CA2545226C

CA2545226C - An abrasion resistant frac head with a quick-change wear sleeve and method of refurbishing same

Info

Publication number: CA2545226C
Application number: CA2545226A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Bob Mcguire
Original assignee: Stinger Wellhead Protection Inc
Current assignee: Oil States Energy Services LLC
Priority date: 2006-04-28
Filing date: 2006-04-28
Publication date: 2011-07-26
Anticipated expiration: 2026-04-28
Also published as: CA2545226A1; CA2722327A1; CA2722327C

Abstract

A quick-change wear sleeve for a high pressure fluid conduit is retained in a fluid passage of the fluid conduit by a resilient retainer ring received in complementary grooves in an outer surface of the quick-change wear sleeve and an inner surface of the fluid passage.

Description

AN ABRASION RESISTANT FRAC HEAD WITH A QUICK-CHANGE WEAR SLEEVE AND METHOD OF
REFURBISHING SAME
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This is the first application filed for the present invention.
MICROFICHE APPENDIX
Not Applicable.
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates generally to high-pressure fluid conduits for abrasive fluids and, in particular, to a quick-change wear sleeve for prolonging a service life of such fluid conduits.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Most oil and gas wells require some form of stimulation treatment either during completion or re-completion in order to stimulate production from the well. Many well stimulation treatments require that well stimulation fluids be pumped at high pressure and at high rates into the well. Those well stimulation fluids are frequently laden with abrasive proppants such as sharp sand, bauxite or ceramic particles. The conduits through which those fluids are pumped are therefore subject to wear due to erosion induced by the abrasive particles.
That wear is commonly referred to in the field as "wash", and a fluid conduit that has eroded in this way is said to be "washed".

The problem of wash is particularly severe in fluid conduits where turbulent flow occurs. Turbulent flow is most common where two or more high-pressure streams converge. Consequently, flow convergence equipment such as "frac heads", "flow tees" and valves are generally most subject to wash.
Frac heads resistant to wash have therefore been invented. For example, United States Patent 6,899,172, which issued May 31, 2005 to McLeod et al.

-2-describes an abrasion resistant frac head. Assignee's United States patent 7,213,641 which was issued on May 8, 2007 and entitled Fracturing Head With Replaceable Inserts For Improved Wear Resistance and Method Of Refurbishing Same, describes a fully sleeved frac head that is very abrasive resistant. Assignees co-pending United States patent application having a publication number 20060027779 which was published on February 9, 2006 and entitled Hi-Pressure Plug Valve with Replaceable Inserts and Method of Refurbishing Same, describes an abrasion resistant plug valve.

While each of these inventions has merit, refurbishing them requires time and skill.

It is therefore highly desirable to provide a quick-change wear sleeve for high-pressure fluid conduits.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a quick-change wear sleeve for high-pressure fluid conduits.

The invention therefore provides a abrasion resistant frac head, comprising: a top end and a bottom end respectively adapted for connection to other components of a well stimulation setup; at least one side port communicating with an axial passage that provides fluid communication between the top end and the bottom end; the axial passage having a first diameter adjacent the top end, and a second larger diameter below the at least one side port; and a quick-change wear sleeve removably retained in the second larger diameter of the axial passage by a retainer ring received in an annular groove in an outer wall of the quick-change wear sleeve and a complementary groove in an inner wall of the second larger diameter of the axial passage.

The invention further provides an abrasion resistant frac head, comprising: a top end and a bottom end respectively adapted to connect to other components of a well stimulation setup; at least one side port in fluid

-3-communication with an axial passage that extends from the top end to the bottom end, the axial passage having a first diameter adjacent the top end, and a larger diameter below the at least one side port; and a quick-change wear sleeve removably retained in the larger diameter of the axial passage by a retainer ring that is received in an annular groove in an outer wall of the quick change wear sleeve and a complementarily aligned groove in an inner wall of the larger diameter of the axial passage when the quick-change wear sleeve is fully inserted in the axial passage, the retainer ring having an outer side with an upwardly inclined bottom corner.

The invention yet further provides an abrasion resistant frac head, comprising: a top end and a bottom end respectively adapted to connect to other components of a well stimulation setup; at least one side port in fluid communication with an axial passage that extends between the top end and the bottom end, the axial passage having a first diameter adjacent the top end, and a larger diameter below the at least one side port; and a quick-change wear sleeve removably retained in the larger diameter of the axial passage by a retainer ring received, when the quick-change wear sleeve is fully inserted into the larger diameter of the axial passage, in respective ones of an annular groove in an outer wall of the quick change wear sleeve and a complementarily aligned groove in an inner wall of the larger diameter of the axial passage, the retainer ring having an outer side with an upwardly inclined bottom corner and the complementarily aligned groove having a bottom edge that is inclined at an angle of inclination complementary with the angle of inclination of the upwardly inclined bottom corner of the retainer ring.

