Temporary Wellbore Seal with Segmented Breakdown
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Solution Overview
Problem
In directional drilling, particularly for horizontal wells, there is a need for a temporary seal within the casing that can be effectively broken to allow fluid circulation and subsequent operations like cementing, as conventional seals can impede these processes.
Innovation Solution
A temporary seal comprising a breakable or dissolvable material with varying thicknesses, positioned across the casing, which separates and dissolves under pressure thresholds, allowing controlled release and exposure of the full bore diameter for unimpeded operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a temporary seal is placed across the casing to prevent fluid flow, then fluid circulation is blocked, but subsequent operations like cementing require unimpeded fluid circulation
Solution Approach 1:
The temporary seal is divided into multiple segments with varying thicknesses, creating weak points that allow controlled breakdown. The seal consists of a first portion and second portion with different thicknesses, enabling selective failure at predetermined locations when pressure thresholds are exceeded during subsequent operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The seal material's physical properties are changed by varying its thickness to create different pressure thresholds for breakdown. Thinner portions require lower pressure to breach than thicker portions, allowing the seal to remain intact during initial operations but break down progressively when higher pressures are applied during cementing or other subsequent operations.
2Device complexity
If a uniform thickness seal is used, then the seal structure is simple, but the seal cannot be controlled to break at specific locations
Solution Approach 1:
Different portions of the temporary seal are given different local properties through varying thickness. The first portion has a first thickness and the second portion has a second thickness, creating localized weak points at specific positions. This allows precise control over where the seal will break down when pressure thresholds are exceeded, enabling predictable and controlled release patterns.
3Reliability
If the casing inner diameter is reduced by a cutout and ledge structure, then the temporary seal can be positioned and held, but the full bore diameter is blocked
Solution Approach 1:
The cutout and ledge structure is prepared in advance to provide a positioning mechanism for the temporary seal. The ledge receives the seal and holds it in a predetermined position, ensuring reliable placement before operations begin. This preliminary structural preparation enables accurate seal positioning without requiring complex installation procedures.
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
Enables controlled release of the temporary seal, preventing obstruction during subsequent operations and ensuring efficient fluid circulation and cementing processes by varying the thickness and material properties to segment and dissolve at specific pressure differentials.
Implementation Method 1
The temporary seal may be broken, dissolved, disengaged, or otherwise removed by increasing the pressure within the inner diameter of the casing past a pressure threshold
Implementation Method 2
The temporary seal may be comprised of a breakable, fragmentable, dissolvable, or other materials that may disappear under the influence of temperature, solvent, or flow
Data Source
AI summary
A temporary seal within a wellbore. More specifically, a temporary seal within casing that limits the flow of fluid through the casing until the temporary seal is released.