A shallow, ultra-heavy oil well in the Henan Oilfield utilized a nitrogen-steam cyclic stimulation process. By the late production stage, wellbore temperatures dropped significantly, with crude oil discharge temperatures falling to 19°C and viscosity surging to 10,658 mPa·s. This made pump filling difficult, shortened low-temperature production windows, and prevented stable lifting. A pump inspection in July 2020 revealed formation sand production, presenting a severe risk of sand jamming. Furthermore, the original production string could not support an integrated injection-production operation without pulling the tubing.

I. IntelliCPCP® Design Logic

In August 2020, the IntelliCPCP® all-metal conical PCP system was deployed.

• Viscosity & Load Management: Addressing the low-temperature, high-viscosity conditions, IntelliCPCP® utilized the FERROXIS® conical stator-rotor structure to adjust the fit clearance. As wellbore temperatures dropped and crude viscosity rose, the system dynamically adjusted the axial position of the conical rotor to match the real-time viscosity, torque, and fluid inflow state, thereby improving pump filling and reducing operational loads.

• Sand Management & Autonomous Unblocking: To mitigate sand production and jamming risks, IntelliCPCP® identified potential jamming via real-time monitoring of RPM, torque, axial load, pressure, and pump efficiency. Upon reaching preset sand-flushing thresholds, the DynaRL® Rotational Lifting Mechanism controlled the upward movement of the conical rotor. Due to the conical architecture of the FERROXIS® pump, this axial shift instantly increased the radial fit clearance. With the clearance expanded, the fluid medium effectively flushed, drained, or expelled sand grains via gravity and flow dynamics. Once flushed, the system lowered the rotor to resume production.

• Integrated Injection-Production: During the steam injection phase, the lifting mechanism raised the sucker rod string, and the THERMOLOCK® seal secured the wellhead, while the downhole all-metal conical rotor was lifted synchronously to open the steam injection channel. Simultaneously, the wellhead steam injection filter reduced impurities entering the pump cavity, protecting the pump body and maintaining wellhead integrity. After injection, the system lowered the conical rotor to resume production, utilizing the same string to switch between injection and production channels. This minimized the need to pull the tubing string frequently, increasing operational continuity.

  

II. Application Results

Following the implementation of IntelliCPCP®, the well’s performance metrics improved throughout the production cycle:

• Daily Oil Production: Increased by 45%.

• Oil-to-Steam Ratio: Improved by 23 percentage points.

• Artificial Lift Efficiency: Increased by 1.2 percentage points.

• Energy Consumption: Decreased by 10.3% per 100-meter ton of liquid. Additionally, by enabling integrated injection-production without pulling the string, along with autonomous clearance adjustment and unblocking, the system reduced frequent tubing intervention, unplanned downtime, and manual field labor, thereby lowering overall maintenance costs.

  

III. Conclusion

For this well, the combination of declining temperatures, high viscosity, sand production, and the inability of the original string to perform integrated operations created a complex challenge. The IntelliCPCP® system addressed these issues within a single lifting architecture, successfully extending the effective production time during the low-temperature stage and reducing lifting energy consumption for the field.