During downhole operations, packer assemblies may be utilized in a wellbore to separate the wellbore into one or more zones. A packer assembly may include a packer element capable of providing an annular seal between a tubing string and a casing string, a slip that can retain the packer assembly in a position by gripping the casing string, a wedge that supports the slip, and a mandrel that provides support to the assembly. Current packer assemblies may not be capable of withstanding high-pressure and high-temperature subterranean conditions.
These drawings illustrate certain aspects of some examples of the present disclosure and should not be used to limit or define the disclosure.
Systems and methods of the present disclosure generally relate to cased or open-hole packer assemblies that may include at least one anti-extrusion sleeve to contain a back-up ring. During expansion of the packer element, the back-up ring may move or rotate along a retainer to contact and deform the sleeve. In particular examples, the back-up ring may include a wedge-shape and a spiral groove or cut pattern. The sleeve may deform to catch or prevent the back-up ring from extruding upon expansion of the packer element. The sleeve may expand and conform to the cased or open hole such that the back-up ring may be contained or squeezed between and in contact with the sleeve, the retainer, and the expanded packer element. In some examples, the sleeve may include at least one layer of elongated segments or petals of malleable metal that may deform and contain the back-up ring upon expansion of the packer element. Particular examples may include a sleeve that may include overlapping petals without any gaps therebetween. In other examples, rather than petals, a sleeve may include a continuous wall.
In particular examples, the sleeve 100 may be of a hollow cylindrical shape, and include an inner diameter (ID) ranging from 10 centimeters (cm) to 30 cm. A first end 101 of the sleeve 100 may include an opening 102 defined by a base 103 which may be of any suitable shape such as a ring to receive a mandrel, for example.
The sleeve 100 may also include elongated members or petals 104 that may be disposed along a circumference or perimeter of the base 103. The petals 104 may form a portion of the base 103. In some examples, the sleeve 100 may be a single piece of material including bent portions which form the petals 104. The base 103 may be positioned laterally relative to the petals 104 that may extend longitudinally from bends 105 of the sleeve 100. A length, L, of each petal 104 may range from about 5 cm to about 50 cm; a width, w, may range from about 1 cm to about 5 cm; and a thickness may range from about 0.1 cm to about 1 cm. The petals 104 may extend longitudinally from the base 102. Expansion slots (“slots 106”) may be disposed between the adjacent petals 104 and may allow for deformation of the petals 104. Each slot 106 may include a lateral portion 108 that extends laterally into a portion of the base 102. The lateral portion 108 may intersect a longitudinal portion 110 of each slot 106. The longitudinal portion 110 of each slot 106 may extend from the lateral portion 108 along a length of each petal 104. In non-limiting examples, a length of each lateral portion 108 may range from about 1 cm to about 5 cm, and a length of each longitudinal portion 110 of each slot 106 may range from about 5 cm to about 50 cm. The width of each of the longitudinal portions 110 and the lateral portions 108 may range from 5 to 10 millimeters (mm) in some examples. The petals 104 of the sleeve 100 may provide for geometric conformance to the irregularities of the cased or open hole.
It should be noted that the sleeve 100 (and components thereof) may be of any suitable shape and/or dimensions depending on a casing diameter, a tool diameter, a size and/or shape of the packer element(s), the retainer(s), and/or the back-up ring(s), among others, as should be understood by one having skill in the art with the benefit of this disclosure.
In particular examples, the sleeve 100 may have a high-diameter expansion ratio ranging from about 110% to about 150%. In non-limiting examples, the sleeve 100 may expand laterally from about 110% to about 150% of its original size. The high expansion ratio may allow a packer element (not shown) to include a slim outer diameter (OD) profile ranging from about 10 centimeters (cm) to about 15 cm. The sleeve 100 may also withstand high pressures ranging from about 10,000 pounds per square inch (psi) to about 15,000 psi. The sleeve 100 may also withstand high temperatures ranging from about 325° F. to about 400° F.
