Wireless Electronic Flow Control Node for Multilateral Wellbore Completion
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Solution Overview
Problem
In oil and gas well production, the deployment of control lines for inflow control devices (ICDs) is challenging in multilateral wellbores, leading to difficulties in individually controlling formation fluid production at the granular level, and premature loss of carrier fluid during gravel packing results in incomplete sand packing and reduced filtering efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of adjustable electronic flow control nodes with power harvesting mechanisms and wireless control, which allow for precise control of fluid flow through sand screen assemblies and shunt tubes, enabling efficient gravel packing and fluid injection without the need for traditional control lines, and improving sand packing by bypassing sand bridges.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If control lines are deployed for ICDs in multilateral wellbores, then individual control of formation fluid production is achieved, but deployment difficulty and operational complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the control function from the complex control line infrastructure and relocates it to simple electronic flow control nodes positioned at each sand screen assembly. These nodes communicate wirelessly with a surface controller, eliminating the need for physical control lines extending through the wellbore junctions, thus resolving the deployment difficulty while maintaining individual control capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces wireless communication as an intermediary between the surface controller and the flow control nodes. This intermediary enables control signals to be transmitted through the wellbore environment without requiring physical control lines, thereby simplifying the overall system architecture while preserving the ability to individually control fluid production from each sand screen assembly.
2Quantity of substance
If gravel pack slurry is pumped down the work string, then the annulus is filled with filtering sand, but premature loss of carrier fluid into the formation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs shunt tubes that extend beyond the active filter portion of the sand screen to create a preliminary bypass path. This preliminary action ensures that gravel pack slurry can flow through the shunt tubes before encountering sand bridges in the annulus, allowing complete packing to be achieved even when carrier fluid loss occurs during the packing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the harmful effect of carrier fluid loss and sand bridge formation into a beneficial outcome by providing an alternative flow path through the shunt tubes. The sand bridges that would normally block slurry flow are bypassed, and the carrier fluid loss is compensated by the continued flow of slurry through the shunt tube pathway, ensuring complete gravel pack installation.
3Reliability
If shunt tubes are used to bypass sand bridges, then complete sand packing is achieved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the shunt tube function with the existing sand screen assembly structure. The shunt tubes are integrated into the sand screen assembly at the joint between base pipes, combining the filtering function of the sand screen with the bypass function of the shunt tubes into a single unified component, thereby minimizing additional complexity while ensuring reliable gravel pack completion.
4Measurement precision
If electronic flow control nodes are used instead of traditional ICDs, then control precision is improved, but power supply and wireless control complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements power harvesting mechanisms within the electronic flow control nodes that automatically capture and store energy from the flowing formation fluids. This self-service approach eliminates the need for external power lines or batteries, allowing the electronic control nodes to operate autonomously with high precision while minimizing the complexity of the overall power supply system.
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 control of fluid flow and efficient gravel packing, reducing sand bridging and enhancing filtering efficiency, thus improving production efficiency and reducing operational complexities in challenging wellbore configurations.
Implementation Method 1
an electronic flow control node spaced apart from the sand screen and positioned along a base pipe, the electronic flow control node including a power harvesting mechanism
Data Source
AI summary
A completion assembly having a wireless adjustable electronic flow control node disposed along the sand screen base pipe to control flow of a fluid through a shunt tube assembly adjacent a sand screen. Each electronic flow control node includes a valve that can be adjusted by an electric actuator powered by a power harvesting mechanism disposed in a flow path of the completion assembly. A wireless transmitter receives a control signal to control the electric actuator. The control signal may be transmitted to open or close a packing tube or a transport tube of the shunt tube assembly.