(World Oil) – SLB has launched two artificial lift technologies for U.S. land operations aimed at improving equipment life and production performance in mature and challenging well environments.
The new technologies include Harbison-Fischer Deka diamond technology for rod pump barrels and the Synthetix hydraulic gas lift system. The systems address separate production challenges, including mechanical wear in rod-pumped wells and gas lift optimization as well conditions change.
Deka uses a proprietary diamond-based coating designed to increase rod pump barrel durability in abrasive and corrosive environments. By reducing wear between the barrel and plunger, the technology is intended to extend equipment life and reduce replacements and associated well interventions.
SLB said testing has demonstrated improved abrasion resistance compared with conventional barrel coatings.
The Synthetix system uses hydraulically actuated downhole valves to allow operators to control and adjust gas injection from the surface. Gas lift parameters can therefore be modified in response to changing well conditions without slickline intervention or a workover.
The system also allows operators to switch between annular and tubing flow configurations from the surface. Unlike electrically controlled gas lift systems, its hydraulic architecture does not require downhole electrical infrastructure.
In field deployments, Synthetix has delivered production efficiency improvements of 10% to 20%, according to SLB, including applications in mature and low-pressure wells.
“Artificial lift performance increasingly depends on extending equipment life while giving operators greater control over changing well conditions,” said Josh Jones, VP Production Systems North America Land at SLB. “Deka technology addresses wear at the material level, while the Synthetix system enables operators to adjust gas lift performance from the surface without an intervention.”
The two technologies expand SLB’s artificial lift portfolio for U.S. land operations, with Deka focused on rod-pump reliability and Synthetix providing surface-controlled optimization of gas-lifted wells.
