BACKGROUND
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present techniques, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admission of prior art.
Natural resources, such as oil and gas, are used as fuel to power vehicles, heat homes, and generate electricity, in addition to various other uses. Once a desired resource is discovered below the surface of the earth, drilling systems are often employed to access the desired resource (e.g., drilling operations) and production systems are often employed to extract the desired resource (e.g., production operations). These drilling systems and/or production systems may be located onshore or offshore depending on the location of the desired resource. Further, such drilling systems and/or production systems may include a wide variety of components, such as casings, fluid conduits, valves, pumps, and the like.
A hydraulic workover unit (HWU) facilitates movement of a load and may be utilized to maintain a drilled well and/or close up a well by pulling casing and plugging (e.g., for abandonment of a well). Existing HWUs may include readily available commercial equipment, such as a swivel and a jack added thereon, which may limit functionality of the HWU. Further, existing HWUs may have a large footprint, creating lengthy installation times and inefficient set up operations. Thus, there is a need for improved HWUs.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION
A summary of certain embodiments disclosed herein is set forth below. It should be understood that these aspects are presented merely to provide the reader with a brief summary of these certain embodiments and that these aspects are not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. Indeed, this disclosure may encompass a variety of aspects that may not be set forth below.
In one embodiment, a hydraulic workover unit includes a work platform and a jacking table assembly disposed adjacent to the work platform. The jacking table assembly includes a jacking table and multiple adjustable legs, and each adjustable leg of the multiple adjustable legs includes multiple telescopic cylinders that provide variable jacking capacity to adjust a position of the jacking table relative to the work platform.
In one embodiment, a drilling system includes a drilling rig configured to drill a wellbore and a hydraulic workover unit configured to be installed on the drilling rig. The hydraulic workover unit includes a base skid, a jacking table, and multiple adjustable legs. Each adjustable leg of the multiple adjustable legs includes multiple telescopic cylinders that provide variable jacking capacity to adjust a position of the jacking table relative to the base skid to facilitate tripping a tubular into the wellbore, out of the wellbore, or both.
In one embodiment, a method of operating a hydraulic workover unit includes extending a first cylinder of multiple telescopic cylinders to provide a first jacking capacity that moves a jacking table over a first distance. The method also includes extending the first cylinder and a second cylinder of the multiple telescopic cylinders to provide a second jacking capacity that moves the jacking table over a second distance.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like characters represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a hydraulic workover unit (HWU), in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 installed on a drilling rig, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with a jacking table assembly in a first intermediate position to lift a tubular, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with the jacking table assembly in a second intermediate position to further lift the tubular, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with the jacking table assembly in an end position to further lift the tubular, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with the jacking table assembly in an initial position, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with the jacking table assembly in the first intermediate position to further lift the tubular, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with the jacking table assembly in the initial position to enable an iron roughneck to access the tubular, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with the iron roughneck engaged with the tubular, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with a pipe of the tubular separated from an adjacent pipe of the tubular, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with the iron roughneck disengaged from the tubular and the pipe of the tubular suspended from a cable, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with the pipe of the tubular positioned on a pipe tray, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with multiple pipes of the tubular positioned on the pipe tray, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the HWU of FIG. 1 with a power swivel to carry out milling operations, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 16 is a perspective view of rails positioned on the drilling rig to facilitate installation of the HWU of FIG. 1 on the drilling rig, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a work platform and a base skid positioned on an installation frame to facilitate installation of the HWU of FIG. 1 on the drilling rig, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 18 is a perspective view of a pair of side towers and other modular components positioned on the installation frame to facilitate installation of the HWU of FIG. 1 on the drilling rig, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 19 is a perspective view of a portion of the HWU of FIG. 1 at a target location on the drilling rig, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the portion of the HWU of FIG. 1 being rotated at the target location on the drilling rig, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 21 is a perspective view of other modular components being added to form the HWU of FIG. 1 at the target location on the drilling rig, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure; and
FIG. 22 is a perspective view of a hydraulic workover unit (HWU) with a top link and a pulley system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
In the following description, numerous details are set forth to provide an understanding of some embodiments of the present disclosure. It is to be understood that the following disclosure provides many different embodiments, or examples, for implementing different features of various embodiments. Specific examples of components and arrangements are described below to simplify the disclosure. These are, of course, merely examples and are not intended to be limiting. However, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the system and/or methodology may be practiced without these details and that numerous variations or modifications from the described embodiments are possible. This description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but rather made merely for the purpose of describing general principles of the implementations. The scope of the described implementations should be ascertained with reference to the issued claims.
When introducing elements of various embodiments of the present disclosure, the articles “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements. Additionally, it should be understood that references to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” of the present disclosure are not intended to be interpreted as excluding the existence of additional embodiments that also incorporate the recited features.
As used herein, the terms “connect,” “connection,” “connected,” “in connection with,” and “connecting” are used to mean “in direct connection with” or “in connection with via one or more elements.” The term “set” is used to mean “one element” or “more than one element.” Further, the terms “couple,” “coupling,” “coupled,” “coupled together,” and “coupled with” are used to mean “directly coupled together” or “coupled together via one or more elements.” As used herein, the terms “up” and “down,” “upper” and “lower,” “top” and “bottom,” and other like terms indicating relative positions to a given point or element are utilized to more clearly describe some elements. Commonly, these terms relate to a reference point at the surface from which drilling operations are initiated as being the top point and the total depth being the lowest point, wherein a well (e.g., wellbore, borehole) is vertical, horizontal, or slanted relative to the surface.
