Field Configuration Example

Production facilities may differ from field to field. Let’s look at the following diagram, as an example of one possible configuration to illustrate how a set of production facilities might connect to well test equipment. A typical field configuration might contain the following elements:

• multiple wells in the main production line
• a single multi-switch valve (MSV)
• a single test facility (separator)
• a PLC/RTU

The sequencing of steps that a field device must take to move wells in and out of well test mode can be controlled in one of two places:

1. Host — in this configuration, the field device must be told what steps to take and when. This configuration is called Host Mode. In this mode, the host system (such as CygNet) is configured with the sequencing of commands and controls that get sent and received from the field devices being tested.
2. Device — in this configuration, the field device itself is configured with all the sequencing logic necessary to move wells in and out of test mode. This configuration is called Device Mode (also known as PLC Mode). In this case, the SCADA host is mostly monitoring the actions of the device and processing results as necessary.

The diagram below shows a sample production facility displaying field elements. In this example, multiple production wells are connected to a single multi-switch valve device (known as the header), which in turn is connected to a test separation facility. The main purpose of the switching device is to set each valve to the right position to connect to the test facility port. Each well goes into test for a designated period, while all the other wells remain in the main production line, until the test is complete. Once testing on one well is completed, then the next well goes into the testing phase.

The equipment doing the metering (the actual testing) might be a test separator, multiphase flow meter, net oil computer (NOC), or another device retrieving and calculating test data.

Production Facility Example with a Single Header