Schlumberger releases CleanPhase well test separator

Offshore staff

ABU DHABI -- Schlumberger has released its new CleanPhase well test separator. The three-phase separator system enables optimum retention of fluids, allowing for cleaner phases and better measurements, according to the company.

The separator has SmartWeir technology that uses radar to monitor liquid levels and to adjust the weir to accommodate the well effluents. It also allows online separation for the entire job, from the beginning of cleanup until the end of the well test.

The first reservoir fluids are identified sooner than with traditional methods, allowing well testing to begin earlier, the company says. It allows faster cleanups by flowing the well to a higher-pressure vessel than is possible with conventional setups, which require flowing to a low-pressure surge tank. This eliminates the need for and risk of pressurized storage tanks.

The separator handles high water cut and fluctuating flow rates without slowing, which leads to the efficient isolation and measurement of purer single-phase fluids. It can operate stand-alone or in combination with the PhaseTester multiphase flowmeter.

"The CleanPhase separator is a rejuvenated approach to phase isolation during the separation process," says Eugene Francois Kleyn, CleanPhase product champion, Schlumberger. "Phase isolation limits the uncertainty inherent during reservoir characterization and significantly aids in the efficient disposal of the individual phases. "The new generation well test separator allows flow back activities to be conducted confidently through increasing safety, reducing manual intervention and providing seamless operations."

11/03/2008