Product category:
Oil, Gas, Petrochemical Industry News
News Release from: AxFlow | Subject: 'Down leg' pumping
Edited by the Processingtalk Editorial
Team on 18 December 2006
'Down leg' problem solved on offshore
platforms
The presence of unwanted fluids in offshore platform legs is a problem that all producers have experienced, and now Axflow has devised a compact solution for pumping out up to 150m height
The presence of unwanted fluids in offshore platform legs is a problem that all producers have experienced This problem is being successfully addressed by AxFlow Aberdeen, which has devised a solution for pumping superfluous fluids from inside the legs of offshore platforms
This article was originally published on Processingtalk on 2 Nov 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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The solution uses the Wilden Unitec UH20 STT-E high pressure air operated double diaphragm pump.
Capable of pumping at pressures up to 15bar, this pump can be lowered inside platform legs and be submerged in the fluid present.
Its compact size and ability to pump up to a height of 150m make it ideal for this type of application.
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The main advantage this pump has over submergible centrifugal pumps is that it can handle small solids, high viscosity fluids and overcome greater discharge heads.
The fact that the pump is available in a range of sizes means that it can be customised to fit down any size of hole.
The AxFlow decision to offer this new pump for down leg operations is based on its success with a double pump unit designed in its Aberdeen plant which used two Wilden MI systems.
"Several platform operators had brought this problem of removing fluid to our attention," comments Stephen Matthews, Operations Manager for AxFlow Aberdeen: "It is not unusual for legs to contain waste crude and various small solids, so air operated double diaphragm pumps provide a very practical solution.
Our original and very successful solution involved using two Wilden M1 systems in a specially constructed frame.
These pumps were ideal in that they were compact and capable of withstanding the aggressive nature of the fluid being pumped.
The only drawback was that they could only pump to a height of 50m which did limit the number of locations where they could be used," says Stephen Matthews.
AxFlow has a number of these double pump units in operation on rigs in the North Sea and such is the performance of the units, they are only removed for inspection and overhaul on an annual basis.
AxFlow has also been successful in supplying a 1-inch M2 Wilden pump for a submerged application for operation in a hazardous zoned area, where reliability is essential as access for maintenance personnel is considered too dangerous.
If proof of reliability were required, the customer reports that the pump has been running trouble free for three years.
Using the recently introduced UH20 will enable AxFlow customers to achieve both higher degrees of suction and flow rates.
The pump has a driving pressure of 7 bar that builds up a delivery pressure of 15 bar on account of the internal pressure boost and the double action pneumatic diaphragm pump achieves a maximum delivery volume of 4m3/h.
"This ATEX conformity pump is very compact and has swivel inlets and outlets making it highly adaptable for constricted areas," continues Stephen Matthews: "It is extremely robust, having the wetted parts made of precision cast stainless steel and the diaphragms from a PTFE/EPDM compound for long service life". Request a free brochure from AxFlow ...
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