A drilling system may carry out drilling operations at a wellsite to form a wellbore within or into a subterranean formation to recover hydrocarbons trapped within the subterranean formation. The present disclosure generally relates to a hydraulic workover unit (HWU) and a method of using the same to carry out various operations at the wellsite. For example, the HWU according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure may be used to carry out various tubular handling operations at the wellsite, such as trip in and trip out tubular strings (e.g., drill pipes), pull and cut casing, trip out casing, circulate and pump fluids, coiled tubing jobs, milling operations, and/or wireline operations (including wireline tool tests and/or plug and abandonment operations).
More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a lightweight, modular tri-jack HWU having telescopic cylinders that provide high speed and high lifting capacity in the same function (e.g., simultaneously, together). For example, existing HWUs may provide a normal lifting height of about 6 feet (about 1.8 meters), while the HWU according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure can achieve a lifting height of over 20 feet (over 6 meters). By using multistep cylinders (e.g., multistage cylinders; telescopic cylinders), the HWU according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure can achieve higher loads at lower speeds and lower loads at higher speeds. Advantageously, the modular design of the HWU according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure reduces installation time of the HWU and provides flexibility with respect to orientation of the HWU during rig up operations.
Moreover, a telescopic lifting table of the HWU according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure may be used for both jacking purposes and as a foundation for tools, such as a power swivel, for example. In this way, the HWU according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure combines a work deck with a casing jack in a single unit. Further, the configuration of the HWU according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure assumes a smaller footprint than existing HWUs, which enables the HWU according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure to be installed on de-commissioned drill floors, for example. More specifically, the HWU according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure may significantly reduce the cost for plug and abandonment (P&A) operations by facilitating Phases 1 and 2 (e.g., reservoir abandonment and intermediate abandonment) with a stripped down rig, or by facilitating a full P&A operation on a de-commissioned drilling platform.
With the foregoing in mind, FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a hydraulic workover unit (HWU) 10, and FIG. 2 is a perspective exploded view of an embodiment of the HWU 10. The HWU 10 may have certain characteristics, such as being light weight and modular, as well as having a multi-jack structure that provides variable jacking capacity.
With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the HWU 10 includes a base skid 12, a pair of side towers 14, a top link 16, a work platform 18 (e.g., work deck; to support tools, such as an iron roughneck), access stairs 24, and a slide 26 (e.g., ramp). Additionally, with reference to FIG. 2, the HWU 10 may include or be used in conjunction with a pipe tray 28. Further, the HWU 10 may include one or more additional platforms to provide additional working space, for example. The top link 16 may be a relatively short ginpole for use inside a drilling derrick (and in such cases, the HWU 10 may utilize and rely on winches in the drilling derrick for lifting operations). As discussed in more detail herein, the base skid 12 supports a jacking table assembly 30 with a jacking table 32 and adjustable legs 34 that are each formed from multistep or telescopic cylinders, such as three step cylinders or three telescopic cylinders. The HWU 10 and its components may be described with reference to a longitudinal axis or direction 36, a lateral axis or direction 38, and a vertical axis or direction 40.
It should be appreciated that portions of the HWU 10, such as a tool-supporting region of the work platform 18, an entirety of the jacking table assembly 30, a transition region between the jacking table assembly 30 and the slide 26 and/or the pipe tray 28, may be designated as a red zone area. The red zone area may be gated to block entry of operators (e.g., human operators) into the red zone area. In some embodiments, the red zone area may implement stop functionality to block certain operations (e.g., tripping, milling, movement of the jacking table assembly 30) while any operators are present in the red zone area. For example, gates that surround the red zone area may move between respective open configurations and respective closed configurations, and the stop functionality may block the certain operations while any of the gates are in their respective open configuration. It should be appreciated that any of a variety of techniques may be employed, such as techniques that utilize sensors (e.g., imaging sensors) that generate signals indicative of operators being present in the red zone area, as well as a controller that processes the signals and provides control signals to implement the stop functionality. Other portions of the HWU 10 may be designated as working areas for the operators to stand and/or walk to perform maintenance operations on the HWU 10, or for any other suitable purpose.
