Abstract:
Methods and systems for integrally processing the materials used in oilfield operations are disclosed. An integrated material processing system is disclosed with a storage unit resting on a leg. A feeder couples the storage unit to a first input of a mixer and a pump is coupled to a second input of the mixer. The storage unit contains a solid component of a well treatment fluid. The feeder supplies the solid component of the well treatment fluid to the mixer and the pump supplies a fluid component of the well treatment fluid to the mixer. The components are mixed in the mixer and the mixer outputs a well treatment fluid.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to oilfield operations, and more particularly, to methods and systems for integrally processing the materials used in oilfield operations. 
         [0002]    Oilfield operations are conducted in a variety of different locations and involve a number of equipments, depending on the operations at hand. The requisite materials for the different operations are often hauled to and stored at the well site where the operations are to be performed. 
         [0003]    Considering the number of equipments necessary for performing oilfield operations and ground conditions at different oilfield locations, space availability is often a constraint. For instance, in well treatment operations such as fracturing operations, several wells may be serviced from a common jobsite pad. In such operations, the necessary equipment is not moved from wellsite to wellsite. Instead, the equipment may be located at a central work pad and the required treating fluids may be pumped to the different wellsites from this central location. Accordingly, the bulk of materials required at a centralized work pad may be enormous, further limiting space availability. 
         [0004]    For instance, in normal fracturing operations, proppant or sand is combined with a fracturing fluid in a blender and then pumped by high pressure pumps into the well bore. Depending on the reservoir and well requirements, a large volume of materials may be required on location. In some pad frac applications several well bores may be treated without moving the fracturing equipment, therefore requiring up to 2,000,000 pounds of materials in a 24 hour period. The typical volume for a trailer storage device is often between 2500 sks to 3200 sks. As a result, an area of over 14000 square feet may be required for storing the 2,000,000 pounds of materials which is necessary for some pad frac applications. Considering the limitations on space availability on the field, the large footprint necessary for the oilfield equipment is undesirable. 
     
    
     
       FIGURES 
         [0005]    Some specific example embodiments of the disclosure may be understood by referring, in part, to the following description and the accompanying drawings. 
           [0006]      FIG. 1  is a side view of an Integrated Material Processing System in accordance with a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0007]      FIG. 2  is a side view of an Integrated Material Processing System in accordance with a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0008]      FIG. 3  is a side view of an Integrated Material Processing System in accordance with a third exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0009]      FIG. 4  is a side view of an Integrated Material Processing System in accordance with a fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0010]      FIG. 5  is a view of an exemplary storage unit of the Integrated Material Processing System of  FIG. 4 . 
       
    
    
       [0011]    While embodiments of this disclosure have been depicted and described and are defined by reference to example embodiments of the disclosure, such references do not imply a limitation on the disclosure, and no such limitation is to be inferred. The subject matter disclosed is capable of considerable modification, alteration, and equivalents in form and function, as will occur to those skilled in the pertinent art and having the benefit of this disclosure. The depicted and described embodiments of this disclosure are examples only, and not exhaustive of the scope of the disclosure. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0012]    The present invention relates generally to oilfield operations, and more particularly, to methods and systems for integrally processing the materials used in oilfield operations. 
         [0013]    In one exemplary embodiment, the present invention is directed to an integrated material processing system comprising: a storage unit resting on a leg; a feeder coupling the storage unit to a first input of a mixer; a pump coupled to a second input of the mixer; wherein the storage unit contains a solid component of a well treatment fluid; wherein the feeder supplies the solid component of the well treatment fluid to the mixer; wherein the pump supplies a fluid component of the well treatment fluid to the mixer; and wherein the mixer outputs a well treatment fluid. 
         [0014]    In another exemplary embodiment, the present invention is directed to an integrated material processing system comprising: a plurality of storage units coupled to a frame; and a pump coupled to each of the plurality of storage units; wherein the pump is operable to pump out a fluid from its corresponding storage unit. 
