Cyclic Annulus Pressure Controlled Oil Well Flow Valve and Method

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a method and apparatus for controlling the operation of flow valves disposed in a subterranean oil well, particularly safety valves located near the bottom of a well.

2. Description of the Prior Art

A safety valve is installed in a subterranean well to insure that the production flow can be reliably interrupted in the event of any emergency, such as a fire at the well head. The prior art is replete with examples of operating mechanisms for safety valves, and a description of the common problems encountered with the prior art mechanisms may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,831,632 to Young.

This invention provides a method and apparatus for effecting the operation of a two position flow valve in a conduit of an oil well, and particularly a safety valve located above the production zone or zones of a subterranean well, by utilizing cyclic pressure variations of fluid confined in the annulus between conduits, such as the well casing and the production string. Such cyclic fluid variation is produced at the well head by suitable pumping apparatus and, adjacent to the flow valve installation in the well, a hydraulically operated mechanism, including valves and pressure accumulators, is provided which effects the conversion of the cyclic pressure into a pressure signal. The signal is applied to the flow valve in opposition to the spring or other form of bias normally maintained on the actuator plunger of such flow valve to keep it in one of its two positions (open or closed). So long as the cyclic pressure exists in the casing fluid, the valve is maintained in the other position, but on termination of the cyclic pressure, the aforementioned hydraulic apparatus functions to decrease the pressure signal applied to the actuating plunger and permit the plunger to move to its spring biased position, thus opening or closing the valve as the case may be. The surface pump which generates the cyclic annulus pressure can be controlled manually or automatically with conventional electronic or pneumatic components so that conventional surface safety systems can be employed to shut in the downhole safety valve.

Utilization of the method and apparatus of this invention eliminates the necessity for running separate hydraulic or mechanical lines down the well casing to the valve, and yet provides reliable operation of the valve as a function of the existence of the cyclic pressure applied at the well head to the casing or well fluid.

FIG. 1 is a schematic hydraulic diagram of the apparatus employed to operate a fluid flow valve disposed in the production casing of a subterranean well in accordance with this invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic elevational view illustrating the installation position of the various control elements relative to the control valve and the production string of a subterranean well.

FIG. 3 is a chart illustrating the relative magnitudes of the two pressure signals derived in accordance with this invention from the cyclically varying pressure of the annulus fluid.

FIG. 4 is a chart similar to that illustrated in FIG. 3 showing the response at the termination of cyclic annulus pressure.

Referring to FIG. 1, the numeral 10 schematically represents a section of a production tubing of an oil well which is radially enlarged as indicated at 10a to provide a housing for a flow valve 20. A compression spring 25 normally operates on one side of an annular valve actuating piston 26 and imposes a bias on such piston, which is directly connected to the control valve 20 by annular plunger portion 26a, to maintain the control valve 20 in either an open or a closed position, depending on the function of the particular flow control valve. If the particular valve is to be employed as a safety valve, then the upward bias of spring 25 will be effective to maintain the valve 20 in a closed position.

Cylinder chambers 27 and 28 are respectively provided on opposite sides of the piston 26, and a signal, derived from a high pressure controller 30, is applied to the one cylinder chamber 27 in opposition to the bias imposed by the spring 25, and a pressure signal from a low pressure controller 40 is applied to the other cylinder chamber 28 and acts on the piston 26 in the same direction as the spring 25.

