Patent Application
20110240548
The present invention relates to a joint for particle control filtration screens, particularly for use in a well.
Liquids and gases in water, oil and gas wells typically mix with particulates that need to be filtered away from the production fluid. These particulates include sand, clay, and other unconsolidated particulate matter. The presence of sand and other fine particles in the production fluid and well equipment often leads to the rapid erosion of expensive well machinery and hardware.
Particle screens, also known as downhole screens, sand screens or well screens, have been used in the petroleum industry to remove particulates from production fluids. Commonly, particle screens are used in conjunction with a filter aid that does primary filtering, whereas the particle screen retains the filter aid but allows throughput of the liquid or gas. Particle screens are generally tubular in shape and include a perforated base pipe, a porous filter layer wrapped around and secured to the pipe, and an outer cover. Particle screens are used where fluid enters a production string, such that the fluid must pass through the filter layer and into the perforated pipe prior to entering the production string and being pumped to the surface.
In the context of downhole filtration, particle screens often include woven wire mesh to prevent particles of the desired size and larger from passing through the mesh. The screen acts to trap the particles on the top surface of the mesh. Wire wrap is also commonly used in surface filtration. Wire wrap may be triangular shaped wire wrapped around a base pipe, with a given gap between wires designed to accomplish a desired micron rating.
Particle screens are often constructed in modular sections, such as four foot sections. The screen sections are fixed together inside the pipe by way of a joint. Due to pressures and stresses that exists within the pipe, it is desirable that the joint be capable of tolerating designated burst and collapse pressures. Known screen joints include basic weld joints and other [insert other possible joints]. While these joints are capable of connecting screen sections, they often fail to tolerate the desired burst and collapse stresses within the pipe. Further, known joints often fail to support the shape of the particle screen to help prevent warping and other defects. Therefore, an improved screen joint is needed.
A screen joint assembly is generally described. The screen joint assembly includes a joint comprising a ring portion and a lip portion protruding from the ring. A first particle screen is connected to a first side of the joint and a second particle screen connected to a second side of the joint. The lip portion may be welded to form a weld seam that interconnects the first and second particle screens.
Objects and advantages together with the operation of the invention may be better understood by reference to the following detailed description taken in connection with the following illustrations, wherein:
Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural and functional changes may be made without departing from the respective scope of the invention.
A screen joint 10 is presented, as illustrated in
The screen joint 10 is configured to interconnect two or more portions, such as two or more particle screens 18. To that end, the screen joint 10 includes a generally flat ring 11 and a lip 16. The ring 11 includes an inner surface 12 and an outer surface 14. The lip 16 may protrude from the outer surface 14 to provide an adjoining member for a particle screen 18. The lip 16 may be positioned to bisect the ring 11 such that the ring 11 extends generally equidistantly from either side of the lip 16. As shown in
The screen joint 10 may be configured to connect to a similarly shaped screen portion 18 on either side of the lip 16. For example, the screen joint 10 may be generally circular, as shown in
As described herein, a particle screen 18 may comprise any screen adapted to sift and filter particles, such as sand, clay, and other particulate matter, from production fluid to be extracted. The particle screen 18 may be composed of wire mesh or a series of wire mesh layers. It will be appreciated, however, that the particle screen 18 may comprise any material capable of filtering unwanted particulate matter. The particle screen 18 may be generally tubular shaped, such as cylindrical. The tubular particle screen 18 may include an exterior surface 20 and an interior surface 22.
In an embodiment shown in
The screen joint 10 may be configured to provide the desired amount of support for the particle screen 18 or to regulate flow capacity. For example, the width or thickness of the ring 11 may be increased to provide greater support along the interior surface 22 of the particle screen 18. The engagement between the outer surface 14 and the interior surface 22 of the particle screen 18, however, obstructs the openings in the particle screen 18. Consequently, widening the ring 11 may reduce the flow capacity of the particle screen 18. Thus, the width of the ring 11 may alternatively be reduced to increase the flow capacity of the particle screen 18.
The screen joint 10 may be welded to the particle screen 18 to provide permanent connection thereto. When the screen joint 10 is assembled with a particle screen 18 on each side of the lip 16, as best seen in
It will be appreciated that the screen joint 10 may alternatively be configured to engage the exterior surface 20 of the particle screen 18. For example, as previously mentioned, the lip 16 may protrude from the inner surface 12 of the ring 11 to provide an adjoining surface interior to the screen joint 10. The particle screen 18 may then be inserted into the screen joint 10 such that the exterior surface 20 of the particle screen 18 engages the inner surface 12 of screen joint 10. The lip 16 may then be welded or formed to create an interior seam.
The screen joint 10 may be constructed by any means known in the art. In an embodiment, as illustrated in
The invention has been described above and, obviously, modifications and alternations will occur to others upon a reading and understanding of this specification. The claims as follows are intended to include all modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the claims or the equivalent thereof.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/312,109, titled “SCREEN JOINT,” filed Mar. 9, 2010, which is hereby incorporated in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61312109 | Mar 2010 | US |
