Wet Shoe Tool Insert Shifting for Tubing Integrity Testing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for cementing tubing in wellbores do not allow for a full pressure check after cementing, which is essential for maintaining the structural integrity of the casing, as they often require a full pressure check to be skipped due to operational limitations.
Innovation Solution
A tool with a first and second plug, and an insert that allows for fluid communication to be bypassed around the seated first plug, enabling a pressure test by shifting the insert with applied pressure, and a self-removable second plug for re-establishing flow after testing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a wiper plug is used to create a wet shoe track after cementing, then subsequent operations can be conducted, but a full pressure check on the tubing cannot be performed
Solution Approach 1:
The plug is divided into two distinct functional segments: a wiper plug portion for creating the wet shoe track and a ball portion for enabling pressure testing. This segmentation allows each segment to perform its specific function independently, resolving the contradiction between maintaining operational adaptability and ensuring reliability verification.
Solution Approach 2:
The combined plug structure serves multiple functions: it acts as both a wiper plug for creating fluid communication paths and a ball for pressure testing. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate devices, allowing both subsequent operations and integrity verification to be achieved with a single plug design.
2Reliability
If the insert is held in a fixed position, then the first plug can be seated for pressure testing, but fluid communication cannot be bypassed around the seated plug
Solution Approach 1:
The insert is designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing it to shift positions based on pressure differential. When pressure is applied during testing, the insert moves to bypass the seated first plug, enabling fluid communication to be maintained. This dynamic behavior resolves the contradiction between maintaining pressure test capability and ensuring operational flexibility.
3Ease of operation
If the second plug is made self-removable, then fluid communication is reestablished after testing, but the plug must be designed with complex self-removal mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The second plug utilizes material parameter changes (dissolution, erosion, or degradation) to achieve self-removal. By selecting materials that naturally break down under wellbore conditions, the plug automatically reestablishes fluid communication without requiring complex mechanical removal mechanisms, thus resolving the contradiction between operational ease and device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus and method are disclosed for wet shoe applications in cementing tubing in a wellbore. A wet shoe tool has a seat and an insert in a flow bore of the tool. A first wiper plug is deployed down the tubing at least behind the cement and seats on the insert, which can then be moved in the flow bore to a bypass position allowing for fluid flow through the tool to produce a wet shoe track. A second plug is deployed down the tubing behind the second plug and seats on the seat in the flow bore of the tool. The seated second plug isolates applied pressure from passing downhole end of the tool so the integrity of the tubing can be tested. The second plug is self-removable (e.g., dissolvable) in the tool to reestablish fluid communication through the flow bore of the tool.