Patent Application
20130213129
During drilling operations, sensors are often utilized to measure various forces exerted on a drill string. Exemplary forces include weight-on-bit and bending forces on various parts of the drill string. These forces can affect the dynamic behavior of the drill string, and if not monitored, can result in damage to downhole components or compromised operation.
For example, during drilling operations using a downhole or mud motor, the drive shaft connecting the motor to a drill bit undergoes very high bending and torque loads during rotation, and also experiences high vibration loadings. Due to these high load conditions, the drive shaft material fatigues, which can lead to crack initiation and propagation, and ultimately failure of the drive shaft.
An apparatus for measuring strain on a downhole component includes: at least one strain sensitive device disposed proximate to a surface of a component of a downhole drilling assembly or disposed within a material forming the component; and a processor in operable communication with the at least one strain sensitive device, the processor configured to detect changes in the at least one strain sensitive device and detect at least one of erosion, crack formation and crack propagation in the component surface.
An apparatus for measuring strain on a downhole component includes: at least one strain gauge deposited on a surface of a drive shaft of a downhole drilling assembly or disposed within a material forming the drive shaft; and a processor in operable communication with the at least one strain gauge, the processor configured to detect changes in the at least one strain gauge and detect conditions affecting operation of the drive shaft.
A method of monitoring a drilling operation includes: disposing a drilling assembly in a borehole, the drilling assembly including at least one strain gauge disposed at or near a surface of a component of the downhole drilling assembly, or disposed within a material forming the component; performing a drilling operation; and detecting changes in the strain gauge during the drilling operation and analyzing the changes to monitor one or more loads on the component, and determining at least one of a magnitude of the one or more loads and a number of load cycles experienced during the drilling operation; and detecting conditions affecting the drilling operation based on at least one of the magnitude and the number of load cycles.
The subject matter, which is regarded as the invention, is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention are apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like elements are numbered alike, in which:
Referring to
The drilling assembly 18 includes a drill bit 20 that is attached to the bottom end of the drill string 14 and is configured to be conveyed into the borehole 12 from a drilling rig 22. In the embodiment shown in
The mud motor 24 includes a power section having a rotor 26 and a stator 28 disposed therein, and an optional steering mechanism 30 (e.g., an adjustable bent housing). A drive shaft 32 is connected to at least the power section to rotate the drill bit 20. A bearing assembly 34 may also be included to support the drive shaft 32. Additional bearing assemblies may also be included as part of, e.g., the power section, steering mechanism and connections between various components of the drilling assembly 18.
An example of a drive shaft 32 is shown in
Referring again to
In one embodiment, each strain gauge 38 is directly deposited on the surface via, e.g., sputtering or other forms of deposition.
As shown in
In one example, the strain gauge 38 includes one or more resistive traces configured to change resistance due to breach of a trace by crack. In another example, the strain gauge includes an ultrasonic transducer including an ultrasonic wave source and one or more ultrasonic detection (e.g., piezoelectric) traces configured to detect changes in wave propagation that occur due to a modified surface (e.g., through erosion, abrasion, crack formation and/or crack propagation). The traces may be configured as one or more elongated traces or an array covering a selected area of the surface.
Referring to
As shown in
The configuration or pattern of deposited sensors are not limited to the configurations described in
The strain gauges 38 also include, or are connected to, means for communicating signals to receivers such as a user and/or a processing unit 49 located at a surface location or disposed downhole. For example, the strain gauges 38 can be designed with an antenna to power and/or interrogate the strain gauges 38 or with wires running along the shaft and connecting to electronics through the bearings (e.g., via slip rings, brush contacts). Other exemplary communication means include a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag connected to each strain gauge 38. Other mechanisms for wireless communication from the strain and crack sensors can be based on capacitive, acoustic, optical or inductive coupling. The strain gauge 38 transmits signals to a processor in the form of, e.g., voltage changes, to a desired location. Signals and data may be transmitted via any suitable transmission device or system, such as various wireless configurations as described above and wired communications. Other techniques used to transmit signals and data include wired pipe, electric and/or fiber optic connections, mud pulse, electromagnetic and acoustic telemetry.
