ELECTRICAL SUBMERSIBLE PUMP

Introduction
An electrical submersible pumping system is
generally considered to be a high volume type of
artificial lift. It is applicable in wells that are
under the influence of a water drive or waterflood
and that have high water cuts or low GOR.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 1

 This application is based on two key characteristics
of the submersible pumping system:
1. The system can efficiently deliver the largest
amount of horsepower at the pump of any
pumping system in the small diameter casing
sizes used in oilfield application.
2. Centrifugal pumps can produce at much higher
rates than positive displacement pumps in wells
of limited diameters.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 2

 Submersible pumps are capable of lifting from
200 bbl/D up to 60,000 bbl/D at depths of
1,000 ft. to 15,000 ft. They are suitable for both
onshore and offshore wells in deviated or
straight holes.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 3

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 4
 The submersible pump is a multistage electrical
centrifugal pump that operates completely
submerged in the fluid it pumps.
The major components of the system are:
1. Pump
2. Motor
3. Seal section
4. Fluid intake/gas separator
5. Cable
6. Surface equipment such as transformer and
switchboard.
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 Primary
Transformer
Switchboard

Wellhead
and
electric
mandrel

Tubing
Round Cable

Packer
Pump

Separator
Seal
Flat Cable
Motor

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 TRANSFORMERS

MOTOR WELL HEAD

CONTROLLER

JUNCTION
BOX

Tubing
Power Cable Drain
Valve
Splice Check
Valve

Casing
Pump

Intake

Seal

Motor

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 Surface Equipment
The ESP surface equipment consist of:
1. Electrical power source.
2. Transformer: it changes the incoming voltage
to that needed at the well.
3. Motor controller/switchboard: it protects the
motor by monitoring the voltage,current and
frequency going into the motor.

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 4. Junction box: it connects the cable from the
switchboard to the cable from the downhole
motor.
5. Wellhead: the cable from the junction box
runs to the wellhead where it passes through
the penetrator down the wellbore to the
motor.

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 ESP Equipment String
1. Pump: it is reponsible for the actual movement
of the produced fluid to the surface. Pump is
rated by the amount of fluid it can move. There
can be more than one pump in a tubing string.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 10

 2. Fluid intake/gas separator: this is where the
fluid actually enters the pump.
- The gas separator is used to separate the gas
from the liquid prior to its entrance to the
pump. This enhances the pump efficiency.
- This device also prevents solids from
entering the pump.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 11

 3. Seal: it is also called protector or equalizer.
- It protects the motor by sealing the well
fluids out of the motor and allows the
motor oil to expand and contracts as
necessary due to the heating and cooling of
the motor.
- It also equalizes the pressure between the
well and the motor.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 12

 4. Electric motor: it is the power that drives the
equipment string. Motor is rated by horse-
power, voltage, and amps. There can be more
than one motor in the tubing string. The pump
speed decreases as the number of stages
increases.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 13

 5. Motor lead cable: it transfers power to motor.
It is flat to fit between the pump housing and
the casing. On one end, it is connected to the
motor; on the other end, it is connected to the
downhole cable that carries the electricity to
power the motor.
The cable consists of:
 Conductor (1) 4

 Insulator (2) 3

 Jacket (3) 2

 Armor (4) 1

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 14

 Motor cable must be protected from
corrosive fluids and gases. Gas may leak to
the cable causing serious problem downhole
and on surface.
6. Downhole sensing system (DSS) (optional):
it is attached to the bottom of the motor. It
allows the operator to read the downhole
pressure and temperature of the well.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 15

 7. Check valve: it is usually installed in the
tubing string two or three joints above the
pump assembly. It prevents the tubing from
unloading through the pump when the unit
goes down.
8. Drain valve or sliding sleeve: it is usually
installed one joint above the check valve. It
allows communication between the tubing
and the annulus. It also allows the tubing to
be pulled dry if the pump becomes plugged.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 16

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 17
 ESP Components
All ESP are basically the same. They consists
of the following parts:
1. Housing: the outer part of the pump that
contains all of the other pieces.
2. Thrust washers: they are installed to help
control friction and reduce wear in the pump.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 18

 3. Impeller and diffuser: these two parts together
make up a pump stage.
- The impeller is connected to shaft and
rotates at the motor speed.
- Centrifugal force pushes fluid from center
of impeller to the outer tip of impeller.
- The diffuser is fixed and directs fluid to
the center to the next impeller. This allows
the fluid to be moved from the wellbore.

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 Impeller

Diffuser

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 20

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 21
 ADVANTAGES OF ESP
1. Easily controlled with wide range of rates.
2. Quick startup after shutdown.
3. Efficient in terms of power consumption
(cost per barrel basis).
4. Adaptable to deviated wells.
5. Quite and safe for environmentally sensitive
areas.

