Laser milling and injection system for water coning remediation
AssigneeSaudi Arabian Oil Company
InventorsBader Alharbi, Sameeh Batarseh, Ayman Almohsin
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A laser milling and injection system operable to perform water shutoff operations in a wellbore includes a laser source, a source of a sealing gel mixture operable to cure into a bulk material, and a tool head insertable within the wellbore and operably coupled to the laser source and the source of the sealing gel mixture. The tool head includes a rotational control lens operable to receive a laser beam from laser source and tune the laser beam into an oblong shape directed towards a wall of the wellbore to generate an oblong tunnel extending laterally from the wellbore, and one or more fluid outlets operable to inject the sealing gel mixture into the laterally-extending tunnel.
Claims20
A laser milling and injection system for performing water shutoff operations in a wellbore, the system comprising:
- a laser source;
- a source of a sealing gel mixture operable to cure into a bulk material;
- and
- a tool head insertable within the wellbore and in communication with the laser source and the source of the sealing gel mixture, the tool head including:
- a rotational control lens operable to receive a laser beam from the laser source and tune the laser beam into an oblong shape directed towards a wall of the wellbore and thereby generate an oblong tunnel extending through the wall and laterally from the wellbore;
- and
- one or more fluid outlets operable to inject the sealing gel mixture into the oblong tunnel.
A method of performing water shutoff operations in a wellbore, the method comprising:
- advancing a tool head into the wellbore to a location above an interface between an oil-producing zone and a water-producing zone;
- emitting a laser beam from the tool head to generate an elliptical tunnel extending laterally through a wall of the wellbore;
- rotating the tool head to aim the laser beam at a location angularly adjacent to the elliptical tunnel;
- generating a plurality of overlapping elliptical tunnels to create a disk-shaped void within the wall of the wellbore;
- injecting a sealing gel mixture into the disk-shaped void;
- and
- curing the sealing gel mixture to form a bulk material that prohibits water production into the wellbore through the disk-shaped void.
A laser milling and injection tool head, comprising:
- a tool housing sized to be received within a wellbore;
- a rotational control lens arranged within the tool housing and operable to tune a shape and size of a laser beam emitted from the tool housing to generate one or more elliptical tunnels through a wall of the wellbore;
- and
- one or more fluid pipes with fluid outlets arranged within the tool housing and operable to emit a sealing gel mixture into the one or more elliptical tunnels to form a bulk material that prohibits water production across the elliptical tunnels and into the wellbore.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.