In this example, the drill string 14 defines a central longitudinal axis 52, referred to as the “drill string axis” or “string axis”. Each strain gauge also 38 defines a “strain gauge axis” or “gauge axis” 54 which corresponds to the direction of sensitivity of the conductors for which changes in resistance are measured. For strain gauges of the type illustrated herein, the strain gauge axis 54 corresponds to the direction of the elongated conductors and also to the direction of greatest sensitivity. For example, one or more gauges 38 are configured so that the gauge axis 54 is at least substantially parallel to the string axis 46, to measure axial forces that can be used to estimate parameters such as weight on bit (WOB). In another example, one or more gauges 38 are oriented so that the gauge axis 54 is at least substantially parallel to allow for estimation of, e.g., bending forces. In yet another example, one or more gauges 38 can be oriented at approximately 45 degrees relative to the string axis 52 to measure torsional strain, which can be used to estimate torque on parts of the string (e.g., TOB). An exemplary configuration includes four strain gauges that are axially oriented and positioned at 90° interval around the drive shaft for measurement of axial loads, and two strain gauges are oriented at 45° relative to the string axis for measurement of torque. It is noted that multiple assemblies and or strain gauges with different orientations can be operably connected, for example, as part of a single assembly or bridge circuit. In one embodiment, one or more strain gauges are electrically connected as part of a bridge circuit, such as a Wheatstone bridge.
Referring to
The embodiments of
Referring to
In the first stage 61, strain gauges 38 are deposited on or in surfaces of the drive shaft 32 or other components. An exemplary process is a sputtered thin film deposition technique, which includes optionally depositing an insulating layer on the surface, depositing and/or etching a thin film conductor on the insulating layer, and optionally depositing or otherwise covering the conductor with a protective layer.
For example, the insulated layer is sputtered onto the surface, and the conductor is formed by depositing a thin film of a resistive alloy or metal and etching (e.g., laser etching) the film into balanced resistors. Exemplary techniques for depositing the thin film conductor and/or the insulating layer include sputtering, evaporation, pulsed laser deposition, chemical vapor deposition and others.
In this example, at least the insulating layer and the conductor are deposited as thin film layers. The insulating layer can be any suitable material, including dielectric materials such as plastics or ceramics. Exemplary insulating materials include polyimides and epoxies. Conductor materials may be any suitable conductive materials, including metals such as copper and copper alloys (e.g., Copel), platinum and platinum alloys, nickel, isoelastic alloys and others.
In the second stage 62, the string 14 and/or the drilling assembly 18 are disposed downhole, e.g., during a drilling or logging-while-drilling (LWD) operation. The string 14 may be configured as any desired type, such as a measurement string or completion string.
In the third stage 63, strain on various components of the string 14 is measured during a drilling or LWD operation (or other desired operation) by transmitting an electrical signal to the strain gauge 38 and measuring a change in resistance of the conductor 44. Transmission and detection can be performed by, for example, the processing unit 49.
In the fourth stage 64, the change in resistance (e.g., indicated by received voltage change in a strain gauge 38) is analyzed by, e.g., the processing unit 49 to determine the strain on the respective component surface. This strain information is further analyzed to measure various forces or parameters downhole, such as WOB, compressive forces, bending forces, torsional forces, crack formation, erosion and abrasion.
In one embodiment, signals from the strain gauges 38 are monitored for the presence or development of cracks or erosion on the surface of the drive shaft 32 (or other component). Crack initiation and propagation can be monitored by using the strain gauges 38, which show a modified response when a crack is in the vicinity. For example, in the case of a strain gauge including a resistive element sputtered on a drive shaft, when a surface crack breaks through the resistive element, a resistance measuring circuit can detect the location and severity of the crack. When a crack cuts through few lines of the resistive element, the severity of the crack may be given by the number of open resistive legs (i.e., an increase in overall resistance). The location of the crack may be given by the specific resistive element showing the resistance variation.