FIG. 3 is a perspective front view of an embodiment of the HWU 10 installed on a drilling rig 50, such as a jack-up rig. For example, the HWU 10 may be installed on top of a rotary table (e.g., above the rotary table relative to the vertical axis 40) of the drilling rig 50. The jacking table assembly 30 includes the jacking table 32 that supports a slip 52 (e.g., annular slip) that is configured to circumferentially surround, grip, and hold a tubular 54 (e.g., a drill string used in drilling operations to drill a wellbore). As shown, a top of the tubular 54 is also coupled to a lift tool 56 (e.g., threaded plug or cap) and a cable 58. The cable 58 extends from the lift tool 56 to a crane, which may supported on the drilling rig 50 or other suitable location (e.g., coupled to or part of the HWU 10)
An iron roughneck 60 is positioned on and/or vertically above the work platform 18. In some embodiments, a tool crane 62 may be coupled to or part of the HWU 10 (e.g., coupled to one side tower of the pair of side towers 14). The tool crane 62 may be configured to couple to tools, such as the iron roughneck 60. In some embodiments, a tool crane cable 64 may extend from the iron roughneck 60 to the tool crane 62, and the tool crane 62 may move (e.g., along the vertical axis 40; via rotation about the vertical axis 40) relative to the one side tower of the pair of side towers 14 to move the iron roughneck 60 relative to other components of the HWU 10 (e.g., on and off the work platform 18; toward and away from the jacking table 32 with the slip 52 that is configured to grip and hold the tubular 54). It should be appreciated that the tool crane 62 may not be configured to move along the vertical axis 40 relative to the one side tower of the pair of side towers 14, but instead, a pulley system or other system may extend and retract the tool crane cable 64 to move the iron roughneck 60 along the vertical axis 40 relative to the other components of the HWU 10. Further, in some embodiments, the tool crane 62 may directly contact and engage the iron roughneck 60 (e.g., without using the tool crane cable 64).
FIGS. 4-14 illustrate an example of a series of operational steps that may be carried out by the HWU 10 to trip out the tubular 54 (e.g., one pipe of the tubular 54). As shown in FIG. 4, the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 extend to lift the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. Further, as shown, the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, move along the vertical axis 40 relative to other components of the HWU 10 (e.g., the base skid 12, the work platform 18, the pair of side towers 14) and the drilling rig 50 (e.g., a drill floor of the drilling rig 50). In FIG. 4, a respective first cylinder 70 of each of the adjustable legs 34 is extended to provide a first jacking capacity (e.g., to lift the jacking table 32 over a first distance to a first height 71).
As shown in FIG. 5, the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 may further extend to further lift the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. Further, as shown, the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, move along the vertical axis 40 relative to other components of the HWU 10 (e.g., the base skid 12, the work platform 18, the pair of side towers 14) and the drilling rig 50 (e.g., a drill floor of the drilling rig 50). In FIG. 5, the respective first cylinder 70 and a respective second cylinder 72 of each of the adjustable legs 34 are extended to provide a second jacking capacity (e.g., to lift the jacking table 32 over a second distance to a second height 73).
As shown in FIG. 6, the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 may further extend to further lift the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. Indeed, as shown in FIG. 6, the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 may extend to lift the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, until the jacking table 32 reaches upper ends 65 (e.g., end portions) of the pair of side towers 14. In FIG. 6, the respective first cylinder 70, the respective second cylinder 72, and a respective third cylinder 74 of each of the adjustable legs 34 are extended to provide a third jacking capacity (e.g., to lift the jacking table 32 over a third distance to a third height 75).
To facilitate discussion, the jacking table assembly 30 may be described as being in an initial position (e.g., lower or lowermost position) when all of the cylinders 70, 72, 74 are retracted and when positioned as shown in FIG. 3, and an end position (e.g., upper or uppermost position) when all of the cylinders 70, 72, 74 are extended and when positioned as shown in FIG. 6. Additionally, the jacking table assembly 30 may be described as being in an intermediate position when positioned between the initial position and the end position, such as a first or lower intermediate position when all of the first cylinders 70 are extended and when positioned as shown in FIG. 4 and a second or upper intermediate position when all of the first and second cylinders 70, 72 are extended and when positioned as shown in FIG. 5. In some embodiments, in the initial position the jacking table 32 may be aligned (e.g., substantially aligned, such as within a few centimeters) with platforms of the HWU 10, such as a base skid platform 68 (e.g., upper base skid platform), the work platform 18, and so forth, along the vertical axis 40. In some embodiments, in the end position, the jacking table 32 may be aligned (e.g., substantially aligned, such as within a few centimeters) of the upper ends 65 of the pair of side towers 14.
As shown in FIGS. 4-6, the jacking table assembly 30 may also include a frame 66. The frame 66 may include beams (e.g., horizontal beams and/or vertical beams) that surround and support the jacking table 32. In some embodiments, the frame 66 may continuously or intermittently contact and/or slide along the pair of side towers 14 as the frame 66 moves with the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto. This may enable the pair of side towers 14 to provide support and to block movement of such components along the longitudinal axis 36 and/or the lateral axis 38 during the trip out operations. Additionally, as shown in FIGS. 4-6, each of the adjustable legs 34 may include multiple cylinders, such as respective first, second, and third cylinders 70, 72, 74, in a telescopic arrangement. While the adjustable legs 34 each include three cylinders (the first, second, and third cylinders 70, 72, 74) to facilitate discussion, it should be appreciated that the HWU 10 may be adapted to include any number of cylinders (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or more) in a telescopic arrangement to provide the variable jacking capacity that facilitates various operations disclosed herein. Further, the cylinders (e.g., the first, second, and third cylinders 70, 72, 74) may be hydraulic cylinders that are actuated via hydraulic fluid.
