SUBMERSIBLE PUMP GAUGE WITH DOWNHOLE ANALYSIS CAPABILITY

Abstract

A method for downhole analysis at an analysis enabled gauge associated with an electric submersible pump, ESP, includes: receiving instructions from a gauge surface readout for measuring downhole a given parameter of the ESP as a function of a variable, measuring the given parameter, downhole processing the given parameter, for a first range of the variable, to generate results, and transmitting the results to the gauge surface readout along a power cable of the ESP.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Technical Field

Embodiments of the subject matter disclosed herein generally relate to a submersible pump gauge used in an well for monitoring a pressure or temperature of the well, and more particularly, to performing downhole vibration analysis of the submersible pump with the gauge, and communicating from the surface with the gauge, for controlling the analysis.

Discussion of the Background

An electric submersible pump (ESP) serves several purposes in the oil field, primarily related to the extraction of oil from wells, and also in geothermal or carbon storage applications, among others. ESPs are a type of artificial lift system, which is used for maintaining or increasing the production rate of oil wells. They provide a means to lift oil from the reservoir to the surface when natural reservoir pressure is insufficient.

For example, the ESPs are commonly used for primary production in oil wells where the natural pressure of the reservoir is not sufficient to bring the oil to the surface. They help lift the oil from the reservoir to the surface, allowing for efficient extraction. In mature oil fields, where primary production methods have depleted the natural reservoir pressure, ESPs can be employed for secondary and tertiary recovery techniques. These include water flooding or injection of other fluids to enhance oil recovery. ESPs assist in lifting the oil that has been displaced by injected fluids. In wells with heavy or viscous crude oil, ESPs can be utilized to effectively lift the oil to the surface. The pump's design allows it to handle fluids with varying viscosities, making it suitable for these applications.

The ESPs offer operators control over production rates by adjusting pump speed and other parameters. This control allows for optimization of production and reservoir management strategies. However, the ESPs can fail in oil wells for various reasons. For example, the ESPs very often fail because of mechanical wear and tear. Continuous operation in harsh downhole environments can lead to mechanical wear and tear of pump components such as bearings, seals, impellers, and shafts. Over time, this wear can cause pump failure. In addition, corrosive fluids and gases present in the wellbore can corrode pump components, particularly if they are made of materials that are not resistant to corrosion. Corrosion weakens the structural integrity of the pump, leading to failure.

Abrasive particles such as sand and solids present in the produced fluid can cause erosion and damage to pump components. This can lead to reduced pump efficiency and eventually pump failure. Further, variations in fluid properties such as viscosity, temperature, and gas content can affect the performance and reliability of ESPs. Operating outside of the design parameters can accelerate wear and cause premature failure. Other factors, like electrical issues, wellbore conditions, installation and maintenance errors, and external factors can contribute to the failure of the ESPs.

Because the ESPs are high-cost assets deployed in a harsh environment, the ESP's operators monitor the environment of these systems to optimize their lifetime. For instance, monitoring the vibration levels in the ESP, which may be generated by worn out rotating parts (e.g., ball bearings), is desired as excessive vibrations can indicate potential mechanical issues or wear and tear in the pump system. By detecting these problems early, maintenance and repairs can be scheduled, thereby preventing costly breakdowns and production interruptions.

High vibration levels of the ESP can also lead to reduced pump efficiency and increased energy consumption. This not only raises operational costs but also negatively impacts the lifespan of the equipment. However, a problem with monitoring the health of the ESP is that the cable feeding the power to the ESP, from the surface, is not designed for data exchange, i.e., the data exchange capability of the power supply cable is so poor that practically very little data can be exchanged with the surface equipment in real time. In this regard, the powering of the motor, and the quality and length of the cable powering the motor of the ESP make a high frequency (i.e., thousands of bits per second) communication with the surface practically impossible.

For example, vibration analysis requires a high sampling rate to monitor harmonics of the speed of the motor, up to 5 to 10 times the rotation speed of the motor (60 Hz for standard motors and up to hundreds of Hz for permanent magnet motors). Analyzing this kind of vibration spectrum needs thousands of samples per second, which makes the transfer of the data to the surface impossible to achieve with the existing ESP power cables.

