Nested Well Conduit With Radial Loading Surfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional well conduit systems are limited in their ability to handle high pressures and provide sufficient space for subterranean operations, leading to inefficiencies in accessing and processing subterranean deposits, particularly in deep wells and unconventional hydrocarbon deposits.
Innovation Solution
The use of continuous elastically compressible and expandable pipe bodies with radial loading surfaces that abut to share hoop stress resistances, allowing for the formation of a greater effective wall thickness capable of bearing higher pressures and accommodating larger diameters, thereby enhancing pressure integrity and operational efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If larger diameter conduits are used to improve pressure bearing efficiency and integrity, then pressure containment capability and operational space are improved, but device complexity and installation difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs nested conduits where an inner conduit is placed within an outer conduit, both having enlarged effective diameters. This nesting arrangement allows the system to achieve higher pressure bearing efficiency through the combined effective wall thickness while maintaining manageable individual conduit sizes for installation.
Solution Approach 2:
The conduit system is divided into separate inner and outer conduit components, each with specific functional responsibilities. The inner conduit handles primary fluid flow while the outer conduit provides additional pressure containment and structural support, allowing independent optimization and installation of each segment.
2Volume of stationary object
If conventional conduit systems are used, then device simplicity is maintained, but pressure containment capability and operational space are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
By nesting the inner conduit within the outer conduit, the system creates additional usable internal volume within the same external footprint. This allows for greater operational space and improved pressure containment without requiring a proportionally larger external diameter that would increase installation complexity.
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
This solution enables the containment of higher pressures and provides additional space within the well conduit system, improving the efficiency of fluid communication and processing, while minimizing the need for drastic changes to existing well designs and equipment.
Implementation Method 1
continuous elastically compressible inner and elastically expandable outer pipe bodies (4)
Implementation Method 2
A plurality of intermediate radial loading surfaces (5, 6, 41, 42, 49, 123) can extend across an annulus and radially between at least two of the circumferentially elastic conduit walls to form an abutment with an adjacent circumferential conduit wall
Data Source
Figure 1~8
Figure 9~13
Figure 14~17
AI summary
Well conduit system and methods using a first outer conduit wall and at least one second inner conduit wall positioned through a wellhead to define an annulus with radial loading surfaces extending across the annulus and radially between at least two of the conduit walls to form passageways through subterranean strata concentrically, wherein an inner pipe body of greater outer diameter is inserted into an outer pipe body of lesser inner diameter by elastically expanding the circumference of the outer pipe body and elastically compressing the circumference of the inner pipe body, using a hoop force exerted therebetween. Releasing the hoop force after insertion will release the elastic expansion and compression of the pipe bodies to abut the radial loading surfaces within the annulus for sharing elastic hoop stress resistance and thereby forming a greater effective wall thickness, capable of containing higher pressures than the conduit walls could otherwise bear.