Referring now to FIG. 2, it will be seen that the flow valve 20 is preferably disposed adjacent the bottom of the well, immediately above the packer 5 which produces a conventional seal between the bottom end of the production tubing 10 and the interior of the well casing 1. The production zone of the well is indicated by the perforations 1a provided in the casing 1 below the packer 5. Between the production tubing 10 and the interior of the casing 1, there is thus defined an annulus 1b extending to the well head. This annulus 1b is customarily filled with fluid, which normally is a specially treated completion fluid. The annulus 1b is closed at its top end by a barrier 1c and connected by a conduit 1d to a pumping unit 6 which is capable of producing cyclic variations in the absolute pressure of the fluid contained in the annulus 1b. The absolute pressure variation in the annulus fluid is obviously a function of the depth of the well and the pressures existing at the portion of the well where the flow valve 20 is located. Normally, a cyclic pressure variation on the order of 100 to 500 pounds per square inch is employed. The pump 6 may be any one of several commercially available types, but preferably comprises a pump shown in the co-pending application Ser. No. 73,335, filed, Sept. 7, 1979, entitled "Pump Assembly Comprising Gas Spring Means", and co-pending application Ser. No. 80,747, filed Oct. 1, 1979, entitled "Apparatus For Pumping Fluid From A Well", each of said co-pending applications being assigned to the same assignee of this present invention.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the high pressure controller 30 is designed to produce a unidirectional pressure signal which is proportional to the peak values of the cyclic pressure produced in the annulus fluid by the pump 6. Conversely, the low pressure controller 40 is designed to produce a unidirectional pressure signal that is proportional to the lower or bottom portions of the cylically varying pressure of the annulus fluid. The high pressure controller 30 incorporates an inlet 30a exposed to the annulus fluid and permitting such cyclically varying pressured fluid to impinge directly upon a floating piston 31 mounted for reciprocation in a cylindrical bore 32. The chamber 32a defined above piston 31, is filled with an appropriate fluid, such as oil, and two conduits 33a and 33b are respectively provided between the chamber 32a and a lower chamber 34b of an accumulator 34. The conduit 33a is normally closed by a check-valve 35, while fluid conduit 33b comprises a limited flow bleed orifice. A floating piston 36 is provided in the chamber 34 and the space 34a above piston 36 constitutes a pressure accumulating chamber which may be precharged at the surface with either a gas or liquid, depending upon the magnitude of the absolute pressure to which the apparatus is exposed in the particular well. A conduit 37 leads from the chamber 34b disposed beneath the piston 36 to the cylinder chamber 27 within which the piston 26 is operative.

Thus, as the absolute pressure of the annulus fluid increases, due to the cyclic pressure applied by the pump 6 at the well head, the floating piston 31 moves upwardly and produces a flow of fluid from the reservoir 32a through the check valve 35 and into the reservoir 34b thus producing an upward motion of the piston 36, further compressing the gas or fluid trapped in the upper chamber 34a. The result is that the pressure in the chamber 27 above the valve actuating piston 26 is substantially increased sufficient to overcome the bias of the spring 25 and maintain the safety valve 20 in its open position. The reduction of the cyclic pressure below such peak values, however, effects a closing of the check valve 35 and the maintenance of a slightly decreasing unidirectional pressure in the chamber 27 by virtue of the return of the piston 36 to its starting position by the higher pressure existing in the reservoir chamber 34b. The reduction in this pressure value is limited by the bleeding action of the orifice passage 33b. Thus, as the cyclic pressure of the annulus fluid decreases, a slight decrease is experienced in the pressure applied to the chamber 27 above the actuating piston 26 as represented by the line PH in FIG. 3, but this reduction is not sufficient to cause valve 20 to close.

The low pressure controller 40 is very similar in construction to the high pressure controller 30, but generates a unidirectional pressure signal that is responsive to the low portions of cyclic pressure of the annulus fluid. Thus, the annulus fluid pressure is applied to the entrance 40a of a cylindrical bore 41 within which a floating piston 42 is disposed. Above the piston 42, there is a reservoir chamber 41a which is connected by two passages 42a and 42b to the lower chamber 44a of an accumulator 44. The upper portion 44b of the accumulator chamber 40 is precharged with an appropriate gas or fluid, depending upon the absolute magnitude of the pressure existing at the location of the control apparatus. The lower chamber 44a is connected by a conduit 47 to the chamber 28 located on the lower, or spring assisted side of the actuating piston 26. A check valve 45 is disposed in the passage 42a, but this check valve prevents flow from the reservoir chamber 41a into the pressure accumulating chamber 44a anytime that the pressure in the chamber 41a exceeds that of the pressure accumulating chamber 44a. The passage 42b incorporates a bleed orifice to permit a high pressure in the reservoir chamber 41a to slowly bleed into the pressure accumulator chamber 44a.

The end result of the operation of the low pressure controller is to maintain an output pressure PL which is as low or lower than the cyclic annulus pressure PA. This relationship is shown in FIG. 3. Following the low pressure controller through a cycle of annulus pressure PA:

1. When annulus pressure PA is at its minimum it will be equal to the low pressure controller output PL.

2. As annulus pressure PA increases, the back check valve 45 closes preventing flow through passage 42a. Flow occurs from reservoir 41a to the pressure accumulator section 44a through the bleed passage 42b. So as annulus pressure PA increases, the low pressure controller output PL increases at a much slower rate and is controlled by the size of the bleed passage 42b.

