Patent Grant
10683728
After a wellbore is drilled, a casing string is lowered into the wellbore. While running the casing string in the wellbore, it is often the practice to cause the well fluid to sustain a portion of the weight of the casing string by floating the casing string in the well fluid. Typically, plugs (or packers) are installed inside the casing string to isolate a portion of the casing string. The isolated portion of the casing string may be filed with a low-density fluid or air to create a buoyant force when the casing string is lowered into the wellbore. The plugs (or packers) are eventually removed from the casing string by a costly drilling operation. Therefore, there is a need for a casing float sub that may be selectively removed from the casing string without the need of a drilling operation.
Embodiments of the disclosure may provide an apparatus for use in a string of tubulars. The apparatus includes a first sub having a bore, a second sub attached to the first sub, the second sub having a bore in fluid communication with the bore of the first sub, and a barrier assembly having a frangible member that is configured to break by applying a fluid pressure to the barrier.
Embodiments of the disclosure may also provide a method of placing a string of tubulars in a wellbore. The method includes installing a float sub in the string of tubulars to form an isolated portion in the string of tubulars, the float sub including a frangible member, placing a low-density fluid or gas in the isolated portion of the string of tubulars, and lowering the string of tubulars into the wellbore. The low-density fluid or gas creates a buoyant force in the string of tubulars to facilitate placing the string of tubulars in the wellbore. The method also includes applying a fluid pressure in the string of tubulars to break the frangible member of the float sub after the string of tubulars is placed in the wellbore.
Embodiments of the disclosure may further provide a debris catcher for use in a string of tubulars, the string of tubulars having a float tool. The debris catcher includes a body with a first end and a second end, the body includes a catch surface between the first end and the second end that is configured to catch debris. The body further includes a plurality of ports with a port geometry that results in a combined flow area equal or greater than a flow area through the float tool after the catch surface of the body is filled with debris.
The present disclosure may best be understood by referring to the following description and accompanying drawings that are used to illustrate embodiments of the invention. In the drawings:
The following disclosure describes several embodiments for implementing different features, structures, or functions of the invention. Embodiments of components, arrangements, and configurations are described below to simplify the present disclosure; however, these embodiments are provided merely as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Additionally, the present disclosure may repeat reference characters (e.g., numerals) and/or letters in the various embodiments and across the Figures provided herein. This repetition is for the purpose of simplicity and clarity and does not in itself dictate a relationship between the various embodiments and/or configurations discussed in the Figures. Moreover, the formation of a first feature over or on a second feature in the description that follows may include embodiments in which the first and second features are formed in direct contact, and may also include embodiments in which additional features may be formed interposing the first and second features, such that the first and second features may not be in direct contact. Finally, the embodiments presented below may be combined in any combination of ways, e.g., any element from one exemplary embodiment may be used in any other exemplary embodiment, without departing from the scope of the disclosure.
Additionally, certain terms are used throughout the following description and claims to refer to particular components. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, various entities may refer to the same component by different names, and as such, the naming convention for the elements described herein is not intended to limit the scope of the invention, unless otherwise specifically defined herein. Further, the naming convention used herein is not intended to distinguish between components that differ in name but not function. Additionally, in the following discussion and in the claims, the terms “including” and “comprising” are used in an open-ended fashion, and thus should be interpreted to mean “including, but not limited to.” All numerical values in this disclosure may be exact or approximate values unless otherwise specifically stated. Accordingly, various embodiments of the disclosure may deviate from the numbers, values, and ranges disclosed herein without departing from the intended scope. In addition, unless otherwise provided herein, “or” statements are intended to be non-exclusive; for example, the statement “A or B” should be considered to mean “A, B, or both A and B.”
In general, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a casing float sub for use during an installation procedure of a casing string (e.g., string of tubulars) in a wellbore. The float sub may include a frangible member that is configured to break upon application of a predetermined pressure and, e.g., without employing a separate member to mechanically break the frangible member.
