COMPRESSION

From natural gas pipelines to offshore production platforms, compressors are widely used in the oil and gas industry.  They are used to liquify and transport the natural gas from one location to another. There has been an increase in high-speed electric compression in the oil and gas industry, where high-speed electric motors drive compressors directly without intermediate gears. Permanent magnet machine technology promises a robust and reliable system design in applications where the motor and compressor are integrated and share the same process gas environment. In today’s fast paced world, compressors driven by an electric variable speed drive system are considered superior to other conventional compressors.

In some cases, natural gas produced with crude oil is flared because there are few pipelines or infrastructure to bring it to market. New regulations are requiring oil companies to reduce flaring, and new natural gas compressor systems with Calnetix Technologies’ Magnaforce™ PM motors and Powerflux™ magnetic bearings are being designed to compress the gas for use onsite or to be processed for sale.

Directly coupling Calnetix’s motor system to the compressor eliminates the need for conventional gearboxes and auxiliary systems. The Magnaforce™ motor has a small footprint, requires minimal maintenance and causes no disruption to production activities.

Another oil and gas application with broad applicability to large regions of the United States is down-hole gas compression. Down-hole gas compression, close to the reservoir, is the most effective approach in lowering the field abandonment pressure and hence increasing ultimate energy recovery. Calnetix’s affiliate, Upwing Energy, is developing downhole or subsurface technology to improve the production and life of gas fields in an environmentally robust manner. For more information, visit www.upwingenergy.com.