Thus, there is a need for a new system that is capable of informing the operator of the ESP about various parameters and/or conditions of the pump irrespective of the limited data transfer of the power cable of the ESP.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to an embodiment, there is a method for downhole analysis at an analysis enabled gauge associated with an electric submersible pump ESP. The method includes receiving instructions from a gauge surface readout for measuring downhole a given parameter of the ESP as a function of a variable, measuring the given parameter, downhole processing the given parameter, for a first range of the variable, to generate results, and transmitting the results to the gauge surface readout along a power cable of the ESP.

According to another embodiment, there is a method for downhole analysis at a gauge surface readout associated with an electric submersible pump, ESP. The method includes: transmitting instructions to an analysis enabled gauge for measuring downhole a given parameter of the ESP as a function of a variable, receiving results, along a power cable of the ESP, processed by the analysis enabled gauge, based on measurements performed downhole on the ESP, and sending additional instructions to the analysis enabled gauge for processing the given parameter for a second range of the variable, which is different from the first range.

According to yet another embodiment, there is a downhole analysis system that includes an analysis enabled gauge configured to work with an electric submersible pump, ESP, a gauge surface readout in communication with the analysis enabled gauge, and a power cable connecting the gauge surface readout to the analysis enabled gauge. The analysis enabled gauge is configured to receive instructions from the gauge surface readout for measuring downhole a given parameter of the ESP as a function of a variable, measure the given parameter, downhole process the given parameter, within a first range of the variable, to generate results, and transmit the results to the gauge surface readout along the power cable of the ESP.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an ESP and associated support elements;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an analysis enabled gauge configured to receive instructions from a gauge surface readout and adapt its data analysis based on the received instructions;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a gauge surface readout that instructs the analysis enabled gauge to adapt, downhole, its data analysis based on the sent commands;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a method for measuring downhole parameters and processing them downhole and sending the results of the processed parameters to the surface;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method for measuring a vibration of the ESP and sending to the surface only the vibration level as a function of frequency;

FIG. 6 illustrates the vibration level sent to the surface by the analysis enabled gauge for an initial frequency range;

FIG. 7 illustrates a refined vibration level sent to the surface by the analysis enabled gauge for a narrower frequency range;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a method performed by the analysis enabled gauge for providing results of analyzed data to the surface; and

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a method performed by the gauge surface readout for instructing the analysis enabled gauge to process collected data downhole and to provide only the results of the analyzed data to the surface.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following description of the embodiments refers to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numbers in different drawings identify the same or similar elements. The following detailed description does not limit the invention. Instead, the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims. The following embodiments are discussed, for simplicity, with regard to an analysis enabled gauge of an EPS in an oil well that collects and processes the data downhole for vibration analysis. However, the embodiments to be discussed next are not limited to vibration analysis or oil wells but may be applied to other analysis or other type of wells.

Reference throughout the specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the subject matter disclosed. Thus, the appearance of the phrases “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout the specification is not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Further, the particular features, structures or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

According to an embodiment, high frequency motor and ESP vibration analysis through a low frequency communication media is achieved by performing a bulk of the vibration analysis downhole, at a downhole analysis enabled gauge of the ESP. Only the results of this analysis, which have a much smaller digital footprint (i.e., smaller size than the collected raw data) and not the raw data, are transmitted to the surface, along the power feeding cable of the ESP. In this embodiment or a variation of this embodiment, the gauge of the ESP is also modified to be able to receive and interpret commands from the surface equipment, and thus, to interactively control the high frequency vibration analysis of the ESP, even before the ESP gauge sending the processed data to the surface.

In other words, the gauge attached to the ESP, according to this embodiment, is configured to perform the high frequency analysis by processing the data as per the command(s) received from the surface, and then send the processed data (i.e., the results of the analysis) to the surface. The analysis results reduce the amount of data sent through the power cable to allow high frequency downhole analysis without transferring large amount of data through the cable. After the surface interpretation is performed, new commands may be sent by the surface system to the ESP gauge to fine tune the analysis, on a point of interest identified at the surface. The structure and methodology associated with the downhole analysis enabled gauge are now discussed in more detail.

FIG. 1 shows an oil exploration system 100 that includes an ESP 120 placed in an oil extraction well 102. Well 102 is capped by a blowout preventer 104, which essentially is a valve that automatically shuts down the well in case that certain events take place, for example, an abnormal pressure increase in the well. The oil 105 in the well 102 is pumped by the ESP 120 and directed along a conduit 106 to storage and processing facilities (not show). The ESP 120 is connected to the surface to a surface choke 108, which protects surface controllers and operators from high voltage without affecting data signals to and from downhole monitoring systems. The surface choke 108 is electrically connected to a gauge surface readout 110, which is an interface that displays the readings from the ESP gauge. The gauge surface readout 110 is electrically connected to the ESP motor controller 112, which controls various parameters of the ESP, for example, frequency, current voltage or current intensity, etc.