Turning now to the specific, illustrated embodiments,
The float sub 100 is configured to be placed in a string of tubulars that includes a float tool, such as a float shoe or float collar. The float sub 100 and the float tool define an isolated portion of the string of tubulars. The float sub 100 and the float tool are configured to substantially seal off the isolated portion from the fluid in the wellbore. In other words, the float sub 100 forms a temporary isolation barrier in the isolated portion. The isolated portion may be filled with a low density fluid and/or gas (or air) to create a buoyant force when the string of tubulars is lowered into the wellbore. The buoyant force may be used to assist the placement of the string of tubulars in the wellbore. The float sub 100 is placed at a predetermined location away from the float tool, such that a frangible member 155 of the barrier assembly 150 does not prematurely break by hydraulic or hydrostatic pressure when running the string of tubulars into the wellbore. In one embodiment, the float sub 100 is placed in a vertical portion of a deviated wellbore and the float tool is placed in the horizontal portion of the deviated wellbore.
As shown in
The barrier assembly 150 is disposed in a bore 120 of the float sub 100. The barrier assembly 150 includes the frangible member 155. The frangible member 155 may be a rupture disk or any other type of breakable member that is configured to break apart (rupture or shatter) when a predetermined pressure is applied to the frangible member 155. In the embodiment shown, the frangible member 155 is hemispherical dome with a convex surface facing the first sub 105 (i.e., up hole direction). In other embodiments, the frangible member 155 may be other geometrical shapes, such as a cone or disk. The frangible member 155 may be made from materials such as metal, ceramic, glass, composites or combinations thereof.
A support (or “connection”) member 160 in the barrier assembly 150 is configured to hold the barrier assembly 150 in the second sub 110. A shoulder 130 in the first sub 105 is configured to limit movement of the barrier assembly 150. As such, the support member 160 and the shoulder 130 are configured to hold the barrier assembly 150 in the float sub 100.
The support member 160 includes tabs 190 that are separated by slots. The tabs 190 in the support member 160 are configured to assist the frangible member 155 breaking at a predetermined force generated by fluid pressure in the bore 120 above the frangible member 155, as described herein. The tabs 190 may be attached to the support member 160 at a weak point such that the tabs 190 break away from the connection member upon application of a force. The tabs 190 are generally disposed around the circumference of the support member 160. In one embodiment, the connection member 160 is tunable to dial-in to a selected shear force. The connection member may be tuned by removing several of the tabs 190 from the support member 160 prior to the assembly of the float sub 100. In other words, the shear value of the support member 160 may be selected based upon wellbore conditions and then the tabs 190 selectively removed to obtain the selected shear value. The remaining tabs 190 may break away from the support member 160 as the frangible member 155 is removed from the barrier assembly 150. In another embodiment, the support member 160 may be ring without tabs 190. In this embodiment, the frangible member 155 is designed to break at a predetermined force generated by fluid pressure. The support member 160 may be made from materials such as metal, ceramic, composite or a combination thereof.
As shown in
The debris sub 200 includes a sub 205 that is configured to be attached to a tubular 250 (e.g., landing collar) in the string of the tubulars. The debris sub 200 further includes a seal member 220 between the sub 205 and the tubular 250. The debris sub 200 also includes a debris basket 210 having a catch surface 230 that is configured to catch the pieces of the frangible member 155 from the barrier assembly 150 and the tabs 190 from the support member 160. The debris basket 210 includes ports 215 which allows fluid to flow through the debris sub 200. More specifically, fluid flowing in the tubular 250 flows through a bore 225 of the debris sub 200 and then out of the ports 215 of the debris basket 210. The debris basket 210 has a port geometry that results in a combined flow area equal or greater than the flow area through the float equipment (e.g., float shoe and/or float collar) after the debris basket 210 is filled with debris, such as pieces of the frangible member 155 and any tabs 190 from the connection member 160. The ports 215 may be any geometric shape.
