SPE 165421

Rodless PCP Technology: From Theory to Reality; Analyzing One Year of

Performance
Gilberto Jose Garcia, Apex Advanced Solutions Inc.

Copyright 2013, Society of Petroleum Engineers

This paper was prepared for presentation at the SPE Heavy Oil Conference Canada held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 11–13 June 2013.

This paper was selected for presentation by an SPE program committee following review of information contained in an abstract submitted by the author(s). Contents of the paper have not been
reviewed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers and are subject to correction by the author(s). The material does not necessar ily reflect any position of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, its
officers, or members. Electronic reproduction, distribution, or storage of any part of this paper without the written consent of the Society of Petroleum Engineers is prohi bited. Permission to
reproduce in print is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 words; illustrations may not be copied. The abstract must contain conspicuous acknowledgment of SPE copyright.

Introduction

Oil producers have been utilizing Progressing Cavity Pumps (PCP) for decades, as it is the optimal method of artificial lift to
effectively handle fluids with high solid content. These wells can be vertical, directional or horizontal, while the latter two
optimize in-flow performance and maximize fluid rates. Conversely, these well-bore geometries create high contact loading
between the rod and tubing, which ultimately leads to an increased and costly intervention frequency to repair failed rod
and/or tubing. While there are several products that exist to prolong run-time in these environments (Endless Rod, Tubing
Rotators, etc.), these failures cannot be entirely eliminated, and in some cases make these wells uneconomical to produce.
The oil industry has been looking for an alternative to effectively and economically produce these troublesome oil wells.
Many producers have been on a crusade seeking an alternative to a conventional rod driven PC Pump. This crusade has led to
the development of a Rod-less PCP system, allowing the full benefit of the pumps ability to handle solids, while eliminating
the primary cause of failure: the rod string.
A major requirement to effectively operate a Rod-less PCP system is the ability to provide sufficient rotational torque. With
this in mind, a team of industry professionals in their respective fields (Electrical Submersible Pumps, PCP, and Sensor-less
Surface Control or SSC) began working cohesively to develop an all-inclusive system. The system provides full surface
control and monitoring using the down-hole intake/discharge pressure gauges, a vibration sensor, and a motor winding
thermocouple.
There were some initial system concerns such as overheating of prime mover due to heat dissipation, the ability to achieve
optimum pump operational speed, and successfully control the system with full torque available at low speeds.
The primary focus of the project was to find a prime mover capable of operating at low speeds, with excellent heat
dissipation characteristics. A technology that has been evolving for the past several years is the use of Permanent Magnets
(PM) in electric motors that result in more energy efficient electric motors, while reducing heat generation. This technology
step-change eliminates the portion of the current used to magnetize the core, thus reducing the additional heat caused by
power transformation. These motors also allow the system to work with low input voltage, which makes them ideal for any
PCP system, as there is no need for expensive step up transformers on the output of the controller.
An additional requirement for the system is the ability to handle the thrust loads and eccentric movements of the PCP. In a
conventional rod driven PCP, the rod string is constantly working with a tensile force generated by the rotation of the rotor
inside the stator and the weight of the rod string. Once the prime mover is relocated to the bottom of the pump, the rotation of
the rotor creates a compressive force on the drive shaft rod. This compressive force is directly proportional to the discharge
load of the PCP, and is measured in thousands of pounds-force. A coupling device between the PM motor and the PCP was
designed to handle these particular characteristics of the PCP. This thrust chamber encapsulates a series of bearings to
manage both the load forces and eccentric movements of the PCP.
After many months of development, the system was ready for bench testing with all of the components, including the SSC.
The bench testing of the system involved several tasks to simulate any and all possible scenarios that might present
themselves during the typical operation of the system. Some of the scenarios considered were: operation in an environment
with high solids ratio, flushing of system (sand build-up), operation in a high temperature environment, heat dissipation at
low operational speed, and initial start-up with high torque demands. A critical task for the testing was determining the
limitations of the system under desired power parameters, as the system has been designed to work with low voltage.
2 SPE 165421

The system was designed to operate on low voltage (3 phase - 460 VAC) power, and provide a direct output torque from the
PM motor up to 500 newton meters of rotational torque, at an optimal speed range (50 to 250RPM). A load dynamometer
was coupled to the PM motor, and a load curve was plotted from the test results. Fig. 1 shows the continuous operation at
rated load up to 300 RPM. Due to over-modulation created at higher speeds, the SSC could not provide efficient control on
the load, which limits the maximum torque output of the motor at speeds above 300 RPM.

