Riser displacement and cleaning systems and methods of use
AssigneeHalliburton Energy Services, Inc.
InventorsHenry Eugene Rogers, David D. Szarka, Nicolas Rogozinski
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Disclosed are systems and methods of effectively wiping and displacing a deep water riser prior to disconnection from a blowout preventer. An exemplary riser displacement system includes a mandrel coupled to a work string, a seal containment canister arranged about at least a portion of the mandrel, and a seal assembly movable between an un-deployed configuration, where the seal assembly is arranged within the seal containment canister, and a deployed configuration, where the seal assembly is arranged outside of the seal containment canister, the seal assembly including a sleeve movably arranged about the mandrel and one or more sealing elements disposed at a distal end of the sleeve.
Claims21
A riser displacement system, comprising:
- a mandrel coupled to a work string;
- a seal containment canister arranged about at least a portion of the mandrel;
- a seal assembly movable between an un-deployed configuration, where the seal assembly is arranged within the seal containment canister, and a deployed configuration, where the seal assembly is arranged outside of the seal containment canister, the seal assembly including a sleeve movably arranged about the mandrel and one or more sealing elements disposed at a distal end of the sleeve;
- and
- a piston bore defined between the sleeve and the mandrel, the piston bore being in fluid communication with an interior of the work string via one or more orifices defined in the mandrel.
A method of displacing a volume of a riser, comprising:
- coupling a riser displacement system to a work string, the riser displacement system including a mandrel and a seal containment canister arranged about at least a portion of the mandrel, the seal containment canister having a seal assembly arranged therein that includes a sleeve movably arranged about the mandrel and one or more sealing elements;
- introducing the riser displacement system into the riser from a surface, the riser being at least partially filled with a drilling fluid;
- pressurizing the work string and thereby pressurizing a piston bore defined between the sleeve and the mandrel, the piston bore being in fluid communication with an interior of the work string via one or more orifices defined in the mandrel;
- hydraulically forcing the sleeve out a distal end of the seal containment canister and thereby deploying the seal assembly from the seal containment canister, whereby the one or more sealing elements sealingly engage an inner radial surface of the riser;
- advancing the riser displacement system back towards the surface;
- and
- displacing the drilling fluid above the one or more sealing elements from the riser as the riser displacement system is advanced back towards the surface.
A method of displacing drilling fluid from a riser extending from a rig floor of an offshore facility, comprising:
- introducing a riser displacement system into the riser at the rig floor, the riser displacement system including a mandrel and a seal containment canister arranged about at least a portion of the mandrel, the seal containment canister having a seal assembly arranged therein that includes a sleeve and one or more sealing elements movably arranged about the mandrel;
- advancing the riser displacement system to a wellhead installation;
- deploying the seal assembly from the seal containment canister;
- sealing an inner radial surface of the riser with the one or more sealing elements thereby separating the drilling fluid present within the riser above the one or more sealing elements from fluids present within the riser below the one or more sealing elements;
- advancing the riser displacement system back towards the rig floor;
- and
- displacing the drilling fluid from the riser as the riser displacement system is advanced back towards the rig floor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.