Abstract:
A device for collecting and confining oil escaping from a sea bottom wellhead blowout. The device is easily and quickly moved into position to contain the oil from a subsea well blowout. The device provides an improved method for recovering the oil flowing from a subsea well blowout and preventing the mixing of such fluids with large quantities of the seawater. An improved method of oil containment includes the positioning of a vertical capsule over a subsea well blowout and the conducting of oil through a conduit to surface processing and storage equipment. In addition, an improved method includes the formation of a seal completely around the blownout wellhead.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/709,132 filed on Oct. 2, 2012 by the present inventor, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
       [0002]    Not Applicable 
       REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISK APPENDIX  
       [0003]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0005]    The present invention relates to a device and a means for collecting and confining oil escaping from a sea bottom wellhead blowout. 
         [0006]    2. Background of the Invention 
         [0007]    Subsea wells have the wellhead and pressure control equipment located on the seabed. Typically subsea wells may vary from depths of 10 feet to 8,000 feet. It is very difficult to deal with a blowout in very deep water because of the remoteness and limited experience with this type of situation. The Deepwater Horizon well blowout in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2010, in about 5,000 feet water depth, is the deepest subsea well blowout to date. 
         [0008]    Blowouts from subsea wells usually contain oil, gas, and water. Upon reaching the surface the gas either burns or escapes to the atmosphere. However, even if there is a surface fire, most of the oil remains unburned and causes marine pollution. Several technologies have been developed for dealing with the surface oil to try to minimize pollution, with varying degrees of success. 
         [0009]    While many of the techniques used in on shore operations to fight blowouts can also be applied in the offshore environment, they often prove to be less effective and require a much longer time period for implementation. Thus, for example, while relief wells can be drilled to intercept the blowout well, a great amount of time may be required in the drilling operation. In drilling the relief wells, platforms or other drilling support decks must be located and transported to the blowout site before drilling operations can be begun. Due to the rugged offshore environment, more time is required to drill the relief wells than would be required in an onshore operation. As a result of all of these difficulties, many months can pass between the occurrence of an offshore oil well blowout and the successful final capping of the blown out well. In the intervening time, large quantities of oil and gas can escape into the ocean with serious environmental impact. 
         [0010]    As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,324,505; 4,456,071; 5,114,273; and 3,599,434, the prior art is replete with offshore oil containment devices. Some of these inventions teach oil recovery by placing heavy domes over the seep location and imbedding the lower edge or skirt of the dome in the sea floor sediments. The dome structures are generally not suitable for containment of wellhead blowouts where large quantities of gas and oil are erupting. The force of such blowouts would tend to lift most domes. The dome shape is also not effective in diverting high speed flow. Some inventions teach oil recovery by lowering an inverted funnel shaped device directly over the wellhead to capture the flowing oil. These structures are not effective because the wellhead is not completely sealed thereby allowing oil to pollute the surrounding sea water. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0011]    The present invention provides a device and a means for containing the flow of oil from a subsea oil well blowout. The device is easily and quickly moved into position to contain the oil from a subsea well blowout. The device provides an improved method for recovering the oil flowing from a subsea well blowout and preventing the mixing of such fluids with large quantities of the seawater. An improved method of oil containment includes the positioning of a vertical capsule over a subsea well blowout and the conducting of oil through a conduit to surface processing and storage equipment. In addition, an improved method includes the formation of a seal completely around the blownout wellhead. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0012]    Referring now to the drawings in which like reference numbers represent corresponding parts throughout: 
           [0013]      FIG. 1  is an illustration of a subsea well blowout and recovery device according to the present invention in position above the blowout site; 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  is an illustration of the recovery device after it has been moved into position over the subsea blowout to contain the flow of fluids from the wellhead; 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  is a profile view of the recovery device according to the present invention; 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  is a profile view of the recovery device according to the present invention illustrating the fireproof shield. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0017]    The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. The temporary cap for a blownout subsea wellhead that forms the basis of the present invention is designated generally by the reference number  10 . This invention may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. In the drawings, like numbers refer to like elements throughout. The scaling of some components on the drawings may be exaggerated for clarity. 
         [0018]    With reference now to  FIGS. 1 ,  2 ,  3 , and  4  the device  10  according to the present invention and its placement over a blown out subsea wellhead is illustrated. In  FIG. 1 , a subsea wellhead  170  is illustrated erupting a flow of oil forming a flume  140 . A barge  15  from which is suspended a vertical capsule shaped recovery member  25 , vertical channels  80 , suspension members  50 , positioning members  90 , control members  70 , and actuator members  100 . The recovery member  25  is preferably made of a somewhat flexible material in order to be inflated by water. The recovery member  25  is designed to collect the oil until the wellhead  170  can be permanently capped. 