Depending on a length of the pipe of the tubular 54, the sequence of operations shown in FIGS. 3-6 may not be sufficient to trip out the pipe of the tubular 54. For example, in some embodiments, a total jacking capacity or height of the first, second, and third cylinders 70, 72, 74 may be less than the length of the pipe of the tubular 54. As a more specific example, a respective jacking capacity or height of each of the first, second, and third cylinders 70, 72, 74 may be about 7.5 feet or 2.2 meters. That is, extension of the first cylinders 70 to provide the first jacking capacity may lift the jacking table 32 over the first distance to the first height 71 of about 7.5 feet or 2.2 meters (e.g., from the initial position). Similarly, extension of the first and second cylinders 70, 72 to provide the second jacking capacity may lift the jacking table 32 over the second distance to the second height 73 of about 15 feet or 4.5 meters (e.g., from the initial position). Similarly, extension of the first, second, and third cylinders 70, 72, 74 to provide the third jacking capacity may lift the jacking table 32 over the third distance to the third height 75 of about 22.5 feet or 6.8 meters (e.g., from the initial position). Thus, in this case, a total jacking capacity (e.g., the third jacking capacity) for all of the first, second, and third cylinders 70, 72, 74 together may provide lift over about 22.5 feet or 6.8 meters.
Further, a HWU height of the HWU 10 between the base skid platform 68 and the upper ends 65 of the pair of side towers 14 may be sized to accommodate the total jacking capacity for all of the first, second, and third cylinders 70, 72, 74. For example, the HWU height of the HWU 10 may be about 22.5 feet or 6.8 meters. However, the length of the pipe of the tubular 54 may be about 30 feet or 9.1 meters. Thus, in such cases, the HWU 10 may carry out further steps to trip out a remainder of the pipe of the tubular 54 (e.g., after one pass of the jacking table assembly 30 from the initial position to the end position).
With the foregoing in mind, after reaching the end position shown in FIG. 6, the jacking table assembly 30 may return to the initial position shown in FIG. 7. In particular, after reaching the end position shown in FIG. 6, the slip 52 releases from the tubular 54 and the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 retract to lower the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. Further, as shown, the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 coupled thereto, move along the vertical axis 40 relative to the tubular 54, the other components of the HWU 10 (e.g., the base skid 12, the work platform 18, the pair of side towers 14), and the drilling rig 50 (e.g., a drill floor of the drilling rig 50). Additionally, the lift tool 56 and the crane continue to support the tubular 54.
It should be appreciated that an additional slip 76 (e.g., annular slip; shown in FIG. 1) that is configured to circumferentially surround, grip, and hold the tubular 54 and that does not travel with the jacking table assembly 30 may engage the tubular 54 before the slip 52 releases from the tubular 54 and before the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 retract to lower the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. The additional slip 76 may be part of the HWU 10. For example, the additional slip 76 may be supported on an additional base skid platform 78 (e.g., lower base skid platform) of the base skid 12, such that the additional slip 76 is vertically below the slip 52 when the additional slip 76 and the slip 52 are utilized together.
After reaching the initial position shown in FIG. 7, the jacking table assembly 30 may again move to the intermediate position (e.g., the first or lower intermediate position) shown in FIG. 8. In particular, after reaching the initial position shown in FIG. 7, the slip 52 engages (e.g., re-engages) the tubular 54, and the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 extend to raise the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. Further, as shown, the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, move along the vertical axis 40 relative to the other components of the HWU 10 (e.g., the base skid 12, the work platform 18, the pair of side towers 14), and the drilling rig 50 (e.g., a drill floor of the drilling rig 50). In FIG. 8, a respective first cylinder 70 of each of the adjustable legs 34 is extended to provide the first jacking capacity (e.g., to lift the jacking table 32 over the first distance to the first height 71).
It should be appreciated that the additional slip 76 shown in FIG. 1 may release the tubular 54 after the slip 52 engages the tubular 54 and before the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 extend to raise the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. Indeed, it should be appreciated that the additional slip 76 and the slip 52 may generally operate in a coordinated manner to support and to move the tubular 54, as described herein. The jacking table assembly 30 may not continue to the end position (e.g., stop at the intermediate position shown in FIG. 8), as the intermediate position shown in FIG. 8 may appropriately position a joint (e.g., connection, such as a threaded connection) between the pipe of the tubular 54 and an adjacent pipe (e.g., lower pipe) of the tubular 54 relative to the iron roughneck 60.
Then, after reaching the intermediate position shown in FIG. 8, the jacking table assembly 30 may return to the initial position shown in FIG. 9. In particular, after reaching the intermediate position shown in FIG. 8, the slip 52 releases from the tubular 54 and the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 retract to lower the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. Further, as shown, the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 coupled thereto, move along the vertical axis 40 relative to the tubular 54, the other components of the HWU 10 (e.g., the base skid 12, the work platform 18, the pair of side towers 14), and the drilling rig 50 (e.g., a drill floor of the drilling rig 50). Additionally, the lift tool 56 and the crane continue to support the tubular 54.
As noted herein and with reference to FIG. 9, the sequence of operations shown in FIGS. 3-9 may appropriately position a joint 80 (e.g., connection, such as a threaded connection) between a pipe 82 of the tubular 54 and an adjacent pipe 84 (e.g., lower pipe) of the tubular 54 relative to the iron roughneck 60. As shown in FIG. 9, the tool crane 62 may move along the vertical axis 40 and/or rotate about the vertical axis 40 (e.g., via its connection to one side tower of the pair of side towers 14) to position the iron roughneck 60 proximate to the tubular 54. As noted herein, a pulley system may extend and retract the tool crane cable 64 to move the iron roughneck 60. In some embodiments, the tool crane 62 may directly contact and move the iron roughneck 60 (e.g., without the tool crane cable 64).
