Gas lift system
STATE OF LIBYA
MINISTRY OF HIGHER EDUCATION
BRIGHT STAR UNIVERSITY – BRAGA
Bright Star University – Braga
Faculty of Technical Engineering
Department of Petroleum
Engineering
Search title
Gas lift system
By
Mohmmad Mesbah Hamad 192048
Supervised By
Zuhair Mustafa
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Gas lift system
Abstract
The gas lift system is a flexible system that works with high pressure gas, as it works to reduce
the pressure of the liquid by absorbing the gas using an external source to be withdrawn, and also
uses many different systems and many flow systems. In this research, we will discuss the gas lift
system and its designs and know its advantages and disadvantages
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Gas lift system
Content
1. Introduction
2. Gas lift system
3. Type of gas lift system
4. Type of operation
5. Gas lift equipment
5.1. Design of continuous gas lift installations
5.2. Design of intermittent gas lift installations
6. Advantages and disadvantages of the gas lift system
6.1. Advantages
6.2. Disadvantages
7. Conclusion
8. References
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Gas lift system
1. Introduction
This system is about 150 years old. The first experiment was using compressed dry air to raise
liquids in 1797 in Germany. Then they applied a second experiment by applying the same
concept in the oil industry called the well blower. They used compressed air to raise the oil
produced from the wells using a tube filled with air connected to the tubes. To reduce the
hydrostatic pressure by reducing the density of the oil, this technology continued to be used until
the year 1920, and between the years 1920 to 1929 they tested natural gas instead of compressed
air. It was limited to shallow wells. The differential GLV was invented that works with the
spring until it became one of the most effective and easiest devices in the year 1930 and then
another model called GLVs was invented in 1980. These valves are operated in the well using a
series of pipelines. Lifting gas is not the best option for low production.
2. Gas lift system
Some wells do not produce liquids naturally due to the low pressure of the bottom hole (BHP).
One of the methods works by reducing the total density of liquids by using the carrier liquid,
which leads to a greater lifting capacity of the tank. Gas lifting is very similar to natural lifting,
as the liquid is transported up by injecting gas into the liquids, which causes a decrease The
pressure of the liquid column that helps it expand the gas and moves faster, and in turn raises the
diluted liquids to the surface in the event that if the gas velocity is not sufficient, the flow of
liquids will stop at a point before the surface. reduce fluid density.
Figure2.1. gas lift system
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Gas lift system
A properly designed and operated gas lift system fulfills the following basic functions (3):
1. High-pressure lift gas at the proper pressure is provided for gas lifting. Usually, a compressor
plant is used for this purpose, although high-pressure gas from a pipeline or a gas well can also
be utilized.
2. Lift gas of the proper amount and pressure must be made available at every wellsite. A high-
pressure gas distribution system with the right control devices is, therefore, an important part of
the gas lift system.
3. Gathering of well streams containing lift and formation gas coming from the wells, as well as
separation of gas from produced liquids is done in the gathering system—another important
component of the total gas lift system.
4. The gas lift system should operate under optimum economic conditions and this can be
reached if the system was designed for the most economic injection pressure for all the wells
involved the compressor plant is fully loaded at all times
• gas volume loss in the system is kept at a minimum
• make-up gas requirements from outside sources involve a minimum of costs
• excess gas produced by the wells and not needed for the proper operation of the system is sold
3. Type of gas lift system
There are three systems for the gas lift system and they are as follows:
1. Open system: It is the return of gas from the low-pressure gas line and its use in the wells
raised with gas
2. Semi-closed system: It contains part of the gas received from the separators and replaces
the suction of the compressor, but there is still a need here for the continuous supply of
low-pressure gas to the system.
3. Closed System: This system returns all the gas from the separators to the suction of the
compressors.
4. Type of operation
There are two types of flow, continuous flow and intermittent flow.
Continuous flow is the most common method in the industry, and it works to inject gas
into the production channel, depending on the injection pressure and the depth of the
well, to increase the proportion of liquid in the gas, after which both the density of the
liquid product and the flowing pressure gradient decrease, which leads to a decrease in
the well bottom pressure, which helps in improving the indicator Productivity.
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Gas lift system
Intermittent flow is a periodic displacement of the liquid from the pipe by injecting a
high-pressure gas into the wellbore, where it injects the gas with sufficient volume and
pressure into the pipe at the lower point of the liquid column to raise the liquid to the
surface.
The advantage of intermittent lifting over continuous lifting is the periodic need for high pressure
every specific period of time, but it is less productive than continuous lifting.
5. Gas lift equipment
The most important gas lifting equipment are the valves, which are classified as follows:
Retrievable Wire Valves These valves are located inside the production pipeline and can be
installed or retrieved. They are usually 1 or 1.5 inches in outer diameter. These valves gain
temperature from the injection gas temperature and the production temperature. For some valves,
their temperature is closer to the production temperature or injection temperature.
