Protective Pipe Connector Lining for Rod Wear Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing pipe connectors used in production strings for fluid recovery from wells suffer from significant rod wear at the connectors, leading to frequent rod string breakages. This results in increased operational costs and downtime due to the need to pull and fish the broken rod string.
Innovation Solution
A pipe connector with a protective portion on its inside surface, made of a softer material with a lower coefficient of friction, is introduced. This protective portion is designed to reduce abrasion on the rod string, and its narrower diameter ensures preferential contact with the rod string, mitigating wear. Additionally, the connector features a gripping portion for easy handling with power tongs and a reinforced portion to enhance torque resistance and prevent deformation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a steel connector is used to connect production tubing joints, then the connector provides sufficient strength and structural integrity, but the rod string experiences severe wear at the connector interface leading to breakage
Solution Approach 1:
The connector incorporates a protective portion with a different material property (softer, lower friction coefficient) at the specific location where the rod string contacts the connector. This local modification reduces wear on the rod string while the rest of the connector maintains its structural steel properties for strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The connector is constructed as a composite structure combining steel body material with a protective coating or lining material that has superior tribological properties. This composite approach allows the connector to simultaneously provide structural strength (steel) and rod string protection (softer, lower friction material).
2Reliability
If the protective portion has a narrower inside diameter to ensure preferential contact with the rod string, then rod wear is reduced, but the flow area through the connector is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The protective portion with narrower diameter is applied only at the specific axial location where rod string contact occurs. The rest of the connector maintains the full original inside diameter to preserve flow area. This localized approach minimizes impact on fluid flow while maximizing rod protection.
3Reliability
If the connector body is made softer to reduce rod wear, then the coefficient of friction decreases, but the connector's resistance to deformation and torque capacity is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The softer protective material is applied only to the inner surface portion that contacts the rod string, while the outer connector body maintains its original steel material properties for torque resistance and structural strength. This spatial differentiation allows simultaneous optimization of both wear resistance and strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The connector uses a composite material structure where the steel body provides torque capacity and structural integrity, while the protective coating or lining material provides reduced friction and wear resistance. Each material performs its optimized function without compromising the other.
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 proposed pipe connector effectively reduces rod wear and breakages by using a softer, less abrasive material on the inside surface and a reinforced structure to withstand higher torque values. This leads to increased operational efficiency, reduced maintenance costs, and extended equipment lifespan.
Implementation Method 1
The protective portion includes a protective material, which relative to the grades of steel or other materials typically used to manufacture production tubing connectors, is softer and has a lower coefficient of friction with the rod string
Data Source
AI summary
A pipe connector that includes a body with opposed connection portions for connecting two pipes is provided. A protective portion extends along at least a portion of an inside surface intermediate the connection portions. The protective portion includes a protective material that is less abrasive to a rod string than the body. An inside diameter of the connector along at least a portion of the protective portion is equal to or narrower than an inside diameter at other portions of the connector for preferentially contacting the rod string with the protective material over other portions of the body. The connector may include an extended gripping portion for gripping with power tongs, and may further include a reinforced portion for increasing resistance of the pipe connector to deformation when threadedly connected with a tubing joint with the connector.