Operating system cartridge for an annular blowout preventer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10724324-B2
Application number	US-201715709393-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 19, 2017
Priority date	Sep 19, 2017
Publication date	Jul 28, 2020
Grant date	Jul 28, 2020

Abstract

An operating system cartridge for an annular blowout preventer includes one or more annular walls that define an annular chamber. The operating system cartridge also includes a piston assembly that has an annular piston positioned within the annular chamber and a pusher plate configured to contact an annular packer assembly of the annular blowout preventer when the operating system cartridge is installed within a housing of the annular blowout preventer. The operating system cartridge further includes one or more fluid conduits extending through the one or more annular walls, wherein the one or more fluid conduits are configured to provide a test fluid to the annular chamber to facilitate testing of the operating system cartridge prior to installation within the housing of the annular blowout preventer.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An operating system cartridge for an annular blowout preventer, comprising:
one or more annular walls that define an annular chamber;
a piston assembly comprising an annular piston positioned within the annular chamber and a pusher plate configured to contact an annular packer assembly of the annular blowout preventer when the operating system cartridge is installed within a housing of the annular blowout preventer; and
one or more fluid conduits extending through the one or more annular walls, wherein the one or more fluid conduits are configured to provide a test fluid to the annular chamber to facilitate testing of the operating system cartridge prior to installation within the housing of the annular blowout preventer.

2. The operating system cartridge of claim 1 , comprising one or more annular seals configured to seal the annular chamber from an external environment.

3. The operating system cartridge of claim 2 , wherein the one or more fluid conduits are configured to provide the test fluid to the annular chamber to facilitate testing of a condition of the one or more annular seals.

4. The operating system cartridge of claim 1 , wherein the one or more annular walls comprise a lower annular wall, an inner annular wall coupled to the lower annular wall, an outer annular wall coupled to the lower annular wall to define the annular chamber.

5. The operating system cartridge of claim 1 , comprising a first annular seal that forms a first seal between a plate portion of the annular piston and the one or more annular walls, and a second annular seal that forms a second seal between the plate portion of the annular piston and the one or more annular walls to fluidly isolate a first portion of the annular chamber from a second portion of the annular chamber.

6. The operating system cartridge of claim 5 , comprising a third annular seal that forms a third seal between a shaft portion of the annular piston and the one or more annular walls, and a fourth annular seal that forms a fourth seal between the shaft portion of the annular piston and the one or more annular walls.

7. The operating system cartridge of claim 1 , wherein the operating system cartridge is configured to be inserted into and removed from the housing of the annular blowout preventer as a unit without separating the one or more annular walls, the piston assembly, and the one or more fluid conduits from one another.

8. The operating system cartridge of claim 1 , wherein a radially-outer surface of an outer annular wall of the one or more annular walls is configured to contact a radially-inner surface of the housing of the annular blowout preventer while the first operating system cartridge is installed within the housing.

9. The operating system cartridge of claim 8 , wherein the one or more fluid conduits extend radially through the outer annular wall and are configured to receive an operating fluid from one or more housing fluid conduits that extend radially through the housing of the annular blowout preventer to enable the piston assembly to drive the annular packer assembly of the annular blowout preventer from an open position to a closed position while the first operating system cartridge is installed within the housing.

10. A system, comprising:
a first operating system cartridge configured to be installed within a housing of an annular blowout preventer to drive a packer assembly of the annular blowout preventer from an open position to a closed position, comprising:
an annular chamber;

an annular piston assembly comprising an annular piston positioned within the annular chamber;
one or more annular seals configured to seal the annular chamber from an external environment; and
one or more fluid conduits extending configured to provide a test fluid to the annular chamber to facilitate testing of a condition of the one or more annular seals prior to installation within the housing of the annular blowout preventer.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the annular chamber is defined by a lower annular wall, an inner annular wall coupled to the lower annular wall, and an outer annular wall coupled to the lower annular wall.

12. The system of claim 10 , wherein the operating system cartridge is configured to be inserted into and removed from the housing of the annular blowout preventer as a unit without separating the annular chamber, the piston assembly, the one or more annular seals, and the one or more fluid conduits from one another.

13. The system of claim 10 , comprising the annular blowout preventer, wherein the housing of the annular blowout preventer comprises an annular recess configured to removably receive the first operating system cartridge.

14. The system of claim 10 , comprising a retaining assembly comprising a lock segment configured to engage a corresponding groove formed in one of the first operating system cartridge or the housing of the annular blowout preventer, a retaining ring configured to maintain the lock segment within the corresponding groove, and a fastener configured to couple the retaining ring to the other of the first operating system cartridge or the housing of the annular blowout preventer to block movement of the first operating system cartridge relative to the housing of the annular blowout preventer.

15. The system of claim 10 , comprising a second operating system cartridge configured to be installed within the housing of the annular blowout preventer to drive the packer assembly of the annular blowout preventer from the open position to the closed position, wherein the first operating system cartridge and the second operating system cartridge form a maintenance kit that enables testing a respective condition of respective annular seals of one of the first or second operating system cartridges while the other of the first or second operating system cartridges is installed within the housing of the annular blowout preventer.

16. A method of performing maintenance operations for an annular blowout preventer, comprising:
providing a fluid via one or more fluid conduits into an annular chamber of a first operating system cartridge to drive a piston assembly within the annular chamber;
determining a condition of an annular seal configured to seal the annular chamber by monitoring whether the fluid flows out of the annular chamber; and
installing the first operating system cartridge into a housing of the annular blowout preventer as a unit after determining that the condition of the seal is satisfactory.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein installing the first operating system cartridge comprises positioning the first operating system cartridge within an annular recess defined in the housing of the annular blowout preventer.

18. The method of claim 16 , wherein installing the first operating system cartridge comprises aligning a lock segment with a corresponding groove formed in one of the first operating system cartridge or the housing of the annular blowout preventer and coupling a retaining ring configured to maintain the lock segment within the corresponding groove to the other of the first operating system cartridge or the housing of the annular blowout preventer to block movement of the first operating system cartridge relative to the housing of the annular blowout preventer.

19. The method of claim 16 , comprising removing the first operating system cartridge from the housing of the annular blowout preventer as the unit without separating the annular chamber or the piston assembly from on

Assignees

• Cameron Int Corp

Inventors

• Boulanger Bruce Anthony

Classifications

• E21B33/1208

  characterised by the construction of the sealing or packing means (E21B33/1277 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G01M3/04

  by detecting the presence of fluid at the leakage point · CPC title

• G01M3/2869

  for seals not incorporated in a pipe joint · CPC title

• E21B33/06 Primary

  Blow-out preventers {, i.e. apparatus closing around a drill pipe, e.g. annular blow-out preventers (rotating blow-out preventers E21B33/085)} · CPC title

• G01M3/02

  by using fluid or vacuum · CPC title