Abstract:
A process for providing oxygen to a feed gas wherein the oxygen is first absorbed from an oxygen containing gas (e.g. air) and then desorbed into the feed gas (e.g. natural gas). The oxygen is adsorbed from air by passing the air in contact with an oxygen-sorbent material (e.g. a solid-state, lithium cyanocobaltate) until the sorbent-material is substantially saturated after which the feed gas is passed in contact with the sorbent material to desorb the oxygen into the feed gas.
Abstract:
Spacer fluids comprising a dispersant selected from the group consisting of water soluble polymers comprising allyloxybenzene sulfonate or allyloxybenzene phosphonate polymerized with at least one of acrylic acid, acrylamides, alkyl acrylamides, maleic anhydride, itaconic acid, sulfonated or phosphonaated styrene, sulfonated or phosphonated vinyl toluene, sulfonated or phosphonated isobutylene, acrylamidopropane sulfonate or acrylamidopropanephosphonate, vinyl alcohol, sulfonated or phosphonated propene and alkali metal, alkaline earth metal and ammonium salts thereof and water with optional additional components such as surfactants, viscosifiers and wetting materials to form a rheologically compatible spacer fluid for use between a drilling fluid and a cement slurry and a method for using such spacer fluids to displace drilling fluids from a wellbore space with a cement slurry.
Abstract:
A method for setting a whipstock (25) in a wellbore (2) on a packer-anchor (17) which employs a wireline (11) that carries a setting assembly (20, 35) which severs a shear member (24, 33) carried by the setting assembly after the whipstock is set onto the packer-anchor.
Abstract:
Predetermined quantities of slurried solids wastes are injected into earth formation waste disposal zones (23) having a predetermined in situ stress distribution and compaction rate for a predetermined hydraulic injection pressure and wherein the disposal zones (23) are bounded by zones (24, 26) having greater in situ stresses. Unconsolidated or lightly cemented formation zones may be used for waste disposal wherein it is determined that a substantial compaction of the material defining opposed faces of hydraulic fractures (22) may occur. Fracture volume available for retention of solids in the slurry is calculated based on fracture height, fracture length, elastic deflection of the fracture faces, compaction of the fracture faces and the number of fractures based on either unequal or substantially equal horizontal stress distributions.
Abstract:
Oil and water based drilling muds, together with other wellbore contaminants such as pipe thread sealants and lubricants are displaced from the well (10) and the wellbore surfaces are cleaned by a system of four serially pumped fluid pills. The first stage fluid pill is a weighted spacer having an alkyl polyglycoside surfactant, a dispersant, a weighting agent and a viscosifier. The second stage pill is a drive fluid formed by water and a viscous polymer gel such as clarified xanthan gum having a viscosity/shear rate characteristic which minimizes mixing of the drive fluid pill with the displacement fluid pill. A buffer fluid pill comprising completion brine is interposed between the drive fluid pill and a fourth stage comprising a wash fluid pill using an organic solvent or a caustic alkyl polyglycoside as a final cleaning stage. The densities of the pills are controlled to minimize mixing and fingering.
Abstract:
Deposits are removed from cargo tanks and the like by a sequential operation in which a portion of each tank is filled with a solvent and the solvent is gradually moved upwards by a ballast of water so as to contact the tank surface and dissolve the deposits, followed by moving the water to the next tank causing the solvent to move back down and contact the tank surfaces a second time to effect further removal of the residual deposit. As illustrated in the figure, tanker (10) has cargo tanks A through O. Tanks A-D initially hold a portion of solvent at the bottom. Ballast water is pumped into A so as to cause solvent to move upwards and contact the tank surface and dissolve the residues deposited thereon. Water is then pumped from A to B causing solvent in A to move down. This operation is repeated for tanks B and C. Solvent is sequentially moved from A to E, B to F and C to G, and so on. Tanks E-F are cleaned in the same manner as tanks A-C. This sequential transfer of solvent and water is continued until all the tank surfaces are contacted with the solvent.
Abstract:
A well conduit cutting and milling apparatus (22) conveyable into and out of a well on coilable tubing (27) using a tubing injection unit (21). The apparatus includes tubing or casing cutting arms (30) which are radially extendable and retractable with respect to a cylindrical support body by pressure fluid operated pistons (64, 70). The apparatus is made up of multiple end-to-end connected units including one which supports interchangeable cutting and milling arms (30) and units which have radially extensible and retractable stabilizing arms (38) which engage the inner wall of the tubing (12) or casing (10) to centralize and stabilize the apparatus during operation. The cutter and milling arms (30) are modified for milling away a section of tubing (12) by moving the apparatus in an upward or out of the well direction. The cutting elements (34) are preferably cylindrical hard metal members which are supported on the arms (30) for cutting away an end face of the tubing (12) in a tangential direction of movement.
Abstract:
A system and method for performing seismic prospecting and monitoring during drilling of a well (101) are disclosed. The system generates energy, such as acoustic vibrations and electromagnetic energy, at a downhole location (15) and imparts the same into the surrounding earth. The energy may be imparted by the drilling operation itself, or may be generated by a downhole apparatus. Downhole sensors (20) are provided which sense the energy after it has passed through the earth (104) surrounding the wellbore. The sensed energy is either communicated to the surface, or is communicated to a downhole computer for analysis, with the results of the analysis communicated to the surface. Due to the use of both downhole generation and sensing of the energy, high frequency energy may be used. As a result, the resolution of the resulting survey is improved over techniques which utilize surface detectors for energy traveling through the earth.
Abstract:
A multiple gravel pack well completion (14) and a method for installing same wherein multiple zones (12, 13) in a wellbore can be gravel packed without the circulation of fluid. Particulate material, e.g. gravel, (14) is preset in the wellbore adjacent the lower zone (12) to be completed and a first auger-liner (20) is 'augered' into the present gravel to form a lower gravel pack completion. A packer is set above the lower zone and additional gravel placed onto the packer to fill the wellborne adjacent the upper zone (13). A second auger-liner (33) assembly is augered into the additional gravel to form an upper gravel pack completion (30). Conduit means (18C) are then provided to establish fluid communication between the surface of the wellbore and the upper and lower gravel pack completions.
Abstract:
An in vivo method for transforming and regenerating intact plants. According to the method, a plant (P) is infected with an infectious microbial agency comprised of: (1) virulence functions, (2) oncogenic factors capable of inducing a shoot-bearing shooty tumour on plant (P), and (3) a carrier vector containing engineered heterologous transfer DNA capable of being integrated into the nuclear DNA of plant (P) cells. Infected plant (P) is maintained until a shoot-bearing shooty tumour develops at or near the infection site. Those shoots, or progeny thereof, that contain transformed cells having heterologous transfer DNA integrated into their genomes are then selected and utilized to produce whole plants that contain cells having heterologous transfer DNA integrated into their genomes.