An emergency disconnection technology enabling safe and intelligent access to sustainable deepwater subsea oil and gas assets

海底石油/天然气的优化开采为到2060年平稳过渡到基本上可再生的能源平衡奠定了基础，资产越来越多地位于复杂的深水/超深水中，对于这些资产来说，以15kpsi的系统压力进行操作对于可持续的开采效率和良好的完整性正变得至关重要。然而，以商业/风险可接受的方式访问这些资产的挑战没有得到满足，将整个生命周期内至关重要的海底作业限制在所需的5%以下。因此，使用小型动态定位船只和灵活的公开水域下线，从海底歧管/采油树智能获取深水资产的新的无索具/无立管方法可以是变革性的，但依赖故障安全紧急快速断开(EQD)技术，以防止在发生动态定位故障/漂移时对下线、船只或井身完整性造成损害。然而，这项技术在15kpsi下并不存在，这使得这些在深水/超深水中的作业风险太高。对此，SECC正在开发改变游戏规则的机械压力平衡排气架构，以实现可重新连接的薄弱环节，实现故障安全的EQD。第一代设备已经过了10kpsi操作的第三方验证，在这些概念的基础上，SECC现在瞄准了实现15kpsi EQD连接器所需的技术变革。研发重点是从根本上重新设计/开发承压结构、密封几何形状和执行机构，以支持新的行业标准。

Optimised extraction of subsea oil/gas underpins a smooth transition to a largely-renewable energy balance by 2060, with assets increasingly located in complex deepwater/ultra-deepwater, for which operation at 15kpsi system pressures is becoming essential for sustainable extraction efficiency and well integrity.However, the challenge of accessing these assets in a commercially/risk-acceptable way is unmet, restricting vital subsea-operations over the full-lifecycle to less than 5% of those required. New rigless/riserless methods to intelligently access deep-water assets from subsea-manifolds/trees, using small dynamically-positioned vessels and flexible open-water downlines, can therefore be transformational, but rely on failsafe Emergency-Quick-Disconnection (EQD) technology to prevent damage to the downline, vessel or well-integrity in the event of dynamic-positioning-failure/drift-off. However, this technology does not exist at 15kpsi, rendering these operations in deep/ultra-deepwater too high-risk.In response, Secc are developing game-changing mechanically pressure-balanced venting architectures, to realise reconnectable weak-links for failsafe EQD. First-generation devices have been 3rd-party-validated for 10kpsi operations, and building on these concepts, Secc now targets the technological step-change required to realise a 15kpsi EQD-connector. R&D focusses on a fundamental redesign/development of the pressure-retaining architecture, seal geometry and actuation, supporting new industry standards.