This invention is directed to pipe loops that are installed in wellbores.
A pipe loop may be installed in a wellbore that is drilled into the earth. It is often necessary to add weight to the pipe loop in order to sink the pipe loop in the wellbore. The weight may be provided by one or more metal sinker bars that are connected to the pipe loop. Such sinker bars may comprise rebars that are taped to the pipe loop. Alternatively, a cut piece of pipe may be taped to the pipe loop to serve as a sleeve for inserting a sinker bar. The sinker bar can be removed from the sleeve and raised from the wellbore by the use of a tether when the pipe loop has been installed.
The invention provides a unitary pipe loop component for use with a sinker bar and a pair of pipes in a wellbore. The unitary pipe loop component includes a return bend pipe fitting with a fluid flow passage configured to extend between the pipes. The unitary pipe loop component further includes a sleeve having a passage with open opposite ends to receive the sinker bar through the sleeve.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the unitary pipe loop component is a one-piece molded plastic part configured for connection to the pair of pipes solely at the lower end surfaces of the pipes. The sleeve in the preferred embodiment has an inner surface with an undulating contour, and further has inclined upper and lower end surfaces.
The preferred embodiment of the invention further includes a weight suspension structure which is connected to the sleeve and the pipe fitting as another distinct portion of the one-piece molded plastic part. This structure has a knockout portion that provides an eyelet for insertion of a hook, tether, or the like for suspension of a weight from the pipe loop component. The eyelet may alternatively receive an anchor for the pipe loop component.
The apparatus shown in
Distinct portions of the pipe loop component 10 are configured as distinct elements of the invention. For example, a first portion of the component 10 is configured as a return bend pipe fitting 30. A second portion of the component 10 is configured as a sleeve 32 for receiving the sinker bar 16. A third portion is configured as a weight suspension structure 34.
This example of the unitary pipe loop component 10 is a one-piece molded plastic part. The plastic material in this embodiment is polyethylene. By “unitary” it is meant that the component 10 includes the distinct portions 30, 32 and 34 as interconnected parts of a single coherent structure which is configured for connection to the pipes 12 and 14, as shown in
As best shown in
The sleeve 32 is located at the front of the component 10 vertically between the upper and lower ends 44 and 50 of the pipe fitting 30. A vertically elongated passage 51 extends through the sleeve 32. This passage 51 is separate from the fluid flow passage 35 in the pipe fitting 30, and is configured to receive the sinker bar 16, as shown in FIG. 1. An edge surface 52 at the upper end of the sleeve 32 defines the open upper end 53 of the passage 51. Another edge surface 54 at the lower end of the sleeve 32 similarly defines the open lower end 55 of the passage 51. Each of these edge surfaces 52 and 54 has a contour that is inclined from a horizontal plane. More specifically, the upper edge surface 52, which faces upward, has a horizontal shoulder portion 58 but slopes downward from the plane 59 of the shoulder portion 58, as shown in FIG. 3. The lower edge surface 54, which faces downward, slopes upward from a horizontal plane 61, also as shown in FIG. 3.
A generally cylindrical inner surface 64 of the sleeve 32 is centered on a vertical axis 65, as shown in
The weight suspension structure 34 projects downward from the lower end 50 of the pipe fitting 30, and has a lower end 74 that defines the lower end of the component 10. As shown in
As further shown in
The sinker bar 16 is a known device, and is shown separately in FIG. 9. An upper section 100 of the sinker bar 16 provides most of the weight load noted above with reference to
Before the parts of
Certain structural features of the sleeve 32 are configured to assist installation of the pipe loop 18 in the wellbore 19. For example, the inclined contours of the upper and lower edge surfaces 52 and 54 help the component 10 slide upward and downward, respectively, past clumps of earth or other obstructions in the wellbore 19. Additionally, the diameter D of the central region 68 of the passage 51 is preferably equal to the diameter of the lower section 102 of the sinker bar 16. This enables the sinker bar 16 to be fitted firmly within the passage 51. The peripheral regions 70 of the passage 51 provide clearance for earthen debris that might otherwise block or inhibit movement of the sinker bar 16 into and out of the passage 51.
The weight suspension structure 34 also is configured to assist installation of the pipe loop 18 in the wellbore 19. The open bore 84 (
The weight suspension structure 34 may alternatively function as an anchor holder. As shown in
This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable a person skilled in the art to make and use the invention. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal language of the claims.
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5533356 | DeMasters | Jul 1996 | A |
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20040238183 A1 | Dec 2004 | US |