         [0015]    The features and advantages of the present disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the description of exemplary embodiments, which follows. 
       DESCRIPTION 
       [0016]    The present invention relates generally to oilfield operations, and more particularly, to methods and systems for integrally processing the materials used in oilfield operations. 
         [0017]    Turning now to  FIG. 1 , an Integrated Material Processing System (IMPS) in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is depicted generally with reference numeral  100 . The IMPS  100  may be used for preparing any desirable well treatment fluids such as a fracturing fluid, a sand control fluid or any other fluid requiring hydration time. The IMPS  100  comprises a storage unit  102  resting on legs  104 . As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, the storage unit may be a storage bin, a tank, or any other desirable storage unit. The storage unit  102  may contain the gel powder used for preparing the gelled fracturing fluid. As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the gel powder may comprise a dry polymer. Specifically, the dry polymer may comprise a number of different materials, including, but not limited to wg18, wg35, wg36 (available from Halliburton Energy Services of Duncan, Okla.) or any other guar or modified guar gelling agents. The materials from the storage unit  102  may be directed to a mixer  106  as a first input through a feeder  108 . As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, in one embodiment, the mixer  106  may be a growler mixer and the feeder  108  may be a screw feeder which may be used to provide a volumetric metering of the materials directed to the mixer  106 . A water pump  110  may be used to supply water to the mixer  106  as a second input. A variety of different pumps may be used as the water pump  110  depending on the user preferences. For instance, the water pump  110  may be a centrifugal pump, a progressive cavity pump, a gear pump or a peristaltic pump. The mixer  106  mixes the gel powder from the storage unit  102  with the water from the water pump  110  at the desired concentration and the finished gel is discharged from the mixer  106  and may be directed to a storage unit, such as an external frac tank (not shown), for hydration. 
         [0018]    In one exemplary embodiment, the legs  104  of the storage unit  102  are attached to load sensors  112  to monitor the reaction forces at the legs  104 . The load sensor  112  readings may then be used to monitor the change in weight, mass and/or volume of materials in the storage unit  102 . The change in weight, mass or volume can be used to control the metering of material from the storage unit  102  at a given setpoint. As a result, the load sensors  112  may be used to ensure the availability of materials during oilfield operations. In one exemplary embodiment, load cells may be used as load sensors  112 . Electronic load cells are preferred for their accuracy and are well known in the art, but other types of force-measuring devices may be used. As will be apparent to one skilled in the art, however, any type of load-sensing device can be used in place of or in conjunction with a load cell. Examples of suitable load-measuring devices include weight-, mass-, pressure- or force-measuring devices such as hydraulic load cells, scales, load pins, dual sheer beam load cells, strain gauges and pressure transducers. Standard load cells are available in various ranges such as 0-5000 pounds, 0-10000 pounds, etc. 
         [0019]    In one exemplary embodiment the load sensors  112  may be communicatively coupled to an information handling system  114  which may process the load sensor readings. Although  FIG. 1  depicts a personal computer as the information handling system  114 , as would be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the information handling system  114  may include any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute, classify, process, transmit, receive, retrieve, originate, switch, store, display, manifest, detect, record, reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information, intelligence, or data for business, scientific, control, or other purposes. For example, the information handling system  114  may be a network storage device, or any other suitable device and may vary in size, shape, performance, functionality, and price. For instance, in one exemplary embodiment, the information handling system  114  may be used to monitor the amount of materials in the storage unit  102  over time and/or alert a user when the contents of the storage unit  102  reaches a threshold level. The user may designate a desired sampling interval at which the information handling system  114  may take a reading of the load sensors  112 . The information handling system  114  may then compare the load sensor readings to the threshold value to determine if the threshold value is reached. If the threshold value is reached, the information handling system  114  may alert the user. In one embodiment, the information handling system  114  may provide a real-time visual depiction of the amount of materials contained in the storage unit  102 . Moreover, as would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the load sensors  112  may be coupled to the information handling system  114  through a wired or wireless (not shown) connection. 
