Saudi Arabian Oil Company

Wellbore Integrity Solutions LLC

Amjad Alshaarawi

Meshari M Alshalan

Abdulwahab Aljohar

Haytham H Alhamed

Chinthaka Pasan Gooneratne

Ossama R Sehsah

Abdulwahab S Al-Johar

Peter Ido Egbe

Mohammad Saud Al-Badran

Richard Mark Pye

Mohammed Alsheikh

Thomas Heinold

Alessandro Antonio Gallelli

Bodong Li

Timothy Eric Moellendick

Guodong Zhan

Jianhui Xu

Ahmed Yasin Bukhamseen

Abeer Mohammad Al-Olayan

Ammar H Alali

Songlin Zhong

Abdullah Atiyah

Jafar S Alzaid

Zahrah Al Marhoon

Khalil E Mohamed

David Shearer

Mohammed Aljubran

Abdulkareem Saqqa

Atef Shoman

Saeed Abdullah Aldossary

Zahrah Marhoon

Msalli Alotaibi

Saeed Abdullah Al-Dossary

Mohammed M Alrubaii

Abdallah A Alkubaisi

A method of repairing wellbores includes setting a plug to isolate a wellbore flowpath within a plurality of concentric casing strings, milling a window through a radially innermost casing string of the plurality of concentric casing strings, via a casing milling tool, and radially outward towards one of a plurality of cement columns, cleaning out one of plurality of a cement columns between two of the concentric casing strings to expand the window radially, inserting a solid eutectic alloy into the wellbore flowpath above the plug, heating the solid eutectic alloy, via a heater inserted within the wellbore flowpath, to melt the eutectic alloy and allow the melted eutectic alloy to flow into the window, solidifying the melted eutectic alloy to form a solidified eutectic plug within the window, and drilling out the solidified eutectic plug to restore the wellbore flowpath through the eutectic plug.

Eutectic alloy system for concentric casing string cement repair

A downhole assembly is disclosed that includes a basket having a base, a connection end opposite the base, and a side extending between the base and the connection end. A heater extends centrally through the basket from the base, where the heater has an electrical connection at an end of the heater opposite the base. A volume of eutectic pellets is provided in the basket, and the downhole assembly is used to plug a downhole location by using the heater to melt the eutectic pellets at the downhole location.

Method and apparatus for delivering and setting a eutectic alloy plug to cure loss-of-circulation in drilling applications

A downhole tool is disclosed that includes an expandable liner, an expansion cone, and an expansion cone driver connected to the expansion cone. The expandable liner includes an upper tubular body, a lower cone housing having an outer diameter greater than the upper tubular body, a eutectic alloy layer surrounding a circumference of the upper tubular body, and a bottom packer and a top packer extending around the upper tubular body and positioned around opposite ends of the eutectic alloy layer. The expansion cone has a cone body provided in the lower cone housing and a heater provided around an outer surface of the cone body.

Method and apparatus for curing loss-of-circulation in oil and gas wells with a eutectic alloy expandable patch

A method includes running a eutectic alloy system downhole in a wellbore including a first casing string and a second casing string therein, activating a differential valve tool within the second casing to generate a primary annular seal within a casing-casing annulus defined between the first casing string and second casing string, pumping a flushing fluid into the casing-casing annulus above the primary annular seal via a first ported collar, melting a eutectic alloy blanket into a molten alloy within the flushing fluid in the casing-casing annulus via a heater, solidifying the molten alloy to establish a supplemental seal above the primary annular seal in the casing-casing annulus between the first casing string and second casing string, and pumping cement into the casing-casing annulus above the supplemental seal to form a cement column in the casing-casing annulus via a second ported collar.

Eutectic alloy system for casing-casing annulus cement repair

A mechanical autonomous pipe cutting system for cutting a pipe in a wellbore includes a locking unit that prevents the system from moving within the pipe when engaged to an inner surface of the pipe, a punching unit that moves a plurality of punching elements radially relative to an axis of the system, and a cutting unit that is designed to sever the pipe. The locking unit, the punching unit, and the cutting unit are attached to a body of the mechanical autonomous pipe cutting system. The body includes a motor that rotates the cutting unit. The mechanical autonomous pipe cutting system further includes a sensor module that detects interactions between the pipe and walls of the wellbore and a control unit in electronic communication with the sensor module, the locking unit, and the punching unit. The control unit actuates the locking unit and operates the punching unit subsequent to identifying a location where interaction between the pipe and the walls of the wellbore limits a downhole movement of the pipe based on an output of the sensor module.