The invention still further provides an abrasion resistant frac head, comprising a top end and a bottom end respectively adapted for connection to other components of a well stimulation setup; at least one side port in fluid communication with an axial passage that extends between the top end and the bottom end; the axial passage having a first diameter adjacent the top end, and a larger diameter below the at least one side port; and a wear sleeve removably retained in the larger diameter of the axial passage, characterized by: a

-4-retainer ring received, when the quick-change wear sleeve is fully inserted in the axial passage, in respective ones of an annular groove in an outer wall of the quick change wear sleeve and a complementarily aligned groove in an inner wall of the larger diameter of the axial passage, the retainer ring having an outer side with an upwardly inclined bottom corner and the complementarily aligned groove having a bottom edge that is inclined at an angle of inclination complementary with the angle of inclination of the upwardly inclined bottom corner of the retainer ring.

The invention yet further provides a method of refurbishing an abrasion resistant frac head, comprising: removing a worn quick-change wear sleeve from a bottom end of an axial passage of the frac head; selecting a replacement quick-change wear sleeve for refurbishing the abrasion resistant frac head;
compressing a retainer ring of the quick-change wear sleeve using a ring compression tool; inserting the quick-change wear sleeve into the axial passage of the frac head until the ring compression tool abuts a bottom end of the frac head; removing the ring compression tool from the quick-change wear sleeve;
and inserting the quick-change wear sleeve into the axial passage until the retainer ring engages a complementary groove in the axial passage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Further features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in combination with the appended drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a quick-change wear sleeve in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a quick-change wear sleeve in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a four-port frac head provisioned with the quick-change wear sleeve shown in FIG. 1;

-5-FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a flow-tee provisioned with the quick-change wear sleeve shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing details of a retainer ring for securing the quick-change wear sleeves shown in FIGs. 1 and 2;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the frac head shown in FIG. 3, illustrating installation of the quick-change wear sleeve shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary puller used to remove the quick-change wear sleeve shown in FIG. 1 from the frac head shown in FIG.
3; and FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the puller shown in FIG. 7 in an installed condition ready to extract the wear sleeve shown in FIG. 1 from the frac head shown in FIG. 3.

It should be noted that throughout the appended drawings, like features are identified by like reference numerals.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The invention provides a quick-change wear sleeve used to line, or partially line, fluid conduits through which high-pressure abrasive fluids are pumped. The quick-change wear sleeve is secured in the fluid conduit by a retainer ring. The retainer ring is received in a annular groove in an outer wall of the quick-change wear sleeve and in a complementary groove in an inner wall of the fluid conduit. The quick-change wear sleeve is readily removed from the fluid conduit using a sleeve puller, or the like. A replacement quick-change wear sleeve is readily installed in the fluid conduit using a ring compressor, or the like. A fluid conduit equipped with a quick-change wear sleeve in accordance with the invention can therefore be quickly and easily refurbished.
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross sectional diagram of an embodiment of a quick-change wear sleeve 10 in accordance with the invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the quick-change wear sleeve 10 is an elongated hollow cylinder of

-6-hardened steel that has an outer wall 12 and an inner wall 14. The inner wall 14 may be case-hardened using techniques well known in the art to increase abrasion resistance. The quick-change wear sleeve 10 further has a top end 16 and a bottom end 18. The outer wall 12 includes a rectangular annular groove 20 that receives a retainer ring 22. The retainer ring 22 is a compression ring.
In one embodiment, the retainer ring 22 is made of 4140 steel. The retainer ring 22 includes an upwardly-angled outer bottom corner 24, as will be explained below in more detail with reference to FIG. 7. Located between the annular groove 20 and the bottom end 18 is an O-ring groove 26 that receives an O-ring 28 for providing a fluid seal between the quick-change wear sleeve and an inner wall of a fluid conduit, as will be explained below in more detail with reference to FIGs. 3, 5, and 7. In this embodiment, the inner wall 14 is contoured to reduce flow turbulence, as will be explained below in more detail with reference to FIG. 3.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional diagram of another embodiment of a quick-change wear sleeve 30 in accordance with the invention. The quick-change wear sleeve 30 is likewise a hollow cylindrical body of hardened steel having an outer wall 32 and an inner wall 34. As explained above with reference to FIG. 1, the outer wall 32 includes the annular groove 20 that receives the retainer ring 22. The quick-change wear sleeve 30 has a top end 36 and a bottom end 38. Located between the rectangular annular groove 20 and the bottom end 38 is an O-ring groove 26 that receives the O-ring 28 described above with reference to FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional diagram of a frac head 40 equipped with the quick-change wear sleeve 10 shown in FIG. 1. The frac head 40 is a four-port frac head engineered for a pressure rating of 20,000 psi. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the wear sleeve 10 may be used in a frac head having two or more ports, and the number of ports in the frac head is a matter of design choice. The frac head 40 has a top end 42 and a bottom end 44. In this embodiment, the top end 42 and the bottom end 44 are designed for connection to other components of a well stimulation setup using a threaded

