SWELL PACKER SETTING CONFIRMATION
A swellable setting confirmation arrangement comprising: a mandrel; a swellable material supported by the mandrel; one or more sensory configurations at the swellable material and a method for confirming setting of a swellable material and for installing a swellable material having a setting confirmation function.
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Sealing devices are well known in the hydrocarbon recovery industry due to their ubiquitous use pursuant to varied needs throughout the wellbore. There are also many different types of sealing devices, some of which allow for testing immediately after setting by pressuring up on the well system to ensure that the setting procedure was successful. This is clearly beneficial as there is an immediate confirmation of a successful job. This occurs before the operator leaves the job site to insure that the job went well and thus promotes customer satisfaction.
While the above testing opportunity is the case for many kinds of sealing devices it is not so for all devices. Swellable devices cannot be tested because their initial actuation is a much longer-term program. More specifically, swellable materials that are used in the wellbore generally set over a time period of about two weeks. While setting time does vary (due to particular fluid concentration and chemistry and the temperature of the wellbore at the location of the set), it is always over time long enough that it would be decidedly uneconomical to maintain testing equipment at a site to test such a seal after it is expected to be fully set.
Because swellable materials have other beneficial properties and are favored in the art, they are becoming more and more prevalent despite the fact that testing is not realistically plausible.
SUMMARYA swellable setting confirmation arrangement comprising a mandrel; a swellable material supported by the mandrel; one or more sensory configurations at the swellable material.
A method for confirming setting of a swellable material comprising: running a swellable material to a target location in a wellbore; swelling the swellable material for a period of time; measuring strain caused by the swelling of the swellable material with one or more sensory configurations.
A method for installing a swellable material having a setting confirmation function in a wellbore comprising: Installing one or more sensory configurations in a wellbore; installing a swellable material radially adjacent the one or more sensory configurations.
Referring now to the drawings wherein like elements are numbered alike in the several Figures:
The above-described drawback to the use of swellable devices in the downhole environment is overcome through various embodiments and methods as disclosed herein.
Referring to
In other embodiments, the one or more sensory configurations 16 may be placed randomly between the swellable material 14 and mandrel 12 or may be placed in any desired pattern between material 14 and mandrel 12. This includes a pattern that is affected by the use of a network of strain sensors in a net of electrical connection, etc. The pattern may itself be unrelated to any anticipated distribution of strain (in which case the distribution is likely to be uniform but is not required to be) or may be specifically placed with regard to anticipated strain distribution. In either case, the purpose of the one or more sensory configurations 16 is to sense strain placed thereon by the swelling of the swellable material 14.
When a swellable material is set in a wellbore the material 14 will exert pressure against the mandrel 12 and the structure against which it is set. Depending upon a number of factors including but not limited to the degree of swelling attained and the geometric shape of the structure in which the swellable device is being set, the strain experienced at various portions of the swellable material and thus the mandrel may be different. The swellable setting confirmation arrangement 10 provides information to this effect to an operator. As noted above, since the swellable material swells slowly in the wellbore, on the order of two weeks, there is no way to test the set of the swellable while the installation crew and equipment is still on site. This means that if the swellable did not attain a set that enables it to do its job, this will not necessarily be known and presumably, production will suffer. If a well operator knows that something was a miss, remedial action could be taken. Where the arrangement 10 merely shows existence or absence of strain enough information is provided that the operator knows the device must be pulled and a new one put in. Where however, the arrangement 10 also provides a quantification of the strain thereon, a much more resolute picture of the downhole environment can be gleaned. This enables an operator or swellable installation crew to determine more precisely what type, shape, style, etc. of swellable would be best suited to have the desired effect in the particular wellbore. This is possible because with a quantification of strain, the geometry in the wellbore is far better defined since areas of greater strain and areas of lesser strain will indicate washed out areas or out of round areas of the structure downhole in which the device is being set.
In the embodiments discussed above, as the swellable material swells into contact with a structure in which it is being set, the material 14 itself exerts more and more pressure on the mandrel. Because the one or more sensory configurations 16 are located between the material 14 and the mandrel 12, they are compressed there between and hence will register that condition either dichotomously or quantitatively depending upon application.
In another embodiment illustrated in
In yet another embodiment, referring to
In yet another embodiment, referring to
While preferred embodiments have been shown and described, modifications and substitutions may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the present invention has been described by way of illustrations and not limitation
Claims
1. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement comprising:
- a mandrel;
- a swellable material supported by the mandrel;
- one or more sensory configurations at the swellable material.
2. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein the one or more sensory configurations are positioned between the swellable material and the mandrel.
3. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein the one or more sensory configurations are positioned within the swellable material.
4. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein the one or more sensory configurations are positioned between an outside surface of the swellable material.
5. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein the one or more sensory configurations are positioned to contact a structure against which the swellable material is to be set.
6. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein the one or more sensory configurations is one or more optic fibers.
7. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 6 wherein the one or more optic fibers are positioned axially of the mandrel or the swellable material.
8. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 6 wherein the one or more optic fibers are positioned helically about one of the mandrel, the swellable material or within the swellable material.
9. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 8 wherein the helical positioning is spaced apart.
10. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 8 wherein the helical positioning is without spacing between wraps.
11. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein the one or more sensory configurations is one or more hall effect sensors.
12. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein the one or more sensory configurations is one or more momentary switches.
13. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein at least one of the one or more sensory configurations is capable of dichotomous measurement only.
14. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein at least one of the one or more sensory configurations is capable of quantitative measurement.
15. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein the arrangement is runnable in a single run.
16. A swellable setting confirmation arrangement as claimed in claims 1 wherein the swellable material and the one or more sensory configurations are located axially spaced from each other.
17. A method for confirming setting of a swellable material comprising: running a swellable material to a target location in a wellbore; swelling the swellable material for a period of time; measuring strain caused by the swelling of the swellable material with one or more sensory configurations.
18. A method as claimed in claim 17 wherein the measuring is dichotomous.
19. A method as claimed in claim 17 wherein the measuring is quantitative.
20. A method as claimed in claim 17 wherein the method further comprises mapping the measured strain to produce an image of the structure against which the swellable material is being set.
21. A method for installing a swellable material having a setting confirmation function in a wellbore comprising: Installing one or more sensory configurations in a wellbore; Installing a swellable material radially adjacent the one or more sensory configurations.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 23, 2009
Publication Date: Aug 26, 2010
Applicant: Baker Hughes Incorporated (Houston, TX)
Inventors: Alan B. Emerson (Cypress, TX), Keith J. Murphy (Simsbury, CT)
Application Number: 12/390,950
International Classification: E21B 43/00 (20060101);