The ESP 120 includes the actual pump 122 and a motor 124 that activates the pump 122. Motor 124 is supplied with power from the surface, along a power cable 126. As discussed above, the ESP data communication speed with the surface is in the range of bits per second because of the power cable 126. For legacy and technical reasons, this cable cannot be changed for the new ESPs. The ESP 120 also includes a seal 128 between the pump 122 and the motor 124. The seal may host thrust bearings for the pump. A discharge sub 130 mounted on top of the pump 122 and discharge tubing 132 are provided for measuring the pressure at the top of the motor and the pump to monitor the efficiency of the pump.

The ESP 120 further includes a motor base crossover element 134, which is located downstream of the motor 124, and is configured to couple to the ESP gauge 136, electrically and mechanically. A traditional ESP gauge is configured to monitor the pressure and temperature in the well. A more sophisticated ESP gauge is disclosed in [1], which is configured to also measure a vibration in addition to the pressure and temperature. The authors in [1] disclose a method for pairing downhole data with surface data (e.g., current and voltage provided or used by the ESP) and establishing a signature of the ESP based on the correlation between the downhole and surface data. However, the ESP gauge in [1] is hardwired to provide vibration results specific for the combination of pump/motor/gauge/installation type of that specific well and ESP.

Different from the system discussed in [1], the ESP gauge 136 is configured to bidirectionally interact with the surface equipment, for example, the gauge surface readout 110, to accept commands for performing specific tasks, as decided by the operator of the well. In one application, the functions associated with these commands are embedded into the ESP gauge firmware. In this regard, the analysis enabled ESP gauge 136 is schematically illustrated in FIG. 2 including a bidirectional communication module (comm) 202, e.g., a modem, transceiver, or similar device, and a processor (cpu) 204 for processing measured data from the various sensors, or processing the instructions received from the communication module 202. The processor 204 may further process the already processed data, for example, after generating a vibration curve for the ESP based on data collected from one or more accelerometers, reprocessing the same data to generate a more focus vibration curve, for a narrower frequency band, as requested by the surface operator. Processor 204, which may be a microprocessor or any known processor, may be supported or not by a memory 206 for storing the raw and/or processed data.

The ESP gauge 136 may further include one or more high frequency accelerometers 208 for measuring the vibrations of the pump or motor or both. Other sensors may be used for measuring the vibrations, for example, an acoustic sensor, a micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS), etc. In one application, the ESP gauge 136 may also include additional sensors 210, for example, temperature and/or pressure sensors. Any other sensor may be integrated with the other elements into a common housing 201. An end of the housing 201 may be provided with an electronic interface 212 for electrically connecting to the motor base crossover element 134, at the bottom of the ESP 120. The interface 212 may have one or more pins 214 for receiving power and exchanging data along the power cable 126. Additional sensors 138 (e.g., accelerometers), as shown in FIG. 1, may be attached to the pump or motor or another element of the ESP. The interface 212 is configured to electrically exchange data with these additional sensors 138 for further improving the vibration analysis of various parts of the ESP.

With the above configuration of the analysis enabled ESP gauge 136, it is possible for the operator of the well to ask the analysis enabled ESP gauge 136 for specific processing steps to be performed downhole and to communicate to the surface only the results of that processing. By being able to directly communicate with the analysis enabled ESP gauge 136, the operator may request one or more processed parameters, e.g., the vibration, of any ESP type and/or operation of the ESP. In other words, the analysis enabled gauge 136 makes it possible to interact with any type of ESP, no matter the manufacturer of the ESP. In addition, the analysis enabled gauge 136 is configured to analyze one or more parameters of the associated ESP no matter of the operation conditions of the ESP. In this regard, the analysis enabled gauge 136 provides feedback to the operator that allows to modify the operating parameters of the ESP, accessible from the surface, like motor frequency and supply voltage, to increase the lifespan of the pump and delay its replacement.