-7-union, as described in Assignee's co-pending United States patent application publication No. 2007/0013188 published January 18, 2007. A hammer nut 50 is used to connect the bottom end 14 of the frac head 40 to another component of a well stimulation setup, as explained in Assignee's co-pending patent application.

An axial passage 46 provides fluid communication between the top end 42 and the bottom end 44. The ports, only three of which are shown in this drawing, 48a, 48b and 48c, converge in the axial passage 46. Each port 48 terminates in a pin-threaded outer end 50 adapted for the connection of a frac line, well known in the art. The axial passage 46 has a first diameter D1 above a convergence point of ports 48 and a second diameter D2 below the convergence point of the ports 48. The second diameter D2 defines a cavity for receiving the quick-change wear sleeve 10. Near a top of the cavity defined by the second diameter D2 is an O-ring groove 15 that receives an O-ring 17. The O-rings 17 and 28 inhibit the intrusion of well stimulation fluids between the quick-change wear sleeve 10 and the frac head 40. This inhibits corrosion of the retainer ring 22 and facilitates removal of the quick-change wear sleeve 10 from the frac head 40.

As explained above, the inner wall 14 of the quick-change wear sleeve 10 is contoured to reduce flow turbulence in the converging flows pumped through the ports 48. This contour has proved to have beneficial effect with respect to reducing wash in the quick-change wear sleeve 10.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional diagram of another embodiment of a frac head 60 in accordance the invention. The frac head 60 is identical to the frac head 40 described above with reference to FIG. 3, with the exception that a top end 62 and a bottom end 66 of the frac head 60 terminate in respective flanges 64 and 68. The flanges 64 and 68 include a plurality of bores 74 for receiving flange bolts (not shown) in a manner well known in the art. Each flange 64, 68 includes a seal ring groove 70, 72 that receives a metal seal ring, typically a BX
metal ring gasket which is well known in the art.

-8-FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional diagram of another high-pressure fluid conduit in accordance the invention. The high-pressure fluid conduit shown in FIG. 5 is a flow tee 80. The flow tee 80 has a top end 82 and a bottom and 84. The top end 82 and the bottom end 84 are designed for connection to other components of a well stimulation setup using threaded unions as described above with reference to FIG. 3. A hammer nut 86 connects the bottom end 84 to another component of the well stimulation setup. The flow tee 80 has an axial passage 88 and a radial passage 90 that converge at right angles. The axial passage 88 and the radial passage and 90 are respectively fully lined using quick-change wear sleeves in accordance with the invention.
The axial passage 88 is lined by a quick-change wear sleeve 100. The radial passage 90 is lined by a quick-change wear sleeve 102. The wear sleeve 100 is retained in the axial passage 88 by a retainer ring 104 received in an annular groove for 106 in an outer wall 108 of the wear sleeve 100. An O-ring groove 110 between the annular groove 106 and a bottom end 112 of the wear sleeve 100 receives an O-ring 114, as described above with reference to FIG. 3. An 0-ring groove 116 in the axial passage 88 receives an O-ring 118 to provide a fluid seal at a top end 120 of the quick-change wear sleeve 100. The O-rings 114 and 118 respectively inhibit fluid migration behind the wear sleeve 100, as explained above. The quick-change wear sleeve 102 is identical in construction to the quick-change wear sleeve 100 and is received in a side port 122 in the quick-change wear sleeve 100. During installation, the quick-change wear sleeve 100 is first installed the axial passage 88 and the quick-change wear sleeve 102 is then installed in the radial passage 90. When the flow tee 80 is refurbished, the quick-change wear sleeve 102 is first removed from the radial passage 90 and then the quick-change wear sleeve 100 is removed from the axial passage 88.

