ROLLING BRIDGE THROUGH TUBING BRIDGE PLUG
A bridge plug assembly having a mandrel and an annular flexible member that is selectively fashioned into a volute that extends radially outward from the mandrel for isolating a portion of a tubular. In an example, a web member is provided that runs between the flexible member and the mandrel, and exits an end of the flexible member. Pulling the web member inverts an end of the flexible member rolling the sidewall of the flexible member into a volute. In another embodiment, upper and lower series of collars circumscribe the mandrel that when pushed towards one another axially squeeze the flexible member therebetween to outwardly bulge the flexible member into contact with a tubular. Continued force applied to the collars causes the flexible member to roll into a volute.
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This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/160,458, filed on Mar. 16, 2009, the full disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
BACKGROUND1. Field of Invention
The invention relates generally to the field of oil and gas production. More specifically, the present invention relates to a system and method for plugging tubing within a borehole.
2. Description of Prior Art
Downhole plugs are used to block flow through a wellbore tubular or downhole bore for isolating a portion of the tubular. Downhole plugs, also referred to as bridge plugs, can include a mandrel having a portion circumscribed by an expandable element. The elements are typically formed from an elastomeric member or coaxially stacked members. Downhole plugs can be selectively set into place by expanding the membrane or collapsing the stacked members to block the annular space between the mandrel and tubular or bore. Plug or packer setting can occur by axially compressing the mandrel or by filling the elastomeric member with a pressurized fluid. The tubulars can be casing or production tubing. Example bridge plugs can be permanently set into a downhole tubular, or removable for later retrieval.
SUMMARY OF INVENTIONDisclosed herein is a bridge plug assembly that can be set to block flow in a tubular, or to block flow in an annulus between two tubulars. In one example, the bridge plug assembly is made up of a mandrel circumscribed by an annular flexible member. The flexible member can have first and second ends and between the first and second ends is a portion where the sidewall of the flexible member has been rolled into an annular volute that projects radially outward into the annular space between the mandrel and the tubular. The bridge plug assembly can include an elongated continuous web member used for rolling the sidewall into a volute. In this example a portion of the web member is disposed between the flexible member and the mandrel. The web member exits the flexible member at the first end of the flexible member and projects into a space outside the flexible member and between the first and second ends of the flexible member. By pulling on the web member in a direction away from the first end the flexible member is turned inside out to form the volute. Optionally included with the embodiment of the bridge plug assembly is a ring like lip formed on the first end of the flexible member. An annular neck portion may be included adjacent the lip that is defined where the thickness of the flexible member is reduced. Additional elongated continuous web members may optionally be included and wherein free ends of the web members opposite the ends along the mandrel can be joined together to form a web harness. Example embodiments exist where the web harness connects to a downhole device. The web member can, in an example embodiment, be substantially planar with first and second planar surfaces, and wherein the first surface faces the mandrel in the portion of the web member that is between the flexible member and the mandrel and wherein the first surface faces away from the mandrel in the outer portion of the web member. Additional example embodiments exist having a cable head attached to an end of the mandrel for attachment to a wireline.
In another example embodiment, included are first and second annular flange members inserted respectively into first and second ends of the flexible member. The flange members can be slidable along the mandrel. In one embodiment, further included is a collar around the mandrel that is made up of planar leaf members that project from a middle section of the collar. The leaf members can pivot from an orientation that is substantially parallel with an axis of the mandrel radially outward from the mandrel. When pivoted outward, the leaf members can form a support for the volute that resists forces directed axial to the mandrel. Example embodiments exist having a plurality of collars on opposing sides of the volute An annular sleeve may be included that slides over the mandrel and selectively contacts the collars and provide a force for outwardly pivoting the leaf members to support the volute. Operation of the sleeve can also produce outward bulging of the sleeve. In an embodiment the flexible member is attached to one of the flange members along a greater axial length than the other flange member.
Also disclosed herein is a method of setting a bridge plug in a wellbore tubular In an example the method includes inserting a bridge plug assembly into a downhole tubular where the bridge plug assembly includes a mandrel and a flexible member circumscribing a portion of the mandrel. In the example method the annular flexible member is converted into a volute having a rolled up portion that fills some of the annular space between the mandrel and the wellbore tubular. The volute can be created by inverting an end of the flexible member. In an example embodiment, the flexible member is inverted by pulling on a web member that loops from within to outside of the flexible member. Optionally, the volute can be formed by axially compressing the flexible member so the flexible member bulges outward to contacts the tubular to generate a fold in the sidewall of the flexible member. Annular flanges can be inserted into opposing first and second ends of the flexible member. In another alternative, the length of contact between one of the flanges and the flexible member can be greater than the length of contact between the other flange and the flexible member. In yet another example embodiment, the thickness of the flexible member can vary along the axis of the flexible member so that when the flexible member is compressed the volute is formed that comprises at least two rolls of the sidewall of the flexible member.
