IPC분류정보
국가/구분 |
United States(US) Patent
등록
|
국제특허분류(IPC7판) |
|
출원번호 |
US-0174575
(2014-02-06)
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등록번호 |
US-9945207
(2018-04-17)
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발명자
/ 주소 |
- Bao, Xiaoqi
- Badescu, Mircea
- Sherrit, Stewart
- Hall, Jeffery L.
- Bar-Cohen, Yoseph
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출원인 / 주소 |
- CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
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대리인 / 주소 |
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인용정보 |
피인용 횟수 :
0 인용 특허 :
5 |
초록
▼
A flow control valve for use in oil well bore holes. The flow control valve includes a plurality of flow paths connected in parallel. The flow control valve operates by successively opening different flow paths, starting with a flow path that requires a reduced force to operate its inlet valve. The
A flow control valve for use in oil well bore holes. The flow control valve includes a plurality of flow paths connected in parallel. The flow control valve operates by successively opening different flow paths, starting with a flow path that requires a reduced force to operate its inlet valve. The flow rate through the flow control valve is controlled by opening and closing different ones of the plurality of flow paths individually or in combination. A flow path that allows fluid to flow at substantially the full flow rate of the valve is provided as one of the parallel paths. A simple mechanical design using poppet valves and at least one cam is described.
대표청구항
▼
1. A flow control valve, comprising: a plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel, where M is an integer greater than one, each of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel having a fluid connection at one end to an inlet and having a fluid connection at a second end to an outlet;eac
1. A flow control valve, comprising: a plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel, where M is an integer greater than one, each of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel having a fluid connection at one end to an inlet and having a fluid connection at a second end to an outlet;each of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel having at least one poppet valve that is sized in proportion to a flow capacity of the flow path;M−1 of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel each having a respective plurality NI of stages arranged in series, each stage comprising an orifice and a chamber, where NI is an integer that is greater than one that describes the number of stages arranged in series;a remaining flow path of said plurality M of flow paths comprising an orifice between the inlet and the outlet; andat least one actuator operatively connected to at least one of said poppet valves, said at least one actuator operable to place said at least one of said poppet valves in one of a fully open state and a fully closed state;wherein:a cross section of the orifice of said each stage and a cross section of the chamber of said each stage are configured to create a flow exiting the orifice into the chamber as a turbulent jet, the chamber serving as a settling chamber,flow rates of the M−1 flow paths are configured according to a progression, from a low flow rate of a first flow path of the M−1 flow paths to a flow rate of a last flow path of the M−1 flow paths that is lower than a high flow rate, the progression of flow rates being based on increasing a diameter of the orifice, increasing a length of the chamber, and decreasing a number of stages NI,a diameter of the orifice of the remaining flow path defines the high flow rate through the flow control valve,said flow control valve is operable to permit a controlled flow of a fluid therethrough based on opening in succession a sequence of flow paths according to an increasing flow rate of the flow paths, starting from the first flow path having the low flow rate, the opening in succession causing a decreasing in succession of a pressure difference between the inlet and the outlet for a reduced activation force of the at least one actuator, andselection of a flow rate of the flow control valve is based on the fully open and the fully closed states of the at least one poppet valve of the each of said plurality M of flow paths. 2. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel fit within an annular cylinder between an inner pipe and a casing pipe of an oil well. 3. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein said flow control valve is operable to provide a flow having a flow rate determined according to a progression of said fully open and said fully closed states of said poppet valves of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel. 4. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein said at least one actuator is an annular cam. 5. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein said at least one actuator comprises a plurality of annular cams. 6. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein said at least one actuator is a motor. 7. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein a first poppet of a first flow path of the plurality M of flow paths has a mechanical interference with a second poppet of a second flow path of the plurality M of flow paths, the mechanical interference when engaged communicating a drive force from said at least one actuator to the second poppet by way of direct contact between the first poppet and the second poppet. 8. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein a sealing area between the at least one poppet valve of the each of said plurality M of flow paths and an orifice of the each of said plurality M of flow paths to the inlet is located on the outside surface of the orifice or on the base of the orifice. 9. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein said controlled flow is determined by a state in which only one of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel is open. 10. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein said controlled flow is determined by a state in which at least two of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel are open. 11. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein each of said plurality M of flow paths is a tubular pipe, the inlet being an inlet to the tubular pipe to allow entering of the fluid into the tubular pipe, and the outlet being an outlet of the tubular pipe to allow exiting of the fluid from the tubular pipe. 12. The flow control valve of claim 11, wherein the chamber of the each stage is formed by the tubular pipe. 13. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein for each flow path of the M−1 flow paths, the diameter of the orifice, structure of the chamber, and the number of stages NI are configured to limit the flow rate of the each flow path to a maximum flow rate to reduce erosion. 14. The flow control valve of claim 13, wherein the maximum flow rate is in correspondence of a maximum flow velocity of 50 m/s. 15. The flow control valve of claim 1, wherein for each flow path of the M−1 flow paths, a total pressure between the inlet and the outlet is equally distributed at each stage of the respective plurality NI stages. 16. A method of controlling a flow rate of a fluid, comprising the steps of: a) providing a flow control valve, comprising: an inlet for receiving a fluid and an outlet for delivering said fluid; anda plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel, where M is an integer greater than one, each of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel having a fluid connection at one end to said inlet and having a fluid connection at a second end to said outlet, flow rates of the plurality M of flow paths configured according to a progression, from a low flow rate of a first flow path of the M flow paths to a high flow rate of a last flow path of the plurality of M flow paths;the last flow path having a flow capacity when open of substantially the total flow that the valve can provide, and each of the remaining M−1 flow paths connected in parallel having a respective flow capacity when open of a fractional part of the total flow that the valve can provide;each of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel each having a poppet valve of a plurality of poppet valves that is sized in proportion to said respective flow capacity of said flow path, the plurality of poppet valves comprising poppet valves of progressive sizes, from a smaller size poppet valve associated to the first flow path to a larger size poppet valve associated to the last flow path;the remaining M−1 of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel each having a respective plurality of stages, each stage comprising an orifice and a chamber, the stages constructed to reduce a pressure of a fluid flowing through said respective one of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel, the progression of the flow rates being based on an increased diameter of the orifice, increased length of the chamber, and decreased number of stages NI; andat least one actuator operatively connected to at least one of said poppet valves, said at least one actuator operable to place said at least one of said poppet valves in one of a fully open state and a fully closed state;b) connecting said inlet of said flow control valve to a reservoir of fluid at a pressure difference P+ΔP with respect to said outlet;c) connecting said outlet of said flow control valve to a reservoir to receive fluid passing through said flow control valve; andd) operating said at least one actuator to open one or more of said poppet valves of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel so as to cause a flow of said fluid at a predetermined flow rate, wherein the step of operating comprises opening in succession a sequence of flow paths of the plurality of M flow paths according to an increasing flow rate of the flow paths, starting from the first flow path having the low flow rate, the opening in succession causing a decreasing in succession of the pressure difference for a reduced activation force of the at least one actuator,wherein:the operating of said at least one actuator first opens the smaller size poppet valve with a reduced actuation force. 17. The method of controlling a flow rate of a fluid of claim 16, wherein said reservoir of fluid at said pressure difference P+ΔP is a production zone of an oil well. 18. The method of controlling a flow rate of a fluid of claim 16, wherein said flow of said fluid at said predetermined flow rate results in a pressure difference P between said outlet and inlet. 19. The method of controlling a flow rate of a fluid of claim 16, wherein said flow of said fluid in one path of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel has a maximum flow velocity V given by V=(2ΔP/NIρ)0.5 where ΔP is the pressure drop between the inlet and the outlet, NI is an integer that is greater than one that describes the number of stages in a selected open path I of the M paths, and ρ is the density of the fluid. 20. The method of controlling a flow rate of a fluid of claim 16, further comprising: i) based on the opening of the smaller size poppet valve, reducing the pressure difference between the inlet and the outlet;ii) based on the reducing, operating an actuator of said at least one actuator with a reduced force to open a smaller size poppet valve of remaining closed poppet valves. 