DIVERTER FOR DRILLING OPERATION
A diverter assembly may include a diverter body assembly. The diverter body assembly may also include a diverter body, the diverter body fluidly coupled to the annulus of a wellbore via a casing or riser, and the diverter body including one or more diverter outlet ports fluidly coupled to the annulus of the wellbore. The diverter body assembly may also include an upper packer assembly. The upper packer assembly may include a packer sleeve, the packer sleeve mechanically coupled to the diverter body. The packer sleeve may include one or more breach lock slots. The upper packer assembly may also include an upper packer body having one or more packer breach lock tabs engaged with the breach lock slots of the packer sleeve. The diverter assembly may also include a diverter support housing, the diverter support housing coupled to the diverter body assembly.
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The present application is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/752,621, filed on Jan. 25, 2020, which claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 15/229,589, filed on Aug. 5, 2016, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,557,324, which claims priority to U.S. provisional patent application No. 62/201,362, filed on Aug. 5, 2015. The entire contents of each of the above documents is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE DISCLOSUREThe present disclosure relates to diverters for drilling operations.
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSUREWhile drilling a wellbore, a diverter may be positioned to divert any high pressure fluid resulting from, for example, a blowout, away from the drilling floor. A diverter may couple to an upper end of a casing or a riser and be positioned about the drill string as the wellbore is drilled. Traditionally, the diverter is positioned beneath the drill floor or rotary table and includes one or more outlets that may be coupled to exhaust conduits away from the drill floor.
SUMMARYThe present disclosure provides for a diverter assembly. A diverter assembly includes a diverter body assembly. The diverter body assembly includes a diverter body, the diverter body fluidly coupled to the annulus of a wellbore via a casing or riser, and the diverter body including one or more diverter outlet ports fluidly coupled to the annulus of the wellbore. The diverter body assembly also includes an upper packer assembly. The upper packer assembly includes a packer sleeve, the packer sleeve mechanically coupled to the diverter body. The packer sleeve includes one or more breach lock slots. The upper packer assembly also includes an upper packer body having one or more packer breach lock tabs engaged with the breach lock slots of the packer sleeve. The diverter assembly also includes a diverter support housing, the diverter support housing coupled to the diverter body assembly.
The present disclosure also provides for a method. The method includes providing a diverter body assembly including a diverter body, the diverter body fluidly coupled to the annulus of a wellbore via a casing or riser, and the diverter body including one or more diverter outlet ports fluidly coupled to the annulus of the wellbore. The method also includes coupling a packer sleeve to the diverter body, and inserting an upper packer body into the packer sleeve such that one or more packer breach lock tabs of the upper packer body engage one or more corresponding breach lock slots of the packer sleeve. The method additionally includes rotating the upper packer body to a closed position such that the breach lock slots retain the upper packer body to the packer sleeve and sealing, with the upper packer body, between the diverter body and a drill string passing therethrough.
The present disclosure is best understood from the following detailed description when read with the accompanying figures. It is emphasized that, in accordance with the standard practice in the industry, various features are not drawn to scale. In fact, the dimensions of the various features may be arbitrarily increased or reduced for clarity of discussion.
It is to be understood that the following disclosure provides many different embodiments, or examples, for implementing different features of various embodiments. Specific examples of components and arrangements are described below to simplify the present disclosure. These are, of course, merely examples and are not intended to be limiting. In addition, the present disclosure may repeat reference numerals and/or letters in the various examples. This repetition is for the purpose of simplicity and clarity and does not in itself dictate a relationship between the various embodiments and/or configurations discussed.