In one embodiment, strain on the drive shaft or other component is monitored to monitor loading, fatigue of the component and/or monitor the condition of the component relative to the components effective lifetime.
For example, loading on the drive shaft 32 or other component is monitored and compared to pre-existing data relating to expected loads, conditions and lifetimes. The drive shaft is expected to undergo a certain amount of stress due to loading. The stress is measured and analyzed to monitor the number of load cycles experienced by a drive shaft and the stress/strain experienced during each load cycle. As the downhole operation proceeds, the processing unit 49 counts the number of load cycles by which stress is applied to the shaft. The number of load cycles is compared to a maximum or “safe” number of load cycles that the drive shaft can safely endure (which can be estimated based on the level of torque applied). If the number of load cycles exceeds the safe number or reaches a number related to the safe number, an alert may be sent to a user or the processing unit 49 may automatically take corrective action (e.g., stopping the operation, reducing torque).
Likewise, a maximum or safe level of stress and/or torque applied to the drive shaft 32 during each load may be set, and the stress is monitored during operation. If the stress and/or torque exceeds the safe level or comes within a selected range around the safe level, an alert may be sent to a user and/or corrective action may be performed, e.g., the torque applied to the drive shaft may be reduced.
In one embodiment, the stress measured on a component (e.g., axial stress, bending) is monitored and compared to stress or load conditions that indicate an impending failure. These conditions may be predetermined based on prior operations or experimental observations. Such conditions include the number of load cycles and/or an amount of bending and torque.
In the fifth stage 65, various corrective or preventive actions are performed in response to the monitoring, e.g., if the loading conditions are determined to be detrimental to the proper functioning of the shaft. For example, if crack propagation is detected, the downhole tool is pulled and the shaft or other component on which the crack has developed is replaced to avoid unmanaged wellbore intervention. Other actions include sending an alert to a user or other controller, reducing torque or otherwise modifying operation parameters to compensate for the monitored conditions, and stopping the downhole operation. The monitoring system can also activate self-healing systems to reduce/heal cracks through chemical, mechanical or electrical processes.
The systems and methods described herein provide various advantages over prior art techniques. For example, the stress monitoring systems and methods described herein provide the ability to perform real time monitoring of stress loads on drive shafts and other components during downhole operations. Such monitoring provides the ability to detect and locate detrimental conditions and quickly react to such conditions, such as behavior indicative of impending failure, lifetime of the component, as well as erosion and development of cracks in the component.
In support of the teachings herein, various analysis components may be used, including digital and/or analog systems. The digital and/or analog systems may be included, for example, in the processing unit 49. The systems may include components such as a processor, analog to digital converter, digital to analog converter, storage media, memory, input, output, communications link (wired, wireless, pulsed mud, optical or other), user interfaces, software programs, signal processors (digital or analog) and other such components (such as resistors, capacitors, inductors and others) to provide for operation and analyses of the apparatus and methods disclosed herein in any of several manners well-appreciated in the art. It is considered that these teachings may be, but need not be, implemented in conjunction with a set of computer executable instructions stored on a computer readable medium, including memory (ROMs, RAMs, USB flash drives, removable storage devices), optical (CD-ROMs), or magnetic (disks, hard drives), or any other type that when executed causes a computer to implement the method of the present invention. These instructions may provide for equipment operation, control, data collection and analysis and other functions deemed relevant by a system designer, owner, user or other such personnel, in addition to the functions described in this disclosure.
It will be recognized that the various components or technologies may provide certain necessary or beneficial functionality or features. Accordingly, these functions and features as may be needed in support of the appended claims and variations thereof, are recognized as being inherently included as a part of the teachings herein and a part of the invention disclosed.
While the invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it will be understood that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications will be appreciated to adapt a particular instrument, situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.
