This invention relates to the method of integrating the choke and kill lines, hydraulic control fluid paths, and electrical signal paths into the lower marine riser connector and the mandrel at the top of the lower blowout preventer stack, thereby eliminating independent choke and kill connectors, hydraulic control fluid stab plates, and electrical connections.
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Deepwater offshore drilling requires that a vessel at the surface be connected through a drilling riser and a large blowout preventer stack to the seafloor wellhead. The seafloor wellhead is the structural anchor piece into the seabed and the basic support for the casing strings which are placed in the well bore as long tubular pressure vessels. During the process of drilling the well, the blowout preventer stack on the top of the subsea wellhead provides the second level of pressure control for the well. The first level being provided by the weighted drilling mud within the bore.
During the drilling process, weighted drilling mud circulates down a string of drill pipe to the drilling bit at the bottom of the hole and back up the annular area between the outside diameter of the drill pipe and the inside diameter of the drilled hole or the casing, depending on the depth.
Coming back up above the blowout preventer stack, the drilling mud will continue to travel back outside the drill pipe and inside the drilling riser, which is much large than the casing. The drilling riser has to be large enough to pass the casing strings run into the well, as well as the casing hangers which will suspend the casing strings. The bore in a contemporary riser will be at least twenty inches in diameter. It additionally has to be pressure competent to handle the pressure of the weighed mud, but does not have the same pressure requirement as the blowout preventer stack itself.
As wells are drilled into progressively deeper and deeper formations, the subsurface pressure and therefore the pressure which the blowout preventer stack must be able to withstand becomes greater and greater. This is the same for drilling on the surface of the land and subsea drilling on the surface of the seafloor. Early subsea blowout preventer stacks were of a 5,000 p.s.i. working pressure, and over time these evolved to 10,000 and 15,000 p.s.i. working pressure. As the working pressure of components becomes higher, the pressure holding components naturally become both heavier and taller. Additionally, in the higher pressure situations, redundant components have been added, again adding to the height. The 15,000 blowout preventer stacks have become in the range of 800,000 lbs. and 80 feet tall. This provides enormous complications on the ability to handle the equipment as well as the loadings on the seafloor wellhead. In addition to the direct weight load on the subsea wellheads, side angle loadings from the drilling riser when the surface vessel drifts off the well centerline are an enormous addition to the stresses on both the subsea wellhead and the seafloor formations.
When the blowout preventer stack working pressure is increased to 20,000 p.s.i. some estimates of the load is that it increases from 800,000 to 1,200,000 lbs. The height also increases, but how much is unclear at this time but it will likely approach 100 feet in height.
Another complication is that the choke and kill lines which come down as a part of the drilling riser must pass through the interface between the lower marine riser package and the lower blowout preventer stack to reach the entrance point to the bore of the blowout preventer stack. These have placed within the structure outside the lower marine riser connector. These have primarily been stab subs which require accurate alignment for engagement and are of three to five feet from the centerline of the lower marine riser connector and induce a high moment on the blowout preventer stack structures and on the lower marine riser connector itself or of a connector type themselves which cancel the moment on the structures, but can destroy the structures if they do not release properly when the lower marine riser connector is released. Additionally
An alternate choke and kill connector design is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,679,472 which attempts to resolve the might moment forces problem and the connector locking problem by providing a pressure balanced non-locking choke and kill stab.
Another complication is that there are two identical redundant control pods typically landed on the lower marine riser package, typically a yellow one and a blue one. Each of these require a hydraulic and/or electrical interface between the lower marine riser package and the lower blowout preventer stack.
All of these connection requirements lead to a more complex and heavier blowout preventer stack system.
The object of this invention is to reduce the size, weight, and complexity of subsea blowout preventer stacks.
A second object of this invention is to eliminate the need for choke and kill connectors between the lower marine riser package and the lower blowout preventer stack.
A third object of this invention is eliminate the need for a hydraulic stab plate between the lower marine riser package and the lower blowout preventer stack.
Another object of this invention is integrate the choke and kill flow paths into the connector/mandrel interface between the lower marine riser package and the lower blowout preventer stack.
Another object of this invention is integrate the hydraulic control fluid flow paths into the connector/mandrel interface between the lower marine riser package and the lower blowout preventer stack.
Another object of this invention is integrate the electrical connection paths into the connector/mandrel interface between the lower marine riser package and the lower blowout preventer stack.
Referring now to
Blowout preventer stack 60 is landed on a subsea wellhead system 64 landed on the seafloor 66. The blowout preventer stack 60 includes pressurized accumulators 68, kill valves 70, choke valves 72, choke and kill lines 74, choke and kill connectors 76, choke and kill flex means 78, and control pods 80.
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Seal ring 230 sealingly engages the lower end of the annular blowout preventers 146 and the upper end of the upper mandrel 132. A similar seal ring 232 seals the upper end of the lower blowout preventer stack 130 and the lower end of the upper mandrel 132. Four input shuttle valve 234 receives input from the blue control pod, the yellow control pod, the acoustic control pod, and a remotely operated vehicle interface similar to 142 to give complete redundant control of the connector.
Choke and kill lines are connected by having a high pressure tube 240 have a sealing ring 242 engage its end and the main body, having a threaded ring 244 connected to the outer diameter of the tube and a gland nut 246 engaging the main body. Seal ring 248 is placed in the interface along the choke or kill line between the lower portion of the annular blowout preventer and the upper portion of the upper mandrel 132. By increasing the thickness of the upper portion of the upper mandrel 132 and porting the choke and kill lines through this section, the need for other choke and kill connectors along with their moment forces and alignment requirements are eliminated.
Similarly a multiplicity of seal rings 250 can be added for the porting of control lines through the same section from an inlet port 252 down to and outlet port 254. By utilizing this space, the need for separate stab plates for control pods is eliminated. One or more vent lines 256 can be added to vent any pressure buildups around these seals and keep them individually isolated.
Referring now to
The particular embodiments disclosed above are illustrative only, as the invention may be modified and practiced in different but equivalent manners apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of the teachings herein. Furthermore, no limitations are intended to the details of construction or design herein shown, other than as described in the claims below. It is therefore evident that the particular embodiments disclosed above may be altered or modified and all such variations are considered within the scope and spirit of the invention. Accordingly, the protection sought herein is as set forth in the claims below.
SEQUENCE LISTING: N/A
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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4411454 | Naylor | Oct 1983 | A |
4460156 | Hazelrigg | Jan 1984 | A |
4496172 | Walker | Jan 1985 | A |
4516795 | Baugh | May 1985 | A |
5052941 | Hernandez-Marti | Oct 1991 | A |
6609734 | Baugh | Aug 2003 | B1 |
6679472 | Baugh | Jan 2004 | B2 |
8607879 | Reynolds | Dec 2013 | B2 |
Entry |
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I filed a provisional application Jun. 29, 2020 as EFS ID 40134555 and U.S. Appl. No. 63/057,965 and intended to link this application to it, but could not figure out how to do it. |