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 DISADVANTAGES OF ESP
1. Pulling tubing unit is required to retrieve the
failed ESP.
2. Inefficient at high temperature condition.
3. High deviation and dogleg severity can be a
problem.
4. Solids cause rapid wear and premature
failure.
5. Inefficient with gassy or viscous crude.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 23

 6. Not good for low flow rates (<150
STBO/D) as efficiency drops.
7. Susceptible to handling problems while
shipping and installing.
8. Relatively low run lives (average of 1000
days.) and costly workover.
9. Intolerant to scale/asphaltene deposition.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 24

 DESIGN PROCEDURE
Sizing of ESP is critical. The design of ESP unit,
under most conditions, is not a difficult task if
reliable data is available.
1. Collect and analyze well production, fluid, and
electrical power data.
Calculate bottomhole well flow rate by straight
line, Vogel, or Fetkovich IPR.

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 25

 2. Select the proper pump by examining
manufacturers pump curve book according to:
 Operating range covers well rate.
 Pump OD less than casing size.
The largest diameter pump which the
casing will permit is usually the most
economical choice.
 Small head curve gradient (bbl/day/ft. of
head).

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 3. Design number of stages required.
Total Dynamic Head ( ft.)
Total No. of Stages 
Head per Stage ( ft. / stage)
The total dynamic head, (TDH), is the sum of:
 Tubing discharge pressure, Pd . It is the head
required to overcome frictional pressure
drop in the surface pipe, valves, and fittings
and to overcome elevation changes between
wellhead and tank battery.

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  Net feet of fluid lift, hd , also called dynamic
fluid column. It is the distance from the
wellhead to the estimated producing fluid
level at expected producing capacity.
hd  Res. Depth  Annular Fluid Column
or:
Flowing BHP
hd  Res. Depth 
Annular Fluid Gradient
 Friction loss in the tubing, ft .

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 Thus, the total dynamic head is given as:
TDH  Pd  ft  hd
The head per stage is read from the pump
performance curve for desired flow rate.
4. Motor Selection.
The required motor size is proportional to the
number of stages and the specific gravity of
the produced fluid.
HP  ( No. of Stages)( HP / Stage)( f )

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 5. Cable Size and Length.
Usual practice limits the voltage drop to less
than 30 volts/1,000 ft. The total cable length
should be at least 100 ft. longer than the pump
setting depth in order to make surface
connections a safe distance from the wellhead.

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 Example 1
Given the following data:
Pump depth = 7,500 ft.
Tubing pressure = 150 psig
Pump intake pressure = 275 psig
Production rate = 3,000 STB/D
Mixture gradient = 0.42 psi/ft.
7
Tubing = New 2 /8-in. EUE (2.441-in. ID)
Calculate the Total Dynamic Head (TDH).

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 Solution
TDH  Pd  ft  hd
The tubing discharge pressure, Pd ,.is calculated as:
Tubing Head Pressure 150
Pd    357.14 ft.
Gradient 0.42
The friction loss in the tubing, ft , is obtained
from Fig. 1 for the given production rate. Thus,
pump depth, ft.
ft  (head loss, from Fig .1)
1,000 ft.
7,500
 (55.8)  418.5 ft.
1,000
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 The net feet of fluid lift, hd , is calculated as:
Flowing BHP
hd  Res. Depth 
Annular Fluid Gradient
275
 7,500   6,845.24 ft.
0.42
Thus, the Total Dynamic Head (TDH) is:
TDH  Pd  ft  hd  357.14  418.5  6,845.24  7,621 ft.

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 Hazen-Williams Friction Loss
(for New, Old and Average Pipe)
1,000
Friction Loss (ft/1000ft) 1.315" Tubing 1.9" Tubing 2.875" Tubing 4" Tubing 5.5" Casing

100

1.66" Tubing 2.375" Tubing 3.5" Tubing 4.5" Tubing 7" Casing
10
100 1,000 10,000 100,000
Volumetric Rate (bbl/d)

Fig. 1. Flow Loss Due to Friction

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 34
 Example 2
Given the following data:
Production rate = 2,300 STB/D
Fluid specific gravity = 0.97
Total Dynamic Head (TDH) = 5,000 ft.
1
Casing size: 5 /2 in.
TD2200 pump performance curve (Fig. 2).
Determine:
1. the number of stages
2. the horsepower required

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 35

 Solution
1. Number of stages
Total Dynamic Head ( ft.)
Total No. of Stages 
Head per Stage ( ft. / stage)
The head per stage is obtained from the pump
performance curve (Fig. 2) for the given flow
rate (2,300 STB/D).
Thus, the head per stage = 23.75 ft./stage
5,000
Total No. of Stages   211 Stages
23.75

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 36

 2. Horsepower required.
The horsepower required per stage is obtained
from the pump performance curve (Fig. 2) for
the given flow rate (2,300 STB/D). Thus, the
horsepower per stage = 0.58 HP/stage.
The horsepower required by the pump is
given as:
HP Required  (Total No. of Stages)(HP/Stage)( f )
 (211)(0.58)(0.97)  119 HP

Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) 37

 Fig. 2. Pump Performance Curve
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