Some of the features and benefits of the present invention having been stated, others will become apparent as the description proceeds when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
While the invention will be described in connection with the preferred embodiments, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the invention to that embodiment. On the contrary, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modifications, and equivalents, as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTIONThe present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings in which embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the illustrated embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. For the convenience in referring to the accompanying figures, directional terms are used for reference and illustration only. For example, the directional terms such as “upper”, “lower”, “above”, “below”, and the like are being used to illustrate a relational location.
It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction, operation, exact materials, or embodiments shown and described, as modifications and equivalents will be apparent to one skilled in the art. In the drawings and specification, there have been disclosed illustrative embodiments of the invention and, although specific terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for the purpose of limitation. Accordingly, the invention is therefore to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.
A web harness 30 is provided having web members 31 shown wrapped around the upper end 24 of the annular member 22. The web members 31 extend generally lengthwise on the inner and outer surfaces of the annular member 22. The web members 31 of
Referring now to
Illustrated in
As shown in the cross sectional embodiment of
Referring now to
The embodiment of the bridge plug assembly 34 depicted in
An annularly shaped flexible member 38 circumscribes the mandrel 36 in an axial space between the upper series of collars 35 and the lower series of collars 37. Flange members 48 are illustrated set within opposing ends of the flexible member 38. The flange members 48 each include a tubular portion shown inserted within the openings on each end of the flexible member 38. A shoulder projects radially outward from an end of the tubular portion. The flange members 48 are disposed so that the shoulder is set against the ends of the flexible member 38. The side of each shoulder opposite from the elastic member 38 contacts with the collar 44 closest to the flexible member 38.
The assembly 38 further includes a cylindrically shaped bottom end 50 shown formed on an end of the mandrel 36 and having a diameter greater than the diameters of the collars 44. The bottom end 50 is provided on the end of the lower series of collars 37 opposite where the series of collars 37 contact one of the flange members 48. A sliding sleeve 46 is provided on the end of the assembly 38 opposite the bottom end 50. The sleeve 46 is annularly shaped and receives the upper end of the mandrel 36 within its annulus.
A side perspective view of the upper series of collars 35 and flexible member 38 is provided in
A deployed configuration of the assembly 34 is provided in a perspective view in
With reference now to
In one example of use, the flexible member 38 is strategically mounted within the assembly 34 so that during deployment the flexible member 38 takes on the shape of the volute 38A. For example, with reference to
In
The present invention described herein, therefore, is well adapted to carry out the objects and attain the ends and advantages mentioned, as well as others inherent therein. While a presently preferred embodiment of the invention has been given for purposes of disclosure, numerous changes exist in the details of procedures for accomplishing the desired results. These and other similar modifications will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art, and are intended to be encompassed within the spirit of the present invention disclosed herein and the scope of the appended claims. In an example embodiment, disclosed is a bridge plug assembly for use in a tubular comprising, a mandrel, an annular flexible member circumscribing a portion of the mandrel and having first and second ends, an elongated continuous web member having a portion disposed between the flexible member and the mandrel that exits the flexible member at the first end of the flexible member, and an outer portion disposed in a space past an outer diameter of the flexible member and between the first and second ends of the flexible member, so that when the bridge plug assembly is inserted within a tubular and the outer portion is pulled in a direction away from the first end, the flexible member is inverted at the first end to form a volute that projects radially outward into the annular space between the mandrel and the tubular.
Claims
1. A bridge plug assembly for use in a tubular comprising;
- a mandrel; and
- an annular flexible member circumscribing a portion of the mandrel, having first and second ends and that a portion that is fashionable into a volute that projects radially outward into the annular space between the mandrel and the tubular.
2. The bridge plug of claim 1, further comprising an elongated continuous web member having a portion disposed between the flexible member and the mandrel that exits the flexible member at the first end of the flexible member, and an outer portion disposed in a space past an outer diameter of the flexible member and between the first and second ends of the flexible member, so that when the bridge plug assembly is inserted within a tubular and the outer portion is pulled in a direction away from the first end, the flexible member is inverted at the first end to form a volute
3. The bridge plug of claim 2, wherein a ring like lip is formed on the first end of the flexible member and adjacent the lip the thickness of the flexible member reduces to define an annular neck portion.
