Abstract:
Terpolymers of polyolefin/acrylic acid or substituted acrylic acid/acrylonitrile are prepared by combining a polyolefin/acrylic acid or substituted acrylic acid copolymer with at least one dinitrile to form a mixture and reacting the mixture at a temperature of at least 200.degree. C. for a time sufficient to form the terpolymer. Copolymers of polyolefin/acrylonitrile are obtained when the reaction is carried to completion. The total reaction masses obtained comprising terpolymer or copolymer, cyclic imide, solvent, when used and any unreacted dinitrile find use as pour point depressants in heavy hydrocarbon oils.
Abstract:
A system is provided for installing a drilling template in a level orientation over an ocean floor. The drilling template is supported on a plurality of preset piles. The piles extend above the ocean floor. After the piles are set, their elevations are accurately determined, and pile-receiving sockets in the drilling template are finally fabricated to have depths corresponding to the respective piles to be received therein. Once the drilling template is lowered onto the piles, it is supported in a level orientation.
Abstract:
A prepacked well screen assembly for preventing sand from being produced with well fluids. The assembly includes a filter medium surrounded by an outer support, with the outer surface of the filter medium being fluted or otherwise shaped to have a larger outer surface area than the surface area of the outer support member surrounding the filter medium.
Abstract:
A downhole electro-hydraulic vertical shear wave seismic source places the reaction mass internal to the source cylindrical housing and isolates the actuator from the wellbore fluid and pressure. The clamping system of this source uses two serrated pads radiused to match the inside diameter of the casing. Hydraulic cylinders which are retracted by internal compact stacks of spring washers are used for actuating the serrated pads. A device for keeping the reaction mass in a "floating" position with actuator piston centered within the actuator cylinder is provided by suspending the reaction mass from a compact and soft urethane spring. A threaded guide rod passing vertically through this spring allows spring compression to be adjusted until the actuator piston is precisely centered with no differential hydraulic pressure across the piston.
Abstract:
A method and apparatus by which elastic properties of rock formations are determined includes a downhole logging device which has two internal accelerometers mounted within to measure the acceleration of the device. A reference displacement of the device is determined by measuring the acceleration outside the borehole while the device is suspended in air. The output of the accelerometers is measured in the borehole. Integrating the acceleration outputs of these accelerometers twice yields the displacement in the borehole. Changes in the displacement of the device are indicative of various elastic properties of formations surrounding the borehole. Using two accelerometers to determine displacement allows the continuous logging of Young's modulus and other elastic properties of rocks surrounding a well bore. In an alternate embodiment, geophones are used to measure the velocity of the device and their outputs are integrated once to yield displacement.
Abstract:
In an oilfield production system, a water driven jet pump is used to evacuate vapors from storage tanks to thereby recover the vapors and prevent emissions from passing to the atmosphere. The jet pump entrains the vapors in process water which is passed to a process separator already in the system. The gas is separated for recovery.
Abstract:
The present invention resides in a three directional horizontal drilling process which is suitable for the in-situ treatment or extraction of undesirable contaminants from subsurface formations. A first extraction well is drilled utilizing three directional horizontal drilling techniques in the general vicinity of a contaminated subsurface formation. A second injection well is strategically drilled to direct contaminants into a subsurface screen system in the extraction well, thus facilitating the extraction and collection of undesirable contaminants.
Abstract:
The present invention relates to methods of seismic exploration utilizing vibrationally generated, elliptically polarized shear waves in an earth medium for subsequent detection of one or more dimensions of orthogonal particle motion. The invention relies upon a shear wave source of a type which couples a continually rotating longitudinal force into an earth medium thereby to propagate an elliptically polarized shear wave for refraction, reflection or subsurface detection, various forms of exploration being well within the capabilities.
Abstract:
Corrosion and scale inhibitors in fluids produced from a subterranean formation are separated, detected, and quantified by thin layer chromatography through the use of selected developing solvents and visualization reagents.
Abstract:
A Heave-Restrained Platform and Drilling System (HRP/DS) comprises a floating structure having a central buoyancy means, at least three out-rigger columns, and a hybrid mooring system in which a spread (lateral) mooring system functions with an array of tensioned production risers (serving as a vertical tension leg) to keep the structure generally over a specified seabed location. The HRP/DS provides a means for drilling and producing through oil wells in deep water such that critical pressure containment means are achieved with safe, redundant barriers and systems similar to those employed on shallow water fixed platforms.