Method and apparatus for providing pressure for well treatment operations
An apparatus for providing pressure for a well fracturing operation is disclosed. The apparatus includes one or more docking areas for docking one or more pumping units to a pressure manifold wherein the one or more docking areas are operable to provide access between one or more pumping units, and a structure operable to enclose the one or more docking areas and pumping units. An apparatus for providing pressure for a well fracturing operation is disclosed. The apparatus includes one or more pumping units, a central fueling system connected to the one or more pumping units, a central power system connected to the one or more pumping units, a central lubrication system connected to the one or more pumping units, and a central cooling system connected to the one or more pumping units.
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This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 11/291,496 filed Dec. 1, 2005.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates generally to well operations, and more particularly to methods and apparatuses for manufacturing well treatment fluid so as to conserve labor, infrastructure, and environmental impact.
BACKGROUNDIn the production of oil and gas in the field, it is often required to stimulate and treat several well locations within a designated amount of time. Stimulation and treatment processes often involve mobile equipment that is set up and put in place at a pad and then moved by truck from pad to pad within short time periods. Only during non-stimulation activities, such as water flood operations, can some operations occur simultaneously.
This movement of equipment and personnel can involve complex logistics. The servicing and stimulation of wells can require a series of coordinated operations that begin with the supply by truck of equipment, supplies, fuel, and chemicals to the wellhead. The equipment is then set up and made ready with proppant and chemicals. After completion of the well services, equipment must be broken down and made ready for transport to the next pad for service. Often, the next pad will be less than 500 feet away from the previously treated pad. In addition, due to the limited storage capacity of the moving equipment for chemicals and equipment, additional trucks are often required to resupply and reequip an existing operation. This movement of equipment and supplies has environmental impacts, and the exposure of mobile equipment to adverse weather conditions can jeopardize well treatment operations and worker safety.
SUMMARYIn general, an apparatus for providing pressure for a well fracturing operation is disclosed. The apparatus can include one or more docking areas for docking one or more pumping units to a pressure manifold wherein the one or more docking areas are operable to provide access between one or more pumping units, and a structure operable to enclose the one or more docking areas and pumping units. The apparatus can also include a crane system, a central lubrication system connected to the one or more pumping units for providing lubrication fluid to the one or more pumping units, and a central power system connected to the one or more pumping units for starting the one or more pumping units. The central power system can include a hydraulic power system. The apparatus can include a central cooling system connected to the one or more pumping units for cooling the one or more pumping units. The central cooling system can include a cooling tower. The at least one of the one or more docking areas can extend outside of the structure. The apparatus can include a ventilation system. The apparatus can include a central fueling system connected to the one or more pumping units for supplying fuel to the one or more pumping units. The central fueling system supplies one or more fuels from the group consisting of: diesel, gasoline, natural gas, or electricity. The structure can include one or more structures from the group consisting of a supported fabric structure, a collapsible structure, a prefabricated structure, a retractable structure, a composite structure, a temporary structure, a prefabricated wall and roof structure, a deployable structure, a modular structure, a preformed structure, a mobile accommodation structure, and combinations thereof. The one or more docking areas can include walkways. The one or more docking areas can include one or more lubrication connections, coolant connections, fuel connections, power connections, and pressure connections. The one or more pumping units can include heaters.
An apparatus for providing pressure for a well fracturing operation is disclosed. The apparatus can include one or more pumping units, a central fueling system connected to the one or more pumping units, a central power system connected to the one or more pumping units, a central lubrication system connected to the one or more pumping units, and a central cooling system connected to the one or more pumping units. The central power system can include a hydraulic power system. The central cooling system can include a cooling tower. The apparatus can include a ventilation system. The central fueling system can supply one or more fuels from the group consisting of: diesel, gasoline, natural gas, or electricity.
A method for operating one or more pumping units for a well fracturing operation from a central land based location is disclosed. The method includes providing fuel to the one or more pumping units from the central location, providing lubrication to the one or more pumping units from the central location, providing power to the one or more pumping units from the central location, and providing coolant to the one or more pumping units from the central location. The power can be provided from a hydraulic power system. The coolant can be provided from a cooling tower. The method can include providing ventilation to the one or more pumping units. The fuel can include of one or more fuels from the group consisting of: diesel, gasoline, natural gas, or electricity. The method can also include enclosing the one or more pumping units in a structure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSA more complete understanding of the present disclosure and advantages thereof may be acquired by referring to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The drawings illustrate only exemplary embodiments and are not intended to be limiting against the invention.
The details of the methods and apparatuses according to the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
In reference to
In one embodiment of the centralized power unit 103, the unit provides electrical power to all of the subunits within the well operations factory 100 via electrical connections. The centralized power unit 103 can be powered by liquid fuel, natural gas, or other equivalent fuel and may optionally be a cogeneration power unit. The unit may comprise a single trailer with subunits, each subunit with the ability to operate independently. The unit may also be operable to extend power to one or more outlying wellheads.
