Riser Centralizer System (RCS)
AssigneeBP Corporation North America Inc.
InventorBenton F. Baugh
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
In an offshore drilling facility, apparatus is disclosed comprising: a drilling floor centralizer for receiving the upper end of a string of drilling riser sections; a moonpool centralizer for receiving another portion of the drilling riser; and at least one roto-track, removably and rotationally carried by at least one of the pin end of one drilling riser section and the box end of the adjacent drilling riser section, for extending the outer diameter of each of the adjacent ends to the outer diameter of the adjacent drilling risers sections intermediate the ends of the drilling riser sections.
Claims29
In an offshore drilling facility having a drilling floor, having a diverter housing carried by the drilling floor, having a moon-pool floor located below the drilling floor, and having a string of at least two drilling riser sections that are connected end to end and that extend through the diverter housing and the moon-pool, each drilling riser section having a box end, an opposite pin end and an outer diameter ends that is less than the overall outer diameter between the ends, apparatus comprising:
- a drilling floor centralizer, carried by the drilling floor, for receiving and centralizing the upper end of the string of drilling riser sections;
- a moonpool centralizer, carried by the moonpool floor, for receiving and centralizing at least a portion of the string of riser sections;
- and
- at least one roto-track, removably and rotationally carried by at least one of the pin end of one drilling riser section and the box end of the adjacent drilling riser section, for extending the outer diameter of each of said adjacent ends to the outer diameter of the drilling riser sections between the ends of the drilling risers sections.
In an offshore drilling facility having a drilling deck, having a diverter housing carried by the drilling deck, having a moon-pool deck located below the drilling deck, and having a string of at least two drilling riser sections that are connected end to end and that extend through the diverter housing and the moon-pool, each drilling riser section having a box end and an opposite pin end and an outer diameter intermediate its ends that is greater than the outer diameter immediately adjacent its ends, apparatus comprising:
- a drilling floor centralizer, carried by the drilling deck, for engaging the string of drilling riser sections at a first level with first rollers;
- a moonpool centralizer, positioned in the vicinity of the moonpool, for engaging a portion of the string of drilling riser sections at a second and relatively lower level with second rollers;
- at least one pin roto-track, removably and rotationally carried by the pin end of one drilling riser section;
- and
- at least one box roto-track, removably and rotationally carried by the box end of the adjacent drilling riser section, said pin roto-track and said box roto-track extending said outer diameter of each of said adjacent ends of the drilling riser sections to the outer diameter of said adjacent drilling riser sections intermediate its ends and providing a relatively smooth continuous track for said rollers.
In an drilling vessel having a drilling floor, having a diverter housing carried by the drilling floor, having a moon-pool floor located below the drilling floor, having a drilling riser that is capable of moving through the diverter housing and the moon-pool, and having a flex-joint connected to the upper end of the drilling riser, the flex-joint having an interior member for fluid communication to the drilling riser and an exterior member that is flexibly connected to the interior member and relatively rigidly connected to the vessel, apparatus comprising:
- a relatively short rigid member, adapted to move axially into and out of said interior member of said flex-joint, for limiting relative movement between the interior member and the exterior member;
- and
- means, carried by the vessel, for moving said rigid member into and out of the interior member of the flex-joint.
In a vessel supporting a flexible joint and a string of drilling riser sections joined to the flexible joint, the flexible joint comprising a fixed member carried by the vessel, and a moveable member connected to a drilling riser section and relatively flexibly connected to the fixed member, the fixed number having an upper end and an interior bore and the movable member having an interior bore for flow communication between the interior of the string of drilling riser sections and the interior bore of the fixed member, apparatus, comprising:
- a base removably connected to the upper end of the fixed member of the flexible joint;
- an insertable member, disposed for movement between:
- a locked position within at least a portion of the interior bore of the moveable member of the flexible joint such that relative movement between the movable member and the fixed member is substantially reduced;
- a stowed position generally away from of the interior bore of the movable member of the flexible joint such that the moveable member is generally free to move relative to the fixed member;
- and
- means, carried by said base for moving said insertable member between said locked position and said stowed position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.