         [0020]      FIG. 2  depicts an IMPS in accordance with a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention, denoted generally by reference numeral  200 . The IMPS  200  comprises a storage unit  202  resting on legs  208 . The storage unit  202  in this embodiment may include a central core  204  for storage and handling of materials. In one embodiment, the central core  204  may be used to store a dry gel powder for making gelled fracturing fluids. The storage unit  202  may further comprise an annular space  206  for hydration volume. As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the gel powder may comprise a dry polymer. Specifically, the dry polymer may comprise a number of different materials, including, but not limited to wg18, wg35, wg36 (available from Halliburton Energy Services of Duncan, Okla.) or any other guar or modified guar gelling agents. The materials from the central core  204  of the storage unit  202  may be directed to a mixer  210  as a first input through a feeder  212 . As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, in one embodiment, the mixer  210  may be a growler mixer and the feeder  212  may be a screw feeder which may be used to provide a volumetric metering of the materials directed to the mixer  210 . A water pump  214  may be used to supply water to the mixer  210  as a second input. A variety of different pumps may be used as the water pump  214  depending on the user preferences. For instance, the water pump  214  may be a centrifugal pump, a progressive cavity pump, a gear pump or a peristaltic pump. The mixer  210  mixes the gel powder from the storage unit  202  with the water from the water pump  214  at the desired concentration and the finished gel is discharged from the mixer  210 . As discussed above with reference to  FIG. 1 , the storage unit  202  may rest on load sensors  216  which may be used for monitoring the amount of materials in the storage unit  202 . The change in weight, mass or volume can be used to control the metering of material from the storage unit  202  at a given setpoint. 
         [0021]    In this embodiment, once the gel having the desired concentration is discharged from the mixer  210 , it is directed to the annular space  206 . The gel mixture is maintained in the annular space  206  for hydration. Once sufficient time has passed and the gel is hydrated, it is discharged from the annular space  206  through the discharge line  218 . 
         [0022]      FIG. 3  depicts a cross section of a storage unit in an IMPS  300  in accordance with a third exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The IMPS  300  comprises a storage unit  302  resting on legs  304 . The storage unit  302  in this embodiment may include a central core  306  for storage and handling of materials. In one embodiment, the central core  306  may be used to store a dry gel powder for making gelled fracturing fluids. As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the gel powder may comprise a dry polymer. Specifically, the dry polymer may comprise a number of different materials, including, but not limited to wg18, wg35, wg36 (available from Halliburton Energy Services of Duncan, Okla.) or any other guar or modified guar gelling agents. The storage unit  302  may further comprise an annular space  308  which may be used as a hydration volume. In this embodiment, the annular space  308  contains a tubular hydration loop  310 . 
         [0023]    The materials from the central core  306  of the storage unit  302  may be directed to a mixer  312  as a first input through a feeder  314 . As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, in one embodiment, the mixer  312  may be a growler mixer and the feeder  314  may be a screw feeder which may be used to provide a volumetric metering of the materials directed to the mixer  312 . A water pump  316  may be used to supply water to the mixer  312  as a second input. A variety of different pumps may be used as the water pump  316  depending on the user preferences. For instance, the water pump  316  may be a centrifugal pump, a progressive cavity pump, a gear pump or a peristaltic pump. The mixer  312  mixes the gel powder from the storage unit  302  with the water from the water pump  316  at the desired concentration and the finished gel is discharged from the mixer  312 . As discussed above with reference to  FIG. 1 , the storage unit  302  may rest on load sensors  318  which may be used for monitoring the amount of materials in the storage unit  302 . The change in weight, mass or volume can be used to control the metering of material from the storage unit  202  at a given setpoint. 