In one embodiment, the proppant storage system 106 is connected to the blending unit 105 and includes automatic valves and a set of tanks that contain proppant. Each tank can be monitored for level, material weight, and the rate at which proppant is being consumed. This information can be transmitted to a controller or control area. Each tank is capable of being filled pneumatically and can be emptied through a calibrated discharge chute by gravity. Gravity can be the substantial means of delivering proppant from the proppant tank. The tanks may also be agitated in the event of clogging or unbalanced flow. The proppant tanks can contain a controlled, calibrated orifice. Each tank's level, material weight, and calibrated orifice can be used to monitor and control the amount of desired proppant delivered to the blending unit. For instance, each tank's orifice can be adjusted to release proppant at faster or slower rates depending upon the needs of the formation and to adjust for the flow rates measured by the change in weight of the tank. Each proppant tank can contain its own air ventilation and filtering. In reference to
In one embodiment, the chemical storage system 112 is connected to the blending unit and can include tanks for breakers, gel additives, crosslinkers, and liquid gel concentrate. The tanks can have level control systems such as a wireless hydrostatic pressure system and may be insulated and heated. Pressurized tanks may be used to provide positive pressure displacement to move chemicals, and some tanks may be agitated and circulated. The chemical storage system can continuously meter chemicals through the use of additive pumps which are able to meter chemical solutions to the blending unit 105 at specified rates as determined by the required final concentrations and the pump rates of the main treatment fluid from the blending unit. The chemical storage tanks can include weight sensors that can continuously monitor the weight of the tanks and determine the quantity of chemicals used by mass or weight in real-time, as the chemicals are being used to manufacture well treatment fluid. Chemical storage tanks can be pressurized using compressed air or nitrogen. They can also be pressurized using variable speed pumps using positive displacement to drive fluid flow. The quantities and rates of chemicals added to the main fluid stream are controlled by valve-metering control systems. The valve-metering can be magnetic mass or volumetric mass meters. In addition, chemical additives could be added to the main treatment fluid via aspiration (Venturi Effect). The rates that the chemical additives are aspirated into the main fluid stream can be controlled via adjustable, calibrated apertures located between the chemical storage tank and the main fluid stream. In the case of fracturing operations, the main fluid stream may be either the main fracture fluid being pumped or may be a slip stream off of a main fracture fluid stream. In one embodiment, the components of the chemical storage system are modularized allowing pumps, tanks, or blenders to be added or removed independently.
In reference to
In one embodiment, the blending unit does not comprise a pre-blending unit. Instead, the fracturing operations factory contains a separate pre-gel blending unit. The pre-gel blending unit is fed from a water supply and dry powder (guar) can be metered from a storage tank into the preblender's fluid stream where it is mixed with water and blended and can be subsequently transferred to the blending unit. The pre-gel blending unit can be modular, can also be enclosed in the factory, and can be connected to the central control system.
In one embodiment, the means for simultaneously flowing treatment fluid is a central manifold 107. The central manifold 107 is connected to the pumping grid 111 and is operable to flow stimulation fluid, for example, to multiple wells at different pads simultaneously. The stimulation fluid can comprise proppant, gelling agents, friction reducers, reactive fluid such as hydrochloric acid, and can be aqueous or hydrocarbon based. The manifold 107 is operable to treat simultaneously two separate wells, for example, as shown in
In reference to
In reference to
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In one embodiment, of the pumping grid system 111, pumping modules can be hauled to the fracturing operation factory site by truck, and pinned or bolted or otherwise located together on the ground. Pumping equipment grid modules can be added or taken away to accommodate the number of pumping units to be used on site. The pressure manifold will interface with the pumping equipment grid modules and support a crane. The grid system can be configured with various piping or electrical connections that each pumping unit may require for power, fuel, cooling, and lubrication. The grid system would incorporate space to allow access to the pumping units' main components for easy maintenance. In reference to
In reference to
In some embodiments, the operations of the chemical storage system, proppant storage system, blending unit, pumping grid, power unit, and manifolds are controlled, coordinated, and monitored by a central control system. The central control system can be an electronic computer system capable of receiving analog or digital signals from sensors and capable of driving digital, analog, or other variety of controls of the various components in the fracturing operations factory. The control system can be located within the factory enclosure, if any, or it can be located at a remote location. The central control system may use all of the sensor data from all units and the drive signals from their individual subcontrollers to determine subsystem trajectories. For example, control over the manufacture, pumping, gelling, blending, and resin coating of proppant by the control system can be driven by desired product properties such as density, rate, viscosity, etc. Control can also be driven by external factors affecting the subunits such as dynamic or steady-state bottlenecks. Control can be exercised substantially simultaneously with both the determination of a desired product property, or with altering external conditions. For instance, once it is determined that a well treatment fluid with a specific density is desired, a well treatment fluid of the specific density can be manufactured virtually simultaneously by entering the desired density into the control system. The control system will substantially simultaneously cause the delivery of the proppant and chemical components comprising a well treatment fluid with the desired property to the blending unit where it can be immediately pumped to the desired well location. Well treatment fluids of different compositions can also be manufactured substantially simultaneously with one another and substantially simultaneously with the determination of desired product properties through the use and control of multiple blending units each connected to the control unit, proppant storage system, chemical storage system, water source, and power unit. The central control system can include such features as: (1) virtual inertia, whereby the rates of the subsystems (chemical, proppant, power, etc.) are coupled despite differing individual responses; (2) backward capacitance control, whereby the tub level controls cascade backward through the system; (3) volumetric observer, whereby sand rate errors are decoupled and proportional ration control is allowed without steady-state error. The central control system can also be used to monitor equipment health and status. Simultaneously with the manufacture of a well treatment fluid, the control system can report the quantity and rate usage of each component comprising the fluid. For instance, the rate or total amount of proppant, chemicals, water, or electricity consumed for a given well in an operation over any time period can be immediately reported both during and after the operation. This information can be coordinated with cost schedules or billing schedules to immediately compute and report incremental or total costs of operation.