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional diagram of another flow tee 130 in accordance with the invention. The flow tee 130 is identical to the one described above with reference to FIG. 5 with the exception that a top end 132 and a bottom end 134 respectively include a flange 136, 138. As explained above with reference to FIG. 4, the flanges 136, 138 include through bores 140

-9-that receive flange bolts (not shown), in a manner well known in the art. As also explained above, each flange includes a metal ring seal groove 142, 144 for respectively receiving a metal seal ring, typically a BX ring well known in the art.
The remainder of the components of the flow tee 130 were described above with reference to FIG. 5 and that description will not be repeated.

FIG. 7 is a detailed cross-sectional view of the quick-change wear sleeve shown in FIGs. 3 and 4 to illustrate the construction of the retainer ring 22.
As explained above with reference to FIG. 1, the retainer ring 22 is generally rectangular in cross-section, but has an upwardly angled outer bottom corner

10 24. The upwardly angled outer bottom corner 24 is upwardly inclined at an inclination angle of about 30 -60 , for example 45 . A corresponding annular groove 150 in the frac head 40 has a bottom edge 152 that is upwardly inclined at the same angle. These complementary upwardly inclined edges facilitate removal of the quick-change wear sleeves 10, 30, 100 and 102 from fluid conduits configured in accordance with the invention. Each of the retainer rings described above are constructed in the same manner, as are each of the complementary grooves in the fluid conduits that receive the retainer rings when the quick-change wear sleeves are installed in the respective fluid passages.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating the installation of the quick-change wear sleeve 10 shown in FIG. I in the frac head 40 shown in FIG. 3 when the frac head 40 is constructed or requires refurbishment. In order to install the quick-change wear sleeve 10, the retainer ring 22 must be compressed into a bottom of the annular groove 20 in the outer wall 12. This is readily accomplished, for example, using a ring compression tool 160, which is well known in the art and is available in a number of different styles. After the retainer ring 22 has been compressed into a bottom of the annular groove 20, the quick-change wear sleeve 10 is inserted into the axial passage 46 until the ring compression tool 160 abuts the bottom end 44 of the frac head 40. At this point, the ring compression tool can be released because the retainer ring 22 will be retained by the inner wall of the axial passage 46. After the ring compression tool 160 is removed, the wear sleeve 10 is simply slid into the axial passage 46 until the retainer ring 22 engages a complementary groove 150 in the inner wall of the axial passage 46. When this happens, the retainer ring expands into the complementary groove 150 and locks the wear sleeve 10 in place. Once locked in place, an axial force of about 300 pounds (136 kg) is required to remove the retainer ring 22 from the complementary groove 150.
The force required is dependent on a resilience of the retainer ring 22 and the angle of inclination of the upwardly inclined surfaces 24, 152.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating a sleeve puller generally indicated by reference 200, which may be used to remove the quick-change wear sleeve 10 from the frac head 40 illustrated in FIGs. 3 and 4. As is well known in the art, many different sleeve pullers are available for pulling cylindrical sleeves such as piston sleeves. Such pullers can also be used for removing the quick-change wear sleeves in accordance with the invention. The sleeve puller 200 includes a puller rod 202 and a puller wedge 204. The puller wedge 204 includes a central bore 206 through which the puller rod 202 extends. A wide clearance socket 208 permits the puller wedge 204 to swivel on an end of the puller rod 202. This permits the puller wedge 206 to be inserted into the quick-change wear sleeve 10 as shown in FIG. 9.

FIG. 10 illustrates in the sleeve puller 200 after the puller wedge 204 has been inserted into the quick-change wear sleeve 10 and manipulated into a pulling position. A puller base 206 having an axial bore 210 is moved into position so that the puller rod 202 extends through the axial bore 210. A
washer 212 is slid over a free end the puller rod 202 and a nut 214, for example, is threaded onto the end of the puller rod 202. Tightening the nut applies an axial force to the puller wedge 204, which in turn urges the wear sleeve 10 out to the frac head 40. As axial pressure increases, the retainer ring 22 is compressed into the annular groove 20 until the wear sleeve 10 is released from the frac head 40. Consequently, the quick-change wear sleeve 40 can be rapidly removed from a fluid conduit to permit the fluid conduit to be refurbished very quickly. After the wear sleeve 10 is removed, a replacement wear sleeve 10 is inserted, as described above with reference to FIG. 8.
During

-11-refurbishment, if any other parts of the fluid conduit require repair, the repair is effected in a manner well known in the art.

The quick-change wear sleeves in accordance with the invention therefore permit wear-resistant fluid conduits to be quickly constructed and rapidly refurbished. Although the invention has been described with explicit reference to frac heads and flow tees, persons skilled in the art will understand that the quick-change wear sleeves described above can be used to improve the abrasion resistance of other fluid conduits such as flow crosses, spools, running flanges, valves and the like.

