Method and apparatus for zonal isolation and selective treatments of subterranean formations

• US 9,719,336 B2
• Filed: 07/23/2014
• Issued: 08/01/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Government of Saudi Arabia)
• Original Assignee: Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Government of Saudi Arabia)
• Inventors: Lynn, Jack D.
• Primary Examiner(s): HUTCHINS, CATHLEEN R
• Application Number:
  US14/338,493
• Publication Number:
  US 20160024899A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,105 Days
• Field of Search: 166127
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 23/06 for setting packers
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 33/1243 with inflatable sleeves
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/128 Adaptation of pump systems with down-hole electric drives
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/16 Enhanced recovery methods for obtaining hydrocarbons
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/25 Methods for stimulating production by vibrating earth formations E21B43/003
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/255 including the injection of a gaseous medium as treatment fluid into the formation
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/267 reinforcing fractures by propping
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/27 by use of eroding chemicals, e.g. acids

Abstract

A zonal isolation and treatment tool having a reversible fluid booster pump with a reversible motor, both an upper isolation and a lower isolation packer having an elastic surface, a treatment fluid distributor that provides selective fluid access and an electronics control package that couples to the reversible motor. The method includes introducing the tool into the well bore, inflating the upper and lower isolation packers using well bore fluid, introducing the treatment fluid into the well bore such that it is positioned proximate to the tool, operating the tool such that the treatment fluid is introduced into the isolated well bore volume, and maintaining the isolated well bore volume such that the targeted stratum forms a treated stratum.

Claims

1. A method of using a zonal isolation and treatment tool for introducing a treatment fluid to a targeted stratum within a formation such that the targeted stratum is converted to a treated stratum, the method comprising the steps of:

introducing the tool into a well bore such that the targeted stratum is positioned between an upper isolation packer and a lower isolation packer of the tool, where the well bore is defined by a well bore wall, where the well bore traverses the formation from a surface downwards to at least the targeted stratum, where the well bore is filled with a well bore fluid, and where both the upper and lower isolation packers are each operable to fluidly seal against the well bore wall upon inflation;

operating the tool such that a reversible fluid booster pump of the tool draws the well bore fluid into the tool and each of the upper and lower isolation packers are inflated with the well bore fluid such that both the upper and lower isolation packer seal fluidly against the well bore wall, where the upper isolation packer seals uphole of the targeted stratum and the lower isolation packer seals downhole of the targeted stratum such that an isolated well bore volume forms between the upper isolation packer and the lower isolation packer, where the isolated well bore volume is selectively fluidly accessible to a remainder of the well bore through a treatment fluid distributor of the tool, where at least a portion of the well bore wall associated with the targeted stratum is located between the upper and lower isolation packers, where the portion of the well bore wall associated with the targeted stratum is operable to provide fluid communication between the isolated well bore volume and the targeted stratum, where the tool includes the reversible fluid booster pump that is operable to draw the well bore fluid into the tool through a pump fluid access port, and where the tool includes the treatment fluid distributor that is operable to provide selective fluid access between the isolated well bore volume and the remainder of the well bore;

introducing the treatment fluid from the surface into the well bore such that the treatment fluid is positioned within an annular space defined between the well bore wall and the tool proximate to the pump fluid access port of the tool;

operating the tool such that the reversible fluid booster pump draws the treatment fluid into the tool from the well bore through the pump fluid access port and that the treatment fluid distributor discharges the treatment fluid from the tool out through a treatment fluid port and into the isolated well bore volume; and

maintaining the isolated well bore volume such that the treatment fluid interacts with the targeted stratum through the portion of the well bore wall associated with the targeted stratum, where the treatment fluid forms a spent treatment fluid and the targeted stratum forms the treated stratum upon interaction with one other.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of operating the tool such that the spent treatment fluid is drawn into the treatment fluid distributor through the treatment fluid port and the reversible fluid booster pump discharges the spent treatment fluid from the tool through the pump fluid access port into the remainder of the well bore, and circulating the well bore fluid down the well bore to carry the spent treatment fluid towards the surface.

3. The method of claim 2 where the tool is operated such that that the spent treatment fluid is drawn into the treatment fluid distributor through the treatment fluid port from the isolated well bore volume at a volumetric flow rate in a range of from about 10 gallons per minute to about 100 gallons per minute.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of removing the spent treatment fluid from the well bore.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of operating the tool such that the upper and lower isolation packers are not operable to fluidly seal against the well bore wall and such that the isolated well bore volume is not fluidly isolated from the remainder of the well bore, where the well bore fluid within the upper and lower isolation packers is discharged through the pump fluid access port of the reversible fluid booster pump.

