Shearable Deployment Bar for Ballistic Perforator Firing
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current coiled tubing deployment methods in oilfields face challenges in efficiently and safely transferring downhole tools to wellbores while ensuring pressure integrity and minimizing the risk of accidental detonation during the deployment and firing of perforating guns.
Innovation Solution
The introduction of a shearable deployment bar with a ballistic signal transfer system, incorporating a bulkhead initiator, delay tube, and detonation cord, which allows for controlled initiation and firing of perforating guns at targeted locations within the wellbore, while being capable of being sheared by standard coiled tubing BOPs to facilitate tool deployment and retrieval.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a long riser is used to convey downhole tools to the wellbore, then the tools can be transferred and deployed, but the equipment complexity and operational difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The deployment system is segmented into modular components: a deployment bar with initiator, delay tube, and donor charge are separate from the conveyance device. The deployment bar can be independently deployed and fired without requiring a long riser, thus simplifying the overall system while maintaining deployment capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The deployment bar acts as an intermediary component between the conveyance device and the perforating guns. It provides a simplified interface that can be gripped and sealed by BOPs, eliminating the need for complex long riser systems while still enabling tool deployment.
2Ease of manufacture
If standard coiled tubing BOPs are used to shear the deployment bar, then the deployment process is simplified, but there is a risk of accidental detonation from the initiator
Solution Approach 1:
The initiator is pre-installed in the deployment bar, but the actual initiation sequence is controlled by the shear action of the BOP. The BOP shear action triggers the initiator only at the intended moment of deployment, preventing accidental detonation during handling and installation while maintaining readiness for operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The potential harmful effect of the initiator is converted into a beneficial controlled detonation. The BOP shear action, which could potentially cause accidental ignition, is instead designed to reliably trigger the initiator only when needed, transforming a safety risk into a controlled deployment mechanism.
3Manufacturing precision
If a ballistic signal transfer system is used to fire perforating guns, then precise controlled firing is achieved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The complex electrical or electronic signal transfer system is replaced with a simple mechanical ballistic signal transfer mechanism. The donor charge creates a ballistic signal (shock wave) that physically propagates through the deployment bar to trigger the perforating guns, achieving precise controlled firing without complex wiring or electronics.
4Ease of operation
If the deployment bar is made shearable, then tool deployment and retrieval is facilitated, but the structural strength required for pressure integrity becomes conflicting
Solution Approach 1:
The deployment bar has non-uniform structural properties: most of the bar maintains full strength for pressure integrity, while a specific localized section is designed to be shearable. This localized weakness allows easy shearing by BOPs for deployment and retrieval, while the rest of the bar maintains the strength required to withstand wellbore pressures.
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 precise and safe deployment of perforating guns, maintaining pressure integrity before and after firing, and allows for sequential triggering of multiple guns, reducing the risk of accidental detonation and improving operational efficiency by enabling shorter tool components and reduced need for large risers.
Implementation Method 1
The initiator is a bulkhead initiator and the deployment bar is configured to carry a ballistic signal from the initiator
Implementation Method 2
The deployment bar includes a delay tube and a donor charge. The donor charge is configured to receive the ballistic signal from the initiator
Implementation Method 3
the shearable deployment bar includes a deployment bar section and a shearable section... the deployment bar must be capable of being sheared by the shear ram in the blow out preventer
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatus includes a conveyance device and a first shearable deployment bar connected to the conveyance device at a first distal end of the first shearable deployment bar, where the first shearable deployment bar has a deployment bar section and a shearable section. The shearable deployment bar is configured to carry a ballistic signal from an initiating charge, through the shearable deployment bar, and to a donor charge. The apparatus further includes a first set of perforating guns connected to the first shearable deployment bar at a second distal end thereof, and the first set of perforating guns are configured to receive the ballistic signal from the donor charge to ultimately fire the perforating guns at a targeted location in a wellbore. A second shearable deployment bar may be connected to the first set of perforating guns, and a second set of perforating guns connected to the second shearable deployment bar.