US 11,454,089 B2Granted

Ball and seat valve assembly and downhole pump utilizing the valve assembly

OwnerJoe A. Nelson, IIinventor

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Abstract

Disclosed is a work for oilwell plunger pumping under a packer system used to increase the wear life of API ball and seat valves and of ball and seat valves seat utilizing a piston actuator mechanism to unseat the ball from the seat, which during operation, create turbulent flow within the housing to increase force to move piston actuator like rifle bullet or weighted blow dart in dynamic high velocity high impact in stages to overcome hydraulic head and surface tension between ball and seat. Also disclosed umbrella shaped disks on the piston actuator for increased force to be used in both insert and tubing type down hole plunger oil well pumps. The labyrinth of fluid passages that are rectangular channels not holes help keep ball off its seat for complete down stroke and keep solids in suspension to prevent plugging of API ball in API valve cage. Part of the art is based on “Hydraulic Jump” theory by Leonardo Di Vinci in 1500's where thin film at the surface, greatly increases force due to physical changes to fluid at high speeds hitting objects.

A valve assembly for installation inside a pump barrel in a downhole sucker rod plunger pump in oil and gas wells, the valve assembly comprising:

(a) a hollow tubular member with threads on top to screw on to a plunger valve cage that is to hold a ball and a valve seat in place having an interior wall defining an internal cross-sectional area;
(b) the valve seat mounted within the tubular member, having a seating passage with a seating cross-sectional area and flow passages in the circumference of the tubular member;
(c) the ball positioned within the tubular member and above the valve seat in the plunger valve cage with screwed connection;
(d) a piston actuator with a plurality of umbrella disks mounted within the tubular member below the valve seat comprising an actuator for engaging the ball through the passage while the ball is seated on the valve seat and comprising a sealing member with a sealing area for sealing the tubular member below the valve seat across the entire internal cross-sectional area of the tubular member;
and wherein the valve seat is closed by the ball being seated on the valve seat, and opened by an increase in pressure from below unseating the ball from the valve seat;
(e) the piston actuator with the plurality of umbrella disks with flow areas on circumference to add force to move the ball off the valve seat and remain open during entire downstroke and a piston actuator tip is beveled in 2 directions to act like screw adding force to open ball from the seat working to move the ball off the seat;
(f) the piston actuator tip that holds the ball off the seat for complete downstroke of pump plunger with a bottom stop and a top stop;
(g) the piston actuator moving in staged movement from one flow area to the next flow area in the flow passage areas in the circumference of the tubular member;
and (h) the piston actuator that hits the ball at high velocity to impact and open the ball from the seat and allows fluid flow to tubing above.

6 more elements

Facts

Application

16/873,901Filed 10 Aug 2020

Published

US 2022/0042397 A110 Feb 2022

Granted

27 Sep 2022

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification5 codes

E21B 34/08
In wells: responsive to flow or pressure of the fluid obtained
E21B 34/14
In wells: operated by movement of tools, e.g. sleeve valves operated by pistons or wire line tools
E21B 43/126
Lifting well fluids: adaptations of down-hole pump systems powered by drives outside the borehole, e.g. by a rotary or oscillating drive
E21B 2200/04
Special features related to earth drilling for obtaining oil, gas or water: ball valves

Abstract

Claims3