In any case, the tool crane 62 and/or the tool crane cable 64 may position the iron roughneck 60 to enable tongs 86 (e.g., clamps) of the iron roughneck 60 to engage (e.g., grip) the tubular 54. As shown, the tool crane 62 and/or the tool crane cable 64 may move the iron roughneck 60 from its position on and/or vertically above the work platform 18 to the jacking table 32 to enable the tongs 86 of the iron roughneck 60 to engage the tubular 54. For example, upper tongs 86 may the pipe 82 and lower tongs 86 may engage the adjacent pipe 84. Further, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the iron roughneck 60 may apply torque to separate the pipe 82 from the adjacent pipe 84 at the joint 80 (e.g., break out the joint 80). For example, the upper tongs 86 may apply the torque to the pipe 82, while the lower tongs 86 grip and hold the adjacent pipe 84 to thereby enable the pipe 82 to rotate relative to the adjacent pipe 84 to break out the joint 80.
After the pipe 82 is separated from the adjacent pipe 84, as shown in FIG. 11, the tool crane 62 and/or the tool crane cable 64 may move the iron roughneck 60 away from tubular 54. As shown in FIG. 12, the tool crane 62 and/or the tool crane cable 64 may move the iron roughneck 60 from the jacking table 32 to its position on and/or vertically above the work platform 18. At the same time (e.g., over overlapping time periods) or close in time, the crane and the cable 58 coupled to the lift tool 56 and the pipe 82 may move the pipe 82. In particular, the crane and the cable 58 may move a bottom of the pipe 82 to the pipe tray 28 and then lower the pipe 82 (e.g., slide the pipe 82) onto the pipe tray 28 to move the pipe 82 from its position shown in FIG. 12 (e.g., suspended from the cable 58, or with only the bottom of the pipe 82 in contact with the pipe tray 28) to its positions shown in FIG. 13 (e.g., supported on the pipe tray 28, or with an entirety of a length/sidewall of the pipe 82 in contact with the pipe tray 28).
Further, as shown in FIG. 13, a top of the adjacent pipe 84 is positioned above the slip 52 and the jacking table 32 along the vertical axis 40. The slip 52 may engage the adjacent pipe 84, and a respective lift tool 56 may be coupled (e.g., threadably coupled) to the adjacent pipe 84. Then, a cable (e.g., the cable 58) may be coupled to the respective lift tool 56 and the sequence of operations shown in FIGS. 3-13 may be repeated for the adjacent pipe 84. Indeed, the sequence of operations shown in FIGS. 3-13 may be repeated for multiple pipes that form the tubular 54 to remove the tubular 54 from a wellbore.
The multiple pipes (including the pipe 82 and the adjacent pipe 84) may be placed onto the pipe tray 28, as shown in FIG. 14. When the pipe tray 28 is full or at any other suitable time, the pipe tray 28 may be separated from the other components of the HWU 10 and transported to another location (e.g., away from the HWU 10). For example, the pipe tray 28 may travel along rails (e.g., a chute; one or more rails) to the another location (e.g., to a deck of the drilling rig 50) with built-in sling access. Then, the multiple pipes may be lifted off of the pipe tray 28 or otherwise handled in an appropriate manner. In some embodiments, the pipe tray 28 may be transported back toward the HWU 10 and coupled to the other components of the HWU 10 to receive additional pipes of the tubular 54. This process may continue until certain pipes, or all of the pipes, of the tubular 54 are removed from the wellbore.
As demonstrated in FIGS. 4-14, the HWU 10 disclosed herein provides efficient tubular handling for trip out operations. The sequence of operations shown in FIGS. 3-14 may be carried out in substantially reverse order to enable the HWU 10 to provide efficient tubular handling for trip in operations. Further, an interface to support and/or to move the iron roughneck 60 may facilitate efficient break out and make up of connections between pipes during such tripping operations. In addition to operations to trip in and trip out tubular strings (e.g., drill pipes), the HWU 10 may be utilized to pull and cut casing, trip out casing, circulate and pump fluids, coiled tubing jobs, complete milling operations, and/or complete wireline operations (including wireline tool tests and/or plug and abandonment operations).
For example, FIG. 15 is an embodiment of the HWU 10 adapted and configured to complete milling operations (e.g., rotation of a cutting tool within the wellbore to cut material within the wellbore). To complete the milling operations, the slip 52 shown in FIGS. 3-13 may be removed from an opening 90 defined in the jacking table 32 (e.g., via any suitable crane and/or cable). Further, a bushing 92 (e.g., annular bushing) may be inserted into the opening 90.