6. The method of claim 1 where the treatment fluid is selected from the group consisting of matrix acidizing fluids, acid or pressure fracking fluids, acidic wellbore treatment fluids, fluids with proppants, polymer water shut-off fluids, chemical diversion fluids and gels, di-phase fluids for enhanced oil recovery, tri-phase fluids for enhanced oil recovery, foams, surfactant solutions, mud and scale removal treatment fluids, relativity permeability modifiers fluids, and water conformance fluids.

7. The method of claim 1 where introducing the treatment fluid into the well bore is performed by bullheading the treatment fluid into the well bore.

8. The method of claim 1 where the tool is operated such that the treatment fluid distributor discharges the treatment fluid into the isolated well bore volume at a volumetric flow rate of from about 10 gallons per minute to about 100 gallons per minute.

9. The method of claim 1 where the tool is operated such that the treatment fluid distributor discharges the treatment fluid into the isolated well bore volume at a volumetric flow rate such that the portion of the well bore wall associated with the targeted stratum becomes abraded.

10. The method of claim 1 where the isolated well bore volume is maintained such that a fluid pressure within the isolated well bore volume is at a pressure less than about a pore pressure of the targeted stratum.

11. The method of claim 1 where the isolated well bore volume is maintained such that a fluid pressure within the isolated well bore volume is at a pressure greater than about a pore pressure and less than about a fracture pressure of the targeted stratum.

12. The method of claim 1 where the isolated well bore volume is maintained such that a fluid pressure within the isolated well bore volume is at a pressure greater than a fracture pressure of the targeted stratum.

13. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of operating the zonal isolation and treatment tool such that a hydrocarbon-bearing fluid is drawn into the treatment fluid distributor through the treatment fluid port and the reversible fluid booster pump discharges the hydrocarbon-bearing fluid from the tool through the pump fluid access port into the well bore.

14. The method of claim 13 where the hydrocarbon-bearing fluid is drawn into the treatment fluid distributor at a volumetric flow rate of from about 100 barrels per day to about 10,000 barrels per day.

15. A zonal isolation and treatment tool comprising:

a reversible fluid booster pump having a reversible motor mechanically coupled to a booster pump, where the reversible fluid booster pump has a plurality of pump fluid access ports spaced circumferentially around an outer diameter of the reversible fluid booster pump that are operable to provide selective fluid access from an annular space defined between the well bore wall and the tool above an upper isolation packer through the booster pump and where the booster pump is coupled to an internal fluid conduit located within the tool;

the upper isolation packer and a lower isolation packer, each having an elastic surface that is operable to fluidly seal against another surface when inflated, each being selectively fluidly coupled through the internal fluid conduit with the booster pump;

a treatment fluid distributor that is located upstring of the lower isolation packer and downstring of the upper isolation packer, has a plurality of treatment fluid ports spaced circumferentially around an outer diameter of the treatment fluid distributor that are operable to provide selective fluid access to the internal fluid conduit, and are selectively fluidly coupled through the internal fluid conduit with the booster pump; and

an electronics control package that is electrically coupled to the reversible motor and is operable to maintain selectively both spin direction and spin rate of the reversible motor of the reversible fluid booster pump.

16. The tool of claim 15 where a volumetric pumping rate for the reversible fluid booster pump is in a range of from about 10 gallons per minute to about 100 gallons per minute.

17. The tool of claim 15 where a volumetric pumping rate for the reversible fluid booster pump is in a range of from about 100 barrels to about 10,000 barrels of hydrocarbon-bearing fluid per day.

18. The tool of claim 15 where the electronics control package is electrically coupled to the treatment fluid distributor such that the electronics control package is operable to maintain the selective fluid access to the internal fluid conduit through the treatment fluid ports.

19. The tool of claim 15 where the electronics control package is electrically coupled to the treatment fluid distributor such that the electronics control package is operable to maintain the selective fluid access of the treatment fluid distributor to the booster pump.

20. The tool of claim 15 further comprising a sensor, where the sensor is signally coupled to the electronics control package and is operable to both detect a wellbore condition within the isolated well bore volume and send an associated signal related to the detected wellbore condition to the electronics control package.

21. The tool of claim 20 where the electronics control package is operable to modify operation of the tool based upon the associated signal related to the detected wellbore condition automatically based upon pre-determined instructions.