Perforating Gun Tandem Sub for High-Pressure Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing perforating gun systems for fracturing oil and gas wells face challenges in reliably connecting gun clusters, ensuring high-pressure seals during explosions, and providing efficient communication and operation control, often leading to time-consuming troubleshooting and potential component failures.
Innovation Solution
A perforating gun system with a tandem sub and pin contact assembly that creates a high-pressure seal between gun clusters, using a pin contact spacer and switch carrier for electrical connection, and a removable interrupter to prevent premature detonation, allowing for efficient assembly and operation control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional connection methods are used to connect gun clusters, then assembly is simpler, but reliability of high-pressure sealing and electrical connection deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The tandem sub integrates multiple functions into a single component: it provides both the high-pressure sealing interface and the electrical connection interface in one unified structure. The sealing surface and pin contact assembly are combined in the same connection element, ensuring that sealing and electrical connectivity are achieved simultaneously through a single connection action, thereby improving reliability without requiring separate complex systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The tandem sub serves multiple purposes: it creates the high-pressure seal between gun clusters, provides the electrical connection pathway through the pin contact assembly, and maintains structural alignment between connected components. This multi-functional design consolidates what would otherwise require separate specialized components, improving connection reliability while managing overall system complexity.
2Reliability
If complex sealing mechanisms are used to ensure high-pressure seals, then sealing reliability improves, but assembly time and operational time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing surface is pre-configured on the tandem sub in a fixed, predetermined position and orientation. The geometry of the sealing surface and the alignment features are designed beforehand to automatically guide the gun cluster into correct alignment during assembly, eliminating the need for complex real-time adjustment mechanisms and reducing assembly time while maintaining sealing reliability.
3Manufacturing precision
If multiple connection components are used to ensure proper alignment and connection, then connection reliability improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pin contact assembly uses an asymmetric design where the pin protrudes from one side of the tandem sub and corresponds to a recess in the gun cluster. This asymmetric geometry provides inherent alignment guidance, ensuring that the gun cluster can only be connected in the correct orientation, thereby achieving precise alignment through the shape of the components themselves rather than requiring additional symmetric alignment features or multiple adjustment components.
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 system provides reliable high-pressure sealing and efficient electrical communication, reducing assembly errors and operational time, while maintaining component integrity and ensuring proper detonation sequencing.
Implementation Method 1
The spring tube houses a spring, and the spring biases a switch contact terminal towards an outer surface of the switch carrier body.
Implementation Method 2
The pin contact assembly of the second of the at least one perforating gun contacts the switch carrier of the first of the at least one perforating gun to provide an electrical connection between the first and the second of the at least one perforating gun.
Implementation Method 3
The removeable interrupter includes a first portion and a second portion extending from the first portion, and is temporarily adhered to the switch carrier body such that the first portion covers the switch contact terminal and the second portion extends between the detonation cord and the instantaneous detonator in the detonation block.
Implementation Method 4
a charge tube having a first end and a second end for holding a shaped charge
Implementation Method 5
an instantaneous detonator in the detonation block
Data Source
AI summary
A perforating gun includes a charge tube, a switch carrier body, and a pin contact spacer. The switch carrier body houses an addressable switch, a spring tube which holds a spring, a detonation block, a removable interrupter, and a pin contact spacer supporting a pin contact assembly. The spring biases a switch contact terminal towards an outer surface of the switch carrier body, and the switch contact terminal is electrically connected to the addressable switch. The interrupter includes first and second portions, and is temporarily adhered to the switch carrier body such that the first portion covers the switch contact terminal and the second portion extends between a detonation cord and an instantaneous detonator in the detonation block. A first end of the charge tube is positioned around the switch carrier body, and a second end of the charge tube is secured to the pin contact space.