Further, the analysis enabled gauge 136 makes possible to adapt the analysis and associated solutions for each particular implementation of the ESP. Note that there are many types of ESPs and each of them has a specific implementation at the well, depending on the condition of the well, the characteristics of the oil and gas in the well, and the preferences of the operator of the well. In addition, the analysis enabled gauge 136 makes possible the root cause analysis of the possible failure of the components of the ESP so that the original source of failure is determined. In this respect, as the ESP operates underground without being directly observed, a failure of a first component of the ESP (e.g., ball bearings, impellers, shaft, etc.) will result in a failure of a second component (e.g., axle of the pump) and possible other components. The operator will not be aware which component of the ESP has failed first, only that the entire ESP has failed, unless using the analysis enabled gauge 136.

With the analysis enabled gauge 136, as one or more parameters are analyzed downhole and the results are provided in real time to the surface, the operator can see which component is first failing, and may even stop the operation of the ESP before the entire system fails. It is also possible to program in advance the workover job, thereby avoiding or reducing the non-productive time (due to a down ESP) of the well operation. These features may also result in less energy consumption as the ESP may be stopped early, before total failure. In addition, based on the analysis results provided by the analysis enabled gauge 136, it is possible to fine tune the control of the ESP, for example, increase or decrease its voltage, frequency, adapt the surface drive to the downhole behavior to reduce vibration, etc.

The analysis enabled gauge 136 has one or more functions embedded into the gauge firmware. Various digital signal processing (DSP) algorithms may be embedded into the gauge firmware. In one application, instructions associated with these algorithms are stored in optional memory 206. The functions embedded into the gauge firmware have equivalent functions embedded into the gauge surface readout 110. A gauge surface readout 310, which is configured to work with the analysis enabled gauge 136, is shown in more detail in FIG. 3, and this gauge surface readout 310 can replace the gauge surface readout 110 in the system 100 for interacting with the analysis enabled gauge 136. The gauge surface readout 310 includes, in addition to the typical display region 320, which is used to display one or more parameters 321 (e.g., vibration level) provided by the traditional gauge, a plurality of soft buttons 332-I, with I being an integer equal to or larger than 1. Each button may be associated with a specific functionality of the analysis enabled gauge 136, for example, performing downhole vibration analysis on the collected data.

In addition, the gauge surface readout 310 may include an additional display region 330 for displaying instructions/commands 332 to be input by the operator, through keyboard 334, for being transmitted to the analysis enabled gauge 136. The operator may customize the instructions 332 depending on the type of ESP, the type of analysis enabled gauge, the operations conditions of the well, operation parameters of the ESP, the characteristics of the oil in the well, the amount of gas in the oil, the temperature and pressure in the well, etc. In one application, a control system 340 (e.g., a processor) of the gauge surface readout 310 can automatically interact with the analysis enabled gauge 136 and refine the analysis results transmitted by the analysis enabled gauge 136.

The functions 342 that are stored by the control system 340, which correspond to the functions embedded into the firmware of the analysis enabled gauge 136, may be one or more of: a rotation speed of the motor, vibrations root mean square (rms) velocity (over an operator selected range), vibration rms velocity, vibrations peak acceleration, vibrations Kurtosis, balancing and alignment (3 axis) of the axle of the pump and/or motor, configurable vibrations spectrograms, configurable fast Fourier transform (FFT) analysis (with min frequency, max frequency, compression level, orientation (1 to 3 axis), resolution, etc.). In one application, one or more of these functions may be associated with a corresponding soft button 322-I so that the operator of the gauge surface readout 310 may quickly require a desired analysis from the analysis enabled gauge 136 by simply pressing the corresponding button. Alternatively, the operator may use keyboard 334 to input a command associated with the desired function to instruct the analysis enabled gauge 136 to perform the selected analysis.

A full duplex communication module 202 implemented in the analysis enabled gauge 136 allows the system 100 to fine tune the downhole analysis performed by the gauge through customer configuration or through default configuration set during the manufacturing process. In one embodiment, the communication speed between the gauge surface readout 310 and the analysis enabled gauge 136 is in the range of 5 bits/second.

A method 400 of using the analysis enabled gauge 136, together with the gauge surface readout 310, is now discussed with regard to FIG. 4. In step 402, the operator may instruct, via the gauge surface readout 310, the analysis enabled gauge 136 to collect and process data. In step 404, the one or more sensors 208 (and possibly 210) associated with the analysis enabled gauge 136 measures a vibration of the support to which the sensor is attached, at high frequencies, in the KHz to MHz range, for example, in the tens of KHz. This vibration is indicative of the ESP vibration. In step 406, this data is received by processor 204 and analyzed/processed according to one of the functions 342 discussed above. The operator may provide in step 402 specific instructions for performing one or more of the plural functions 342.