Mechanical autonomous punch and cut system

A rotational continuous circulation system and methods includes a circulation sub having an internal bore extending along a central axis. The circulation sub has an uphole body having a reduced outer diameter along a downhole length of the uphole body. A central valve selectively opens and closes the uphole internal bore. At least one check valve is located within a sidewall of the uphole body to selectively allow fluid to flow into the uphole internal bore through the at least one check valve. A downhole body has an uphole portion circumscribing a downhole portion of the uphole body. A sleeve assembly circumscribes the reduced outer diameter of the uphole body. The uphole body and the downhole body are configured to rotate about the central axis independently from the sleeve assembly. A side-entry port of the sleeve assembly provides a fluid flow path from an exterior of the sleeve assembly to the at least one check valve.

Rotational continuous circulation system

A method of plugging a section of a wellbore wall includes sending a plug injection tool to a downhole location proximate the section of the wellbore wall, setting a first seal below the section of the wellbore wall using the plug injection tool, and setting a second seal above the section of the wellbore wall using the plug injection tool. A plugging material is pumped between the first and second seals and held there until it solidifies.

Method and apparatus for the exact placement of resin and cement plugs

A method of cementing a casing in a wellbore extending from an Earth's surface into a subsurface includes providing a tube having a bi-frustoconical shape. The bi-frustoconical shape is defined by an upper tube part having an inverted frustoconical shape, a lower tube part having a frustoconical shape, and a waist intermediate between the upper tube part and the lower tube part. The tube is positioned in an annulus formed between the casing and a wall of the wellbore from a surface opening of the annulus. The tube is urged in a direction down the annulus and along the casing until the tube lands on a collar radially projecting from an outer surface of the casing into the annulus.

Method and apparatus for cementing a casing in a wellbore

A downhole drilling motor assembly includes a first motor, a second motor aligned coaxially with the first motor, and a clutch assembly aligned coaxially with the first and second motors. The clutch assembly independently and selectively actuates each of the first and second motors to rotationally drive a drill bit. A related method includes: mounting a drill bit at a distal end of a drill string at a well site; and providing a downhole drilling motor assembly which rotationally drives the drill bit. The clutch assembly is controlled to independently and selectively actuate the first and second motors, and the drill bit is rotationally driven via the independent and selective actuation of the first and second motors.

Systems and methods for employing multiple downhole drilling motors

A method of deploying a flexible cable in a wellbore includes carrying, by a tubular assembly, a cable spool cartridge into the wellbore. The cable spool cartridge is attached to an exterior of the tubular assembly and contains the flexible cable. A first end of the flexible cable is attached to a buoyancy device, and the buoyancy device is releasably attached to the cable spool cartridge. A fluid is flowed by the tubular assembly in a downhole direction through an interior of the tubular assembly and in an uphole direction within an annulus at least partially defined by the exterior of the tubular assembly. The fluid has a greater density than the buoyancy device. The buoyancy device is released by the cable spool cartridge, and the buoyancy device is configured to travel after release in the uphole direction with the fluid and thereby pull the flexible cable from the cable spool cartridge and into the annulus.

Downhole cable deployment

A rotational power slips system includes a static base comprising at least one circular opening; a rotating ring disposed within the static base and including a circular outer surface interfacing with the static base; at least one slips wedge disposed within the rotating ring and including a radially inner grip surface for gripping at least one component of a drilling string; and at least one wedge actuator disposed on the rotating ring and rotatably coupled to both the rotating ring and the slips wedge, thereby causing the slips wedge to move while the component of a drilling string is rotating.

Rotational power slips

A differential iron roughneck for making or breaking a pipe connection includes: at least one first gripping cylinder for delivering torque to a first pipe; at least one second gripping cylinder for delivering and receiving torque to and from a second pipe; and a differential gearbox including: a primary shaft delivering torque to the at least one first gripping cylinder; and a secondary shaft receiving torque from the at least one second gripping cylinder, where the primary shaft and the secondary shaft rotate at different speeds.

Differential iron roughneck

Provided is a system for emplacing an electrically activated lost circulation material within a wellbore. The system may comprise a bottom hole assembly connected to a drill string, with an activation tool that may be provided along the bottom hole assembly. The system may comprise an activation tool with a non-conductive isolation sleeve having an inner bore, electrodes exposed to an outer surface of the isolation sleeve, conductive cables electrically connecting the electrodes to one of an anode terminal and a cathode terminal, and a seat extending into the inner bore. Further provided is a method for plugging a loss zone in a wellbore that may use at least one activation tool. The method may include circulating an electrically activated lost circulation material to the loss zone and delivering electricity from a power source to electrodes of the activation tool to solidify the electrically activated lost circulation material.

Growing community of inventors

Dhahran, Saudi Arabia

Amjad Alshaarawi