While the jacking table assembly 30 with the bushing 92 is in the initial position, a top of a tubular 94 may be positioned and accessible above the jacking table assembly 30 with the bushing 92 relative to the vertical axis 40. For example, the top of the tubular 94 may extend from the wellbore and through a center opening of the bushing 92. The cutting tool may be coupled to a bottom of the tubular 94 to enable the cutting tool to cut material within the wellbore. Also while the jacking table assembly 30 with the bushing 92 is in the initial position, a power swivel 96 may be coupled to the top of the tubular 94. For example, the power swivel 96 may be moved (e.g., via any suitable crane and/or cable) over the top of the tubular 94. Then, an extension 98 of the power swivel 96 may be coupled (e.g., threadably coupled) to the top of the tubular 94 to couple the power swivel 96 to the tubular 94. Thus, when the power swivel 96 is coupled to the tubular 94, the power swivel 96 may be located above the jacking table assembly 30 with the bushing 92 relative to the vertical axis 40.
Then, the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 may extend to lift the jacking table 32, as well as the bushing 92 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. In particular, the jacking table 32, as well as the bushing 92 coupled thereto, move along the vertical axis 40 relative to the tubular 94, the power swivel 96, other components of the HWU 10 (e.g., the base skid 12, the work platform 18, the pair of side towers 14), and the drilling rig 50 (e.g., a drill floor of the drilling rig 50). Further, the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 extend to lift the jacking table 32, as well as the bushing 92 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40 toward the power swivel 96 until the bushing 92 engages the power swivel 96. In some embodiments, the bushing 92 may engage the power swivel 96 via contact between mating surfaces or features with corresponding shapes, such as via insertion of a square key of the power swivel 96 into a corresponding square opening of the bushing 92.
Thereafter, the HWU 10 may support the power swivel 96 (e.g., carry the power swivel 96 with the jacking table assembly 30). A conduit 88 (e.g., electrical conduit; hydraulic conduit) may connect to the power swivel 96 to enable control of the power swivel 96 (e.g., via electrical signals; via hydraulic fluid). In this way, the power swivel 96 may rotate, along with the tubular 94 and the cutting tool coupled to the tubular 94, to carry out the milling operations. As demonstrated, the HWU 10 may be efficiently configured to carry out the milling operations (e.g., efficiently reconfigured from one configuration and set of process steps for tripping operations to another configuration and set of process steps for milling operations). In some embodiments, the rotary table may drive the rotation of the tubular 94 while the tubular 94 is supported by the HWU 10 to carry out the milling operations.
As noted herein, the HWU 10 may also include features (e.g., modularity; compact size) that facilitate efficient installation and disassembly of the HWU 10 at the drilling rig 50. With the foregoing in mind, FIGS. 16-21 illustrate an example of a series of operational steps carried out to install the HWU 10 on the drilling rig 50. As shown in FIG. 16, rails 100 (e.g., one or more rails) may be positioned along across a drill floor of the drilling rig 50 (e.g., from an edge of the drill floor to an opening above a rotary table). Additionally, an installation frame 102 may be coupled (e.g., slidingly coupled) to the rails 100.
As shown in FIG. 17, the base skid 12 and the work platform 18 may be positioned adjacent to one another on the installation frame 102. In this way, the opening 90 defined in the jacking table 32 of the jacking table assembly 30 on the base skid 12 may be aligned (e.g., along the lateral axis 38) with an interface 104 (e.g., opening; surface) that is configured to support tools on and/or vertically above the work platform 18. The base skid 12 and the work platform 18 may be moved onto the installation frame 102 as separate modules, and then may be coupled (e.g., fastened, such as via bolts) to one another.
As shown in FIG. 18, the pair of side towers 14 and the top link 16 are positioned on the base skid 12. In particular, the pair of side towers 14 are positioned on the base skid 12 such that one side tower is on either side of the jacking table 32 of the jacking table assembly 30 relative to the lateral axis 38. The pair of side towers 14 and the top link may be coupled (e.g., fastened, such as via bolts) to one another, and the pair of side towers 14 and the base skid 12 may also be coupled (e.g., fastened, such as via bolts) to one another. At least some other components of the HWU 10 may be added at this stage of installation. For example, certain railings (e.g., the tool crane 62 and/or the railings about some of the work platform 18) may be added at this stage of installation. As shown, at least some components of the HWU 10 may be separate modules that are added one by one to form the structure of the HWU 10.
As shown in FIG. 19, a partially assembled HWU 10 is supported on the installation frame 102 and is moved along the rails 100 in a first direction 106 (e.g., from the edge of the drill floor to the opening above the rotary table). For example, the installation frame 102 may be driven (e.g., to slide) along the rails 100 in the first direction 106 and may carry the partially assembled HWU 10. In some embodiments, the partially assembled HWU 10 may include the base skid 12, the pair of side towers 14, the top link 16, the work platform 18, and the jacking table assembly 30. However, it should be appreciated that the partially assembled HWU 10 may include additional components or fewer components. Further, it should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, a fully assembled HWU 10 (e.g., with all platforms, the access stairs 24, and the slide 26 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) may be supported on the installation frame 102 and moved along the rails 100. The installation frame 102 may be driven along the rails 100 via any suitable techniques, such as motor-driven wheels on the installation frame 102 and/or the rails 100.
