Atlantic Richfield Company

Nabors Drilling Technologies Usa, Inc.

Canrig Drilling Technology Ltd.

Conocophillips Company

Siemens Industry, Inc.

Accessesp UK Limited

Kraft General Foods, Inc.

John C Patterson

Scott Gilbert Boone

Stanislaw Casimir Sulima

Justin M Jarski

Roman K Nowak

David D Hearn

Curtis G Blount

Faisal Yousef

Pornsak Songkakul

Dennis Ray Wilson

Dwayne Leismer

Mahmoud Hadi

David A Brown

Beat Küttel

Rogelio Cantu

Richard J Scarpellino

David Malone

Daniel J Eck

Michael Pawlowski

Ricardo Soza

Harry T Hong

Larry J Gipson

James C Cox

Christine A Buczek

Thomas E Nations

Michael Whatley

Ernest Jr Gum

Barbara Boniello

Geoffrey Bertkau

Barbara Doonan

A system comprising a rig, a fingerboard, a first sensor, and a second sensor, with the first sensor positioned on an opposite side of the entrance from the second sensor, where the first sensor and the second sensor are used to detect when a tubular enters or exits the fingerboard and to detect a parameter of the tubular, such as diameter of the tubular, speed of the tubular, and an angle of entry of the tubular. A method comprising sensing, via first and second sensors, when a tubular is entering a fingerboard through an entrance of the fingerboard, restricting movement of a top drive at an elevated position until the first and second sensors sense the tubular entering the fingerboard, and enabling movement of the top drive when the first and second sensors sense the tubular entering the fingerboard.

Tubular detection system for a fingerboard

A permanent completion system is disclosed comprising: an upper ACP installed in the wellbore powered by a first power cable from the surface; a lower ACP installed in the wellbore below the upper ACP, and being powered by a second power cable from the surface and being connected to the upper APC by a spacer tube; and a heating assembly connected to the lower ACP in the wellbore and receiving power from the second power cable, the heating assembly, such as a mineral insulated heater cable, providing heat to the wellbore. The heating assembly preferably is retrievable and can be conveyed to the lower ACP by coil tubing. The coil tubing can be removed after conveying the heating assembly into place to permit further access to the upper ACP, e.g., to permit mechanical and electrical connection of a retrievable ESP assembly to the upper ACP.

Method and apparatus for downhole heating

A micro grid for an oil field is powered by a utility power grid. A micro grid controller is adapted to prevent excessive or unstable power draw on the utility power grid while allowing uninterrupted power supply for drilling rigs in the oil field. The micro grid controller is adapted to control operation of one or more pieces of electrical equipment on the drilling rigs. The micro grid controller may prioritize operation of the electrical equipment based on relative priority of the operations or based on an operating condition of the drilling rig.

Micro grid power optimization

A control system that mitigates stick-slip vibrations at higher harmonics than currently available is disclosed. A controller of a top drive is set to a torque control mode instead of a speed control mode. The controller receives torque measurements and compares to a target torque value. The controller accelerates or decelerates the top drive by a generated current adjustment command. A slow integration speed control loop, at least an order of magnitude slower in response than the torque control loop, receives a RPM set point. The slow integration speed control loop compares the RPM set point to an actual RPM measurement and generates a torque command. The torque command is sent to the torque control loop which results in an acceleration or deceleration of the top drive to maintain a desired torque amount. The speed of the top drive is bounded by a speed limit control loop.

Stick-slip mitigation on direct drive top drive systems

A method for removing trace levels of oxygen from combustions products includes delivering fuel, oxidant and water into a direct combustion device. The fuel, oxidant and water are combusted in the direct combustion device to produce the combustion products. The combustion products include steam with trace levels of oxygen. The combustion products are then delivered to a scrubber for removal of oxygen. The scrubber includes a material capable of reacting with the oxygen.

Method for removing trace levels of oxygen from direct combustion device combustion products

A weight-based tubular interlock apparatus adapted to determine whether a tubular is engagingly gripped by a rig-based hoisting device or a secondary gripping device is described. The apparatus includes at least two gripping mechanisms and an interlock system operatively connected that is adapted to measure a tubular load on at least one of the gripping mechanisms and to compare the tubular load to a predetermined load to deter nine whether the at least one gripping mechanism is gripping the tubular. The gripping mechanism is adapted to release the tubular only when the tubular load meets the predetermined load, upon which a release force sufficient to release the tubular from the gripping mechanism is applied to the tubular relative to the gripping mechanism. Methods of using the interlock apparatus are also described.

Weight-based interlock apparatus and methods

A system and method for reducing an electrical load in a facility or building with an automated demand response server having a hierarchical grouping of demand stages and demand groups with associated timers that control the shedding of load in order to achieve the appropriate level of load reduction and ramping up devices in a controlled manner upon the expiration of a demand response event.