In step 408, the analysis enabled gauge 136 may automatically provide the results of the analysis to the gauge surface readout 310, for example, about every 10 minutes, via a packet of about 100 bytes for about 160 second communication. These numbers are provided as an example and are not intended to limit the invention. Alternatively, the operator prompts in step 408 the analysis enabled gauge 136 to provide the results of the analysis. The gauge surface readout 310 or the user may perform, at the surface, in step 410, after receiving the results, a wide spectrum analysis through a surface software which allows to visualize data. The surface software may be embedded in the gauge surface readout 310 or in an independent device (e.g., personal computer or server) associated with the gauge surface readout 310. The data visualization may be implemented on the display region 320 of the gauge surface readout 310, or on the display region of the personal computer or server.

After the wide spectrum analysis has been performed at the surface, the operator may identify in step 412 one or more points of interest and instruct the analysis enabled gauge 136 to redo the data analysis or perform a new data analysis for the one or more points of interest. For example, the wide spectrum analysis may refer to a broad frequency range and the point of interest may refer to a narrower frequency range. The analysis enabled gauge 136 reprocesses the existing data in step 414 or processes the new collected data to address the one or more points of interest and sends in step 416 the new processed results to the surface, where further analysis is performed. Based on this additional analysis, the operator may decide to adjust, in step 418, an operation of the ESP. The process may return to step 402 and be repeated as many times as desired.

A method 500 of monitoring the vibrations in the ESP is now discussed with regard to FIGS. 5 to 7. Method 500 is a specific implementation of method 400. In step 502, the operator sends, through the gauge surface readout 310, a command to the analysis enabled gauge 136 to request vibration data analysis, for example, for a given frequency spectrum between Fmin and Fmax. In step 504, the analysis enabled gauge 136 collects vibration data from the accelerometer 208, for the given frequency spectrum, and proceeds to analyze it in step 506 at processor 204. The results 600 of this step are illustrated in FIG. 6 as a vibration level versus a first frequency range. Note that arbitrary units are used for the Y axis and Hz are used for the X axis. Also note that various elements of the ESP generate a certain level of vibration at different frequencies. For example, the rotating parts generated vibration when failing, is notable in the 3400 to 4200 Hz range while the rotor generated vibration is notable in the 1200 to 1800 Hz range. Both frequency ranges fall between the required first frequency range Fmin to Fmax. The results 600 are sent in step 508 to the gauge surface readout 310. The results 600 have a much smaller digital footprint (i.e., size) than the raw data, and because of this it is feasible to transmit the results 600 along the power cable 126, at the small rate of bits per second. Note that the raw data (i.e., the measured data) is not sent to the surface in this embodiment.

The gauge surface readout 310 displays these results on display 320. The operator then performs in step 510 an analysis of the vibration level and decides that a second frequency range of 3400 to 4200 Hz (new Fmin and new Fmax values) is of interest because this range should be with no vibration level unless a part of the ESP is failing. Thus, this narrower frequency range becomes the point of interest of the operator. In addition, the operator may set up an alarm threshold, for example, at 200 Hz, effectively instructing the analysis enabled gauge 136 to not monitor and/or report frequencies smaller than this value. The alarm threshold may have any value.

The operator sends in step 512 a command to the analysis enabled gauge 136 to further analyze the data in the narrower frequency range of 3400 to 4200 Hz. The processor of the analysis enabled gauge 136 processes in step 514 new accelerometer data (or the old data) for generating focused results 700 in the 3400 to 4200 Hz range, as shown in FIG. 7. Only this portion of the analyzed data is sent in step 516, by the processor of the analysis enabled gauge 136, to the gauge surface readout 310, thus minimizing the data exchanged with the surface. The operator may repeat these steps for other frequency ranges or for other measured parameters.

It is noted that this method is very flexible in the sense that the operator, because of the allowed interaction with the analysis enabled gauge 136, can specifically instruct the processor of the gauge to select a subset of the collected data set, to focus on a desired point of interest, which might be associated with a specific ESP element that indicates a potential failure. The operator, based on the data 700, which is abnormal for the 3400 to 4200 Hz range, may determine to stop the ESP for maintenance, e.g., to change its ball bearings, to avoid shut down of the well, or failure of the entire system.

