# US 11,896,983 B2 · Wellsite wet screening system for proppants and methods of using same

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- Number: US 11,896,983 B2
- Document ID: US11896983B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/902,753
- Filed: 2022-09-02
- Published: 2023-01-05
- Granted: 2024-02-13
- Earliest claimed: 2021-06-16
- Assignees: Propflow, LLC
- Applicants: Propflow, LLC
- Inventors: Jeremy Britt Mitchell; Christopher Shane Martin
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11896983B2

## CPC

- B03B 5/04: on shaking tables (on vanners B03B5/08)
- B07B 1/005: {Transportable screening plants}
- B03B 11/00: Feed or discharge devices integral with washing or wet-separating equipment
- B07B 13/16: Feed or discharge arrangements
- E21B 43/2607: {Surface equipment specially adapted for fracturing operations}
- B07B 2230/01: Wet separation
- B03B: SEPARATING SOLID MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS OR USING PNEUMATIC TABLES OR JIGS
- B07B: SEPARATING SOLIDS FROM SOLIDS BY SIEVING, SCREENING, SIFTING OR BY USING GAS CURRENTS; SEPARATING BY OTHER DRY METHODS APPLICABLE TO BULK MATERIAL, e.g. LOOSE ARTICLES FIT TO BE HANDLED LIKE BULK MATERIAL (wet separating processes, sorting by processes using fluent material in the same way as liquid B03; combinations of dry separating apparatus with wet separating apparatus B03B; using liquids B03B, B03D; sorting by magnetic or electrostatic separation of solid materials from solid materials or fluids, separation by high voltage electric fields B03C; centrifuges or vortex apparatus for carrying out physical processes B04; hand sorting, postal sorting, sorting by switching or other devices actuated in response to detection or measurement of some feature of articles or samples of material B07C)
- E21B: EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS

## Abstract

The invention comprises a system for wet screening of oil well proppant at the wellsite to provide a controlled and controllable amount of properly sized and screened proppant and fluid to a frac fluid blending system.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A system for creating a slurry, comprising:
a wet screening assembly comprising a screen with a plurality of openings through which material may pass, and a material hopper with an outlet disposed above at least a portion of the screen;
a material supply assembly comprising a variable speed motor and a material weight sensor, and wherein the material supply assembly is arranged to supply material to the material hopper at a controlled rate;
a fluid supply assembly comprising a fluid pump, and wherein the fluid supply assembly is arranged to supply fluid to the wet screening assembly;
a bin located below the wet screening assembly such that material and fluid that pass through the screen are collected in the bin as the slurry;
wherein a concentration of material in the slurry is determined by a rate or rates at which the material supply assembly supplies material to the material hopper and/or by a rate or rates at which fluid is supplied to the wet screening assembly; and
a conduit coupled to the bin for passing the slurry from the bin without removing the material from the fluid.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the wet screening assembly is coupled to a trailer or to a vehicle chassis, and further comprising a first configuration on the trailer or the vehicle chassis for transporting the wet screening assembly on roadways, and a second configuration on the trailer or the vehicle chassis for the wet screening assembly when wet screening material.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The system of claim 2, further comprising a support structure coupled to the trailer or the vehicle chassis to support the wet screening assembly.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The system of claim 3, wherein the wet screening assembly is lifted from the first configuration to the second configuration.

### Claim 5 (depends on 3)

The system of claim 3, further comprising a plurality of force-producing rams coupled to the wet screening assembly and arranged to move the wet screening assembly from the first configuration to the second configuration.

### Claim 6 (depends on 2)

The system of claim 2, further comprising an adjustment component having a plurality of adjustable legs and a length of at least one of which is adjusted to level the screen.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The system of claim 6, wherein the plurality of adjustable legs are extended to ground.

### Claim 8 (depends on 6)

The system of claim 6, wherein the adjustment component comprises a plurality of force-producing rams.

### Claim 9 (depends on 2)

The system of claim 2, wherein the fluid supply assembly delivers fluid at a rate or rates between 12 bbl/min and 119 bbl/min.

### Claim 10 (depends on 2)

The system of claim 2, wherein the fluid supply assembly supplies fluid at a rate or rates greater than 50 bbl/min.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, further comprising an adjustment component operatively coupled to the wet screening assembly allowing adjustment of a levelness of the screen.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, further comprising a slurry pump for transferring the slurry from the collection bin.

### Claim 13 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the fluid supply assembly delivers fluid at a rate or rates between 12 bbl/min and 119 bbl/min.

