Weatherford Netherlands, B.v.

Weatherford Technology Holdings, LLC

Weatherford/lamb, Inc.

Marcel Budde

Douglas Farley

Forrest Parker

Mark Baas

Douglas Brian Farley

George Givens

Brent James Lirette

Michael LoGiudice

Ivan Andre Barannikow

Peter Endenburg

Norman Vladimir Parra Mayorga

Peter Edenburg

A wiper plug includes a mandrel and a seal unit disposed about the mandrel. The seal unit has a body and one or more fins extending outwardly from the body. An anti-extrusion assembly is disposed about the mandrel, and is arranged to transition between an initial configuration and an energized configuration. The anti-extrusion assembly limits extrusion of at least a portion of the seal unit.

Wiper plug

A subsurface release plug system includes a plug mandrel body and a plug. The plug mandrel body includes a bore, a flow port fluidly connected to the bore, and a sleeve adjustable from a first position to a second position. The sleeve prevents fluid flow through the flow port when in the first position and allows fluid flow through the flow port when in the second position. The plug is releasably connected to the plug mandrel body, wherein the plug is configured to be released from the plug mandrel body by fluid flowing through the flow port.

Sub-surface release plug system

A top latch-in plug includes a housing having a bore and a transitionable seal. The transitionable seal seals the bore of the housing when in a first configuration, and the transitionable seal unseals the bore when in a second configuration. The transitionable seal is triggerable to transition from the first configuration to the second configuration. A casing floatation system includes a casing having a pre-load collar and a landing collar; and a lower bottom latch-in plug. The lower bottom latch in plug includes a catch mechanism compatible with the pre-load collar; and a landing mechanism compatible with the landing collar.

Top plug with transitionable seal

A diverter tool reduces surge pressure when running casing into a wellbore. The tool is kept open while running the casing so surge pressure can pass out a bypass port. The tool is then closed with a ball that lands in a seat disposed in an interposed condition in a sleeve of the tool's housing. Fluid pressure applied against the seat in the interposed condition engaged with the ball overcomes a first fixture temporarily holding the sleeve open. The fluid pressure shifts the freed sleeve closed. Additional fluid pressure applied against the seat with the captured ball then overcomes a second fixture temporarily holding the seat in the sleeve. Once freed, the seat with the captured ball pivots from the interposed condition to a stowed condition to expose the internal bore of the sleeve to the longitudinal bore of the tool so additional cementing operations can be performed.

Diverter tool and associated methods

Methods and apparatus are provided for cementing a liner. In one embodiment, the method includes releasing a dart behind a cement; landing the dart in an activation seat; increasing pressure to activate a liner hanger; further increasing pressure to release the dart from the activation seat; landing the dart in a plug; and increasing pressure to release the dart and the plug. In one embodiment, releasing the dart from the activation seat comprises deforming the dart.

Multi-function dart

A top latch-in plug includes a housing having a bore; and a transitionable seal, wherein: the transitionable seal seals the bore of the housing when in a first configuration, the transitionable seal unseals the bore when in a second configuration, and the transitionable seal is triggerable to transition from the first configuration to the second configuration. A casing floatation system includes a casing having a pre-load collar and a landing collar; and a lower bottom latch-in plug comprising: a catch mechanism compatible with the pre-load collar; and a landing mechanism compatible with the landing collar.

A casing floatation system includes a casing having a pre-load collar and a landing collar; and a lower bottom latch-in plug comprising: a catch mechanism compatible with the pre-load collar; and a landing mechanism compatible with the landing collar. A method of well completion includes floating a casing in a wellbore with a casing floatation system having a pre-load collar; sequentially engaging a lower bottom latch-in plug and a top latch-in plug having a transitionable seal; pressure testing the casing; and triggering the transitionable seal to unseal the bore of the top latch-in plug.

Casing floatation system with latch-in-plugs

A method of pressure testing a wellbore during a cementing operation includes positioning a tubular within a wellbore, the tubular including a collar assembly at a distal end of the tubular; urging cement through the collar assembly using a plug, the plug including a releasable sealing member; releasing the sealing member from the plug; sealing the collar assembly using the sealing member; and pressurizing the tubular to a predetermined test pressure and holding the predetermined test pressure for a predetermined time period. In another embodiment, a cementing plug for use with a collar assembly includes a plug body having a bore; and a releasable sealing member coupled to the bore, wherein sealing member is configured to engage and seal the collar assembly, after release.

System and method for sealing a wellbore

A setting tool includes a housing, a mandrel disposed in a bore of the housing, a sleeve disposed between the mandrel and the housing, the sleeve movable from a first position to a second position, a biasing member for biasing the sleeve towards the second position, a first fluid flow path through a bore of the mandrel, and a second flow path in an annulus formed between the mandrel and the housing, wherein the sleeve blocks fluid flow through the second flow path when the sleeve is in the second position.

Setting tool with pressure shock absorber

A method for cementing a tubular string into a wellbore includes: running the tubular string into the wellbore using a workstring having a deployment assembly; delivering an opener activator through the workstring to the deployment assembly, thereby launching an opener plug from the deployment assembly; pumping the opener activator and plug to a stage valve of the tubular string, thereby opening the stage valve; pumping cement slurry into the workstring; pumping a closer activator through the workstring behind the cement slurry, thereby launching a closer plug from the deployment assembly; and pumping the closer activator and plug to the open stage valve, thereby driving the cement slurry into an annulus between the tubular string and the wellbore and closing the stage valve.

Surge immune stage system for wellbore tubular cementation

A closure device is provided to close a surge pressure reduction tool disposed in a deviated wellbore. The closure device may include a tubular body, a fin, and a rupture disk disposed in the tubular body. The closure device may be pumped downhole to close the tool.

Closure device for a surge pressure reduction tool

A method of running casing in a dual gradient system includes lowering a casing into a low density fluid region and allowing the low density fluid to enter the casing; releasing a plug into the casing; supplying a high density fluid behind the plug; and lowering the casing into a high density fluid region until target depth is reached.

Apparatus and methods of running casing in a dual gradient system

The present invention relates to an apparatus for dropping a ball into a wellbore. The apparatus is particularly useful for dropping a ball that has a diameter that is larger than the diameter of a bore within a wellbore tool above the apparatus. The ball-releasing apparatus first comprises a tubular body. The tubular body has a bore therethrough that is in fluid communication with the bore of the wellbore tool. A piston is placed within the tubular body. The piston has a top end disposed within the tubular body, and a bottom end disposed below the bore of the wellbore tool. The ball-releasing apparatus further comprises a connector for releasably connecting the piston to the ball. In one arrangement, the ball-releasing apparatus is connected to the bottom of a wiper plug for dropping a ball during a wellbore cementing operation. In one aspect, the ball is dropped by dropping a second ball having a diameter that will pass through the wellbore restriction, and then injecting fluid under pressure against the second smaller ball in order to actuate the releasable connection.

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Vlaardingen, Netherlands

Marcel Budde