Magnesium Alloy Frac Plug Structure for Fast Wellbore Removal
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing frac plugs require inefficient and costly methods for removal after hydraulic fracturing, such as crushing or drilling, and existing degradable materials lack sufficient strength and degradability for effective wellbore sealing and removal.
Innovation Solution
A frac plug made from a magnesium alloy with a dual phase structure, containing a base phase and a second phase distributed in a stripe or net shape, providing high strength and rapid degradability, allowing for efficient sealing and removal by thickness reduction in well environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a frac plug is made from conventional materials to ensure high strength for wellbore sealing, then the sealing reliability is improved, but the removal process becomes complex and costly requiring crushing or drilling
Solution Approach 1:
The frac plug uses a magnesium alloy with specifically controlled composition (Mg-5Al-3Si-2Mn-1Zn-0.5Ti-0.5Zr in mass %) and dual-phase microstructure to achieve both high strength for sealing and automatic degradation for easy removal. The material parameters are optimized to provide tensile strength ≥200 MPa while enabling natural degradation in wellbore environment
Solution Approach 2:
The frac plug is designed as a disposable device made from degradable magnesium alloy that automatically breaks down after serving its sealing function. The plug degrades naturally in the wellbore environment without requiring complex removal operations, reducing both operational complexity and costs
2Ease of operation
If a frac plug is designed to be recoverable after use, then the plug can be removed intact, but much expense and time are required to recover all plugs from deep underground
Solution Approach 1:
The frac plug performs self-removal through automatic degradation in the wellbore environment. The magnesium alloy material naturally corrodes and breaks down after sealing, eliminating the need for external recovery operations and saving significant time and resources
3Ease of manufacture
If a thermally degradable adhesive is used to attach frac plug members, then the plug can be separated by thermal degradation, but the member cannot be broken into small pieces and must be separately disintegrated
Solution Approach 1:
The frac plug uses a composite structure where degradable adhesive (such as polyurethane or epoxy resin) bonds metal members (mandrel, slips, cones) together. The adhesive degrades under downhole conditions, allowing the bonded structure to separate and disintegrate into small pieces without requiring additional processing
4Productivity
If a magnesium alloy with high corrosiveness is used to enable rapid degradation, then the removal efficiency is improved, but the alloy lacks sufficient strength for effective wellbore sealing
Solution Approach 1:
The magnesium alloy composition is precisely optimized to balance strength and degradability. The specific composition (Mg-5Al-3Si-2Mn-1Zn-0.5Ti-0.5Zr) creates a dual-phase microstructure that provides both mechanical strength (≥200 MPa tensile strength) for sealing and controlled corrosion rate for rapid degradation in wellbore environment
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 magnesium alloy frac plug effectively seals the wellbore at high strength and rapidly degrades, enabling efficient petroleum production by reducing the need for costly removal methods and ensuring easy recovery of the plug.
Implementation Method 1
a member made of an Mg alloy... rapidly degraded and removed... thickness reduction in well environments
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a frac plug or the like capable of being inserted into a borehole to seal the borehole with high strength, and then quickly disassembled and removed, thereby efficiently producing petroleum. A frac plug according to the present embodiment has a member made of a magnesium (Mg) alloy. The member has a multi-phase structure including a first phase, which is a matrix phase, and a second phase present in the first phase. In the multi-phase structure, the second phase is distributed in a substantially striped pattern in the first phase in a first cross section perpendicular to a second direction of the frac plug, and distributed in a substantially mesh-like pattern in the first phase in a second cross section perpendicular to a first direction of the frac plug.