Patent Publication Number: US-2015086309-A1

Title: Method of and apparatus for disposing of drilling waste

Description:
INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE TO ANY PRIORITY APPLICATIONS 
     Any and all applications for which a foreign or domestic priority claim is identified in the Application Data Sheet as filed with the present application are hereby incorporated by reference under 37 CFR 1.57. 
     This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/880,703, filed Sep. 20, 2013, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to the disposal of waste generated during the drilling of stratigraphic wells to locate oil reserves in underground deposits. 
     BACKGROUND 
     In order to evaluate undeveloped oil reserves, stratigraphic (strat) wells are drilled and geological data is collected therefrom. During drilling, waste is generated, including solid and liquid waste that is discharged from the top of the wellbore as drilling progresses. The waste is then generally separated into solids and liquid, for example utilizing shaker separation and centrifuge techniques. Typically, the waste containers are transported by land vehicle to a waste treatment facility, dumping area or sump site. Emptying of waste containers is a manual process, requiring dedicated resources. 
     Improvements in apparatuses for use with collection and transportation of the waste are desirable. 
     SUMMARY 
     According to an aspect of an embodiment, a receptacle for disposing of drilling waste is provided. The receptacle includes a frame, a body coupled to and rotatable relative to the frame, a flap movable relative to the body between closed position in which the opening is covered and an open position for receiving waste and releasing the waste, and an actuator. The actuator acts between the body and the frame to rotate the body relative to the frame and cause the body to move relative to the flap for releasing the waste at a dump site. 
     According to another aspect, a method of disposing of drilling waste utilizing a waste receptacle is provided. The waste receptacle includes a frame, a body coupled to and rotatable relative to the frame, the body including an opening to receive and release waste. The method includes receiving the waste in the opening of the receptacle, coupling the frame of the receptacle to a helicopter, transporting, by the helicopter, the receptacle to a dump site, and rotating the receptacle relative to the frame to cause the body to rotate relative to the frame to release the waste at a dump site. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Embodiments of the present invention will be described, by way of example, with reference to the drawings and to the following description, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a waste receptacle according to one embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  is an alternative perspective view of the waste receptacle of  FIG. 1 , with a top removed to show detail inside the waste receptacle; and 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic view of an aircraft transporting the waste receptacle of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     For simplicity and clarity of illustration, reference numerals may be repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements. Numerous details are set forth to provide an understanding of the examples described herein. The examples may be practiced without these details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, and components are not described in detail to avoid obscuring the examples described. The description is not to be considered as limited to the scope of the examples described herein. 
     The disclosure generally relates to a receptacle, also referred to as a dump bucket, for disposing of drilling waste and to a method of disposing of the drilling waste, utilizing the receptacle. The receptacle includes a frame, a body coupled to and rotatable relative to the frame, a flap movable relative to the body between closed position in which the opening is covered and an open position for receiving waste and releasing the waste, and an actuator. The actuator acts between the body and the frame to rotate the body relative to the frame and cause the body to move relative to the flap for releasing the waste at a dump site. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the receptacle  100  generally includes a frame  102 , also referred to as a fly box, and a body  104 . The frame  102  and the body  104  may be made of any suitable material. For example, the frame  102  and the body  104  may be steel. The frame  102  may be a tubular frame, such as a square cross-section metal tubular frame. The frame  102  may be any suitable shape to provide support for body  104 . 
     In this example, the frame  102  includes a generally square base  106 , opposing sides  108 ,  110 , and a top crossmember  112  that extends between the opposing sides  108 ,  110 . 
     The base  106  includes a front tube  114 , a back tube  116 , and opposing side tubes  118 ,  120 , that are welded together to form the square base  106 . 
