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How Screw Pumps Can Achieve 80%-Plus Efficiency in Crude Oil Pipelines- Part 1

How Screw Pumps Can Achieve 80%-Plus Efficiency in Crude Oil Pipelines, Part 1

Boosting and pipelining heavy crude oil is a classic example of the operating cost benefits of using screw pumps over conventional centrifugal pumps. Considering oil prices over the past year, production and transportation operating costs are more important than ever and likely to remain that way well into the future. Screw pumps are uniquely suited to this service, offering pump efficiencies in the 80% range while requiring little, if any, additional crude oil heating or dilution.

Power losses within multiple screw type pumps include volumetric, viscous and mechanical. The staging effects of screw pumps help minimize volumetric losses. Viscous shear losses are controlled by careful selection of operating speeds, typically in the 900 to 1800 RPM range. Mechanical losses from seals and bearings are usually a very small percentage of the total losses. Larger machines, including screw pumps, improve efficiency.

Multiple screw pumps have been used on heavy oil pipeline services since the 1950′s. Their capabilities and range of capacity has steadily improved and are now able to provide reasonable life on this demanding service while offering excellent operating efficiencies.

Check back in a few days for more detailed content on how screw pumps are an efficient option for crude oil pipelines.

 

 

For more information, contact Jim Brennan at

 

jimb@pumpxpert.com, and visit www.colfaxcorp.com.

This entry was posted on Saturday, November 22nd, 2008 at 12:32 pm and is filed under Jim Brennan Blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

2 Responses to “How Screw Pumps Can Achieve 80%-Plus Efficiency in Crude Oil Pipelines- Part 1”

  1. Rod Vickers Says:
    December 1st, 2008 at 8:00 pm

    Can you give an example of the savings?

  2. jbrennan Says:
    December 3rd, 2008 at 1:32 pm

    Rod

    This is part of th three-part article but you get to see it first!

    SCREW PUMP CENTRIFUGAL PUMP

    Flow 583 GPM (20,000 B/D- 132 M3/H)

    Pressure 1000 PSI (70 BAR)

    Crude Viscosity 1000 SSU (200 cst)

    Efficiency 82% 45%

    Power Req’d. 415 HP (309 KW) 756 HP (563 KW)

    The power difference is 563 – 309 or 254 KW. With 8760 hours in a year, the annual energy difference is 254 X 8760 or 2,225,040 KW-Hr. At an energy cost of $0.104 / KW-Hr (2008 U.S. average), the annual direct energy cost difference is $240,000. Add the cost of carrying money, currently about 10%, and the difference is over $268,000. per year for one pump, a significant amount of money.

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