Subsea mud pump and control system

Abstract

The invention is a subsea pump that includes pumping elements, each pumping element including a pressure vessel with a first and a second chamber therein and a separating member disposed between the first and second chambers. The first and second chambers are hydraulically connected to receive and discharge a hydraulic fluid and a drilling fluid, respectively. The separating member moves within the pressure vessel in response to a pressure differential between the first and second chambers. A hydraulic power supply is arranged to pump the hydraulic fluid to the first chamber of each of the pumping elements. A valve assembly is hydraulically coupled to the first chambers of the plurality of pumping elements and to the hydraulic power supply. Volume measurement devices are arranged to measure volumes of each of the first chambers and the second chambers. A valve controller is connected to the valve assembly and to the volume measurement devices, and the valve controller is arranged to control a rate and timing of a flow of the hydraulic fluid into the first chambers and a rate and timing of a flow of the hydraulic fluid out of the first chambers in response to the volume measurements. The valve controller is configured to maintain at least one of a substantially constant pump inlet pressure, a substantially constant pump discharge pressure, and a substantially constant total volume of the first chambers.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.