As illustrated, the petals 112 may overlap adjacent petals 104 to form ridges that are configured similar to the slots 106 (e.g., shown on
A first end 128 of the sleeve 126 may include an opening 130 defined by a base 132 which may be of any suitable shape such as a ring, for example. The sleeve 126 may also include a wall 134 that may be disposed along a circumference or perimeter of the base 102 to form a hollow cylinder, as illustrated. In some examples, the wall 134 may be a smooth and continuous surface with a length, L, ranging from about 5 cm to about 20 cm; and a thickness ranging from about 0.1 cm to about 0.5 cm. The wall 134 may provide for a continuous circumferential external surface that reduces the chance of the packer assembly 200 being caught by any ID (cased or open hole) restriction downhole.
The angle of the ramps 218 and 219 may be any angle that may accept the corresponding conical shaped face of the back-up rings 214 or 216 and allow the back-up rings 214 and 216 to move along the ramps 218 and 219 as the packer element 212 is expanded. In some examples, the angle may range from about 5° to about 60°. In another example, the angle may range from about 20° to about 35°.
In some examples, the packer assembly 200 may include a plug (not shown) connected within the mandrel 208 by matching threads, pins, welding, or any other suitable means, and said assembly may be referred to as a bridge plug. The plug may include a seal located between the plug and an internal diameter of the mandrel 208 to prevent fluid flow therebetween. Packer assemblies typically may include at least one means for allowing fluid communication therethrough. Fluid flow may be controlled by one or more valve mechanisms that may be integral to a packer tool body or which may be externally attached to the packer tool body.
The mandrel 208 may extend through the sleeves 300. The base 302 of each sleeve 300 may be disposed on an up-hole end or a downhole end of each of the retainers 210 and 211 such that bases 302 extend laterally from the mandrel 208, whereas, longitudinal portions 304 of the sleeves 300 may extend longitudinally over the back-up rings 214 and 216 to form empty spaces 306 bound by each of the retainers 210 and 211, the sleeves 300, and the back-up rings 214 and 216. The spaces 306 may receive tapered portions of the back-up rings 214 and 216 upon expansion of the packer element 212. The longitudinal portions 304 may include the petals 104, the petals 112, and/or the wall 134 as shown on
As noted previously, the packer assembly 200 may be disposed in the casing 202 (or open hole). An annulus 206 may be defined between the casing 202 and a mandrel 208 (e.g., a packer tool body). Depending on placement in a wellbore, the back-up ring 214 or 216 may move up-hole or downhole to deform the corresponding sleeve 300. The packer element 212 may be disposed between the back-up rings 214 and 216.
As shown on
As shown on
The back-up ring 400 may unwind as it moves up the conical face of the retainer 210 or 211. Ends of the spiral shape may turn and the outer circumferential face 402 increases in diameter as the back-up ring 400 slides up the ramp 218 or the ramp 219 (e.g., shown on
Additionally, the spring force may also push on the packer element 212 (e.g., shown on
The back-up ring 400 may be made of any material strong enough to retain the expanded packer element 212 under downhole conditions. In an example, the back-up ring 400 may start as a metal wedge made from annealed stainless steel. The wedge may be spiral cut with electrical discharge machining (EDM) or conventional milling.
A tubing string 514 may extend into the wellbore 502. An annulus 516 may be disposed between the tubing string 514 and a wall 518 of the wellbore 502. The tubing string 514 may provide a conduit for formation fluids to travel from the substantially horizontal section 506 up-hole. The packer assemblies 200 including the sleeves 300 (e.g., shown on
Accordingly, the systems and methods of the present disclosure utilize a deformable sleeve to prevent extrusion of packer assembly components upon setting of a packer assembly.
Statement 1. A packer assembly comprises a mandrel; a retainer movably disposed adjacent to the mandrel, the retainer comprising a ramp; a packer element disposed adjacent to the mandrel and the ramp; a ring movably disposed on the ramp, the ring comprising a spiral cut; and a sleeve disposed around the retainer and the ring, wherein the sleeve is deformable to retain at least the packer element or the ring.
Statement 2. The packer assembly of the statement 1, wherein the sleeve comprises petals.
Statement 3. The packer assembly of statement 1 or statement 2, wherein the sleeve further comprises overlapping petals.
Statement 4. The packer assembly of any preceding statement, wherein the sleeve comprises a continuous wall.
Statement 5. The packer assembly of any preceding statement, wherein the ring comprises a tapered portion.
Statement 6. The packer assembly of any preceding statement, wherein the sleeve comprises a base extending laterally from the mandrel.
Statement 7. The packer assembly of any preceding statement, wherein the base comprises an opening.
