Premium
Enhanced gas injection control and lift efficiency throughout well life
Synthetix hydraulic gas lift system
Overview
Maximize your gas lift performance
The surface-controlled Synthetix™ hydraulic gas lift system transforms gas lift from a passive system into an actively controlled production optimization platform, helping operators improve lift performance and adapt to changing well conditions with confidence.
With conventional gas lift systems, as reservoir pressure declines or operating conditions fluctuate, the active injection point is difficult to determine, which can reduce lift efficiency. Moreover, pressure losses across conventional valves restrict the amount of energy available to lift fluids. The patented Synthetix system improves performance by replacing passive pressure-driven behavior with direct hydraulic control of downhole valves from surface. Operators can intentionally sequence valves, control injection depth, and manage gas delivery with greater precision, improving confidence in where lift is occurring and reducing uncertainty during startup, optimization, and changing well conditions.
Gas lift valve for the Synthetix system.
Applications
- Gas lift flow-regimen transitions: Move from annular to conventional injection or vice versa without mechanical intervention
- Gas lift kickoff optimization: Improve startup stability through surface-controlled valve sequencing
- Intermittent gas lift: Enhance efficiency by controlling injection timing
- Plunger-assisted gas lift (PAGL) and gas-assisted plunger lift (GAPL): Synchronize gas injection with plunger movement to improve unloading efficiency
Benefits
Real-time control of downhole valves from surface
fact_check
Simple and reliable system design with single capillary string
Reduced intervention requirements and lower total cost of ownership
Improved injection certainty and optimization with closed-loop gas lift control
Flexible lift optimization across changing well conditions via configurable valve settings
Features
- No injection gas pressure drop across hydraulically actuated valves
- Maximized compressor utilization
FAQs
How does the Synthetix system maximize lift efficiency?
Because hydraulic actuation minimizes lift gas pressure loss across valves, more compressor discharge pressure is available for lifting production rather than overcoming valve restrictions. The system’s extended valve travel also increases gas passage capability, enabling greater injection capacity when required and improving lift performance.
Operators can optimize gas injection timing and duration, especially in intermittent and plunger-assisted lift applications. Delivering gas only when required and at the intended depth can reduce unnecessary gas consumption as well as improve gas-to-liquid efficiency and reservoir inflow.
How does it work?
- This fully integrated, surface-controlled gas lift system includes a surface-mounted skid that controls hydraulic pressure and communicates with downhole valves.
- Hydraulic pressure is delivered through a single capillary string, simplifying system architecture and reducing complexity.
- Each valve operates at a unique pressure based on an internal washer stack configuration, enabling selective actuation and precise control.
- Once a valve is activated, gas flows through it to lift fluids to surface. Operators can dynamically adjust injection points, timing, and sequencing to optimize performance.
What does it replace?
By shifting from passive pressure-driven operation to active hydraulic control, the Synthetix system eliminates reliance on conventional injection-pressure-operated (IPO) gas lift valve systems, injection-pressure-dependent valve sequencing, workovers for flow-regime transitions, manual gas lift optimization approaches, and fixed downhole operating logic.
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SLB virtual patent marking
The following SLB products are protected by patents in the U.S. and elsewhere. This website is provided to satisfy the virtual patent marking provisions of various jurisdictions including the virtual patent marking provisions of the America Invents Act and to provide notice under 35 U.S.C. §287. The following list of SLB products may not be all inclusive, and other SLB products not listed here may be protected by one or more patents.
Synthetix system valve: Protected by U.S. Patent US 12,497,872. Additional patents may be pending in the U.S. and elsewhere.
