Rotating Control Device Sealing Element Fatigue Prediction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Managed pressure drilling systems face challenges in detecting impending failures of sealing elements due to misalignment between the rotating control device, blowout preventer, and drill shaft, leading to accelerated fatigue and costly unscheduled replacements.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of alignment pieces and sensors to ensure axial alignment of the rotating control device, blowout preventer, and drill shaft, along with monitoring physical characteristics of the sealing element using strain gauges, stress sensors, and electrical resistance measurements to predict remaining life and schedule replacements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If alignment pieces are implemented to ensure axial alignment, then misalignment between RCD, BOP, and shaft is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Alignment pieces are introduced as intermediary components between the RCD and the shaft to absorb and compensate for misalignment. These pieces act as mediators that take up the geometric errors without transmitting them to the sealing element, thereby protecting the seal while adding minimal complexity to the overall system.
Solution Approach 2:
The alignment function is segmented from the main RCD body into separate alignment pieces. This segmentation allows the alignment function to be independently optimized and adjusted without affecting the core sealing mechanism, reducing the complexity impact while maintaining reliability improvements.
2Measurement precision
If sensors are added to monitor sealing element condition, then failure detection capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Sensors are integrated into the sealing element structure to provide real-time feedback on stress, strain, and structural integrity. This feedback mechanism enables continuous monitoring of the sealing element's condition, allowing for early detection of fatigue and potential failures without requiring complex external monitoring systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The monitoring function is merged with the sealing element itself by embedding sensors within the rubber material. This integration combines the sealing and monitoring functions into a single component, reducing overall system complexity while improving measurement precision through direct contact with the sealing element's stress points.
3Reliability
If pressure monitoring is used to detect sealing element degradation, then abrasive wear detection is improved, but catastrophic failure detection remains insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
Traditional pressure-based mechanical monitoring is replaced with embedded fiber optic sensors that use optical principles to detect strain and stress. This substitution enables the detection of catastrophic failures through optical interference patterns and strain measurements that are insensitive to pressure fluctuations, providing superior failure mode detection accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The monitoring approach transitions from measuring pressure parameters to measuring optical parameters such as strain, stress, and structural integrity. This parameter change allows for the detection of catastrophic failures that do not manifest as pressure changes, thereby improving both reliability and measurement precision simultaneously.
4Device complexity
If conventional pressure measurement is used for condition detection, then system simplicity is maintained, but small leaks from dynamic movement are not detected
Solution Approach 1:
Fiber optic sensors act as intermediaries between the sealing element and the monitoring system. These sensors are embedded within the rubber material and can detect small leaks and dynamic movements through local strain changes without being affected by overall pressure fluctuations, enabling reliable small leak detection while maintaining system simplicity.
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 approach minimizes eccentricity-induced fatigue, allows for predictive maintenance, reducing downtime and replacement costs by detecting structural changes and impending failures in sealing elements.
Implementation Method 1
detecting and tracking deformation associated with a tool joint of a shaft as the tool joint is pulled through a sealing element
Implementation Method 2
detecting the condition of RCD sealing elements such that a failure of the sealing element can be predicted
Implementation Method 3
electrical resistance measurements to predict remaining life and schedule replacements
Data Source
AI summary
Managing operation of a sealing element is described. In some aspects, failure of the sealing element of a pressure drilling system may be predicted. Deformation of the sealing element as a tool joint is pulled through the sealing element may be detected and tracked to determine if a deformation pattern of sealing element changes. Responses of sealing element due to one or more of stress, strain, temperature, mechanical load, and pressure using a network of sensors around sealing element can be detected. Responses may be tracked over time. Detected responses are compared to tracked responses to identify changes in the symmetry of responses over time or changes in magnitude of responses over time. Changes are associated with fractures occurring within sealing element. A remaining life of sealing element is predicted based on the changes and replacement may be scheduled based at least in part on the predicted remaining life.