The method discussed above is capable of detecting a signature for various elements of the ESP when potentially failing, based on data analysis performed downhole at the gauge. Reference signatures may be previously stored in a database attached to the gauge surface readout 310 so that the operator can compare the newly acquired results with the existing reference signatures for determining whether a component of the ESP is defective or not. In this regard, note that each component of the ESP may have a unique frequency range in which exhibits vibrations when starting to fail. The various commands associated with these methods may be directly wired to the soft buttons 322-I so that the operator simply presses one of these buttons for selecting a new frequency range for analysis, or requesting a new point of interest, or requesting new measurements, etc.

While method 500 discussed the vibration level of the ESP, as already described above, it is possible to analyze various functions 342, each associated with one or more elements of the ESP. An advantage of this method is that the operator of the well may interact with the analysis enabled gauge 136 and requests specific analysis based on any failure indicia that an element of the ESP may generate in the vibration level or a vibration related quantity.

The methods 400 and 500 may be used with sensor 208 and/or sensors 210, which are physically attached to the analysis enabled gauge 136. However, the method may also be used with other sensors, for example, sensors 138, located on various components of the ESP, for better tracking the status of these components. In one embodiment, the operator may instruct the analysis enabled gauge 136 to select one sensor from the plurality of sensors and perform one or more of the functions 342 only for the data read by that sensor. In other words, the methods 400 and 500 offer to the operator the flexibility to choose not only what functionality to run for a given ESP, but what sensor to use for that functionality.

A method 800 for downhole analysis at the analysis enabled gauge 136 associated with the ESP 120 is now discussed with regard to FIG. 8. The method includes a step 802 of receiving instructions from a gauge surface readout for measuring downhole a given parameter of the ESP as a function of a variable, a step 804 of measuring the given parameter, a step 806 of downhole processing the given parameter, within a first range of the variable, to generate results, and a step 808 of transmitting the results to the gauge surface readout along a power cable of the ESP.

The method may further include receiving additional instructions from the gauge surface readout for processing the given parameter within a second range of the variable, which is different from the first range. The second range is narrower than the first range. The given parameter is one or more of: a vibration level, a rotation speed of a motor of the ESP, vibrations root mean square (rms) velocity, vibrations peak acceleration, or vibrations Kurtosis. The variable is a rotation frequency.

The method may further include a step of adjusting an operation of the ESP based on the results. The step of measuring the given parameter includes measuring a vibration of the ESP with an accelerometer. The accelerometer is directly located on the analysis enabled gauge or directly located on the ESP.

A method 900 for downhole analysis at the gauge surface readout 310 associated with the ESP 120 is now discussed with regard to FIG. 9. The method includes a step 902 of transmitting instructions to an analysis enabled gauge for measuring downhole a given parameter of the ESP as a function of a variable, a step 904 of receiving results, along a power cable of the ESP, processed by the analysis enabled gauge, based on measurements performed downhole on the ESP, and a step 906 of sending additional instructions to the analysis enabled gauge for processing the given parameter for a second range of the variable, which is different from the first range.

The second range is narrower than the first range. The given parameter is one or more of: a vibration level, a rotation speed of a motor of the ESP, vibrations root mean square (rms) velocity, vibrations peak acceleration, or vibrations Kurtosis. The variable is a rotation frequency. The method may further include a step of adjusting an operation of the ESP based on the results.

The term “about” is used in this application to mean a variation regarding the actual value of a given parameter, where the variation depends on the context and will be understood by one skilled in the art. For example, when in step 408 above the length of the packet is disclosed to be about 100 bytes, one skilled in the art would understand that the length may also be 100+/−50 bytes. Thus, the term “about” is used in this application to indicate that a parameter characterized by this term should not be construed to be restricted to only that value.

It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first object or step could be termed a second object or step, and, similarly, a second object or step could be termed a first object or step, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The first object or step, and the second object or step, are both, objects or steps, respectively, but they are not to be considered the same object or step.

The terminology used in the description herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments and is not intended to be limiting. As used in this description and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will also be understood that the term “and/or” as used herein refers to and encompasses any possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. It will be further understood that the terms “includes,” “including,” “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. Further, as used herein, the term “if” may be construed to mean “when” or “upon” or “in response to determining” or “in response to detecting,” depending on the context.