         [0019]    The recovery member  25  is preferably supported from barge  15  or other suitable structure such as an offshore drilling platform on the ends of suspension members  50  and positioning members  90 . There are preferably four suspension members  50  and two positioning members  90 . The four suspension members  50  in the form of cables are pivotally attached to the recovery member  25  which aid in raising and lowering the recovery member  25  into the sea  190 . The positioning members  90  aid in positioning and guiding the recovery member  25  over the wellhead  170  on the ocean floor  180 . The suspension members  50  are pivotally attached to the recovery member  25  at the weight line  105  and are equally spaced apart. There may be more or less suspension members  50  depending on the size and weight of the recovery member  25 . The suspension members  50  and positioning members  90  are attached to the barge at their respective spool  20 . 
         [0020]    Also illustrated on barge  15  are oil collection devices  30 , spools  20 , and actuator members  40 . The oil collection devices  30  may be connected to a tanker to collect and store the oil for further processing. After the barge  20  has been positioned near the wellhead  170  as illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the recovery operation may be commenced. The barge  15  is placed into the position illustrated in  FIG. 2  with the recovery device  10  positioned directly over wellhead  170 . The cylindrical shape of the recovery member  25  captures the flume  140  from the wellhead  170  and effectively directs it into the vertical channels  80  where the oil travels to the sea surface  190  an into oil collection devices  30  on barge  15 . 
         [0021]    It may be preferable to initially position the barge  15  over the wellhead  170  totally by remote control for obvious safety reasons. Television cameras may be suspended from barge  15  to observe the relative positioning of the recovery member  25  and wellhead  170 , if desired. As the recovery member  25  is lowered below the sea surface  190 , the pumps on the barge  15  start immediately in order to suction air and water from inside the recovery member  25  to the sea surface  190 . Water entering the recovery member  25  is pumped out and up to the oil collection device  30  by means of a pump located on the barge  15 . By removing the air and water in this manner, the recovery member  25  will lose its buoyancy and sink. The suctioning action aids in lowering the recovery member  25  towards the ocean floor  180  to encompass the wellhead  170 . Also, the suctioning action enhances stability of the recovery member  25  by reducing the effect of the high pressure oil flume  140  flowing into the recovery member  25 . 
         [0022]    A closing member  115  is provided at the lower portion of the recovery member  25 . The closing member  115  is in the form of a drawstring  160  and seam  120  in the recovery member  25 . Typically, the drawstring  160  is loose when not being used, and tightened when needed during use. The drawstring  160  is operatively connected to the recovery member  25  by being threaded through the seam  120 . On the other end, the drawstring  160  is operatively attached to an electric motorized winch  150  which pulls the drawstring to close the opening  118  of the recovery member  25 . The winch  150  is energized by either a backup battery pack  130  which is attached to the recovery member  25  or from a power supply  40  on the surface. An electric cable or actuator member  100  connects the motorized winch  150  to the power supply  40  on the barge  15  for provided power to the motor and also motor control. 
         [0023]    As shown in  FIG. 4 , the closing member  115  may be surrounded with fireproof shields  210  to withstand the heat and pressure. The shields are connected together with connector members  230 . 
         [0024]    The drawstring  160  can be pulled to contract the opening  118  in the closing member  115  of the recovery member  25  in a manner such that the seam  120  of the recovery member  25  is drawn towards a central point, thereby clamping the closing member  115  around the wellhead  170  and forming a seal to contain the oil flume  140  in the recovery member  25  and preventing the oil from polluting the water. 
         [0025]    The dimensions of the recovery member  25  and vertical channels  80  will, of course, vary according to the flow rate from the wellhead  170  and the water depth. The length of the channels  80  will be selected to accommodate the distance of the recovery member  25  over the top of the wellhead  170 . The diameter of the channels  80  will depend upon the quantity of fluids to be contained. The recovery member  25  typically has a diameter of approximately 100 feet and is 250 feet in length from its open end  118  to the point of connection to vertical channels  80 . While as noted above, the length of vertical channels  80  must be selected for a particular water depth, it can be seen that it is a simple matter to fabricate vertical channels  80  from standard steel tubing to any desired length. Shutoff valves  85  are provided near the top end of the recovery member  25  to stop the flow of oil from the recovery member  25  to the oil collection device  30  on the barge  15 . The shutoff valves  85  are attached between the vertical channels  80  and the recovery member  25 . Control members  70  run parallel to the vertical members  80  and function to provide a signal to open or close the shutoff valve  85  from the barge  15 . 
         [0026]    A weight line  117  is near the closing end  115  of the recovery member  25 . The weight line  117  extends completely around the circumference forming a ring of weights around the recovery member  25 . Typically, the weight line  117  consists of six 1,000 pound weights  110  equally spaced around the circumference of the recovery member  25  and equally spaced apart. The recovery member  25  is attached to the weight line  117  along with the suspension members  50  and positioning members  90 . 
         [0027]    The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the claims.