         [0024]    In this embodiment, once the gel having the desired concentration is discharged from the mixer  312 , it is directed to the annular space  308  where it enters the tubular hydration loop  310 . As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the portions of the gel mixture are discharged from the mixer  312  at different points in time, and accordingly, will be hydrated at different times. Specifically, a portion of the gel mixture discharged from the mixer  312  into the annular space  308  at a first point in time, t 1 , will be sufficiently hydrated before a portion of the gel mixture which is discharged into the annular space  308  at a second point in time, t 2 . Accordingly, it is desirable to ensure that the gel mixture is transferred through the annular space  308  in a First-In-First-Out (FIFO) mode. To that end, in the third exemplary embodiment, a tubular hydration loop  310  is inserted in the annular space  308  to direct the flow of the gel as it is being hydrated. 
         [0025]    As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, in order to achieve optimal performance, the tubular hydration loop  310  may need to be cleaned during a job or between jobs. In one embodiment, the tubular hydration loop  310  may be cleaned by passing a fluid such as water through it. In another exemplary embodiment, a pigging device may be used to clean the tubular hydration loop  310 . 
         [0026]      FIG. 4 , depicts an IMPS in accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, denoted generally by reference numeral  400 . In this embodiment, the IMPS  400  includes a frame  402  which may support a plurality of storage units  404 ,  406 ,  408  and  410 . As depicted in  FIG. 4 , some of the storage units  404 ,  406  and  410  may directly hang from the frame  402 , while others such as  408  may be attached to the frame  402  through another storage unit  406 . The frame  402  may also prevent collisions between the storage units  404 ,  406 ,  408  and  410  and keep the storage units  404 ,  406 ,  408  and  410  in position as the IMPS  400  is lowered into its horizontal position for transportation or raised into its vertical position. In one exemplary embodiment, rub blocks may be used to prevent the collision of the storage units  404 ,  406 ,  408  and  410 . 
         [0027]    In one embodiment, the storage units  404 ,  406 ,  408  and  410  may be storage tanks used for storing the chemical additives used in oilfield operations for well treatment. As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, such chemical additives may include, but are not limited to, surfactants, cross-linkers, breakers, or any other desirable chemical additives. In one embodiment, a load sensor  412 ,  414 ,  416  and  418  may be coupled to each storage unit  404 ,  406 ,  408  and  410 , respectively, at the location where the storage unit is hanging from the frame  402  or another storage unit  406 . In one exemplary embodiment, load cells may be used as load sensors. Electronic load cells are preferred for their accuracy and are well known in the art, but other types of force-measuring devices may be used. As will be apparent to one skilled in the art, however, any type of load-sensing device can be used in place of or in conjunction with a load cell. Examples of suitable load-measuring devices include weight-, mass-, pressure- or force-measuring devices such as hydraulic load cells, scales, load pins, dual sheer beam load cells, strain gauges and pressure transducers. 
         [0028]    As discussed above with reference to  FIG. 1 , the load sensors  412 ,  414 ,  416  and  418  may be communicatively coupled to an information handling system (not shown) which may process the load sensor readings. For instance, the user may designate a sampling interval at which the information handling system may take the readings of the load sensors. That information may then be used to provide real-time monitoring of individual storage tanks or groups of storage tanks. The change in weight, mass or volume can be used to control a flow control valve at a given flow rate or flow ratio setpoint. As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the information handling system may be programmed to account for the impact of having one storage tank hanging from another. Specifically, where a storage unit  408  is supported by another storage unit  406 , the output of the load sensors  414  and  416  may be used to monitor the individual storage units  406  and  408 . Accordingly, in one embodiment, the information handling system may provide a visual representation of the contents of the storage tanks. 
         [0029]    In one exemplary embodiment, the information handling system may alert a user when the contents of a storage unit reach a threshold weight, mass and/or volume designated by a user based on system requirements. Moreover, as would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the load sensors may be coupled to the information handling system through a wired or wireless connection. 