21. The method of controlling a flow rate of a fluid of claim 20, further comprising: repeating steps i) and ii) for all closed poppet valves;based on the repeating, providing a high flow rate of said fluid through the flow control valve while limiting a flow rate of said fluid through each of the M−1 flow paths to a maximum flow rate to reduce erosion. 22. The method of controlling a flow rate of fluid of claim 21, wherein for each flow path of the M−1 flow paths, the diameter of the orifice, structure of the chamber, and the number of stages NI are configured to provide the maximum flow rate. 23. The method of controlling a flow rate of fluid of claim 22, wherein the maximum flow rate is in correspondence of a maximum flow velocity of 50 m/s. 24. A flow control valve, comprising: a plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel, where M is an integer greater than one, each of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel having a fluid connection at one end to an inlet and having a fluid connection at a second end to an outlet;each of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel having at least one poppet valve that is sized in proportion to a flow capacity of the flow path;M−1 of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel each having a respective plurality NI of stages arranged in series, each stage comprising an orifice and a chamber, where NI is an integer that is greater than one that describes the number of stages arranged in series;a remaining flow path of said plurality M of flow paths comprising an orifice between the inlet and the outlet; andat least one actuator operatively connected to at least one of said poppet valves, said at least one actuator operable to place said at least one of said poppet valves in one of a fully open state and a fully closed state;wherein:flow rates of the M−1 flow paths are configured according to a progression, from a low flow rate of a first flow path of the M−1 flow paths to a flow rate of a last flow path of the M−1 flow paths that is lower than a high flow rate, the progression of flow rates being based on increasing a diameter of the orifice, increasing a length of the chamber, and decreasing a number of stages NI,a diameter of the orifice of the remaining flow path defines the high flow rate through the flow control valve,said flow control valve is operable to permit a controlled flow of a fluid therethrough based on opening in succession a sequence of flow paths according to an increasing flow rate of the flow paths, starting from the first flow path having the low flow rate, the opening in succession causing a decreasing in succession of a pressure difference between the inlet and the outlet for a reduced activation force of the at least one actuator,selection of a flow rate of the flow control valve is based on the fully open and the fully closed states of the at least one poppet valve of the each of said plurality M of flow paths, anda first poppet of a first flow path of the plurality M of flow paths has a mechanical interference with a second poppet of a second flow path of the plurality M of flow paths, the mechanical interference when engaged communicating a drive force from said at least one actuator to the second poppet by way of direct contact between the first poppet and the second poppet. 25. A flow control valve, comprising: a plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel, where M is an integer greater than one, each of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel having a fluid connection at one end to an inlet and having a fluid connection at a second end to an outlet;each of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel having at least one poppet valve that is sized in proportion to a flow capacity of the flow path;M−1 of said plurality M of flow paths connected in parallel each having a respective plurality NI of stages arranged in series, each stage comprising an orifice and a chamber, where NI is an integer that is greater than one that describes the number of stages arranged in series;a remaining flow path of said plurality M of flow paths comprising an orifice between the inlet and the outlet; andat least one actuator operatively connected to at least one of said poppet valves, said at least one actuator operable to place said at least one of said poppet valves in one of a fully open state and a fully closed state;wherein:flow rates of the M−1 flow paths are configured according to a progression, from a low flow rate of a first flow path of the M−1 flow paths to a flow rate of a last flow path of the M−1 flow paths that is lower than a high flow rate, the progression of flow rates being based on increasing a diameter of the orifice, increasing a length of the chamber, and decreasing a number of stages NI,a diameter of the orifice of the remaining flow path defines the high flow rate through the flow control valve,said flow control valve is operable to permit a controlled flow of a fluid therethrough based on opening in succession a sequence of flow paths according to an increasing flow rate of the flow paths, starting from the first flow path having the low flow rate, the opening in succession causing a decreasing in succession of a pressure difference between the inlet and the outlet for a reduced activation force of the at least one actuator,selection of a flow rate of the flow control valve is based on the fully open and the fully closed states of the at least one poppet valve of the each of said plurality M of flow paths, andfor each flow path of the M−1 flow paths, a total pressure between the inlet and the outlet is equally distributed at each stage of the respective plurality NI stages.
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