| Title | Power Generation from Low Temperature Geothermal Resources at Huabei Oilfield |
|---|---|
| Authors | Shouliang XIN, Fan DONG, Hongbin LIANG, and Kewen LI |
| Year | 2012 |
| Conference | Stanford Geothermal Workshop |
| Keywords | power generation, low temperature, coproduction, oilfields |
| Abstract | Water cut in many mature oil and gas fields is very high, up to 97%. The produced water is usually considered a nuisance to oil and gas producers because it is required to dispose or re-inject the water into reservoirs. This process costs a lot and reduces the net profit value of the oil and gas producers. In many of the high water cut oil and gas reservoirs, the temperature of the produced water is over 100 degC, high enough to generate electricity using modern power generation technology. Electricity generation from the produced water will give new life to low yield oil and gas producers because of high water cut. In this paper, some important aspects of power generation using co-produced geothermal energy in oil and water from Liubei reservoir, Huabei oil field were studied. The temperatures of the formation and the produced liquid were about 120 degC and 110 degC respectively. One of the main differences between geothermal and oil wells is the production rate. Usually the production rate in oil wells is much less than that in geothermal wells. The possibility of significantly increasing the total liquid injection and production rates of the injectors and the oil wells in Liubei reservoir was investigated. Some pilot tests were conducted in the wells. A 400 kw power generator, which was a binary screw expander system, was installed and put into operation after the feasibility and field studies. Operation data over half a year were measured and collected. These data will be presented in this paper. |