Process for hollowing out a cavity formed of a plurality of sub-cavities in a thin layer of salt
US5988760A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 12, 1997 |
| Grant date | Nov 23, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 12, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC E)Fixed Constructions
- CPC primaryE21B43/305
- WIPO fieldCivil engineering
- WIPO sectorOther fields
Abstract
A process for hollowing out a cavity, by dissolution, in a ground formation comprising at least one layer containing predominantly salt, the process including the steps of drilling at least one hole having a substantially horizontal section arranged at least in part in the salt layer, providing in the drilled hole(s) an injection pipe, an extraction pipe and a preliminary communication space connecting the injection pipe and the extraction pipe, injecting a solvent of the salt, into the communication space, through one end of the injection pipe forming an injection point, extracting, through the extraction pipe, the brine formed by the dissolution of the salt, in contact with the solvent, producing a plurality of preliminary sub-cavities in the salt layer, and producing a succession of channels, isolated from the layer, the succession of channels connecting the plurality of preliminary sub-cavities in a fluid manner two at a time in order to form an open circuit for circulation of the solvent, expending between a first sub-cavity and a last sub-cavity, the preliminary sub-cavities and the channels defining the preliminary communication space.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.