Recently our global client came to us with a problem. They were looking to improve oil recovery from one of the biggest field developments in the North Sea in recent years.
The background
Apollo has supported some of the biggest names in the oilfield services market for 10 years with a blend of high-end technical problem solving and emphasis on customer service.
To improve oil recovery, our client was looking to inject gas into the formation via the production wells. The client was previously injecting through the gas lift orifice but the flow rate was restricted due to its size. To increase the injection flow rate and reduce the well downtime, it was proposed to inject through the crossover loop which would increase flow rate and allow for faster gas injection.
The client needed to know what the safe maximum flow rate was for injection.
The process
From the start, it was clear this needed to happen quickly. Initially, we were given 3 weeks to deliver from start to finish. This was a strict deadline as set by their operator client and financial and reputational outcomes were on the line.
We met with the client as soon as they were available and defined what was required from an integrity perspective and then wrote the basis of design for approval.
The deliverables
Apollo determined the maximum flow rate that the client could safely inject into the well in order to prevent erosion from liquids, solids and to ensure the integrity of the Christmas tree is maintained.
Apollo used Ansys software to determine the erosion rate and fatigue life at every location of the component as well as using OLGA to accurately model the fluid phase changes. Fatigue analysis is often completed using complex hand calculations and systems such as Excel, however, after guidance from one of our principal engineers and the initiative and creativity of one of our young engineers, Ansys was used and the calculations were verified using hand calculations.
And for all you engineers who just want the facts:
The Problem
The Solution
The Outcome