Abstract: An electrical downhole centrifugal pump for pumping fluids from a deep well includes a relatively small diameter pump housing which is suspended from a tubing string and including a series of impellers and diffusers. The impellers are mounted on a vertical shaft connected to a motor for driving the impellers relative to the diffusers on the housing. Upper and lower shrouds enclose the top and bottom surfaces of impeller blades rotating with the shaft. A first group of impellers are arranged to move freely longitudinally on the shaft while a second group are fixed to the shaft to prevent relative longitudinal motion. A lifting vane is formed on the outer surface of the upper shroud on the impellers which are fixed to the shaft. A net lifting force is thus applied to the shaft by those impellers of the second group having upthrust impellers to diminish the load carried by a pump shaft thrust bearing.

Abstract: A fluid handling system comprises a vessel having an interior, an outlet collector disposed in the vessel having a plurality of flow tubes disposed through its bottom, the flow tubes all having substantially identical lengths and substantially identical diameters and the flow tubes all having their upper ends at substantial identical elevations; and a level controller for maintaining a liquid level in the collector interior below the upper ends of the flow tubes. In a presently preferred embodiment, the flow tubes have a flow resistance which is very large compared to the flow resistance through the vessel, the flow tubes are substantially uniformally distributed across a horizontal cross section of the vessel, and the primary flow direction through the vessel is vertical.

Abstract: A fluid handling system includes a vessel having an inlet and an outlet. A first fluid transfer device is associated with the inlet, and a second is associated with the outlet. The fluid transfer devices substantially reduce short-circuiting of fluid flow through the vessel between the inlet and outlet independently of a fluid flow rate through the vessel while continuously transferring fluid through the inlet and the outlet. Each of the fluid transfer devices includes a plurality of hydraulically parallel flow passages defined therein. The flow passages communicate the interior of the vessel with either the inlet or the outlet. The flow passages have substantially identical flow characteristics such that for any differential pressure across all of the passages of one device the passages have substantially equal fluid flow rates therethrough.

Abstract: A recirculating gas separator for a submersible well pump includes a rotary gas separator for separating liquid to be directed to the pump from a gas. The separator includes a separating chamber, a well fluid inlet upstream of the separating chamber, and a liquid discharge outlet downstream of the separating chamber. A recirculating system recirculates a portion of the liquid discharged from the discharge outlet back to the separating chamber so that a gas-to-liquid ratio in the separator is substantially lower than a gas-to-liquid ratio of well fluid entering the well fluid inlet. Thus, the submersible well pump with the recirculating gas separator can successfully pump wells having substantially higher gas-to-liquid ratios than can be accomplished with prior devices.

Abstract: An enhanced oil recovery technique includes the predetermination of a desired steam distribution within a steam flood pattern, which preferably is proportional to the volumes of oil in place within various sectors of an area of a subsurface formation. These sectors are associated with the various producing wells of the steam flood pattern. Initial steam distribution is then determined. Subsequently, one or more of the producing wells has its production rate modified so that the final steam distribution within the formation will more closely approximate the predetermined preferred steam distribution.