Dual-Lock Flow Gate for Pump Installation and Backflow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Downhole production equipment faces challenges in managing fluid flow, particularly when a pump rotor needs to pass through valves, as existing systems fail to effectively block or allow fluid flow during installation and production phases, leading to potential pump rotation hazards and electrical discharges.
Innovation Solution
A dual lock flow gate system with a cylindrical body, flapper, and shear pin mechanism that inhibits flapper rotation during installation, allowing fluid flow when the shear pin fails, and locks the flapper in the open position using a plunger and spring mechanism, preventing backflow and pump rotation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a pump rotor is passed through a valve during installation, then the pump can be installed in the production string, but the valve cannot effectively block fluid flow during installation
Solution Approach 1:
The flow gate employs a rotatable flapper that can dynamically change its position between blocking and non-blocking states. During installation, the flapper is rotated to an open position allowing pump rotor passage. During production, the flapper rotates to a closed position to block fluid flow, thus achieving both installation accessibility and flow control reliability through dynamic positioning.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-positions the flapper in an open state during installation to facilitate pump rotor passage through the valve body. This preliminary open configuration is intentionally designed to allow easy passage, and only after installation is complete does the system transition to the closed blocking position for production operations.
2Productivity
If the flapper is held in open position during production, then fluid flow is allowed, but pump rotation and electrical discharges occur
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and removes the harmful effect of continuous fluid flow during installation by using the shear pin mechanism to intentionally fail and stop flow. This allows the pump rotor to pass through safely without causing pump rotation or electrical discharges, while still permitting necessary fluid flow during actual production when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The shear pin is pre-designed to fail under specific conditions, creating a preliminary anti-action that prevents harmful pump rotation. The shear pin's controlled failure intentionally stops fluid flow that would otherwise cause the pump to rotate dangerously, thereby preventing electrical discharges and other harmful effects before they can occur.
3Reliability
If a shear pin mechanism is used to control flapper position, then flow blocking is achieved during installation, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The shear pin is designed as a disposable, low-cost component that intentionally fails after serving its temporary purpose of blocking flow during installation. This simple, sacrificial element provides reliable flow control during the critical installation phase without requiring complex mechanisms, and is replaced or the system transitions to its production mode afterward.
Solution Approach 2:
The shear pin acts as an intermediary mechanism between the flapper and the flow control system. It provides a simple mechanical means to hold the flapper in a blocking position during installation, using a basic shearable pin rather than a complex locking mechanism, thereby achieving flow blocking with minimal added complexity.
4Ease of operation
If the flapper is allowed to rotate freely, then pump rotor passage is enabled, but flapper control and positioning are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The flapper is designed with dynamic control capabilities, allowing it to rotate freely during installation for rotor passage, then transition to a controlled closed position during production. The hinge mechanism enables this dynamic behavior, providing unrestricted rotation when needed while allowing precise positioning when flow control is required.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-configures the flapper with a hinge mechanism that allows free rotation during installation to facilitate rotor passage. This preliminary free-rotation capability is intentionally designed into the system, and only after installation does the flapper transition to a controlled positioned state for production operations.
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
Effectively manages fluid flow by blocking flow during installation and allowing it during production, preventing pump rotation and electrical hazards, ensuring safe and efficient operation of downhole production equipment.
Implementation Method 1
a spring between the plunger and a plug inserted in the bore; wherein an end of the plunger enters a plunger receiving hole of the hinge part when the shear pin fails and releases the flapper to rotate
Data Source
AI summary
A dual lock flow gate includes a valve with a flapper which may be fixed and/or locked in various positions for example to prevent fluid flow in the production string during lowering of the production string in the casing by blocking flow in the production string with the dual lock flow gate or for example to prevent rotation of the pump motor by preventing fluid flow in the production string.