Statement 8. The packer assembly of any preceding statement, wherein the sleeve further comprises an elongated portion extending longitudinally from the base to cover the ring and the retainer.
Statement 9. A packer assembly comprising: a mandrel; retainers movably disposed adjacent to the mandrel, each retainer comprising a ramp; a packer element disposed adjacent to the mandrel and between the ramps of the retainers; a ring movably disposed on each ramp, each ring comprising a spiral cut; and sleeves disposed around the retainers and the rings, wherein the sleeves are deformable to retain at least the packer element or the rings.
Statement 10. The packer assembly of statement 9, wherein each sleeve comprises petals.
Statement 11. The packer assembly of statement 9 or statement 10, wherein each sleeve further comprises overlapping petals.
Statement 12. The packer assembly of any one of statements 9-11, wherein each sleeve comprises a continuous wall.
Statement 13. The packer assembly of any one of statements 9-12, wherein each ring comprises a tapered portion.
Statement 14. The packer assembly of any one of statements 9-13, wherein each sleeve comprises a base extending laterally from the mandrel.
Statement 15. The packer assembly of any one of statements 9-14, wherein each base comprises an opening.
Statement 16. The packer assembly of any one of statements 9-15, wherein each sleeve further comprises an elongated portion extending longitudinally from the base to cover the ring and the retainer.
Statement 17. A method for containing a packer element, the method comprising: setting a packer assembly in a wellbore, the packer assembly comprising: a mandrel; a retainer movably disposed adjacent to the mandrel, the retainer comprising a ramp; the packer element disposed adjacent to the mandrel and the ramp; a ring movably disposed on the ramp, the ring comprising a spiral cut; and a sleeve disposed around the retainer and the ring; deforming the sleeve with the ring; and retaining at least the packer element or the ring with the sleeve.
Statement 18. The method of the statement 17, further comprising deforming petals of the sleeve.
Statement 19. The method of the statement 17 or the statement 18, further comprising deforming overlapping petals of the sleeve.
Statement 20. The method of any one of the statements 17-19, further comprising deforming a continuous wall of the sleeve.
The preceding description provides various examples of the systems and methods of use disclosed herein which may contain different method steps and alternative combinations of components. It should be understood that, although individual examples may be discussed herein, the present disclosure covers all combinations of the disclosed examples, including, without limitation, the different component combinations, method step combinations, and properties of the system. It should be understood that the compositions and methods are described in terms of “comprising,” “containing,” or “including” various components or steps, the compositions and methods can also “consist essentially of” or “consist of” the various components and steps. Moreover, the indefinite articles “a” or “an,” as used in the claims, are defined herein to mean one or more than one of the element that it introduces.
For the sake of brevity, only certain ranges are explicitly disclosed herein. However, ranges from any lower limit may be combined with any upper limit to recite a range not explicitly recited, as well as, ranges from any lower limit may be combined with any other lower limit to recite a range not explicitly recited, in the same way, ranges from any upper limit may be combined with any other upper limit to recite a range not explicitly recited. Additionally, whenever a numerical range with a lower limit and an upper limit is disclosed, any number and any included range falling within the range are specifically disclosed. In particular, every range of values (of the form, “from about a to about b,” or, equivalently, “from approximately a to b,” or, equivalently, “from approximately a-b”) disclosed herein is to be understood to set forth every number and range encompassed within the broader range of values even if not explicitly recited. Thus, every point or individual value may serve as its own lower or upper limit combined with any other point or individual value or any other lower or upper limit, to recite a range not explicitly recited.
Therefore, the present examples are well adapted to attain the ends and advantages mentioned as well as those that are inherent therein. The particular examples disclosed above are illustrative only and may be modified and practiced in different but equivalent manners apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of the teachings herein. Although individual examples are discussed, the disclosure covers all combinations of all of the examples. Furthermore, no limitations are intended to the details of construction or design herein shown, other than as described in the claims below. Also, the terms in the claims have their plain, ordinary meaning unless otherwise explicitly and clearly defined by the patentee. It is therefore evident that the particular illustrative examples disclosed above may be altered or modified and all such variations are considered within the scope and spirit of those examples. If there is any conflict in the usages of a word or term in this specification and one or more patent(s) or other documents that may be incorporated herein by reference, the definitions that are consistent with this specification should be adopted.