Retrievable pipe valves are also called conventional valves. Their size is usually 1 to 1.5 inches
in diameter. They are fixed in a conventional mandrel, where they are outside the pipe and their
temperature is equal to the injection gas, but sometimes they are fixed in the spindles, and
sometimes they are fixed inside the pipe in the mandrel.
Specialized valves to complete closed pipes. Usually, these pipes are small in size, as they are
installed in a concentric mandrel inside the damaged pipes, with a diameter of 2 inches.
Gas lift valves operate at injection pressure (IPO) or output pressure (PPO), injection pressure is
the pressure of the injected gas at the depth of the valve and output pressure is the pressure
downstream of the valve Figure 5.1 and Figure 5.2 show schematic views of the (IPO) valves
(PPO) although they are represented as retrievable pipe valves but its internal components are
basically the same as the wired retrievable components.
Most of the gas lift valves are installed by wire operations inside the production pipes. Many
tools and production equipment are installed at the bottom of the well through a wire line.
The most important wireline tools and equipment are: power unit; wireline reel; lubricators with
safety valves; weight indicator; odometer (to measure the length of the wireline run in the well);
subsurface tool string for gas lift valve installation and other operations; tools for related
operations, such as: tubing end locator, tubing gauge/paraffin cutter, sand bailers, and sample
bailers, among other (2).
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Gas lift system
Figure 5.1 IPO valves Figure 5.2 PPO valve
5.1. Design of continuous gas lift installations
The design of the gas by continuous lift consists of important calculations, which is to find the
depths of the unloading valves and the injection operating point using the mandrel spacing
calculation. The unloading valves function is to inject gas during the unloading process, and the
operating valve works to inject gas during the normal operation of the well and to know the
depth of the injection operating point, the final injection gas flow rate and production Before
calculating the mandrel spacing, each unloading valve must be calculated in terms of the
production of the unloading liquid, the flow rate of the injected gas, and finding the seat
diameters of the unloading and operating valves so that the correct flow rate of the gas.
Operating and unloading These valves are calibrated by closing each unloading valve
sequentially, as the unloading process continues at the bottom of the well until it reaches the
operating valve and all gas is injected through this valve, and at that time the unloading valves
must have been closed.
5.2. Design of intermittent gas lift installation
The intermittent lift consists of a ring that stores high pressure of the injected gas, which this ring
is in the production pipeline. The gas enters through one point of injection, usually in the depth
of the well. The liquid alloy that was created in the tube above the injection point is raised to the
surface thanks to the injection gas in each cycle. The subsurface gas lift operating valve closes at
the beginning of the cycle, when the injection pressure in the annulus increases, the combined
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Gas lift system
effect of the injury and the production pressures causes the gas lift valve to open, allowing a high
gas flow rate in the series of tubes that push the liquid column toward the surface and the liquid
slug to move to the surface. The injection pressure decreases to the closing pressure of the gas
lift valve, then the operating chamber lift valve is closed to start a new cycle. Throughout the
production period, gas is injected onto the surface at a constant rate.
6. Advantages and disadvantages of the gas lift system
6.1. Advantages:
Best artificial lift mechanism, can handle sand and solid materials
Crooked holes can be lifted easily with gas lift.
Central gas lifting system can be used to service many wells.
Installation of gas lift is compatible with subsurface safety valves and other surface
equipment.
Deviated or crooked holes can be lifted easily with gas lift.
Gas lift is flexible, the gas lift can be used in wide range of volume and depth.
6.2. Disadvantages:
Gas lift is relatively inefficient
Relatively high backpressure may seriously restrict production in the continuous gas
lift
Good data are required to make a good design.
High difficulty because of low gravity and friction
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Gas lift system
7. Conclusion
Gas lift is an artificial lift method that uses an external source of high-pressure gas to supplement
formation gas to raise well fluids. The principle of gas lift is that the gas injected into the tube
reduces the fluid density in the tube, and the bubbles have a "purification" effect on the fluid.
Both factors lower the flowing bottom well pressure (BHP) at the bottom of the tube. There are
two basic types of gas lift in use today - continuous and intermittent flow. There are also three
systems: open, closed and semi-closed. There are also returnable valves.
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Gas lift system
8. References
1. Elldakli, F. (2017). Gas lift system. Petroleum & Petrochemical Engineering
Journal, 1(4).)2(
2. Hernandez, A. (2016). Fundamentals of gas lift engineering: Well design and
troubleshooting. Gulf Professional Publishing.)211,235,365-366,479-480(
3. Takacs, G. (2005). Gas lift manual. PennWell Corporation.)407-408(
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