3. After the annulus pressure PA reaches its maximum pressure, it then declines to the point that it equals the low pressure controller output PL. At this point the back check valve 45 now opens and allows the fluid in the accumulator chamber 44a to rapidly flow into fluid reservoir 41a. The opening of the back check valve 45 maintains the low pressure controller output PL at essentially the same value as the annulus pressure PA as the annulus pressure decreases to its minimum value as shown in FIG. 3.

The next effect of this sequence is to maintain the pressure in chamber 28 at a value less than or equal to the cyclic annulus pressure PA as shown in FIG. 3.

Since the unidirectional signal pressure PH produced by the high pressure controller 30 is applied to the piston 26 in direct opposition to the pressure PL applied from the low pressure signal generator 40, it is therefore apparent that sufficient pressure will be generated on the piston 26 to shift the piston 26 against the bias of the spring 25 so long as the differential pressure DP, as indicated in FIG. 3, acting over the exposed piston area defined at the seal of the piston 26 is of sufficiently large magnitude to overcome the bias of the spring 25 and maintain the flow valve 20 in its downward position. In the event that the valve 20 is a safety valve, this means that the valve 20 will be maintained in its opened position so long as a sufficient magnitude of cyclically varying pressure is applied to the annulus fluid by the well-head pump 6.

Now referring to FIG. 4, when pump cycling is terminated, both the high pressure controller PH and the output PL of the low pressure controller tend toward the resulting constant annulus pressure PA. When the differential pressure PD reaches some preset value, the spring 25 exerts sufficient force to cause the piston 26 to move up and allow the valve 20 to close. Now, in the event that the cyclic annulus pressure PA is terminated or sufficiently reduced, the valve 20 will close, thus shutting in the well.

The reason for employing the difference between the high pressure signal generated by the unit 30 and the low pressure signal generated by the unit 40 is to completely eliminate any effects of the ambient pressure existing in the lower portions of the well where the apparatus is positioned. The effects of these variations are eliminated through the utilization of the aforedescribed differential pressure method and apparatus.

The apparatus schematically shown in FIG. 1 may be incorporated within the well casing 1 through the employment of conventional constructions. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the pressure accumulator 44 of low pressure signal generator 40 may take the form of an annular housing surrounding the production casing 10. The other valving apparatus embodied in the low pressure signal generator 40, such as the chamber 41, the piston 42, the check valve 45, etc. may be incorporated in a conventional side pocket mandrel 52. Next inline is another annular accumulator 34 which comprises the pressure accumulator chamber 34a of the high pressure signal generating apparatus 30. Below this accumulator is a second side pocket mandrel 54 incorporating the cylinder 32, the floating piston 31, and the check valve 35, etc., of the high pressure signal generator 30. The components of the safety valve 20, including the piston 26 and spring 25, may be disposed in an annular housing 60 mounted immediately above the packer 5.

The specific mounting of a described apparatus within the well forms no part of the instant invention inasmuch as conventional mounting techniques may be employed.

The operation of the fluid flow valve by the method and apparatus of this invention, should now be readily apparent. As long as a significant cyclic variation is maintained in the pressure of the annulus fluid, a sufficient bias will be applied to the actuating piston of the control valve to overcome the spring bias on such valve and move the valve to its opened or closed position as the case may be. As soon as the cyclic pressure is interrupted, or significantly decreased in magnitude, the unidirectional differential pressure signal generated by the apparatus of this invention will diminish to a point that it will be unable to overcome the spring bias on the actuating piston of the valve, and the valve will move toward the position to which it is urged by the spring.

In the case of the safety valve, most catastrophic events which require the operation of the safety valve to closed position generally cause a severe disruption to the apparatus disposed at the well head. Any such disruption would immediately effect the discontinuance of the application of a cyclic pressure to the annulus fluid and the spring urging the safety valve to its closed position would be effective to promptly close the valve.

Although the invention has been described in terms of specified embodiments which are set forth in detail, it should be understood that this is by illustration only and that the invention is not necessarily limited thereto, since alternative embodiments and operating techniques will become apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the disclosure. Accordingly, modifications are contemplated which can be made without departing from the spirit of the described invention.