### Claim 14 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the fluid supply assembly delivers fluid at a rate or rates greater than 50 bbl/min.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the slurry collected in the bin has a material component of between 0.3 lbs/gallon and 12 lbs/gallon.

### Claim 16 (depends on 15)

The system of claim 15, wherein the slurry in the collection bin has a material component of between 3 lbs/gallon and 6 lbs/gallon.

### Claim 17 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more rates of material supplied by the material supply assembly to the material hopper varies over time.

### Claim 18 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the wet screening assembly is coupled to a trailer or a vehicle chassis for transporting the wet screening assembly to a wellsite, and wherein the wet screening assembly is uncoupled from the trailer or the vehicle chassis at the wellsite.

### Claim 19

A system for creating a proppant slurry for use in hydraulic fracturing operations, the system comprising:
a wet screening assembly comprising a screen with a plurality of openings through which proppant and fluid may pass, and a hopper with an outlet disposed above at least a portion of the screen;
a proppant supply assembly comprising a variable speed motor, and wherein the proppant supply assembly is arranged to supply material comprising proppant to the hopper;
a fluid supply assembly comprising a pump and a fluid meter, and wherein the fluid supply assembly is arranged to supply fluid comprising water to the wet screening assembly;
a bin located below the wet screening assembly such that proppant and fluid that pass through the screen are collected in the bin as the proppant slurry;
an outlet in the bin for passing the proppant slurry from the bin;
wherein a concentration of proppant in the slurry is determined by a rate or rates at which the proppant supply assembly supplies proppant to the hopper and/or by a rate or rates at which fluid is supplied to the wet screening assembly; and
a conduit coupled to the bin for passing the proppant slurry from the bin without separating the proppant from the fluid.

### Claim 20 (depends on 19)

The system of claim 19, wherein fluid is supplied at a rate or rates greater than 50 bbl/min.

### Claim 21 (depends on 20)

The system of claim 20, wherein the fluid comprises water, and the water in the proppant slurry is up to about 75% of the water by volume used to fracture a subterranean formation.

### Claim 22 (depends on 19)

The system of claim 19, wherein the proppant slurry collected by the collection bin has a proppant component of between 3 lbs/gallon and 6 lbs/gallon.

### Claim 23 (depends on 19)

The system of claim 19, wherein the frac slurry in the collection bin has a proppant component of 5 lbs/gallon or greater.

### Claim 24 (depends on 19)

The system of claim 19, wherein the material supply rate to the hopper is at least 1,000 tons/hr.

### Claim 25 (depends on 19)

The system of claim 19, wherein the variable speed motor comprises a variable frequency drive and the delivery rate of material supplied to the hopper varies over time.

### Claim 26

A system for creating a sand and water slurry for use with a subterranean formation, the system comprising:
a wet screening assembly comprising a screen with a plurality of openings through which sand and water may pass, a hopper with a sand inlet, a water inlet, and an outlet, the outlet having an area less than a sand inlet area, and the outlet disposed above at least a portion of the screen;
a sand supply assembly comprising a motor, a variable speed motor drive and a weight sensor, and wherein the sand supply assembly is arranged to supply sand to the hopper;
a screen leveling assembly wherein the screen can be leveled before or during wet screening of sand;
a water supply assembly comprising a pump and a flow meter, and wherein the water supply assembly is arranged to supply water to the wet screening assembly;
a bin located below the wet screening assembly such that sand and water that pass through the screen are collected in the bin as the sand slurry;
wherein a concentration of sand in the slurry is determined by a rate or rates at which the sand supply assembly supplies sand to the hopper and/or by a rate or rates at which water is supplied to the wet screening assembly; and
a conduit coupled to the outlet for passing the sand slurry from the bin without separating the sand from the water.

### Claim 27 (depends on 26)

The system of claim 26, wherein the water supply assembly supplies between 12 bbl/min and 119 bbl/min of water to the wet screening assembly, and wherein a sand concentration of the sand slurry is between 0.3 lbs sand/gallon of water and 12 lbs/gallon of water.

### Claim 28 (depends on 26)

The system of claim 26, wherein the water supply assembly further comprises a water spray component supplying fluid to at least a portion of the screen.

### Claim 29 (depends on 26)

The system of claim 26, wherein the rate of sand supplied to the hopper varies over time.

### Claim 30 (depends on 26)

The system of claim 26, further comprising a predetermined sand concentration value and wherein a speed of the motor and a flow rate of the pump are controlled to achieve the predetermined sand concentration value of the sand slurry.

### Claim 31 (depends on 26)

The system of claim 26, wherein the water in the sand slurry is up to about 75% of the water by volume needed to fracture a subterranean formation.