         [0030]    Additionally, each storage unit  404 ,  406 ,  408  and  410  may be coupled to a pump  420 ,  422 ,  424  and  426  respectively. As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the pumps  420 ,  422 ,  424  and  426  may be any suitable pump. For instance, the pumps  420 ,  422 ,  424  and  426  may be a centrifugal pump, a progressive cavity pump, a gear pump or a peristaltic pump. 
         [0031]    Although  FIG. 4  depicts four storage units, the present invention is not limited by the number of storage units in the IMPS. Moreover, although  FIG. 4  depicts the storage units hanging from load sensors, as would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, in another exemplary embodiment, the storage units  404 ,  406 ,  408  and  410  may instead rest on load sensors. 
         [0032]      FIG. 5  depicts an exemplary embodiment of one of the storage units  404  of the IMPS  400  of  FIG. 4  which may contain chemical additives. The storage unit  404  hangs from a load sensor  412  at the top and is coupled to a pump  420  through a suction valve  502  and the chemical pump supply line  504 . A pump outlet line  506  directs the chemical additives from the storage unit  404  to a three way valve  508 . As discussed with reference to  FIG. 4 , a number of different pumps may be used depending on system requirements. As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the type of pump used may depend, among other factors, on the amount of pressure which the pump must deliver. The amount of pressure required may depend, for instance, on the friction losses in the system and the pressure of the system to which the chemical additives are being added. 
         [0033]    The first output  510  of the three way valve  508  directs the chemicals out to a desired location such as a blending system (not shown). As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, a metering device (not shown) may be used to control the amount of chemicals directed to the first output  510 . A second output  512  from the three way valve  508  recirculates the excess chemical additives back to the storage unit  404  through a back pressure valve  514 . Accordingly, the chemical additives contained in the tank  404  may be continuously circulated through the system with desired amounts being metered out through the three way valve  508  and the first output  510 . As discussed above, the load sensor  412  may be used to keep track of material usage and alert the operator when the weight, mass, and/or volume of the chemical additives in the storage unit reaches a designated threshold value. While a three way valve is depicted in this embodiment, in another exemplary embodiment the three way valve may be replaced with a tee that connects the pump outlet line  506  to the first output  510  and the second output  512 . As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, when the three way valve  508  is replaced with a tee section, a back pressure valve  514  in the second output  512  and a flow control valve (not shown) in the first output  510  may be used to control the flow of materials. 
         [0034]    As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, the different equipment used in an IMPS in accordance with the present invention may be powered by any suitable power source. For instance, the equipment may be powered by a combustion engine, electric power supply which may be provided by an on-site generator or by a hydraulic power supply. As would be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, with the benefit of this disclosure, in each exemplary embodiment, the IMPS may be transported as a single unit by lowering it into a horizontal position on a vehicle such as a truck or a trailer. In one embodiment, the storage unit may be a self-erecting storage unit as disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/235,270, assigned to Halliburton Energy Services, Inc., which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. Accordingly, the legs of the storage unit may be specially adapted to connect to a vehicle which may be used to lower, raise and transport the storage unit. Once at a jobsite, the storage unit may be erected and filled with a desired amount of a desired material. 
         [0035]    Therefore, the present invention is well-adapted to carry out the objects and attain the ends and advantages mentioned as well as those which are inherent therein. While the invention has been depicted and described by reference to exemplary embodiments of the invention, such a reference does not imply a limitation on the invention, and no such limitation is to be inferred. The invention is capable of considerable modification, alteration, and equivalents in form and function, as will occur to those ordinarily skilled in the pertinent arts and having the benefit of this disclosure. The depicted and described embodiments of the invention are exemplary only, and are not exhaustive of the scope of the invention. Consequently, the invention is intended to be limited only by the spirit and scope of the appended claims, giving full cognizance to equivalents in all respects. The terms in the claims have their plain, ordinary meaning unless otherwise explicitly and clearly defined by the patentee.