Well servicing combination unit

Abstract

A single well servicing combination unit comprising: a hydraulic manifold removably connectable to the power-take-off of an external power source to drive a plurality of hydraulic pumps and motors that control a plurality of well servicing units mounted on said combination unit, said well servicing units being interconnectable by plumbing.

Description

FIELD[0001]This invention rotates, generally, to the treatment of oil and gas wells using fluids to increase the production capability of the wells, and more specifically, to providing for treatment of oil and gas wells with a means and apparatus that combines multiple unite—which may include: coiled tubing, nitrogen generation, fluid pumping, blending tanks, wireline inspection, and other units—into a single unit powered by an external source.BACKGROUND[0002]It is known in the art to use self-powered units to provide wireline inspection and workover operations using gaseous nitrogen to remove sand and / or water or other impediments to production of oil and gas wells. The prior art has not recognized that a single, relatively small, engineless unit requiring minimal set-up / take-down time can be provided with all of the equipment and accessories for tapping into an onsite power source to run a combined and integrated system that may include one or more of the following: coiled tubing ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0063]One advantage of the present invention is that it makes it possible to do with one unit and an onsite power source what previously required five separate powered units—a wireline inspection unit, a coiled tubing unit, a liquid nitrogen tank transport means, a powered unit with a high pressure pumping system for other chemicals and acids, and a unit with a nitrogen pumping means. Because this embodiment allows one unit to do what once required several powered units connected together with the requisite hoses and plumbing, the time and expense of plumbing rig-up is avoided. Disconnecting and stowing all of the plumbing after completion is also avoided, saving additional time and labor. Where the prior art would have taken several units and several days (for set-up, inspection, well treatment, and disassembly), the preferred embodiment of the present invention can do the same job with one unit in one day. The present invention saves the trouble and expense of transporting five separate power sources to the site, each of which takes up over sixty square feet of deck space, allowing tins combined unit to be smaller and cheaper than any prior art equivalent. The smallest existing vessel with a coil tubing unit is a 175 class boat, yet an embodiment of the present invention with an integrated coil tubing unit along with four other integrated units can be placed on a single 105 class boat. The deck load of the prior art equivalent would be about 150,000 pounds, yet an embodiment of the present invention has a deck load of only about 50,000 pounds, allowing operations in shallower water. The danger of transporting liquid nitrogen, which is an explosion hazard, is also avoided. Hazards associated with running plumbing and hoses from boat to boat arc also avoided, and fewer personnel are required. As far as the inventor knows, the preferred embodiment of the present invention has a smaller footprint and lighter weight than airy functional equivalent.

Problems solved by technology

Separate, dedicated power sources for each unit drastically increases the mass and volume that must be transported.

Current power packs are horsepower limited, which limits the equipment that each can drive.

Even with a hydraulic power manifold to drive multiple units from a single engine, the horsepower limits how many can be integrated.

The requirement for multiple (or much larger) transportation units increases the transportation costs, time, and personnel required to bring the units to the well and run these services.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,230,805 (Vercaemer) teaches a method of hydraulic fracturing in which at least two separate fracturing fluid components are pumped downhole—one of said components being pumped downhole within coiled tubing—but does not teach how to accomplish this with a single compact unit in which all equipment is powered by an onsite engine and that also provides for the coil tubing operation and wireline inspection.

Also, no means for wireline inspection is provided.

The off-shore prior-art that has the same functionality as the present invention is larger, more expensive, and requires either multiple barges or ships—necessitating additional time and expense for set up and take down of ship to ship plumbing—or a larger, more expensive barge or ship that has a deeper draft and can therefore depart from and reach fewer locations.

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