support the entire weight of the coiled tubing and the ESP; and
a second anchor to connect an end of the ESP power cable to the wellhead and support the entire weight of the ESP power cable without support from the coiled tubing; and
a first weight detector operatively connected to the first anchor, to monitor a weight or a mass of the deployed coiled tubing to ensure that the coiled tubing is supporting only the weight of the coiled tubing and the weight of the ESP and not supporting the weight of the ESP power cable.

2. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a second weight detector operatively connected to the second anchor, to monitor a weight or a mass of the deployed ESP power cable to ensure that the ESP power cable is supporting the weight of the ESP power cable and that the ESP power cable is not being substantially supported by the coiled tubing.

3. The system of claim 2 , further comprising a computing device in communication with the first weight detector and the second weight detector to monitor a weight load of the coiled tubing and to monitor a weight load of the ESP power cable.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the cable comprises one of a wire, an instrument cable, a service cable, a line, or a tube.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the cable comprises an ESP power cable, and the strength member has a high tensile strength to enable the ESP power cable to bear the weight of the ESP power cable in a deep deployment of the ESP power cable.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the cable comprises an ESP power cable and the strength member runs inside an interior of the ESP power cable.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the cable comprises an ESP power cable and the strength member runs as an outside layer, a cladding, a sheath, or an armor of the ESP power cable.

8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the strength member runs as an outside layer of the ESP power cable, and further comprising:
electrical conductors running in the interior of the ESP power cable to provide three-phase power to the ESP; and
one or more control lines for the ESP in the interior of the ESP power cable.

9. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a flat pack of control lines banded to an exterior of the cable.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the cable comprises an ESP power cable and the strength member enables the ESP power cable to be suspended inside the coiled tubing without helically buckling the ESP power cable.

11. A system, comprising:
a wellhead connector for securely fastening to a wellhead;
a first anchor connected to the wellhead connector to support a length of coiled tubing suspended in a well;
a second anchor connected to the wellhead connector to support a length of power cable independently suspended in the well and suspended inside the coiled tubing;
a strength member in the power cable connected to the second anchor to enable the power cable to support the weight of the power cable;
a first weight detector operatively connected to the first anchor, to monitor a weight or a mass of the coiled tubing; and
a second weight detector operatively connected to the second anchor, to monitor a weight or a mass of the power cable.

12. The system of claim 11 , further comprising a load monitoring module and a computing device in communication with the first weight detector and the second weight detector to monitor a weight load of the coiled tubing and to monitor a weight load of the power cable, and to ensure that the power cable is supporting the weight of the power cable and that the power cable is not being substantially supported by the coiled tubing.

13. A system, comprising:
a coiled tubing for placing an electric submersible pump (ESP) in a well;
a cable inside a hollow interior of the coiled tubing for connecting to the ESP;
a strength member running in the cable to enable the cable to be suspended by anchoring an end of the cable without support from the coiled tubing; and
a flat pack of control lines banded to an exterior of the cable.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the cable comprises an ESP power cable, and further comprising:
a first anchor to connect an end of the coiled tubing to a wellhead and to support the entire weight of the coiled tubing and the ESP; and
a second anchor to connect an end of the ESP power cable to the wellhead and support the entire weight of the ESP power cable without support from the coiled tubing.

15. The system of claim 14 , further comprising:
a first weight detector operatively connected to the first anchor, to monitor a weight or a mass of the deployed coiled tubing to ensure that the coiled tubing is supporting only the weight of the coiled tubing and the weight of the ESP and not supporting the weight of the ESP power cable; and
a second weight detector operatively connected to the second anchor, to monitor a weight or a mass of the deployed ESP power cable to ensure that the ESP power cable is supporting the weight of the ESP power cable and that the ESP power cable is not being substantially supported by the coiled tubing.

16. The system of claim 15 , further comprising a computing device in communication with the first weight detector and the second weight detector to monitor a weight load of the coiled tubing and to monitor a weight load of the ESP power cable.

17. The system of claim 13 , wherein the cable comprises one of a wire, an instrument cable, a service cable, a line, or a tube.

18. The system of claim 13 , wherein the cable comprises an ESP power cable, and the strength member has a high tensile strength to enable the ESP power cable to bear the weight of the ESP power cable in a deep deployment of the ESP power cable.

19. The system of claim 13 , wherein the cable comprises an ESP power cable and the strength member runs inside an interior of the ESP power cable.

20. The system of claim 13 , wherein the cable comprises an ESP power cable and the strength member runs as an outside layer, a cladding, a sheath, or an armor of the ESP power cable.

21. The system of claim 20 , wherein the strength member runs as an outside layer of the ESP power cable, and further comprising:
electrical conductors running in the interior of the ESP power cable to provide three-phase power to the ESP; and
one or more control lines for the ESP in the interior of the ESP power cable.

22. The system of claim 13 , wherein the cable comprises an ESP power cable and the strength member enables the ESP power cable to be suspended inside the coiled tubing without helically buckling the ESP power cable.

Assignees

• Schlumberger Technology Corp

Inventors

• Scarsdale Kevin T
• Scott Brian

Classifications

• E21B17/206

  with conductors, e.g. electrical, optical · CPC title

• E21B43/12 Primary

  Methods or apparatus for controlling the flow of the obtained fluid to or in wells (E21B43/25 takes precedence; valve arrangements E21B34/00) · CPC title

• E21B47/007

  Measuring stresses in a pipe string or casing (for locating blocked portions of pipes E21B47/09) · CPC title

• E21B23/00 Primary

  Apparatus for displacing, setting, locking, releasing or removing tools, packers or the like in boreholes or wells (setting of casings, screens or liners E21B43/10) · CPC title

• E21B23/01 Primary

  for anchoring the tools or the like (E21B23/02 - E21B23/06 take precedence; anchoring of drives in the borehole E21B4/18) · CPC title