In some embodiments, as depicted in
As shown in
As depicted in
In some embodiments, diverter body assembly 121 may include upper packer assembly 131. Upper packer assembly 131 may form a fluid seal between diverter body 125 and a drill string (not shown) passing therethrough. Upper packer assembly 131 may include packer sleeve 132. Packer sleeve 132 may fit within packer recess 133 (shown in
In some embodiments, as depicted in
Seals 141, 143 are inflatable, and can be filled with (or emptied of) non-hazardous hydraulic fluid, which allows for the inflation (or deflation) of the inflatable seals. In one embodiment, each of the seals may be selectively inflated independently, while in other embodiments the seals may be inflated simultaneously. Inflating the seal allows for the inflatable seal to enlarge, thereby causing radial travel inward for appropriate contact/closure on any internal casing or pipe passing through the internal cavity of the diverter assembly, as described in more detail above.
Stresses on outer seals 141 and inner seals 143 may cause the seals to deteriorate. In order to service or replace seals 141, 143, upper packer body 136 may be removed from the rest of diverter body assembly 121 as illustrated in
In some embodiments, as shown in
In some embodiments, diverter lower assembly 151 may couple to spacer spool pipe 171 as depicted in
In some embodiments, spacer spool pipe 171 may include lock ring retainer 205. Lock ring retainer 205 may be a generally annular protrusion from the exterior surface of spacer spool pipe 171. Lock ring retainer 205 may, for example, retain lock ring 201 to spacer spool pipe 171 as discussed above with respect to diverter lower assembly. Lock ring 201 may include retaining flange 203 adapted to contact lock ring retainer 205 and prevent lock ring 201 from sliding off the end of spacer spool pipe 171.
In some embodiments, spacer spool pipe 171 may couple to overshot housing 181. In some embodiments, overshot housing 181 may include upper coupler 183. In some embodiments upper coupler 183 may include one or more overshot breach lock tabs 185 adapted to engage with overshot breach lock slots 165 of overshot lock ring 161. In such an embodiment, overshot housing 181 may be coupled to spacer spool pipe 171 by axially engaging the two members and inserting overshot breach lock tabs 185 into overshot breach lock slots 165 of overshot lock ring. Overshot lock ring 161 may then be rotated such that overshot breach lock slots 165 engage overshot breach lock tabs 185, retaining spacer spool pipe 171 to overshot housing 181.
In some embodiments, as shown in
As discussed herein, the upper packer body or canister of the diverter body assembly may be removed for servicing or replacement. In one embodiment, the inner seals may provide a fluid seal against multiple diameters or pipe sizes of a drill string. In one embodiment, a plurality of different sized canisters/upper packer bodies may be inserted into a diverter body assembly, wherein each canister is configured for a different size or range of casing pipe, drill collars, or drill pipes. For example, a single-sized diverter body or diverter body assembly may be designed and produced for a wide variety of drill pipes, while a particular upper packer body or canister can be utilized for a particular size of drill string or pipe. A wide variety of canisters (with different seals and/or bores) can be used with the single-sized diverter body. This interchangeability feature reduces installation and operation costs. At a specified time as the work schedule allows, the canister can be removed to repair or replace the problematic seal. In addition, the removable canister allows for backup and/or redundancy of sealing on the various casing pipe, drill collars, and/or drill pipes, based on the use of multiple seals.
One embodiment of the disclosed canister/upper packer body includes a plurality of inner seals and a plurality of outer seals. In another embodiment, the disclosed canister/upper packer body includes only a plurality of inner seals. In this embodiment, one or more outer seals are positioned on an interior wall of the diverter body housing, such as packer sleeve 132. In this embodiment, the design and configuration of the canister is simplified. One such embodiment is illustrated in
In one embodiment, canister 1201 is similar to upper packer body 136 illustrated in
The foregoing outlines features of several embodiments so that a person of ordinary skill in the art may better understand the aspects of the present disclosure. Such features may be replaced by any one of numerous equivalent alternatives, only some of which are disclosed herein. One of ordinary skill in the art should appreciate that they may readily use the present disclosure as a basis for designing or modifying other processes and structures for carrying out the same purposes and/or achieving the same advantages of the embodiments introduced herein. One of ordinary skill in the art should also realize that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure and that they may make various changes, substitutions, and alterations herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.
