Apparatuses and methods for enabling multistage hydraulic fracturing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10329867-B2
Application number	US-201615348398-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 10, 2016
Priority date	Nov 10, 2015
Publication date	Jun 25, 2019
Grant date	Jun 25, 2019

Abstract

There is provided a plurality of injection stations, wherein each one of the injection stations, independently, comprising: a housing; a port extending through the housing; a flow control member configured for displacement for effecting at least opening of the port such that, when the injection station is integrated within a wellbore string that is disposed within a wellbore of a subterranean formation, and treatment fluid is being supplied through a wellbore string passage of the wellbore string, injection of the supplied treatment fluid into the subterranean formation is effected through the port; and a deployable seat, mounted to the housing, and including an aperture, and configured such that, when the seat is deployed in a deployed position, the seat is configured for receiving a respective plug for seating of the respective plug over the aperture of the seat; such that a plurality of plugs are respective to the injection stations, wherein each one of the plugs is respective to a deployable seat of a one of the injection stations, such that each one of the plugs is respective to a one of the injection stations.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A plurality of injection stations, wherein each one of the injection stations, independently, comprising:
a housing;
a port extending through the housing;
a flow control member configured for displacement for effecting at least opening of the port such that, when the injection station is integrated within a wellbore string that is disposed within a wellbore of a subterranean formation, and treatment fluid is being supplied through a wellbore string passage of the wellbore string, injection of the supplied treatment fluid into the subterranean formation is effected through the port; and
a deployable seat, mounted to the housing, and including an aperture, and configured such that, when the seat is deployed in a deployed position, the seat is configured for receiving a respective plug for seating of the respective plug over the aperture of the seat;
such that a plurality of plugs are respective to the injection stations, wherein each one of the plugs is respective to a deployable seat of a one of the injection stations, such that each one of the plugs is respective to a one of the injection stations;

wherein:
the injection stations are integratable into a wellbore string such that the wellbore string includes a plurality of longitudinally spaced apart injection stations;
the longitudinally spaced apart injection stations include one or more uphole injection stations, wherein each one of the one or more uphole injection stations is a one of the one or more injection stations of the longitudinally spaced apart injection stations that is other than the injection station of the longitudinally spaced apart injection stations that is disposed furthest downhole relative to all of the other ones of the longitudinally spaced apart injection stations;
for each one of the one or more uphole injection stations, independently:
one or more injection stations are disposed downhole relative to the uphole injection station to define one or more downhole-disposed injection stations, wherein each one of the plugs that is respective to a one of the one or more downhole-disposed injection stations is a downhole-deployable plug;

the longitudinally spaced apart injection stations are positionable in a sequence such that for each one of the one or more uphole injection stations, independently:
the aperture of the seat of the uphole injection station is co-operable with each one of the one or more downhole-deployable plugs that are respective to the one or more downhole-disposed injection stations that are disposed downhole relative to the uphole injection station, independently, such that, when the wellbore string includes the longitudinally spaced apart injection stations, and when the wellbore string is disposed within a wellbore, and when the seat of the uphole injection station is deployed, for each one of the one or more downhole-deployable plugs that are respective to the one or more downhole-disposed injection stations that are disposed downhole relative to the uphole injection station, independently:
when a seat, of the downhole-disposed injection station to which the downhole-deployable plugs is respective, is deployed, and when the downhole-deployable plug is being conducted downhole through the wellbore string passage, the downhole-deployable plug passes through the aperture of the deployed seat of the uphole injection station and is conducted downhole for seating on the deployed seat of the downhole-disposed injection station to which the downhole-deployable plug is respective.

2. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 1 ;
wherein, for each one the injection stations:
the flow control member is configured to be displaceable, when the seat is disposed in the deployed position and the respective plug is seated on the deployed seat, in response to the establishment of a fluid pressure differential across the seated plug.

3. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 2 ;
wherein, for each one the injection stations:
the deployable seat is configured for displacement from a non-deployed position to a deployed position, wherein, in the deployed position, the seat is configured to receive the respective plug such that the seating of the respective plug over the aperture of the seat is effected.

4. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 3 ;
wherein each one the injection stations further comprises an injection station fluid passage disposed within the housing and configured for defining a portion of the wellbore string passage when the injection station is integrated within the wellbore string.

5. An injection station kit comprising the plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 4 , and further comprising:
a sensor configured for sensing a transmitted deployment actuation signal; and
controller configured to effect deployment of all of the seats in response to the sensed deployment actuation signal.

6. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 1 , wherein for each one of the injection stations, independently:
the deployable seat is biased for displacement to the deployed position; and
each one of the injection stations, independently, includes:
a first retainer for retaining the deployable seat in a non-deployed position, wherein the retainer is displaceable relative to the housing such that the seat becomes disposed in the deployed position.

7. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 6 , wherein:
the biasing of the deployable seat is effected by a biasing force that is urging displacement of the seat along a path, wherein the deployed position is disposed in the path; and
further comprising:
a second retainer for opposing the biasing force and preventing the seat from being displaced along the path from the deployed position, when the seat is disposed in the deployed position.

8. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 7 , further comprising:
a seat deployment actuator configured to effect displacement of the first retainer relative to the housing, wherein the seat deployment actuator includes a fluid communication device configured to effect fluid communication between the housing passage and the first retainer while pressurized fluid is disposed within the housing passage, such that the pressurized fluid, that is communicated from the housing passage, via the fluid communication device, to the first retainer, applies a force to the retainer such that the displacement of the first retainer, relative to the housing, is effected.

9. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 7 , further comprising:
a seat deployment actuator configured to transmit an applied force to the first retainer for effecting displacement of the retainer relative to the housing from a retaining position to a non-retaining position.

10. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 6 , wherein:
the seat is coupled to the housing; and
the displacement from the non-deployed position to the deployed position is effected by a rotation of the seat relative to the housing.

11. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 10 , wherein:
the seat is rotatably coupled to the housing; and
while the seat is disposed in the non-deployed position, the seat is nested within a recess of the housing.

12. The plurality of injection stations as claimed in claim 1 , wherein for each one of the injection stations, independently:
the deployable seat is biased for displacement to the deployed position; and
each one of the injection stations, independently, includes:
a piston for retaining the deployable seat in a non-deployed

Assignees

• Ncs Multistage Inc

Inventors

• Getzlaf Don
• Johnson Tim
• Gillis Brock

Classifications

• E21B43/14 Primary

  Obtaining from a multiple-zone well · CPC title

• E21B34/06

  in wells · CPC title

• E21B33/124 Primary

  Units with longitudinally-spaced plugs for isolating the intermediate space · CPC title

• E21B43/26

  by forming crevices or fractures · 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