US 12,104,474 B2
Electric submersible pump
Robert Adams, Houston, TX (US); Vijay Ramakrishnan, Houston, TX (US); and Max Deffenbaugh, Houston, TX (US)
Assigned to SAUDI ARABIAN OIL COMPANY, Dhahran (SA)
Filed by ARAMCO SERVICES COMPANY, Houston, TX (US)
Filed on Aug. 16, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/820,145.
Prior Publication US 2024/0060403 A1, Feb. 22, 2024
Int. Cl. E21B 43/12 (2006.01); E21B 47/008 (2012.01); E21B 49/08 (2006.01); F04B 47/06 (2006.01); F04B 49/08 (2006.01)
CPC E21B 43/128 (2013.01) [E21B 47/008 (2020.05); E21B 49/0875 (2020.05); F04B 47/06 (2013.01); F04B 49/08 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An electric submersible pump (ESP), comprising:
an intake that suctions fluids into the ESP, wherein the fluids comprise a mixture of gas, water, and oil;
a discharge that discharges the fluids from the ESP;
an acoustic intake transducer that determines the speed of sound in the fluids suctioned into the ESP at the intake; and
a first acoustic discharge transducer that determines the speed of sound in the fluids discharged from the ESP,
wherein the speed of sound of the fluid at both intake and discharge is used to calculate a gas volume fraction difference of the multiphase fluid mixture across the intake and discharge of the pump, and
wherein the gas volume fraction difference is used as feedback to control the ESP.