Automated demand response gateway

An automated tubular handling system adapted to make-up or break-out tubulars that includes a rotary drive adapted to operatively grip a tubular to be connected to or disconnected from a tubular string, a controller adapted to receive and process data indicative of a rotation, torque, and minimum time value associated with a make-up or a break-out of the tubular string, and a user interface adapted to convey the received data, the predetermined values, or both, of the tubular make-up or break-out to an operator. The controller compares the rotation, torque, and minimum time values to acceptable predetermined values to determine when the make-up or the break-out is complete. Automated methods are also disclosed.

Automated systems and methods for make-up and break-out of tubulars

This invention relates to a downhole hydraulic pump for hydrocarbon wells that is installed and operated using coiled tubing. The downhole hydraulic pump is driven by a hydraulic power system positioned at the surface and connected through a closed loop system using multiple channels of the coiled tubing. The coiled tubing is formed of a combination of channels including strength component such as steel and having one channel that is at least lined with a non-metallic corrosion resistant surface where clean hydraulic fluid is carried from the hydraulic power system to the downhole hydraulic pump through the non-metallic corrosion resistant channel so to be less likely to pick up manufacturing and environmental particulates and corrosion by-products within the channel carrying the hydraulic fluid to the downhole hydraulic pump. The non-metallic corrosion resistant lined channel may comprise plastic pipe.

Multi-channel, combination coiled tubing strings for hydraulically driven downhole pump

A downhole pump system which allows the pump unit to be retrieved and re-installed through the production tubing while leaving the tubing, electrical cable, and the remainder of the components of the pump system in place. Preferably, the pump unit is run on a string of coiled-tubing through a lubricator which is positioned downhole in the production tubing. The pump unit includes a slip-joint at its upper end which (a) allows the length of the pump unit to be adjusted to compensate for the spacing between the seating surface and latching grooves in the nipple and (b) allows the pressures to be balanced across the pump unit during installation and retrieval.

Through-tubing, retrievable downhole pump system

A method and apparatus for producing (e.g. heavy oil) through a wellbore which passes through a permafrost layer. To maintain an acceptable flow temperature inside the production tubing, a heating element (e.g. electrical power cable having its leads short-circuited) is lowered down the production tubing to generate heat inside the tubing when electricity is supplied thereto. A sensor is provided to sense the temperature inside the tubing and activate a source to supply electricity to the cable whenever the temperature inside the production tubing drops below the desired temperature.

Production in frigid environments

A method and apparatus for removing solids from a substantially horizontal section of a wellbore which allows the use of coiled tubing as a workstring without requiring the removal of the production tubing from the wellbore. Guide tubing, which is left in the wellbore, extends from the surface through the horizontal section and is adapted to guide a string of slightly smaller-diameter, coiled tubing through the horizontal section. Wash fluid, e.g. water, flows through a nozzle on the coiled tubing and out through openings in the guide tubing directly into the solids to form a slurry therewith. The slurry is then pumped out of the wellbore through the production tubing and/or reenters the guide tubing through other opening(s) therein to flow to the surface through the annulus which exists between the coiled tubing and the guide tubing.

Method and apparatus for washing a horizontal wellbore with coiled tubing

A method and a pumping system for lifting formation fluids from a production zone in a wellbore which allows the pump unit to be retrieved through the production tubing while leaving the tubing, electrical cable, and the remainder of the components of the pumping system in place. A pump unit is retrievably positioned within the production tubing and is releasably connected to a downhole motor whereby the motor will drive the pump when electricity is supplied thereto through the cable secured to the tubing. This allows the pump unit to be both retrieved and installed through the tubing without removing the production tubing string, the motor, or the electrical cable from the wellbore.

Through-tubing, retrievable downhole submersible electrical pump and

A method and apparatus for desanding oil produced from a subterranean oil-bearing formation through a wellbore, the method comprising: flowing oil from the oil-bearing formation upwardly through a first tubing at a velocity sufficient to carry sand entrained in the oil upwardly through the first tubing; flowing the oil from the first tubing upwardly through a larger tubular section at a velocity sufficient to carry sand entrained in the oil upwardly to a perforated section positioned in a second tubing in the larger tubular section, the perforated section being positioned near the upper end of the larger tubular section; passing the oil through the perforated section and through a circumferential path around a dip tube positioned beneath the perforated section to centrifugally separate sand from the oil so that the sand is passed outwardly toward an inner diameter of the second tubing and downwardly to storage in a lower portion of the second tubing; and flowing the oil upwardly through the dip tube to a pump and through the pump and a third tubing to oil recovery at the surface.

Growing community of inventors

Garland, TX, United States of America

John C Patterson