Treatment Ported Sub and Method of Use
A ported sub integrates a seat for an object to land on to allow pressure buildup. A sleeve shifts with the ball and the seat to open ports that are screened. The openings feature hardened inserts to control wear from high velocity fluid. The interval is treated through such openings with treatment fluid that is relatively free of solids. The formation is produced through the same screened inserts that were used for treating. The sleeve can be releasably retained in the ports open position and can optionally be closed with well intervention such as with a shifting tool. The object can pass through the seat after sleeve shifting by disintegration or by using a segmented seat that opens enough to allow the object to pass. An array can be spaced throughout the zone for treating or fracturing and the sleeves shifted bottom up using different or same sized balls.
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The field of the invention is ported subs and more particularly subs that can be actuated to open ports without intervention and releasably retain a cover sleeve with the ports open while further allowing opening of a passage therethrough without intervention.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONTypically for a multi-zone completion the casing has an array of valves for access to each zone. These valves are typically run in closed so that tubing pressure can be built up to set tools such as external packers. The valves have been single purpose in the past so that for treatment a sliding sleeve valve is shifted to open an unobstructed port through which treatment of the formation can take place. One such treatment is fracturing but others such as acidizing or stimulation can also take place through the unobstructed port. When the treatment is completed the treatment valve is closed and a production valve that has a screened opening is moved to an open position. Sometimes these two valves are integrated into a single sliding sleeve that is shifted with a shifting tool or some other well intervention tool into the treatment and then the production positions. The screened opening helps to retain solids produced from the formation from entering the production string.
The following references present a good background of the current state of the art: U.S. Pat. No. 8,342,245; U.S. Pat. No. 8,127,847; US2008/0296019; US 2009/0071655; US2009/0044944; U.S. Pat. No. 8,291,982 and US2009/0056934. These designs either require well intervention or contemplate sleeve movement to open a single port. In a filing on Sep. 3, 2015, a multi-sleeve design was described in U.S. Ser. No. 14/844,897. This design is shown in
In situations where the treatment is to be with fluids without solids content the
A ported sub integrates a seat for an object to land on to allow pressure buildup. A sleeve shifts with the ball and the seat to open ports that are screened. The openings feature hardened inserts to control wear from high velocity fluid. The interval is treated through such openings with treatment fluid that is relatively free of solids. The formation is produced through the same screened inserts that were used for treating. The sleeve can be releasably retained in the ports open position and can optionally be closed with well intervention such as with a shifting tool. The object can pass through the seat after sleeve shifting by disintegration or by using a segmented seat that opens enough to allow the object to pass. An array can be spaced throughout the zone for treating or fracturing and the sleeves shifted bottom up using different or same sized balls.
Referring to
At each module, one of which is shown in
The seats 42 can also be made of a disintegrating material so that the drift diameter of the sleeve 34 is regained after shifting to allow for passage of tools therethrough for other treatment or drilling operations further downhole. If none of the sleeves 34 need to be closed after they are shifted then the process of opening all the ports 36 can be accomplished without intervention of well tools in the borehole.
The above description is illustrative of the preferred embodiment and many modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the invention whose scope is to be determined from the literal and equivalent scope of the claims below:
Claims
1. A treatment assembly for borehole access to a surrounding formation, comprising:
- at least one module comprising a housing having a passage therethrough and a movable sleeve to selectively open at least one wall opening without borehole intervention;
- said wall opening further comprising a screen.
2. The assembly of claim 1, wherein:
- said sleeve comprising a seat in said passage to accept an object thereon for selectively obstructing said passage for pressure buildup to shift said sleeve to selectively uncover said port.
3. The assembly of claim 2, wherein:
- said object disintegrates to reopen said passage after said sleeve is shifted.
4. The assembly of claim 2, wherein:
- said seat enlarges upon shifting said sleeve to allow said object to pass through said seat to reopen said passage.
5. The assembly of claim 1, wherein:
- said sleeve is releasably secured after moving.
6. The assembly of claim 1, wherein:
- said opening further comprises a screen.
7. The assembly of claim 1, wherein:
- said opening comprises an hardened or carbide insert to resist erosion from flow therethrough.
8. The assembly of claim 1, wherein:
- said at least one module comprises a plurality of modules disposed in an interval of the formation wherein said at least one opening in each said module comprises a plurality of openings wherein said plurality of openings in said modules are the same or different in size or in number.
9. The assembly of claim 8, wherein:
- said openings a screened for production from the formation after treatment therethrough into the formation.
10. The assembly of claim 8, wherein:
- said modules balance flow from the formation passing through said openings in said modules.
11. The assembly of claim 5, wherein:
- said sleeve comprises a snap ring that enters a groove in said housing when moved to open said opening;
- said sleeve further comprising a profile for engagement of a shifting tool to return said sleeve to a position with said port closed after said snap ring enters said groove.
12. A treatment method for a producing zone accessible through a borehole, comprising;
- providing a plurality of modules in a tubular string adjacent the producing zone;
- applying pressure in said string for sequentially moving a sleeve in said plurality of modules to open wall ports in said modules without borehole intervention;
- sequentially pumping treatment fluid into said producing zone through said wall ports after each said sleeve is moved.
13. The method of claim 12, comprising:
- providing a screen in said wall ports.
14. The method of claim 12, comprising:
- balancing production flow from the producing zone through said wall ports.
15. The method of claim 12, comprising:
- releasably retaining said sleeves away from said wall ports after initial movement away from said wall ports.
16. The method of claim 15, comprising:
- moving at least one said sleeve back to close said wall ports in at least one module with a shifting tool.
17. The method of claim 12, comprising:
- landing an object on a seat associated with said plurality of sleeves to close a passage therethrough;
- applying pressure to said object on said seat to move said sleeve to open said wall ports.
18. The method of claim 17, comprising:
- disintegrating the object or passing the object through said seat after movement of said sleeve to open said wall ports.
19. The method of claim 12, comprising:
- treating the producing zone and subsequently producing the producing zone through the same wall ports.
20. The method of claim 19, comprising:
- constructing said wall ports with hardened or carbide inserts with a screen in a flowpath therethrough.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 24, 2016
Publication Date: Sep 28, 2017
Applicant: BAKER HUGHES INCORPORATED (Houston, TX)
Inventor: Colin P. Andrew (Cypress, TX)
Application Number: 15/080,152