Wellbore cleaning method and apparatus
AssigneeSpecialized Petroleum Services Group Limited
InventorGeorge Telfer
Life of this patent
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Abstract
This invention relates to well cleaning methods and apparatus. In particular, this invention relates to a method of drilling and cleaning a wellbore. In one embodiment of the invention, a method of drilling and cleaning a wellbore (12) is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of providing a drill string (10) having a drill bit (28) and a cleaning tool (24) with selectively activatable cleaning members (34); drilling a wellbore using the drill bit while maintaining the cleaning members in a deactivated position; and pulling the drill string from the wellbore with the cleaning members in an activated position, to thereby clean the wellbore. A corresponding cleaning tool is also disclosed.
Claims10
A method of drilling a wellbore and cleaning a wellbore casing, the method comprising the steps of:
- providing a drill string having a drill bit and a cleaning tool with selectively activatable cleaning members in the wellbore having the wellbore casing;
- drilling the wellbore further using the drill bit while maintaining the selectively activatable cleaning members in a deactivated position;
- activating the selectively activatable cleaning members by extending the selectively activatable cleaning members from the cleaning tool to contact an interior wall of the wellbore casing, wherein activating comprises biasing the cleaning members into contact with a wall of the wellbore casing by at least one of magnetic repulsion and dropping a ball through the drill string;
- pulling the drill string from the wellbore with the selectively activatable cleaning members in an activated position to thereby clean the wellbore casing;
- and
- deactivating the selectively activatable cleaning members after said selectively activatable cleaning members have cleaned a portion of the wellbore casing.
A method of drilling a wellbore and cleaning a well bore casing on a single trip, the method comprising the steps:
- providing a drill string having a drill bit at a first end and including a cleaning tool with selectively activated cleaning members in the wellbore having the wellbore casing;
- drilling the wellbore further by operation of the drill bit while maintaining the selectively activated cleaning members in a deactivated position;
- activating the selectively activatable cleaning members by extending the selectively activatable cleaning members from the cleaning tool to contact an interior wall of the wellbore casing, wherein activating comprises biasing the cleaning members into contact with a wall of the wellbore casing by at least one of magnetic repulsion and dropping a ball through the drill string;
- pulling the drill string from the well bore with the selectively activated cleaning members in an activated position and cleaning the well bore casing;
- and
- deactivating the selectively activated cleaning members after the selectively activated cleaning members have cleaned a portion of the wellbore casing.
A method of drilling a wellbore and cleaning a wellbore casing, the method comprising the steps of:
- a) providing a drill string having a drill bit and a cleaning tool with selectively activatable cleaning members selected from a group consisting of scrapers, brushes, blades, and abrasive elements suitable for cleaning a surface of wellbore casing in the wellbore having the wellbore casing;
- b) drilling the wellbore further using the drill bit while maintaining the cleaning members in a deactivated position;
- c) activating the cleaning members by extending the cleaning members from the cleaning tool to contact an interior wall of the wellbore casing, wherein activating comprises at biasing the cleaning members into contact with a wall of the wellbore casing by at least one of magnetic repulsion and dropping a ball through the drill string;
- d) pulling the drill string from the wellbore with the cleaning members in an activated position, to thereby clean the wellbore casing;
- and
- e) deactivating the cleaning members after said cleaning members have cleaned a portion of the wellbore casing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.