Wiper Barrier Plug Assemblies
OwnerCaleb Kimbrell Carrollinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A wiper barrier plug assembly can include a wiper plug, an expandable plug, and a trigger device that includes a trigger that is communicably coupled to the expandable plug, where the wiper plug, the expandable plug, and the trigger device are coupled to each other. The trigger device can be configured to detect a trigger condition while the trigger device is pumped down a cavity of the casing string. The trigger device can also be configured to operate, upon detecting the trigger condition, the expandable plug from a default position to an expanded position, where the expandable plug, when in the expanded position, is configured to abut against an inner surface of the casing string and to prevent the expandable plug from moving relative to the casing string.
Claims20
A wiper barrier plug assembly comprising:
- a wiper plug comprising a wiper plug body and a plurality of wipers extending from the wiper plug body, wherein the plurality of wipers is configured to contact an inner surface of a casing string disposed in a wellbore;
- an expandable plug;
- and
- a trigger device comprising a trigger that is communicably coupled to the expandable plug, wherein the wiper plug, the expandable plug, and the trigger device are mechanically coupled together, wherein the trigger device is configured to:
- detect a trigger condition while the trigger device is pumped down a cavity of the casing string formed by the inner surface;
- and
- operate, upon detecting the trigger condition, the expandable plug from a default position to an expanded position, wherein the expandable plug, when in the expanded position, is configured to abut against an inner surface of the casing string and to prevent the expandable plug from moving relative to the casing string.
A system for preparing a casing string in a wellbore for cement, the system comprising:
- a landing assembly disposed at a distal end of the casing string, wherein the landing assembly provides a channel for a first fluid to flow from a cavity of the casing string toward the surface through an annulus formed between an outer surface of the casing string and a wellbore wall;
- a bottom plug affixed to an inner surface of the casing string above the landing assembly, wherein the bottom plug has a flow path that traverses therethrough and through which the first fluid flows;
- and
- a wiper barrier plug assembly disposed in the cavity of the casing string, wherein the wiper barrier plug assembly comprises:
- a wiper plug comprising a wiper plug body and a plurality of wipers, wherein the wiper plug provides a barrier between a first fluid disposed below the wiper plug and a second fluid disposed above the wiper plug;
- an expandable plug operable from a default position and an expanded position;
- and
- a trigger device comprising a trigger, wherein the wiper plug, the expandable plug, and the trigger device are mechanically coupled together, wherein the trigger device:
- detects a trigger condition while the wiper barrier plug assembly is pumped toward the bottom plug by a pumping system;
- and
- operates, upon detecting the trigger condition, the expandable plug from the default position to the expanded position, wherein the expandable plug, when in the expanded position, is configured to abut against the inner surface of the casing string prevents the expandable plug from moving relative to the casing string.
A method for setting a wiper barrier plug assembly when cementing a casing string in a wellbore, the method comprising:
- detecting, by a trigger device of the wiper barrier plug assembly, a trigger condition while the wiper barrier plug assembly is pumped through a cavity of the casing string toward the bottom plug by a pumping system;
- and
- operating, by the trigger device upon detecting the trigger condition, an expandable plug of the wiper barrier plug assembly from a default position to an expanded position, wherein the expandable plug, when in the expanded position, abuts against an inner surface of the casing string and prevents the wiper barrier plug assembly from moving relative to the casing string, wherein the wiper plug, the expandable plug, and the trigger device are coupled to each other.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.