     The opposing sides  108 ,  110  of the frame  102  extend generally upwardly from the opposing side tubes  118 ,  120  of the base  106 . The side  108  includes a first member  122  and a second member  124  that extend upwardly, at an acute angle from the side tube  118 . The first member  122  extends upwardly from a location along the side tube  118  that is spaced from the front tube  114  by a distance of about one quarter of the length of the side tube  118 . The second member  124  extends upwardly from the corner at which the side tube  118  is joined to the back tube  116 . With part of the side tube  118 , the first member  122  and the second member  124  form a generally equilateral triangle. The upper ends of the first member  122  and the second member  124  are joined to an upright member  126  that extends from near a top of the body  104 , generally vertically, to a location spaced from the top of the body  104 . 
     The side  108  also includes a third member  128  and a fourth member  130  that extend upwardly at an acute angle from the side tube  118 . The third member  128  is not as long as the first member  122 , is spaced from the first member  122  such that the third member is closer to the back tube  116  than the first member  122 , and extends generally parallel to the first member  122 . The fourth member  130  is not as long as the second member  124 , is spaced from the second member  124  such that the fourth member  130  is farther from the back tube  116  than the second member  124 , and extends generally parallel to the second member  124 . The third member  128  and the fourth member  130  terminate at a generally horizontal beam  132  that extends from the top of the fourth member  130 , across the top of the third member  128 , to a location along the first member  122 . The generally horizontal beam  132  is welded to the first member  122  at a location that is near the center along the length of the first member  122 . 
     A collar  134  is disposed on the generally horizontal beam  132 , for example, by bolting or welding flanges of the collar  134  to the generally horizontal beam  132 . The collar  134  includes bearings disposed therein to facilitate rotation of a shaft within the collar  134 , the shaft extending through the body  104 . 
     The side  110  is generally a mirror image of the side  108  and is not described again in detail herein. 
     The top crossmember  112  extends from the upright member  126  on the side  108  of the frame  102  to an upright member  126  on the side  110  of the frame  102 . A respective lug  136  extends from each end of the top crossmember  112 . Each of the lugs  136  may be coupled to the top crossmember  112  and to the respective upright member  126  by brackets and by welding. The lugs provide coupling points for coupling cables to the waste receptacle  100  for transportation of the waste receptacle  100  by air. 
     The body  104  of the waste receptacle  100  includes a generally upright back  140  that extends between two generally upright sides  142 ,  144 . A front  146  of the body  104  extends between the two generally upright sides  142 ,  144 . The body also includes a bottom  148  that extends between the upright sides  142 ,  144  and extends from the front  146  to the back  140 . The front  146  of the body  104  includes a curved portion  150  and a lip  152  angled outwardly therefrom. The curved portion  150  and the bottom  148  may be formed of a single sheet of metal that is curved to form a radius from the bottom  148  to the front  146 . Thus, the bottom  148  and the curved portion  150  form a generally smooth surface, without any corners or small radius corners, to facilitate rotation of the body  104  relative to the frame  102  and to facilitate sliding of materials within the body  104  to release or expel the waste when the body  104  is rotated relative to the frame  102 . 
     The body  104  also includes a top  154  that includes a fixed portion  156  that covers a majority of the opening formed by the back  140 , the sides  142 ,  144 , and the front  146 . The waste receptacle  100  also includes a flap  158 . The fixed portion  156  may cover about two thirds of the opening. The fixed portion  156  extends from the back  140 , along the sides  142 ,  144 , toward the front  146 . The flap  158  is coupled to the fixed portion  156  of the top  154  of the body  104  by hinges  160  such that the flap  158  is movable between an open position in which the flap  158  is moved away from the lip  152 , to expose an opening in the body  104 , and a closed position in which the flap  158  covers the opening and rests on the sides  142 ,  144  and the edge of the lip  152 . 
     The flap  158  is coupled to the top crossmember  112  by a cable  164  that is generally fully extended or generally taut when the flap  158  is in the closed position and the body  104  is in an upright position as shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 . The cable  164  may be coupled to the flap  158  by any suitable coupling. For example, the cable may be coupled to the end of the flap  158 , near a center thereof, and nearest the lip  152 , by a clevis. Similarly, the cable may be coupled to the top crossmember  112  by any suitable coupling. For example, the cable may be coupled to the top crossmember  112 , near a center thereof, by a clevis. 