The debris catcher 300 includes a body 305. The body 305 includes a catch surface 345 configured to catch debris. The body 305 includes ports 310 and ports 315 to allow fluid to pass through the debris catcher 300. The body 305 has a port geometry that results in a combined flow area equal or greater than the flow area through the float equipment (e.g., float shoe and/or float collar) after the debris catcher 300 is filled with debris, such as pieces of the frangible member 155 and any tabs 190 from the connection member 160. The ports 310, 315 may be any geometric shape.
The body 305 is configured to be supported in the tubular 250 (string of the tubulars) via a first support ring 320 and an optional second support ring 325. The first support ring 320 supports a first end of the body 305 and the second support ring 325 supports a second end of the body 305. The support rings 320, 325 may have a “near drift outer diameter” which allows the support rings 320, 325 the ability to move (or float) in the tubular 250. In one embodiment, the support rings 320, 325 may be gauge rings made from material such as metal, ceramic, composite or combinations thereof. In another embodiment, the support rings 320, 325 may be fins made from an elastomeric material.
The first support ring 320 is a solid ring that has an outer diameter in contact with an interior surface of the tubular 250 and an inner diameter attached to an outer surface of the body 305. The second support ring 325 is configured to allow fluid flow to pass by the support ring 325 as shown in
The debris catcher 350 includes a body 355. The body 355 having a catch surface 365 configured to catch debris. The body 355 includes ports 360 to allow fluid to pass through the debris catcher 350. The body 355 has a port geometry that results in a combined flow area equal or greater than the flow area through the float equipment (e.g., float shoe and/or float collar) after the debris catcher 300 is filled with debris, such as pieces of the frangible member 155 and any, tabs 190 from the connection member 160. The ports 360 may be any geometric shape. The body 305 may have a “near drift outer diameter” which allows the body 355 the ability to move (or float) in the tubular 250. In one embodiment, the body 355 may be made from material such as metal, ceramic, composite, elastomeric or combinations thereof.
The float sub 800 may include a frangible member 810 that may be positioned in the bore 806 so as to at least temporarily block fluid communication through the bore 806. The frangible member 810 may be generally dome-shaped, although it may also include a cylindrical portion extending from the dome. The frangible member 810 may be positioned in a recess 812 formed at a downhole end 814 of the first sub 802. The frangible member 810 may form a fluid-tight seal with the first sub 802, e.g., via a seal 816, such as an O-ring seal, positioned therebetween. Two or more such seals may be used in some embodiments.
The float sub 800 may further include a support ring (also referred to herein as a connection member) 820 and a shear ring 822. In an embodiment, the support ring 820 may be positioned axially between the first and second subs 802, 803, and radially between the frangible member 810 and the housing 804, at the top end thereof, and radially between the second sub 803 and the housing 804 at the lower end thereof. In some embodiments, the support ring 820 and the shear ring 822 may be integrally formed as a single piece.
The support ring 820 may engage the frangible member 810. For example, the support ring 820 may include an inwardly-protruding shoulder 824, upon which the lower end of the frangible member 810 may be supported. The support ring 820 may further define a plurality of tabs 830, which are separated circumferentially apart by a plurality of slots 832 that extend axially along a portion of the support ring 820. As such, the tabs 830 may be connected together by an integral portion of the support ring 820, e.g., at the top of the support ring 820, including the shoulder 824. The tabs 830 may provide a greater degree of flexibility to the support ring 820 than if the support ring 820 was solid, although in some embodiments, the support ring 820 may be solid.
