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Gabriel Jarillo Alvarado, Ph.D., P.Eng.

Gabriel Jarillo Alvarado, Ph.D., P.Eng. For nearly two decades, Gabriel has led the development of advanced IoT hardware, AI-powered applications, and scalable SaaS solutions that drive innovation across industrial sectors. As Product Manager for Emerson’s DeltaV SaaS Platform, he oversees strategy and execution, guiding the creation and commercialization of intelligent systems that enhance operational decision-making. Previously, Gabriel led Emerson’s Advanced Analytics team, where he built “smart” solutions for anomaly detection, diagnostics, and autonomous corrective actions in the energy industry. With a B.Sc. in Biomedical Engineering, an M.Sc. in Software Engineering, and a Ph.D. in Pattern Recognition, Gabriel bridges deep technical expertise with business impact—combining hardware and software innovation to improve industrial performance. 

The self-driving oil well

Have you read about the advance of self-driving cars? With an array of sensors “seeing” obstacles, speed limit signs and other vehicles, tracking the speed, noting highway conditions such as rain or sleet, and using maps and tracking to plan the route, self-driving vehicles are approaching us in their own fast lane.

You may not be surprised to find that we have the same dreams for a self-operating oil field.

Now there will still be the need for repairs of worn-out equipment, damaged well-bores, and to perform PMs such as oil changes. There’s the need to do that for vehicles as well. The autonomous oil change is not here yet, but even that might be in line for cars someday.

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Keep progressive cavity pumps from costly cycles

For pumping heavy oil loaded with sludge, sand and other thickening and abrasive contents, a progressive cavity pump is unparalleled for effectiveness. Almost no other pump design can survive even a few barrels of this kind of oil.
 
PC pumps allow for pump speed control—a vital option as production levels change over the life of a well. The main drawback to PC pumps comes with restarting them if they have to be stopped for any reason, including overfilled storage tanks, pipeline back pressure or empty diesel fuel tanks. In my experience there is only about a 50-50 chance of getting a PC pump restarted without extended cleaning and servicing by a work-over rig. This costs the producer in both service expenses and in lost production revenue.
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