As shown in FIG. 20, the partially assembled HWU 10 may be rotated relative to the rails 100 and/or relative to the drilling rig 50. For example, the partially assembled HWU 10 may be rotated approximately 90 degrees about the vertical axis 40. Further, the partially assembled HWU 10 may be lifted off of the installation frame 102 (e.g., via any suitable crane and/or cable, which may couple to and lift the partially assembled HWU 10). The rotation and the lift of the partially assembled HWU 10 may be simultaneous or sequential operations. For example, the partially assembled HWU 10 may be rotated while lifted off of the installation frame 102. However, alternative techniques are envisioned. For example, the partially assembled HWU 10 may be rotated via rotation of a rotatable portion of the installation frame 102, and then the partially assembled HWU 10 may be lifted off of the installation frame 102.
In any case, while the partially assembled HWU 10 is lifted off of the installation frame 102, the installation frame 102 may be driven (e.g., to slide) along the rails 100 in a second direction 108 (e.g., opposite the first direction 106 shown in FIG. 18) until the installation frame 102 is no longer under the partially assembled HWU 10 relative to the vertical axis 40. Once the installation frame 102 is no longer under the partially assembled HWU 10 relative to the vertical axis 40, the partially assembled HWU 10 may be lowered onto the drill floor of the drilling rig 50 (or other suitable support structure or surface of the drilling rig 50). The installation frame 102 may be removed from the rails 100 to enable use of the rails 100 for other purposes, such as to slide the pipe tray 28 between the HWU 10 and another location with built-in sling access to enable pipes to be added and/or lifted off of the pipe tray 28 or otherwise handled in an appropriate manner, as shown and described with reference to FIG. 14.
As shown in FIG. 21, once the partially assembled HWU 10 is lowered into its installed position on the drilling rig 50, additional components may be added one by one as separate modules to the HWU 10. For example, the additional components may include all platforms, the access stairs 24, and the slide 26. The rails 100 may be removed or left in place for other purposes, including movement of the pipe tray 28 of FIG. 14 and/or disassembly of the HWU 10, for example.
Further, as shown in FIG. 20, the HWU 10 may include a controller 110 (e.g., electronic controller) with a processor 112 and a memory device 114. The controller 1110 may be a dedicated controller for the HWU 10 and/or the controller 110 may control other components of the drilling rig 50. The processor 112 may include one or more processors configured to execute software, such as software for processing signals and/or controlling the components of the HWU 10. The memory device 114 disclosed herein may include one or more memory devices (e.g., a volatile memory, such as random access memory [RAM], and/or a nonvolatile memory, such as read-only memory [ROM]) that may store a variety of information and may be used for various purposes. For example, the memory device 114 may store processor-executable instructions (e.g., firmware or software) for the processor 112 to execute, such as instructions for processing signals and/or controlling the components of the HWU 10. It should be appreciated that the controller 110 may include various other components, such as a communication device that is capable of communicating data or other information (e.g., a current configuration or operational step of the HWU 10) to various other devices (e.g., a remote computing system or display screen of the drilling rig 50) and/or output devices (e.g., display screen and/or speakers) that output alarms, for example.
The controller 110 may carry out some of all of the operational steps of the HWU 10 in a fully automated manner (e.g., instruct steps without input from a human operator) and/or a semi-automated manner (e.g., instruct steps in response to input from the human operator). In some embodiments, the controller 110 may control components of the HWU 10 to carry out the trip out operations shown in FIGS. 3-14 (and similarly, the trip in operations). For example, in response to input from the human operator to initiate the trip out operations, the controller 110 may instruct the slip 52 to engage the tubular 54, then instruct the additional slip 76 to release the tubular 54, and then instruct the adjustable legs 34 to extend to lift the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40. The controller 110 may control a flow of hydraulic fluid to adjust the adjustable legs 34 (e.g., to extend and to retract the adjustable legs 34).
After reaching the end position shown in FIG. 6, the controller 110 may instruct the jacking table assembly 30 to return to the initial position shown in FIG. 7. In particular, after reaching the end position shown in FIG. 6, the controller 110 may instruct the additional slip 76 to engage the tubular 54, then instruct the slip 52 to release the tubular 54, and then instruct the adjustable legs 34 to retract to lower the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40.
After reaching the initial position shown in FIG. 7, the controller 110 may instruct the jacking table assembly 30 to again move to the intermediate position shown in FIG. 8. In particular, after reaching the initial position shown in FIG. 7, the controller 110 may instruct the slip 52 to engage the tubular 54, then instruct the additional slip 76 to release the tubular 54, and then instruct the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 to extend to raise the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 and the tubular 54 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40.
Then, after reaching the intermediate position shown in FIG. 8, the controller 110 may instruct the jacking table assembly 30 to return to the initial position shown in FIG. 9. In particular, after reaching the intermediate position shown in FIG. 8, the controller 110 may instruct the slip 52 to release the tubular 54, then instruct the additional slip 76 to engage the tubular 54, and then instruct the adjustable legs 34 of the jacking table assembly 30 to retract to lower the jacking table 32, as well as the slip 52 coupled thereto, along the vertical axis 40.