The disclosed embodiments provide a system and associated method for downhole analysis of an ESP. It should be understood that this description is not intended to limit the invention. On the contrary, the embodiments are intended to cover alternatives, modifications and equivalents, which are included in the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Further, in the detailed description of the embodiments, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a comprehensive understanding of the claimed invention. However, one skilled in the art would understand that various embodiments may be practiced without such specific details.

Although the features and elements of the present embodiments are described in the embodiments in particular combinations, each feature or element can be used alone without the other features and elements of the embodiments or in various combinations with or without other features and elements disclosed herein.

This written description uses examples of the subject matter disclosed to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the same, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the subject matter is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims.

REFERENCES

The entire content of all the publications listed herein is incorporated by reference in this patent application.

• [1] International Patent Application Publication WO 2016/003998.

Claims

1. A method for downhole analysis at an analysis enabled gauge associated with an electric submersible pump, ESP, the method comprising:

receiving instructions, from a gauge surface readout, for (1) measuring downhole a given parameter of the ESP as a function of a variable, and (2) processing the given parameter for a first range of the variable;

measuring the given parameter with a frequency in the kHz to MHz range and generating associated raw data;

downhole processing the raw data associated with the given parameter, for the first range of the variable, to generate displayable results, which have a smaller digital footprint than the raw data; and

transmitting the displayable results to the gauge surface readout along a power cable of the ESP, wherein the power cable has a data transmission speed in a range of bits per second.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving additional instructions from the gauge surface readout for processing the given parameter within a second range of the variable, which is different from the first range.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the second range is narrower than the first range.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the given parameter is one or more of: a vibration level, a rotation speed of a motor of the ESP, vibrations root mean square (rms) velocity, vibrations peak acceleration, or vibrations Kurtosis.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the variable is a rotation frequency.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

adjusting an operation of the ESP based on the displayable results.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of measuring the given parameter includes:

measuring a vibration of the ESP with a sensing device including one or more of an accelerometer, a MEMS, or an acoustic sensor.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the sensing device is directly located on the analysis enabled gauge.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the sensing device is directly located on the ESP.

10. A method for downhole analysis at a gauge surface readout associated with an electric submersible pump, ESP, the method comprising:

transmitting instructions, to an analysis enabled gauge, for (1) measuring downhole a given parameter of the ESP as a function of a variable, and (2) processing the given parameter for a first range of the variable;

receiving displayable results, along a power cable of the ESP, processed by the analysis enabled gauge, based on raw data associated with measurements performed downhole on the ESP with a frequency in the kHz to MHz range, on the given parameter, wherein the displayable results have a smaller digital footprint than the raw data; and

sending additional instructions to the analysis enabled gauge for processing the given parameter for a second range of the variable, which is different from the first range,

wherein the power cable has a data transmission speed in a range of bits per second.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the second range is narrower than the first range.

12. (canceled)

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the given parameter is one or more of: a vibration level, a rotation speed of a motor of the ESP, vibrations root mean square (rms) velocity, vibrations peak acceleration, or vibrations Kurtosis.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the variable is a rotation frequency.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

adjusting an operation of the ESP based on the displayable results.

16. A downhole analysis system comprising:

an analysis enabled gauge configured to work with an electric submersible pump, ESP;

a gauge surface readout in communication with the analysis enabled gauge; and

a power cable connecting the gauge surface readout to the analysis enabled gauge, wherein the power cable has a data transmission speed in a range of bits per second,

wherein the analysis enabled gauge is configured to,

receive instructions from the gauge surface readout for (1) measuring downhole a given parameter of the ESP as a function of a variable, and (2) processing the given parameter for a first range of the variable;

measure the given parameter with a frequency in the kHz to MHz range and generate associated raw data;

downhole process the given parameter, within the first range of the variable, to generate displayable results, which have a smaller digital footprint than the raw data; and

transmit the displayable results to the gauge surface readout along the power cable of the ESP.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the analysis enabled gauge is further configured to,

receive additional instructions from the gauge surface readout for processing the given parameter within a second range of the variable, which is different from the first range.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the second range is narrower than the first range.

19. The system of claim 16, wherein the given parameter is one or more of: a vibration level, a rotation speed of a motor of the ESP, vibrations root mean square (rms) velocity, vibrations peak acceleration, or vibrations Kurtosis.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the variable is a rotation frequency.