Oilmen Used Induction Defrosting Of Wells
This made it possible to easily restart the equipment without heavy special equipment in the current frosty and snowy winter.
Tatneft has found an effective way to maintain uninterrupted operation of oil production facilities during frosts. During severe frosts, freezing manifolds sometimes require restarting production and injection wells.
Warming wells in winter is time-consuming and expensive. This requires mobile steam units and bulldozers to prepare access roads. The engineer of the group for operation and repair of electrical equipment of ground drives of the Tatneft-Dobycha joint venture, Salavat NURMIEV, writes about this in the Neftyanye Vesti newspaper.
Therefore, Tatneft specialists have studied various defrosting technologies, in addition to traditional heating methods (hot steam, water, etc.). Induction heating of metal products was recognized as the most interesting option.
Oilmen have found a manufacturer of equipment for induction heating used in construction and metalworking. The manufacturer modified the product according to the technical requirements of Tatneft.
It consists of a ready-made induction heating unit (IH) and an inductor. This is a piece of a special high-frequency silicone cable 15 m long, which is connected to the UIN. The cable is enclosed in a wear-resistant, flame-retardant cover made of Kevlar fabric.
The modified equipment was tested at a well in the oil and gas production department (OGPD) Bavlyneft. To warm the pipe, the inductor cable is evenly wound around the frozen area and connected to the converter at both ends. The latter is connected to the control station for the electric drive of the pumping machine.
An inductor passes electric current through itself. Due to this, a magnetic field is created around it. Under its action, secondary currents arise in the pipe placed in the inductor. Due to this, the product heats up. This simple equipment can be operated by oil and gas production operators.
The light weight of the product (14 kg) allows it to be delivered to wells on snowmobiles. Access roads do not need to be cleared with heavy equipment (this is especially true in the current snowy and frosty winter – note by Devon News Agency).
The effectiveness and safety of the technology was proven this winter. From November 2023 to January 2024, 219 wells were unfrozen in eight oil and gas production units. In this case, the average heating time was 1.5 hours.
