Electronically-actuated cementing port collar

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10174586-B2
Application number	US-201615130757-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 15, 2016
Priority date	Jul 26, 2013
Publication date	Jan 8, 2019
Grant date	Jan 8, 2019

Abstract

A cementing port collar has an opening sleeve biased from a closed position to an opened position relative to the collar's exit port, and a first restraint temporarily holds the opening sleeve closed. The collar also has a closing sleeve biased from an opened position to a closed position, and a second restraint temporarily holds the closing sleeve opened. During cementing, the first restraint is electronically activated with a first trigger to release the opening sleeve opened so cement slurry can pass out of the collar's exit port to the borehole annulus. When cementing is completed, the second restraint is electronically activated with a second trigger to release the closing sleeve closed to close off the collar to the borehole so the cement can set. The restraints can include bands of synthetic fiber, which are burned by fuses activated by a controller of the collar responding to passage of RFID tags.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A port collar for use on casing in a borehole, the port collar comprising:
a housing disposed on the casing and having an internal bore, the housing having at least one exit port communicating the internal bore with the borehole;
an opening valve disposed on the housing and being movable from a closed position to an opened position relative to the at least one exit port;
a closing valve disposed on the housing and being movable from an opened position to a closed position relative to the at least one exit port;
at least one bias on the housing being independent of tubing pressure in the casing and of annulus pressure in the borehole and acting to move the opening and closing valves; and
an electronic controller controlling the at least one bias, the electronic controller receiving at least one activation signal downhole at the port collar and at least activating in a first activation the opening valve to move via the at least one bias from the closed position to the opened position,
wherein the closing valve is activated to move via the at least one bias from the opened position to the closed position at least after the first activation of the opening valve.

2. The port collar of claim 1 , wherein the housing comprises an inner mandrel having the internal bore and having the at least one exit port.

3. The port collar of claim 2 , wherein the opening valve comprises an opening sleeve disposed outside the inner mandrel and being movable relative thereto.

4. The port collar of claim 3 , wherein the housing comprises an intermediate mandrel disposed outside the opening sleeve, the opening sleeve being movable in an annulus between the intermediate mandrel and the inner mandrel.

5. The port collar of claim 3 , wherein the closing valve comprises a closing sleeve disposed outside the inner mandrel and being movable relative thereto.

6. The port collar of claim 5 , wherein the housing comprises an external mandrel disposed outside the closing sleeve, the closing sleeve being movable in an annulus between the external mandrel and the inner mandrel.

7. The port collar of claim 1 , wherein the electronic controller comprises a sensor responsive to the at least one activation signal.

8. The port collar of claim 7 , wherein the sensor comprises a reader responsive to passage of at least one radio frequency identification tag.

9. The port collar of claim 1 , further comprising a shifting tool deploying in the internal bore of the housing, the shifting tool providing the at least one activation signal.

10. The port collar of claim 1 , wherein the opening valve is biased by the at least one bias from the closed position to the opened position; and wherein the electronic controller comprises a first restraint holding the opening valve biased in the closed position and releasing the opening valve biased to the opened position in response to the first activation from the electronic controller.

11. The port collar of claim 10 , wherein the closing valve is biased by the at least one bias from the opened position to the closed position; and wherein the electronic controller comprises a second restraint holding the closing valve biased in the opened position and releasing the closing valve biased to the closed position in response to a second activation from the electronic controller.

12. The port collar of claim 10 , wherein the first restraint comprises a member placed in tension and holding the biased opening valve closed.

13. The port collar of claim 12 , wherein the member comprises a synthetic fiber.

14. The port collar of claim 10 , wherein the first restraint comprises a fuse connected to the first restraint and breaking the first restraint in response to the first activation.

15. The port collar of claim 14 , wherein the first restraint comprises a burnable member holding the biased closing valve opened, and wherein the fuse electrically burns the burnable member.

16. The port collar of claim 1 , wherein the at least one bias acting to move the opening or closing valve comprises a biasing member biasing the opening or closing valve.

17. The port collar of claim 16 , wherein the biasing member comprises a spring.

18. The port collar of claim 1 , wherein the opening valve comprises an opening sleeve disposed on the housing and being movable relative to the at least one exit port; and wherein the closing valve comprises a closing sleeve disposed on the housing and being movable separately from the opening sleeve relative to the at least one exit port.

19. A port collar for use on casing in a borehole, the port collar comprising:
a housing disposed on the casing and having an internal bore, the housing having at least one exit port communicating the internal bore with the borehole;
an opening sleeve disposed on the housing and being movable from a closed position to an opened position relative to the at least one exit port, wherein the opening sleeve comprises at least one first port moving from a misaligned condition to an aligned condition with respect the at least one exit port with the movement of the opening sleeve from the closed position to the opened position; and
a closing sleeve disposed on the housing and being movable from an opened position to a closed position relative to the at least one exit port, wherein the closing sleeve comprises at least one second port moving from an aligned condition to a misaligned condition with respect the at least one exit port with the movement of the closing sleeve from the opened position to the closed position; and
an electronic controller receiving at least one activation signal downhole at the port collar and at least activating in a first activation the opening sleeve to move from the closed position to the opened position,
wherein the closing sleeve is activated to move from the opened position to the closed position at least after the first activation of the opening sleeve.

20. A method of operating a port collar on casing in a borehole, the method comprising:
acting to move opening and closing valves on the port collar with at least one bias independent of tubing pressure in the casing and of annulus pressure in the borehole;
receiving at least one activation signal downhole with an electronic controller at the port collar;
activating, in a first activation of the electronic controller controlling the at least one bias in response to the at least one activation signal, the opening valve on the port collar to move via the at least one bias from a closed position to an opened position relative to at least one exit port on the port collar; and
moving, at least after the first activation of the opening valve, the closing valve on the port collar via the at least one bias from an opened position to a closed position relative to the at least one exit port.

Assignees

• Weatherford Tech Holdings Llc

Inventors

• Symms Joshua V

Classifications

• E21B33/146

  Stage cementing, i.e. discharging cement from casing at different levels · CPC title

• E21B2200/06

  Sleeve valves · CPC title

• E21B33/12

  Packers; Plugs (used for cementing E21B33/134, E21B33/16) · CPC title

• E21B34/066 Primary

  electrically actuated · CPC title

• E21B34/14

  operated by movement of tools, e.g. sleeve valves operated by pistons or wire line tools {(E21B34/066 takes precedence)} · CPC title