Hydrocarbon Well Performance Monitoring System

摘要

A system and method for real-time data acquisition and presentation of force, position, load, pressures, and movement within a subterranean well pumping system, such as an oil well. Data is gathered using sensors attached to a surface level pump drive and wellhead system. Well structural data and well production data are combined therewith to generate a real-time display of down-hole well operation, including animated graphics of the pump operation, including pump movement, rod and tubing stretch, fluid movement, gas compression, system forces, and fluid pressures. Liquid levels are tested using an acoustic liquid level instrument, and incorporated to improve well performance analysis.

主权项

1. A method of real-time utilization of performance data by a processor, which is associated with a pump lifting well fluids of known physical properties above a liquid level in a casing of a subterranean well through a tube to a surface level, the pump having a chamber with a fluid inlet located below the liquid level that is gated by a stationary valve, and having a plunger slidably engaged with the chamber, the plunger having a known area and having a fluid outlet gated by a traveling valve that is coupled to deliver well fluids to the tube, the plunger reciprocated to vary the displacement of the chamber by a rod extending upward to a cyclical drive unit at the surface, the method comprising the steps of:
obtaining, in real time, a sequence of rod position data samples and rod load data samples corresponding to cyclical operation of said rod at the surface level; calculating, in real time, a sequence of plunger position data points and plunger load data points corresponding to cyclical operation of the rod at the plunger level, and calculated in accordance with a set of structural data for the subterranean well; determining a discharge pressure at the fluid outlet from the pump; calculating, in real-time, a sequence of pump chamber pressure data points according to said sequence of plunger load data points, and displaying, in real time, a portion of said sequence of plunger position data points, a portion of said sequence of plunger rod load data points, and a portion of said sequence of chamber pressure data points.