The present invention can be used both for onshore and offshore operations using existing or specialized equipment or a combination of both. Such equipment can be modularized to expedite installation or replacement. The present invention may be enclosed in a permanent, semipermanent, or mobile structure.
As those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, the present invention can be adapted for multiple uses. By way of example only, multiple well sites may be treated, produced, or treated and produced sequentially or simultaneously from a single central location. The invention is capable of considerable additional modification, alteration, and equivalents in form and function, as will occur to those ordinarily skilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure. The depicted and described embodiments of the invention are exemplary only, and are not exhaustive of the scope of the invention. Consequently, the invention is intended to be limited only by the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
Claims
1. An apparatus for providing pressure for a well fracturing operation comprising:
- one or more docking areas for docking one or more pumping units to a pressure manifold wherein the one or more docking areas are operable to provide access between one or more pumping units; and
- a structure operable to enclose the one or more docking areas and pumping units.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a crane system surrounding the one or more docking areas.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a central lubrication system connected to the one or more pumping units.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a central power system connected to the one or more pumping units.
5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the central power system comprises a hydraulic power system.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a central cooling system connected to the one or more pumping units.
7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the central cooling system comprises a cooling tower.
8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein at least one of the one or more docking areas extend outside of the structure.
9. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a ventilation system.
10. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a central fueling system connected to the one or more pumping units for supplying fuel to the one or more pumping units.
11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the central fueling system supplies one or more fuels from the group consisting of: diesel, gasoline, and natural gas.
12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the structure comprises one or more structures from the group consisting of a supported fabric structure, a collapsible structure, a prefabricated structure, a retractable structure, a composite structure, a temporary structure, a prefabricated wall and roof structure, a deployable structure, a modular structure, a preformed structure, a mobile accommodation structure, and combinations thereof.
13. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the one or more docking areas comprise walkways.
14. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the one or more docking areas comprise one or more lubrication connections, coolant connections, fuel connections, power connections, and pressure connections.
15. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the one or more pumping units comprise heaters.
16. An apparatus for providing pressure for a well fracturing operation comprising:
- one or more pumping units connected to a manifold;
- a central fueling system connected to the one or more pumping units;
- a central power system connected to the one or more pumping units;
- a central lubrication system connected to the one or more pumping units; and
- a central cooling system connected to the one or more pumping units.
17. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the central power system comprises a hydraulic power system.
18. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the central cooling system comprises a cooling tower.
19. The apparatus of claim 16 further comprising a ventilation system.
20. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the central fueling system supplies one or more fuels from the group consisting of: diesel, gasoline, natural gas, or electricity.
21. A method for operating one or more pumping units for a well fracturing operation from a land based location comprising:
- providing fuel to the one or more pumping units from a central location;
- providing lubrication to the one or more pumping units from a central location;
- providing power to the one or more pumping units from a central location; and
- providing coolant to the one or more pumping units from a central location.
22. The method of claim 21 wherein the power is provided from a hydraulic power system.
23. The method of claim 21 wherein the coolant is provided from a cooling tower.
24. The method of claim 21 further comprising providing ventilation to the one or more pumping units.
25. The method of claim 21 wherein the fuel comprises of one or more fuels from the group consisting of: diesel, gasoline, natural gas, or electricity.
26. The method of claim 21 further comprising enclosing the one or more pumping units in a structure.
27. An apparatus for providing well treatment fluid to a production site comprising:
- a well treatment operations factory comprising an auxiliary pumping system; and
- a pumping grid connected to the auxiliary pumping system; wherein
- the pumping grid is located remotely from the well treatment operations factory.
28. A method for providing well treatment fluid to a production site comprising:
- producing well treatment fluid at a central location;
- pumping the well treatment fluid from the central location to a remote pumping grid; and
- pumping the well treatment fluid from the remote pumping grid to the production site.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 3, 2006
Publication Date: Jun 7, 2007
Applicant: HALLIBURTON ENERGY SERVICES, INC. (DUNCAN, OK)
Inventors: Lonnie Robinson (Duncan, OK), James Curry (Duncan, OK), Leonard Case (Duncan, OK), Lloyd McNeel (Green River, WY)
Application Number: 11/396,918
International Classification: E21B 43/267 (20060101); E21B 43/26 (20060101);