Well De-Liquefying System and Method

Abstract

De-liquefying a well includes a steady state de-liquefying cycle which includes an initial step of pressurising the gas with a compressor. In an example embodiment, gas is delivered into the well down an outer tube. The gas displaces liquid within the well by pushing the liquid within tubes up another tube, as a liquid slug, to the surface. A sensor operates to sense the arrival of the liquid. A controller interrogates the sensor to determine whether a slug of liquid has arrived. If not, gas is continued to be delivered into the well. When the controller determines via the sensor that a slug of liquid has arrived, the controller operates to shut the delivery of gas to the well. This may be done either immediately upon detection of the slug or at some predetermined delay thereafter. To shut down the delivery of gas to the well, the controller opens a valve (in the event it was shut) to allow the compressor to discharge to a sales line. The controller also closes a valve and opens another valve to relieve pressure within the outer tube to the separator pressure. The controller then idles for a prescribed time delay before recommencing the cycle.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.