Claims
1. A diverter assembly, comprising:
- a diverter body, wherein the diverter body is fluidly coupled to an annulus of a wellbore; and
- a canister assembly mechanically coupled to the diverter body, wherein the canister assembly is removable from the diverter body,
- wherein the canister assembly comprises a plurality of inflatable inner seals.
2. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of inflatable inner seals is positioned on an inner surface of the canister assembly.
3. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of inflatable inner seals is arranged to form a fluid seal between the canister assembly and a drill string or casing.
4. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of inflatable inner seals is configured to seal against multiple pipe diameters of a drill string or casing.
5. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of inflatable inner seals is adapted to be inflated simultaneously.
6. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of inflatable inner seals is adapted to be inflated selectively independently.
7. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of inflatable inner seals is configured to be inflated by fluid actuation.
8. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of inflatable inner seals is adapted to be serviced by the removal of the canister assembly from the diverter body.
9. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of inflatable inner seals is adapted to be replaced by the removal of the packer sleeve assembly from the diverter body.
10. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the canister assembly is removable from the diverter body by axial rotation of the canister assembly.
11. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the canister assembly is removable from the diverter body along an axis of the canister assembly.
12. The diverter assembly of claim 1,
- wherein the canister assembly is configured to be axially coupled to or removed from the diverter body by a breach lock assembly,
- wherein the canister assembly comprises one or more breach lock tabs and one or more breach lock slots.
13. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the canister assembly is selectable based on a pipe size to be enclosed within the canister assembly.
14. The diverter assembly of claim 1, wherein the canister assembly comprises an upper plate, a middle plate, and a lower plate, wherein one of the plurality of inflatable inner seals is positioned between the upper plate and middle plate and one of the plurality of inflatable inner seals is positioned between the middle plate and the lower plate.
15. A diverter assembly, comprising:
- a diverter body, wherein the diverter body is fluidly coupled to an annulus of a wellbore; and
- a canister assembly mechanically coupled to the diverter body, wherein the canister assembly is removable from the diverter body,
- wherein the canister assembly comprises at least one inflatable inner seal positioned on an inner surface of the canister assembly,
- wherein the diverter body comprises at least one inflatable outer seal, wherein the at least one inflatable outer seal is positioned on an inner surface of the diverter body.
16. The diverter assembly of claim 15, wherein the at least one inflatable inner seal is arranged to form a fluid seal between the canister assembly and a drill string or casing.
17. The diverter assembly of claim 15, wherein the at least one inflatable outer seal is arranged to form a fluid seal between the canister assembly and the diverter body.
18. The diverter assembly of claim 15, wherein the at least one inflatable inner seal comprises a plurality of inflatable inner seals.
19. The diverter assembly of claim 15, wherein the at least one inflatable outer seal comprises a plurality of inflatable outer seals.
20. A diverter body system, comprising:
- a diverter body, wherein the diverter body is fluidly coupled to an annulus of a wellbore; and
- a plurality of canister assemblies configured to mechanically couple to the diverter body, wherein each of the plurality of canister assemblies is removable from the diverter body, wherein each of the plurality of canister assemblies comprises at least one inflatable inner seal configured to form a fluid seal between the canister assembly and a pipe passing through the diverter body.
21. The diverter body system of claim 20, wherein each of the plurality of canister assemblies is configured to seal against a specific diameter of the pipe.
22. The diverter body system of claim 20, wherein one of the plurality of canister assemblies is selectable based on a specific diameter of the pipe.
23. The diverter body system of claim 20, wherein the at least one inflatable inner seal comprises a plurality of inflatable inner seals.
Type: Application
Filed: Jul 6, 2022
Publication Date: Oct 27, 2022
Applicant: Equipment Resources International, Inc. (Katy, TX)
Inventors: David Webb (Katy, TX), Richard Romero (Broussard, LA)
Application Number: 17/858,439