The shear ring 822 may be positioned in an annulus 840 defined radially between the second sub 803 and the housing 804. The annulus 840 may be larger in axial dimension than the axial extent of the shear ring 822, such that, if free to move, the shear ring 822 may move axially, within the annulus 840, e.g., downhole, as shown. A plurality of shearable members 850 (e.g., shear pins) may connect the shear ring 822 to the second sub 803. The shearable members 850 may be disposed in one or more (e.g., two) rows and may be positioned at intervals around the shear ring 822 and the second sub 803. Further, the shear ring 822 may axially abut the support ring 820. Thus, while the shearable members 850 remain in place, the shear ring 822 may be prevented from moving with respect to the second sub 803, and the support ring 820 may likewise remain in place. However, when the shearable members 850 yield, the shear ring 822 may drop down in the annulus 840, which may likewise allow the support ring 820 to drop. The support ring 820 at least partially dropping may cause the frangible member 810 to tilt, which may initiate fracture of the frangible member 810, as will be described in greater detail below. The provision of the threaded-together first and second subs 802, 803 and the housing 804, may facilitate access to the shear ring 822 and the shearable members 850, which may allow for the number of shearable members 850 to be adjusted, thereby adjusting the bore pressure that causes the shear members 850 to shear.
The second sub 803 may define one or more vent holes 870, which may allow for displacement of gas or fluid from the annulus 840. The vent holes 870 may allow the support ring 820 to move in the annulus 840, as will be described in greater detail below.
Furthermore, like the support ring 820, the shear ring 822 may also include a degree of flexibility, either by its geometry or the material (e.g., metal, composite, etc.) from which it is made, or both. Accordingly, for the shear ring 822 to move, only some of the shearable members 850 need to yield, and thus some, e.g., one or more shearable members 850 on one angular interval may remain intact, while the shearable members 850 on another angular interval break. This may result in the shear ring 822 at least partially descending in the annulus 840 at an angle, e.g., tilted non-concentrically to the second sub 803.
Operation of the float sub 800 is now described, beginning with reference to
In order to do so, in at least some embodiments, rather than using a breaker bar, a sleeve, a point or other such mechanical devices to break the frangible member 810, the pressure differential across the frangible member 810 is employed. While the frangible member 810 is in the run-in position, the dome of the frangible member 810 faces upwards, concentrically to the first sub 802, and thus distributes the pressure evenly, generally in the optimal fashion of domed-shape structures.
At some point, due to imperfections in materials, geometry, support, etc., the pressure may result in sufficient force to yield one or more of the shearable members 850. Because the support ring 820 and the shear ring 822 are flexible, one “side” (e.g., angular interval such as about 180 degrees) thereof may drop in the annulus 840 with respect to the second sub 803. Accordingly, the shoulder 824 of the support ring 820 that supports the frangible member 810 may also become canted or tilted, e.g., non-concentric with the first and/or second subs 802, 803. When this occurs, the dome of the frangible member 810 may no longer support the pressure evenly, and as a result, stress concentrations in the frangible member 810 may cause the frangible member 810 to break, ultimately because of this uneven support provided by the support ring 820, again, in some embodiments, without the assistance of a mechanical device impacting, penetrating, or otherwise breaking the frangible member 810.
Referring now to
As used herein, the terms “inner” and “outer”, “up” and “down”; “upper” and “lower”; “upward” and “downward”; “above” and “below”, “inward” and “outward”; “uphole” and “downhole”; and other like terms as used herein refer to relative positions to one another and are not intended to denote a particular direction or spatial orientation. The terms “couple,” “coupled,” “connect,” “connection,” “connected,” “in connection with,” and “connecting” refer to “in direct connection with” or “in connection with via one or more intermediate elements or members.”
The foregoing has outlined features of several embodiments so that those skilled in the art may better understand the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they may readily use the present disclosure as a basis for designing or modifying other processes and structures for carrying out the same purposes and/or achieving the same advantages of the embodiments introduced herein. Those skilled in the art should also realize that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure, and that they may make various changes, substitutions, and alterations herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/525,566, which was filed on Jun. 27, 2017 and is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
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| 62525566 | Jun 2017 | US |
