A Review on Electrical Submersible Pump Head Losses and Methods to Analyze Two-Phase Performance Curve

Abstract

Electrical submersible pumps (ESP) are referred to as a pump classification whose applications are based upon transporting fluids from submersible elevations towards a fixed pipeline. Specific ESP pumps are utilized in offshore oil and gas facilities that are frequently employed in transport of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminals. Transport of LNG is a multiphase process that causes operational challenges for ESP due to presence of air pockets and air bubbles; presenting difficulties, such as cavitation and degradation to pump components. This performance degradation causes an economic risk to companies as well as a risk to pump performance capabilities, as it will not be able to pump with the same pressure again. Operational references for multiphase flow in ESP are limited; thus, this research paper reports multistage pumping, review of fundamentals, previous experimental as well as modelling work benefitting future literature for a potential solution. Industries consume power to cope up with the losses associated with pumping two-phase fluids causing company’s fortune. Preceding experimental work on single along with multiphase flow illustrate a distinct flow pattern surrounding the area around pump impeller while the pump is in operation. Through experimental observation, four flow patterns were observed and studied when gas was varied at different flow rates. Increasing the intake pressure proved to increase pump performance at two-phase flow. Experimental study of multiphase flow with LNG fluid is expensive; thus, experimental validation is accomplished on a single stage pump with external intervention of air bubbles to simulate LNG vaporization at fixed pressure and temperature difference.