Bottomhole choke for managed pressure cementing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11566514-B2
Application number	US-202017073746-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 19, 2020
Priority date	Oct 19, 2020
Publication date	Jan 31, 2023
Grant date	Jan 31, 2023

Abstract

An apparatus for controlling bottomhole pressure in a wellbore during cementing includes a sensor positionable to measure pressure in the bottomhole of the wellbore, a controllable valve, and a controller. The controller may be positionable to receive pressure measurements from the sensor and control the controllable valve to maintain a specified pressure in the wellbore based on the pressure measurements. The apparatus may be positionable in a bottomhole portion of the wellbore.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for controlling bottomhole pressure in a wellbore during cementing, the apparatus comprising:
a sensor positionable to measure the bottomhole pressure of the wellbore;
a controllable valve; and
a controller positionable to:
receive pressure measurements from the sensor;
determine a specified pressure based on physical characteristics of the wellbore; and
control the controllable valve to maintain the specified pressure in the wellbore based on the pressure measurements,

wherein the apparatus is positionable in a bottomhole portion of the wellbore, and
wherein the controller is positionable to control a flow of return fluids uphole through the controllable valve to maintain the specified pressure in the wellbore.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the apparatus is positionable within a downhole end of a wellbore casing prior to conveying the wellbore casing downhole within the wellbore.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , further comprising:
a memory,
wherein the specified pressure is programmable into the memory prior to conveying the wellbore casing downhole.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the specified pressure comprises a pressure range between a pore pressure and a fracturing gradient of a formation.

5. The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the memory is operable to store downhole pressure measurements and valve positions during downhole operations.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the controller comprises a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the apparatus is positionable to control the bottomhole pressure for a cementing operation.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
the controllable valve comprises a choke valve; and
the choke valve is controllable by an actuator that receives control signals from the controller positionable at the bottomhole portion of the wellbore.

9. A system for performing a cementing process in a wellbore, the system comprising:
pumping equipment positionable to pump cement into a bottomhole portion of a wellbore; and
a choke positionable in a bottomhole portion of the wellbore to control bottomhole pressure in the wellbore during the cementing process, wherein the choke comprises:
a sensor positionable to measure the bottomhole pressure of the wellbore;
a controllable valve; and
a controller positionable to:
receive pressure measurements from the sensor during the cementing process;
determine a specified pressure based on physical characteristics of the wellbore; and
control the controllable valve to maintain the specified pressure in the wellbore based on the pressure measurements,
wherein the controller is positionable to control a flow of return fluids uphole through the controllable valve to maintain the specified pressure in the wellbore.

10. The system of claim 9 , wherein the choke is positionable within a downhole end of a wellbore casing prior to conveying the wellbore casing downhole within the wellbore.

11. The system of claim 10 , further comprising:
a memory,
wherein the specified pressure is programmable into the memory prior to conveying the wellbore casing downhole.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the specified pressure comprises a pressure range between a pore pressure and a fracturing gradient of a formation.

13. The system of claim 11 , wherein the memory is operable to store downhole pressure measurements and valve positions during downhole operations.

14. The system of claim 9 , wherein the cementing process comprises a reverse-circulation primary cementing process.

15. A method for controlling bottomhole pressure in a wellbore, the method comprising:
measuring the bottomhole pressure of the wellbore via a sensor that is positionable in a bottomhole of the wellbore;
receiving, by a controller that is positionable in the bottomhole of the wellbore, pressure measurements from the sensor;
determining, by the controller, a specified pressure based on physical characteristics of the wellbore; and
controlling, by the controller, a controllable valve of a valve that is positionable in the bottomhole of the wellbore to maintain the specified pressure in the wellbore based on the pressure measurements,
wherein the controller is positionable to control a flow of return fluids uphole through the controllable valve to maintain the specified pressure in the wellbore.

16. The method of claim 15 , further comprising installing a choke comprising the sensor, the controller, and the controllable valve within a downhole end of a wellbore casing prior to conveying the wellbore casing downhole within the wellbore.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the specified pressure is programmable into a memory of the choke prior to conveying the wellbore casing downhole.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the specified pressure comprises a pressure range between a pore pressure and a fracturing gradient of a formation.

19. The method of claim 15 , wherein:
the controllable valve comprises a choke valve; and
the choke valve is operated using an actuator controlled by the controller positionable at a bottomhole portion of the wellbore.

20. The method of claim 15 , wherein controlling the controllable valve comprises controlling the bottomhole pressure for a reverse-circulation primary cementing process.

Assignees

• Halliburton Energy Services Inc

Inventors

• Luo Yan
• Huerta Javier Enrique Pozzo
• Herrera Adan Hernandez

Classifications

• E21B33/13 Primary

  Methods or devices for cementing, for plugging holes, crevices or the like · CPC title

• E21B47/06 Primary

  Measuring temperature or pressure · CPC title

• E21B34/066

  electrically actuated · CPC title