4. The bridge plug of claim 2, further comprising additional elongated continuous web members, wherein the web members each have ends coupled to the mandrel and free ends that are distal the ends attached to the mandrel that are joined together to form a web harness.
5. The bridge plug of claim 4, wherein the web harness is selectively attachable to a downhole device.
6. The bridge plug of claim 2, wherein the web member is substantially planar with first and second planar surfaces, and wherein the first surface faces the mandrel in the portion of the web member that is between the flexible member and the mandrel and wherein the first surface faces away from the mandrel in the outer portion of the web member.
7. The bridge plug of claim 1, further comprising a cable head attached to an end of the mandrel for attachment to a wireline.
8. The bridge plug of claim 1, further comprising a first annular flange member coaxially coupled within the first end of the flexible member that is slidable along the mandrel and a second annular flange member coaxially coupled within the second end of the flexible member.
9. The bridge plug of claim 8, further comprising a collar coaxially disposed around the mandrel and comprising planar leaf members projecting from a mid portion of the collar and that are selectively oriented substantially parallel with an axis of the mandrel and selectively pivotable radially outward from the mandrel.
10. The bridge plug of claim 9, wherein when the leaf members are pivoted radially outward a support is formed for the volute to resist directions axial to the mandrel.
11. The bridge plug of claim 9, further comprising a plurality of collars on a side of the volute to form an upper series of collars and another plurality of collars on a side of the volute opposite the upper series of collars to define a lower series of collars.
12. The bridge plug of claim 11, further comprising an annular sleeve that is slideable over the mandrel and having an end in selective contact with the upper series of collars, so that when the sleeve is pushed downward against the upper series of collars, the leaf members pivot radially outward and axially support the volute.
13. The bridge plug of claim 11, further comprising an annular sleeve that is slideable over the mandrel and having an end in selective contact with the upper series of collars, so that when the sleeve is pushed against the collars, one of the flange members is moved towards the other flange member to cause the flexible member to bulge radially outward from the mandrel and into contact with the tubular.
14. The bridge plug of claim 13, wherein the length of axial attachment between the first end of the flexible member and the first annular flange is greater than the length of axial attachment between the second end of the flexible member and the second annular flange, so that the flexible member bulges radially outward at a position between the mid point of the flexible member and the second annular flange.
15. A method of setting a bridge plug in a wellbore tubular comprising:
- inserting into the tubular a bridge plug assembly comprising a mandrel, and a flexible member circumscribing a portion of the mandrel;
- fashioning a portion of the flexible member into a volute so that the volute extends into an annular space between the mandrel and the wellbore tubular.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein fashioning a portion of the flexible member into a volute comprises inverting an end of the flexible member.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein the flexible member has a first and a second end and the bridge plug assembly further comprises a web element that extends between the flexible member and the mandrel, exits from within the flexible member through the first end, and outside of the flexible member, the web element loops towards the second end of the flexible member, so that pulling the web element in a direction away from the first end and towards the second end inverts the flexible member.
18. The method of claim 15, wherein fashioning a portion of the flexible member into a volute comprises axially compressing the flexible member and causing the flexible member to bulge outward and into contact with the tubular and form a fold in the sidewall of the flexible member.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein a first annular flange is inserted into a first end of the flexible member and an upper connection is formed between the flexible member and the first annular flange and a second annular flange is inserted into a second end of the flexible member and a lower connection is formed between the flexible member and the second annular flange wherein the axial length of the upper connection is greater than the axial length of the lower connection.
20. The method of claim 18, wherein planar collars that circumscribe the mandrel are provided on opposing sides of the flexible member that pivot radially outward when the flexible member is compressed and provide support for the volute.
21. The method of claim 18, wherein the thickness of the flexible member varies so that when the flexible member is compressed the volute is formed that comprises at least two rolls of the sidewall of the flexible member.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 16, 2010
Publication Date: Nov 18, 2010
Applicant: BAKER HUGHES INCORPORATED (Houston, TX)
Inventors: Gregory Rinberg (Haifa), Dan Raz (Haifa), Michael Goldstein (Bat Yam), Gary Cresswell (Spring, TX), Freeman Hill (Spring, TX), William Befeld (Richmond, TX)
Application Number: 12/724,981
International Classification: E21B 33/12 (20060101);