The Process Design of Steamfield Pipeline Systems for Transient Operation from Liquid Dominated Reservoirs

Abstract

Geothermal plant designed for base load operation nevertheless experiences transients that need to be designed for. The water flowing from separators to reinjection wells is at saturation temperature, and is liable to boil. This feature is the most significant in transient considerations. Bubble growth in the reinjection lines may cause separator flooding and turbine damage. Bubble collapse may cause pipe and valve failure. The paper derives a simple allowable rate of change of separator pressure to avoid reinjection line boiling. The paper describes a general approach and a simplified method of calculating the separator pressure transients for any design, for comparison with the allowable rates.