Fig. 1 – Motor output power measured with the use of dynamometer to determine limitations of PM Motor.

Under normal operations PCP’s are known to require additional break-away or start-up torques. In some cases these break-
away torques can reach several times the normal average operation. The ability of the SSC to allow the PM motor to provide
200 percent of rated torque for an instant, provides a solution to overcome this issue by allowing the over-loading of the
system for short periods of time.
For scenarios where high solid ratios and constant flushing of the pumps is necessary, a control algorithm has been added to
the SSC to monitor any change in the pump load and operating torque. Once a noticeable change is detected in these
parameters, the algorithm can reverse the direction of the pump to move the fluid inside the production tubing down the
casing to effectively “flush” the pump and to agitate the well-bore fluid to prevent a sand-in situation. Once this procedure is
finalized, the pump automatically resumes operation. This algorithm can also be configured to be triggered on a scheduled
basis to proactively prevent the sanding-in of the system.

Field testing

With the support of a large Canadian Producer, the selection of a well candidate to run the first system of its kind began by
assembling a group of specialists from both parties. This group of specialists was mandated to establish the evaluation
parameters of this new technology and to determine the key variables to determine its success.
The process to determine the best well candidate was determined by the following factors: i) a wellbore with a slant or
horizontal configuration, ii) fluid characteristics for heavy oil, with a viscosity between 4Pa·s and 10 Pa·s, iii) a well with
historical data, for use as a benchmark, iv) casing and liner size > 177.8mm outer diameter (OD), v) fluid production rate
from 5 to 25m3/day. Several wells were selected based on these parameters, and software simulations for all selected wells
were made. Most of the well characteristics were similar between the candidates, and can be summarized as: 1 200 to 1 500m
MD horizontal wells, with 219.1mm OD casing, 177.8mm OD liners, average 1.5° to 3.5° dog leg deviation per 30m, a pump
landing depth of 750 to 850m MD on the horizontal, and desired production rate of 11m3/day.
The initial software simulation of the system illustrated a reduction in operational torque, as a result of the removal of the rod
string. The flow loses caused by the rod string represented at least 50 percent of the torque required to operate the PCP, and
other factors such as the compression fit of the PCP and frictional torque at 0m lift, also contributed drastically in this
reduction.
Prior to the installation of the system in the well, the Canadian Producer requested a test run into a test well. The idea behind
the test, was to demonstrate the proper functionality of the entire system, and demonstrate to the producer the installation
process. The test well completion was made with the down-hole PM Motor, seal section, thrust chamber, drive shaft rod, and
PCP connected to a flanged wellhead. The production tubing was retrofitted to the casing port, using a choke valve to
simulate pump load. The pump was loaded to 11 000kPa and run from 50 to 250RPM. The results showed that the system
reacted accordingly with the design parameters. After this test, the Canadian Producer indicated that the installation of the
system on the well was scheduled for November of 2011.
The well chosen for the installation had been in operation for 6 months with a constant production of approximately
10m3/day of fluid with an operational speed of 170RPM. Fig. 2, reflects the average operational torque for this well before
the Rodless PCP System installation (previously with endless rod) was approximately 450N·m. The original completion of
the well: Rod-driven PCP model 10-1800, 88.9mm Tubing, 28.575mm Endless Rod. Pump landed at 85° on the verical.
Internal tubing flow area calculated for this completion was 25.161cm2 (tubing internal diameter minus rod coupling outer
diameter). The new completion proposed for the Rod-less PCP System was with an 11-1800 pump, 60.3mm Tubing, PM
Motor Assembly, landed at 86° on the verical (smaller tubing to get similar flow area, calculated for the rod-less PCP at
19.999cm2).
SPE 165421 3

Fig. 2 – Historical data for pump speed (RPM) and rotational torque (N·m) of the rod driven PCP prior the installation of the rod-less
PCP system.