The controller 110 may instruct multiple jacking steps (e.g., of variable capacity) in this manner until the joint 80 between the pipe 82 of the tubular 54 and the adjacent pipe 84 of the tubular 54 is appropriately positioned relative to the iron roughneck 60, as shown in FIG. 9. In some embodiments, the multiple jacking steps shown in FIGS. 3-9 may be sufficient for the pipe 82; however, additional or fewer jacking steps may be utilized depending on characteristics of the HWU 10 and/or the pipe 82 (e.g., respective jacking capacities of the cylinders of the adjustable legs 34 and/or the length of the pipe 82). Then, the controller 110 may instruct the tool crane 62 and/or related components (e.g., the pulley system) to move to position the iron roughneck 60 proximate to the tubular 54. Then, the controller 110 may instruct the iron roughneck 60 to grip and apply torque to separate the pipe 82 of the tubular 54 and the adjacent pipe 84 of the tubular 54. Then, the controller 110 may instruct the crane to move the pipe 82 to the pipe tray 28 or otherwise provide an output to a separate controller that controls operation of the crane to move the pipe 82 to the pipe tray 28.
Similarly, in some embodiments, the controller 110 may control components of the HWU 10 to carry out the milling operations shown in FIG. 15, as well as any of the other operations disclosed herein. For example, the controller 110 may control the adjustable legs 34 to move the jacking table 32 and the bushing 92 to engage the power swivel 96. Further, in some embodiments, the controller 110 may control components of the HWU 10 to facilitate the installation of the HWU 10 on the drilling rig 50. For example, the controller 110 may control the motor-driven wheels or other drive component to slide the installation frame 102 along the rails 100 to position the HWU 10 at a target location on the drilling rig 50, such as over the rotary table of the drilling rig 50.
It should be appreciated that the HWU 10 may have any of a variety of compact, modular forms that provide the various advantages described herein. For example, FIG. 22 illustrates an embodiment of an HWU 120 that includes various components, such as a base skid 122, a pair of side towers 124, a top link 126, a work platform 128 (e.g., work deck; to support tools, such as an iron roughneck), access stairs 134, and a ramp 136. As shown, the top link 26 may be a relative tall ginpole for use outside of a drilling derrick (e.g., on an open deck). Additionally, the HWU 120 may include or be used in conjunction with a pipe tray 138. As shown, the base skid 122 supports a jacking table assembly 140 with a jacking table 142 and adjustable legs 144 (e.g., multistep or telescopic cylinders, such as three step cylinders or three telescopic cylinders). Further, the HWU 120 may include a tool crane 146. In some embodiments, a controller, such as the controller 110 of FIG. 20, may be utilized to control operational steps carried out with the HWU 120.
As shown, the top link 126 may be positioned vertically above the pair of side towers 124 and/or laterally between the pair of side towers 124. The top link 126 may support a wheel 152 that is configured to engage a cable (not show for image clarity) that is extended and retracted via a winch 154, which may be located on the base skid 122. The wheel 152, the winch 154, and the cable may form a pulley system for the HWU 120. For example, the top link 126 and the pulley system may be used to support a tubular during tripping operations, lift pipes after separation from the tubular, move the pipes to and from the pipe tray 138, and/or lift a power swivel to couple to the tubular during milling operations. It should be appreciated that the top link 126 and the pulley system may be implemented with the HWU 10 shown in FIGS. 1-21 to thereby carry out such operations (e.g., provide functionality of any crane, cable, and/or pulley system, as described herein). When the top link 126 and the pulley system are implemented as part of the HWU 10, 120, the controller 110 may control such operations in a coordinated manner (e.g., in coordination with movement of the jacking table assembly 30, 140; the tool crane 62, 146; and/or tools, such as the iron roughneck 60 and/or the power swivel 96).
Language of degree used herein, such as the terms “approximately,” “about,” “generally,” and “substantially” as used herein represent a value, amount, or characteristic close to the stated value, amount, or characteristic that still performs a desired function or achieves a desired result. For example, the terms “approximately,” “about,” “generally,” and “substantially” may refer to an amount that is within less than 10 percent of, within less than 5 percent of, within less than 1 percent of, within less than 0.1 percent of, and/or within less than 0.01 percent of the stated amount. As another example, in certain embodiments, the terms “generally parallel” and “substantially parallel” or “generally perpendicular” and “substantially perpendicular” refer to a value, amount, or characteristic that departs from exactly parallel or perpendicular, respectively, by less than or equal to 15 degrees, 10 degrees, 5 degrees, 3 degrees, 1 degree, or 0.1 degree.
Although a few embodiments of the disclosure have been described in detail above, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible without materially departing from the teachings of this disclosure. Accordingly, such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this disclosure as defined in the claims. It is also contemplated that various combinations or sub-combinations of the specific features and aspects of the embodiments described may be made and still fall within the scope of the disclosure. It should be understood that various features and aspects of the disclosed embodiments can be combined with, or substituted for, one another in order to form varying modes of the embodiments of the disclosure. Thus, it is intended that the scope of the disclosure herein should not be limited by the particular embodiments described above. For example, features described with respect to FIGS. 1-21 may be combined in any suitable manner.
The techniques presented and claimed herein are referenced and applied to material objects and concrete examples of a practical nature that demonstrably improve the present technical field and, as such, are not abstract, intangible or purely theoretical. Further, if any claims appended to the end of this specification contain one or more elements designated as “means for (perform)ing (a function) . . . ” or “step for (perform)ing (a function) . . . ”, it is intended that such elements are to be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f). However, for any claims containing elements designated in any other manner, it is intended that such elements are not to be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f).
Patent Application
20240384610
