Methods for sub-surface fluid shut-off
US5507345A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 23, 1994 |
| Grant date | Apr 16, 1996 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 23, 2014 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC E)Fixed Constructions
- CPC primaryE21B33/124
- WIPO fieldCivil engineering
- WIPO sectorOther fields
Abstract
Methods for reducing or eliminating undesirable fluid-production in a producing well by releasing a plugging material below an obstruction placed in the producing zone. The obstruction is placed near the base of a desirable fluid-producing interval. The plugging material flows outward to form a barrier to the flow of undesirable fluids into the desirable fluid-producing interval. For most applications, a buoyant plugging material is used so that undesirable fluid crossflow carries the plugging material to the location where it is needed to form a barrier to the undesirable fluid production. The present invention can be used in gravel-packed wells, open hole wells, slotted-liner wells, monobore completion wells, or cased-hole wells. The present invention can also be used with a pair of obstructions with a plugging material released between them to shut off multiple intermediate intervals producing undesirable fluids. In some circumstances, the present invention can be used with a pair of obstructions without the need for a plugging material to be released between the obstructions. Likewise, the invention can be used in vertical, inclined, or horizontal wells.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.