Methods and systems for monitoring a fluid lifting device

• US 10,161,988 B2
• Filed: 05/14/2015
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/14/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Baker Hughes Oilfield Operations LLC (Baker Hughes Company)
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Neti, Prabhakar, Zhou, Yingneng, Hao, Liwei
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Thang
• Application Number:
  US15/309,529
• Publication Number:
  US 20170184657A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,321 Days
• Field of Search: 324347, 324348, 324351, 324539, 324541, 324543-544, 324558
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 17/003 with electrically conducting or insulating means E21B17/028 and E21B17/023 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/128 Adaptation of pump systems with down-hole electric drives
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 47/008 Monitoring of down-hole pump systems, e.g. for the detection of "pumped-off" conditions
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 47/12 Means for transmitting measuring-signals or control signals from the well to the surface, or from the surface to the well, e.g. for logging while drilling
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 13/0693 Details or arrangements of the wiring
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 13/086 the pump and drive motor are both submerged
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/1272 of cable, line or wire insulation, e.g. using partial discharge measurements locating faults in cables G01R31/083
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/58 Testing of lines, cables or conductors testing of electric windings G01R31/72
• CPC Class Codes: H01B 9/02 with screens or conductive layers, e.g. for avoiding large potential gradients
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 9/02 laid directly in or on the ground, river-bed or sea-bottom; Coverings therefor, e.g. tile

Abstract

A system (100, 200) is presented. The system includes a fluid lifting device (102, 202) located inside a well (106, 206), and comprising an electrical motor (108, 208), a three phase cable (114, 214) for coupling the fluid lifting device to a power source (112, 212), at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer (104, 203, 204) for generating imbalance signals (128, 227) representative of an imbalance current in at least one of the electrical motor and the three phase cable, wherein the at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed such that the at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer surrounds at least a portion of the three phase cable, and a processing subsystem (136, 236) for monitoring the health of at least one of the fluid lifting device and the three phase cable based on the imbalance signals.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a fluid lifting device located inside a well and comprising an electrical motor;

a three phase cable for coupling the fluid lifting device to a power source;

at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer for generating imbalance signals representative of an imbalance current in at least one of the electrical motor and the three phase cable, wherein the at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed such that the at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer surrounds at least a portion of the three phase cable; and

a processing subsystem for monitoring health of at least one of the fluid lifting device and the three phase cable based on the imbalance signals,

wherein the imbalance signals comprise first imbalance signals representative of the imbalance current in the electrical motor, and second imbalance signals representative of a total imbalance current in the electrical motor and the three phase cable.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein a first section of the three phase cable is covered by one or more cable sheaths and a grounding cable sheath, and a second section of the three phase cable is covered by the one or more cable sheaths, and wherein the second section is not covered by the grounding cable sheath.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed such that the at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer surrounds the second section of the three phase cable.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein a length of the second section of the three phase cable is equal to a width of the at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing subsystem is configured to monitor the health of the at least one of the fluid lifting device and the three phase cable by identifying insulation defects in at least one of the electrical motor and the three phase cable based on the imbalance signals.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the three phase cable comprises a first phase conductor, a second phase conductor, and a third phase conductor.

7. The system of claim 6, further comprising at least one sensing device for generating electrical signals representative of a current and a voltage corresponding to at least one of the first phase conductor, the second phase conductor and the third phase conductor, wherein the at least one sensing device is operationally coupled to at least one of the first phase conductor, the second phase conductor and the third phase conductor.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the processing subsystem is further configured to:

receive the electrical signals from the at least one sensing device; and

determine one or more defects in one or more components of the electrical motor and a pump in the fluid lifting device based on the electrical signals.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more components comprise at least one of a rotor, a stator, bearings and sleeve bearings in the electrical motor, and the one or more defects comprise high frequency electric discharge through the bearings, damaged bars of the rotor, insulation defects in the stator, and eccentricity faults in the electrical motor.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the fluid lifting device comprises an electrical submersible pump, a subsea boosting system, or a combination thereof.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the three phase cable and the at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer are located outside the well.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one high sensitivity differential current transformer comprises:

a first high sensitivity differential current transformer, wherein the first high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed such that the first high sensitivity differential current transformer surrounds a first portion of the three phase cable, and wherein the first high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed inside the well; and

a second high sensitivity differential current transformer, wherein the second high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed such that the second high sensitivity differential current transformer surrounds a second portion of the three phase cable, and wherein the second high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed outside the well.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the first high sensitivity differential current transformer is located at a junction where the three phase cable is coupled to the fluid lifting device.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the first high sensitivity differential current transformer is configured to generate the first imbalance signals representative of the imbalance current in the electrical motor.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the second high sensitivity differential current transformer is configured to generate the second imbalance signals representative of the total imbalance current in the electrical motor and the three phase cable.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the processing subsystem is configured to determine an imbalance current in the three phase cable based on the imbalance current in the electrical motor and the total imbalance current in the electrical motor and the three phase cable.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the processing subsystem is further configured to monitor the health of the three phase cable based on the imbalance current in the three phase cable.

18. A system, comprising:

a fluid lifting device located inside a well, the fluid lifting device comprising an electrical motor;

a three phase cable for coupling the fluid lifting device to a power source;

a first high sensitivity differential current transformer for generating first imbalance signals representative of an imbalance current in the electrical motor, wherein the first high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed such that the first high sensitivity differential current transformer surrounds a first portion of the three phase cable, and wherein the first high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed inside the well; and

a second high sensitivity differential current transformer for generating second imbalance signals representative of a total imbalance current in the electrical motor and the three phase cable, wherein the second high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed such that the second high sensitivity differential current transformer surrounds a second portion of the three phase cable, and wherein the second high sensitivity differential current transformer is disposed outside the well; and

a processing subsystem for monitoring health of the three phase cable based on the imbalance current in the electrical motor and the total imbalance current in the electrical motor and the three phase cable.

19. A method for monitoring health of a three phase cable that couples a fluid lifting device to a power source, the method comprising:

determining, by a processor, an imbalance current in an electrical motor disposed in the fluid lifting device based on first imbalance signals, wherein the first imbalance signals are provided by a first high-sensitivity differential current transformer;

determining, by the processor, a total imbalance current in the electrical motor and the three phase cable based on second imbalance signals, wherein the second imbalance signals are provided by the first high-sensitivity differential current transformer;

determining, by the processor, an imbalance current in the three phase cable based on the imbalance current in the electrical motor and the total imbalance current in the electrical motor and the three phase cable; and

determining, by the processor, whether an insulation defect is present in the three phase cable based on the imbalance current in the three phase cable and a cable-insulation-defect threshold.