US 11,788,540 B2
Submersible pumping system thrust bearing gas venting
Arthur Ignatius Watson, Sugar Land, TX (US)
Assigned to SCHLUMBERGER TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION, Sugar Land, TX (US)
Filed by Schlumberger Technology Corporation, Sugar Land, TX (US)
Filed on Aug. 8, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/818,078.
Application 17/818,078 is a continuation of application No. 15/767,152, granted, now 11,408,432, previously published as PCT/US2016/055242, filed on Oct. 4, 2016.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/239,958, filed on Oct. 11, 2015.
Prior Publication US 2022/0381257 A1, Dec. 1, 2022
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. F04D 29/041 (2006.01); F04D 13/10 (2006.01)
CPC F04D 29/0413 (2013.01) [F04D 13/10 (2013.01)] 7 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method, comprising:
positioning a thrust runner adjacent a thrust bearing in a submersible pumping system component;
placing an upper region above the thrust runner in communication with a lower region below the thrust runner via a passageway located at or proximate the shaft;
coupling the thrust runner to a shaft via a retention system comprising one or more gaps in fluid communication with the passageway to allow gas to flow at least one of from the lower region into the passageway or from the passageway into the upper region;
rotating the thrust runner relative to the thrust bearing via the shaft; and
venting gas through the passageway from the lower region beneath the thrust runner to the upper region above the thrust runner.