System and method of supplying power to loads of a drilling rig

• US 9,059,587 B2
• Filed: 03/13/2012
• Issued: 06/16/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/04/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nabors Drillling Technologies USA, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Kevin R. Williams
• Inventors: Williams, Kevin R.
• Primary Examiner(s): KAPLAN, HAL IRA
• Application Number:
  US13/419,125
• Publication Number:
  US 20120223524A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,190 Days
• Field of Search: 307/23, 307/25, 307/26
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/007 Arrangements for selectively connecting the load or loads to one or several among a plurality of power lines or power sources for providing uninterruptable power supply H02J9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/38 Arrangements for parallely feeding a single network by two or more generators, converters or transformers
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 5/00 Circuit arrangements for transfer of electric power between ac networks and dc networks H02J3/36 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/02 for charging batteries from ac mains by converters
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 7/18 Structural association of electric generators with mechanical driving motors, e.g. with turbines

Abstract

A system for providing power to a load of a drilling rig has a natural gas engine/generator and an energy storage system. The load is switchably connected to one or both of the natural engine/generator and the energy storage system. The natural gas engine/generator and the energy storage system have a capacity suitable for supplying requisite power to the load. A rectifier is connected to an output line of the engine/generator so as to convert the AC power to DC power. This rectifier is a phase-controlled silicon-controlled rectifier so as to be responsive to a power requirement of the load. The energy storage system is a battery.

Claims

1. A system for the supply of power to a drilling rig, the system comprising:

a natural gas engine/generator having an output line so as to supply AC power;

an energy storage system; and

a load switchably connected to said natural gas engine/generator and said energy storage system, said natural gas engine/generator and said energy storage system having a capacity suitable for supplying requisite power to said load, a rectifying means connected to said output line of said natural gas engine/generator, said rectifying means for converting the AC power to DC power, said rectifying means being a silicon-controlled rectifier, said silicon-controlled rectifier being phase-controlled so as to be responsive to a power requirement of said load.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a natural gas supply cooperative with said natural gas engine/generator so as to supply natural gas to said natural gas engine/generator.

3. The system of claim 2, said natural gas supply being a wellhead gas.

4. The system of claim 1, said load being at least one component of the drilling rig.

5. The system of claim 1, said energy storage system being a battery.

6. A system for the supply of power to a drilling rig, the system comprising:

a natural gas engine/generator having an output line so as to supply AC power;

an energy storage system;

a load switchably connected to said natural gas engine/generator and said energy storage system, said natural gas engine/generator and said energy storage system having a capacity suitable for supplying requisite power to said load; and

a phase microcontroller connected to said load and to said natural gas engine/generator, said phase microcontroller cooperative with said energy storage system so as to supply power from said energy storage system to said load individually or in combination with said natural gas engine/generator.

7. A system for the supply of power to a drilling rig, the system comprising:

a natural gas engine/generator having an output line so as to supply AC power;

an energy storage system;

a load switchably connected to said natural gas engine/generator and said energy storage system, said natural gas engine/generator and said energy storage system having a capacity suitable for supplying requisite power to said load, said natural gas engine/generator comprising a plurality of natural gas engine/generators having the output lines thereof connected to a common AC bus, said load comprising a plurality of loads connected by a line to a common DC bus, said energy storage system connected to said common DC bus;

a rectifying means connected between said common AC bus and said common DC bus so as to cause said plurality of natural gas engine/generators to pass DC power to said common DC bus; and

a plurality of autotransformers respectively connected between said plurality of natural gas engine/generators and said common AC bus.

8. A system for the supply of power to a drilling rig, the system comprising:

a natural gas engine/generator having an output line so as to supply AC power;

an energy storage system;

a load switchably connected to said natural gas engine/generator and said energy storage system, said natural gas engine/generator and said energy storage system having a capacity suitable for supplying requisite power to said load; and

a switching means for switching a supply of power to said load between said natural gas engine/generator and said energy storage system based on a power output of said natural gas engine/generator and based upon the requisite power required by said load.

9. The system of claim 8, said switching means for monitoring the output of said natural gas engine/generator.

10. A method for the supply of power to a drilling rig, the method comprising:

producing power from an natural gas engine/generator so as to produce an AC power output;

providing an energy storage system switchably connected to a load; and

switching power supplied to the load between one or both of said natural gas engine/generators and said energy storage system based upon a power requirement of the load.

11. The method of claim 10, said further comprising:

rectifying the AC power output from said natural gas engine/generator so as to pass DC power to the load.

12. The method of claim 11, the step of switching comprising:

switching the rectified power by a phase-controlled microcontroller.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

switching power from said natural gas engine/generator to said energy storage system when the power output of the natural gas engine/generator exceeds the power requirement of the load.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

delivering a supply of natural gas from a wellhead adjacent said natural gas engine/generator to the natural gas engine/generator.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

autotransforming the AC power output from said natural gas engine/generator; and

rectifying the autotransformed AC power from said natural gas engine/generator so as to pass DC power to the load.