Insert Safety Valve Venting for Low-Pressure Failsafe Operation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Safety valves in the resource recovery and fluid sequestration industries often have insufficient service lives, and inserting a replacement valve reduces the available inside diameter, which is undesirable.
Innovation Solution
An insert safety valve with a housing, a flow tube, a flapper, an atmospheric chamber, and a selectively openable arrangement that allows pressure communication between the chamber and the environment, operated by a control line pressure, ensuring low actuation pressures and a failsafe condition through balanced seals and penetrator assemblies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Duration of action of stationary object
If an insert safety valve is employed to substitute for a previous safety valve, then the service life is extended, but the available inside diameter is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The insert safety valve is placed inside the previous safety valve housing, with the flow tube movably disposed within the housing and the flapper articulated to the housing. This nested configuration allows the replacement valve to occupy the same external envelope, extending service life without requiring additional space that would reduce the available inside diameter of the wellbore system.
2Stress or pressure
If the opener is made responsive to movement of the element on the housing, then the actuation pressure is reduced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The opener is made responsive to movement of the element on the housing through a mechanical linkage system where the flow tube movement directly actuates the flapper opening mechanism. This mechanical substitution replaces high-pressure hydraulic actuation with a lower-pressure mechanical response system, reducing the required actuation pressure while accepting increased device complexity through the addition of the mechanical linkage components.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the atmospheric chamber is sealed during running, then fluid ingress is prevented, but the operability after landing is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The atmospheric chamber is equipped with a selectively openable arrangement that remains closed during the running and installation phase to prevent fluid ingress, and is then opened after landing to enable proper operation. This preliminary sealing action protects the chamber during vulnerable installation phases, while the subsequent opening action restores full operability, achieving both protection and functionality through a two-stage process.
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 insert safety valve provides enhanced functionality with reduced hydraulic pressures and failsafe operation, maintaining the inside diameter and extending the service life while preventing fluid ingress into the atmospheric chamber.
Implementation Method 1
an opener disposed to selectively open the openable arrangement to allow pressure communication between the atmospheric chamber and an environment outside of the housing
Data Source
AI summary
An insert safety valve, including a housing, a flow tube in the housing, a flapper responsive to positions of the flow tube, an atmospheric chamber in the housing, an element upon the housing, a selectively openable arrangement to prevent or allow pressure communication between the chamber and an environment outside the housing, the arrangement including an opener responsive to movement of the element to selectively open the openable arrangement. A borehole system, including a preexisting downhole structure having a control line, an insert safety valve, in the preexisting downhole structure, the insert safety valve operable with the control line. A method for controlling a wellbore, including running an insert safety valve while preventing fluid communication with an atmospheric chamber of the safety valve, moving the opener, and enabling fluid communication with the atmospheric chamber.