On 3 November 2011 the installation took place in a well located east of Lloydminster, Saskatchewan, Canada. The
installation began with the assembly of the real-time down-hole gauge to the PM Motor, followed by the seal section. These
components were tested to guarantee a reliable seal between them. Followed by the thrust chamber, drive shaft rod, and PCP.
The completion was installed with 74 joints of 60.3mm OD production tubing. The system was completely installed on 7
November 2011 and after commissioning the system was started at 170RPM at 10:30 a.m. local time. The system was started
at the same speed as the previous rod drive system, for comparison purposes. After running for 24 hours, the production
measured for the well was 17m3. The project team reviewed the performance parameters, and reduced the pump speed to
140RPM. This reduction of speed allowed the well to produce an average of 13m3/day. Fig. 3 shows a considerable reduction
of operational torque (approximately 70 percent less) as compared with its similar rod driven system. The data from the real-
time down-hole gauge system provides accurate details on the fluid level above the pump. As illustrated on the Fig 3, the
initial reservoir pressure was ~1 400kPa and gradually decreased over time.

Fig. 3 – Rod-less PCP Performance for the first week of run-time.

After a two and one-half month run-time, the project team reviewed the performance of the system and determined that the
reservoir pressure decline rate was too steep, and reduced the pump speed to 130RPM. Fig. 4 illustrates the changes on the
reservoir pressure and performance of the pump. After 2 weeks of run-time, speed was adjusted to 120RPM to further reduce
the reservoir pressure decline rate. It was observed that the torque remained constant the entire time.
4 SPE 165421

Fig. 4 – Continuous monitoring of performance parameters for the rod-less PCP.

The fluid inflow to the pump is a variable that impacts the lifetime of any PCP. By establishing safety intake pressure
limitations, the project team prevented a pre-mature failure on the system. Fig. 5 illustrates the changes on the reservoir
pressure and pump performance for the last 13 months. Because the reservoir pressure declined below the safe operational
range, the project team further reduced the operational speed to 100RPM. In addition to the speed reduction, a pump-off
protection algorithm was enabled to shut-down the pump upon reaching these limits. After the reservoir pressure increased
above the minimum range limit, the pump resumed operation. At this point, the system produced an average of ~9m3/day. On
November 2012, an external shut-down signal fault from the PLC (facilities) triggered a complete shutdown of the system.
That was corrected, and the rod-less PCP was back to operation. That external fault was not related to the performance or
operation of the system.
Once the 12 month run-time milestone was achieved, the project team reviewed the performance of the system and
established that it was a success, indicating that the product was commercially ready. Addionally, it was decided to enable
more functions available from the SSC. The system was changed from fixed speed, to automated speed based on fluid levels.
This change allowed the SSC to automatically adjust the pump speed accordingly. The maximum speed for the pump was set
at 80RPM. The operational speed is then reduced automatically to prevent a pump-off if the reservoir pressure falls below
207kPa. Once the reservoir pressure falls below 138kPa (minimum set-point) a pump-off event is activated. The automated
speed control improved the pump run-time from ~21h/day up to ~23.5h/day, and maintained an average production of
~8m3/day.

Fig. 5 – Historical data for pump speed (RPM), rotational torque (N·m) and intake pressure (kPa) for the rod-less PCP system for 13
months from first start-up.

System Comparison

Using the historical well data, an objective comparison can be performed between the two PCP systems. See Fig. 6.
SPE 165421 5

Rod-Driven Rod-Less

Fig. 6 – Performance comparison between the previous rod drive PCP system and the current installed rod-less PCP system.

System Configuration and Specifications

The rod-less PCP system is composed by three major components:

 Bottom-hole PM motor assembly
 PCP
 SSC
The bottom-hole PM motor assembly includes a 117mm OD PM motor, 94mm OD down-hole gauge, 105.6mm OD bag type
seal section, 96mm OD 40kN thrust chamber and 89mm OD inlet port for the PCP. The PM motor is rated for 24kW at a
maximum 725 VAC phase to phase, providing a maximum speed of 500RPM and 500N·m of nominal rotational torque. The
down-hole gauge system is rate for a maximum pressure of 40MPa and 125°C. The power is transmitted form surface using a
flap pack ESP cable rated for the PM motor.

SSC

Power Cable

Down-hole PM Motor Seal Section Thrust Pump Inlet PCP

Gauge Chamber

Fig. 7 – Rod-less PCP System configuration diagram.

On-going and future development of this system includes: i) design and test more powerful prime movers to meet the demand
of applications requiring increased horsepower and torque ability, ii) continue to verify these results through a broarder
sampling, iii) continue to advance and enhance this technology.