     Thus, the flap  158  may be moved to an open position in which the cable  164  is loose, or not fully extended and the flap  158  abuts the top crossmember  112  in order for the body  104  to receive waste. The flap  158  may also be moved relative to the body  104 , to an open position in which the cable  164  is generally extended or generally taut, by rotating the body  104  within the frame  102  such that the body  104  is moved relative to the flap  158  to release waste. 
     The shaft  162  extends through the side  142 , through the body  104 , and through the side  144 . The shaft  162  is coupled to the sides  142 ,  144 , for example, by welding to the sides  142 ,  144 . The shaft  162  extends into the collars  134 , from the collar  134  on the first side  108  of the frame  102  to the collar  134  on the second side  110  of the frame  102 . The shaft  162  is rotatable within the collars  134 , and thus, the body  104  is rotatable relative to the frame  102 . 
     An actuator, such as a hydraulic mechanism (not shown) acts between the body  104  and the frame  102  to cause the body  104  to rotate relative to the frame  102  to release the contents of the body  104 . The hydraulic mechanism may be any suitable hydraulic mechanism to cause rotation of the body  104  relative to the frame  102 . For example, the hydraulic mechanism may be a hydraulic cam that is actuatable to cause the shaft  162  to rotate relative to the frame  102 . Other hydraulic mechanisms may also be utilized, such as a ram that is utilized to act against the shaft  162  or against a face disposed along the shaft  162 , to cause the body  104  to rotate by rotation of the shaft  162  in the collars  134 . As the body  104  rotates, the flap  158  is held in position relative to the frame  102  by the cable  164  such that the lip  152  rotates away from the flap  158 . Thus, an opening is provided in the body  104  and the body  104  is rotated to release the contents within the body  104 . 
     In use, the waste receptacle  100  may be filled by moving the flap  158  to the open position in which the flap  158  abuts the top crossmember  112 . Cuttings from the drilling operation are deposited into the waste receptacle  100 . The waste receptacle  100  may be any suitable size. In one example, the body  104  is sized to receive about 1.7 cubic meters of waste. Multiple waste receptacles may be disposed, for example, along a skid, and may by moved laterally such that a first waste receptacle  100  is positioned to receive waste. When filled, a first, second, and third waste receptacle  100  slide laterally to move the second waste receptacle  100  into position to receive waste. When filled, the waste receptacles slide to move the third waste receptacle  100  into position to receive waste. The waste receptacles may be moved manually. One, two, three or more waste receptacles may be positioned on a skid at a given time. 
     As shown in the schematic view of  FIG. 3 , an aircraft  300  is utilized to lift and transport each waste receptacle  100 , after filling, to a suitable dump site. A heavy cargo helicopter having relatively little downwash compared to other helicopters may be utilized. In one embodiment, a Kaman K-MAX® helicopter is utilized. The aircraft  300  is releasably coupled to the frame  102  by cables that are releasably coupled to the lugs  136 , for example, by clevises. The aircraft  300  is in communication with the actuator, which in this example is a hydraulic mechanism, for example, by a cable that extends from a control in the aircraft  300 , to the hydraulic mechanism. 
     After coupling the aircraft  300  to the waste receptacle  100 , the aircraft  300  lifts and transports the receptacle  100  to a suitable dump site. The hydraulic mechanism is then actuated to cause the body  104  to rotate relative to the frame  102 . As the body  104  rotates, the flap  158  is held in position relative to the frame  102  by the cable  164  such that the lip  152  rotates away from the flap  158  to provide an opening in the body  104 . The cuttings are released, by the force of gravity, from the body  104 . 
     Advantageously, the method and apparatus described herein facilitates transportation of drilling waste, away from the drilling site, without the use of temporary roads. Transporting the equipment and waste by helicopter means that temporary roads are not constructed, which may reduce the environmental footprint of the operation by up to 50% compared to a traditional stratigraphic well drilling operation. 
     The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the claims should not be limited by the preferred embodiments set forth in the examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the description as a whole. All changes that come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.