Adaptive Borehole Plug Void Elimination
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional plugs in boreholes experience undesirable movement and reshaping of sealing elements due to external pressures, leading to reduced effectiveness and increased risk of plug failure as voids form around the sealing elements, allowing gaseous matter to compress and cause the sealing elements to partially collapse.
Innovation Solution
Injecting an incompressible liquid into the voids around the sealing elements, which are stored in a reservoir and released only when necessary, prevents the sealing elements from shifting into the voids, maintaining consistent contact with the casing and reducing wear and risk of separation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a sealing element is expanded to circumscribe the internal diameter of casing, then sealing contact with the casing is achieved, but voids form around the sealing element causing it to shift and reshape under external pressure
Solution Approach 1:
A liquid intermediary substance is introduced into the voids surrounding the sealing element. This liquid acts as a mediator that fills the empty spaces and prevents the sealing element from shifting into voids under external pressure, thereby maintaining both sealing contact and positional stability
Solution Approach 2:
The physical state of the void-filling medium is changed from gaseous (compressible) to liquid (incompressible). This parameter change ensures that the voids remain filled and prevent sealing element movement, as liquids cannot be compressed to allow element collapse or shifting
2Stability of the object's composition
If liquid is injected into voids to prevent sealing element movement, then sealing element stability is improved, but system complexity increases due to reservoir and injection mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The liquid is pre-stored in a reservoir that is already attached to the plug body before deployment. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need for complex downhole injection equipment, as the liquid is already in position to fill voids when needed
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the existing borehole pressure and the flexible membrane's automatic response to pressure changes to drive liquid injection. No external power source or complex control system is needed - the system self-regulates based on pressure differentials
3Use of energy by moving object
If liquid is held in a reservoir and injected only when necessary, then liquid usage efficiency is improved, but response time to pressure changes may be delayed
Solution Approach 1:
The membrane is designed to be flexible and dynamically responsive to pressure changes. When pressure increases in the borehole, the membrane automatically deforms and forces liquid into the voids in real-time, providing immediate response without mechanical actuators or control systems
Solution Approach 2:
The flexible membrane acts as a pressure-sensing feedback mechanism. It automatically detects pressure increases and triggers liquid injection in response, creating a closed-loop system that reacts immediately to changing conditions without external control
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution prolongs the life of the sealing element by minimizing movement and wear, reducing the risk of plug failure and maintaining consistent contact with the borehole casing, thereby enhancing the sealing efficiency and reliability.
Implementation Method 1
a flexible membrane which is exposed to volume with greater pressure. Accordingly, when the relative pressure increases, the membrane is forced into the reservoir, displacing the liquid into the void
Implementation Method 2
liquid (an incompressible fluid) may be injected into the voids. Then, once the voids are filled with liquid, the sealing element cannot move and shift into the voids, as the voids are already occupied by incompressible matter
Data Source
AI summary
A method for sealing a borehole, that includes lowering a plug into the borehole, where the plug includes a sealing element, a reservoir that includes a liquid, and a one-way valve connected to the reservoir, causing the sealing element to undergo sealing element expansion, where the sealing element expansion causes the sealing element to make circumferential contact with a casing of the borehole, and where the sealing element expansion causes the sealing element to create a void.