The embodiments of the invention described above are therefore intended to be exemplary only. The scope of the invention is intended to be limited solely by the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

CLAIM:

1. An abrasion resistant frac head, comprising:

a top end and a bottom end respectively adapted for connection to other components of a well stimulation setup;

at least one side port communicating with an axial passage that provides fluid communication between the top end and the bottom end;

the axial passage having a first diameter adjacent the top end, and a second larger diameter below the at least one side port; and a quick-change wear sleeve removably retained in the second larger diameter of the axial passage by a retainer ring received in an annular groove in an outer wall of the quick-change wear sleeve and a complementary groove in an inner wall of the second larger diameter of the axial passage.

2. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in claim 1 wherein the annular groove in the outer wall of the quick-change wear sleeve comprises a rectangular groove.

3. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in claims 1 or 2 wherein the retainer ring comprises an outer side having an upwardly inclined bottom corner.

4. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in claim 3 wherein an angle of inclination of the upwardly inclined bottom corner is 30°-60°.

5. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in claim 4 wherein the complementary groove in the inner wall of the second larger diameter of the axial passage comprises a bottom edge that is upwardly inclined at the same angle of inclination.

6. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-5 wherein the quick-change wear sleeve comprises an elongated hollow cylindrical sleeve of hardened steel.

7. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-5 wherein the quick-change wear sleeve comprises a case-hardened inner wall.

8. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-7 wherein the quick-change wear sleeve comprises a contoured inner wall to reduce flow turbulence.

9. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-8 wherein the quick-change wear sleeve further comprises an O-ring groove in the outer wall of the quick-change wear sleeve between the annular groove and an end of the quick-change wear sleeve.

10. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-9 wherein the frac head further comprises an O-ring groove in the inner wall of the second larger diameter of the axial passage between the complementary groove and a top end of the second larger diameter of the axial passage.

11. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-10 wherein the top end of the frac head comprises a threaded union.

12. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-10 wherein the bottom end of the frac head comprises a threaded union.

13. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-10 wherein the top end and the bottom end of the frac head comprise a threaded unions.

14. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-10 wherein the top end of the frac head comprises a bolted flange with a ring gasket groove.

15. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-10 wherein the bottom end of the frac head comprises a bolted flange with a ring gasket groove.

16. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-10 wherein the top end and the bottom end of the frac head comprise bolted flanges respectively having a ring gasket groove.

17. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 1-16 wherein the frac head comprises at least four side ports.

18. An abrasion resistant frac head, comprising:

a top end and a bottom end respectively adapted to connect to other components of a well stimulation setup;

at least one side port in fluid communication with an axial passage that extends from the top end to the bottom end, the axial passage having a first diameter adjacent the top end, and a larger diameter below the at least one side port; and a quick-change wear sleeve removably retained in the larger diameter of the axial passage by a retainer ring that is received in an annular groove in an outer wall of the quick change wear sleeve and a complementarily aligned groove in an inner wall of the larger diameter of the axial passage when the quick-change wear sleeve is fully inserted in the axial passage, the retainer ring having an outer side with an upwardly inclined bottom corner.

19. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in claim 18 wherein an angle of inclination of the upwardly inclined bottom comer is 30°-60°.

20. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in claim 19 wherein the complementarily aligned groove in the inner wall of the axial passage comprises a bottom edge that is inclined at an angle of inclination complementary with the angle of inclination of the upwardly inclined bottom comer of the retainer ring.

21. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 18-20 wherein the quick-change wear sleeve further comprises an O-ring groove in the outer wall of the quick-change wear sleeve between the annular groove and an end of the quick-change wear sleeve.

22. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 18-21 wherein the frac head further comprises an O-ring groove in the inner wall of the larger diameter of the axial passage between the complementary groove and a top end of the larger diameter of the axial passage.

23. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 18-22 wherein the annular groove is rectangular in cross-section.

24. An abrasion resistant frac head, comprising:

a top end and a bottom end respectively adapted to connect to other components of a well stimulation setup;

at least one side port in fluid communication with an axial passage that extends between the top end and the bottom end, the axial passage having a first diameter adjacent the top end, and a larger diameter below the at least one side port; and a quick-change wear sleeve removably retained in the larger diameter of the axial passage by a retainer ring received, when the quick-change wear sleeve is fully inserted into the larger diameter of the axial passage, in respective ones of an annular groove in an outer wall of the quick change wear sleeve and a complementarily aligned groove in an inner wall of the larger diameter of the axial passage, the retainer ring having an outer side with an upwardly inclined bottom corner and the complementarily aligned groove having a bottom edge that is inclined at an angle of inclination complementary with the angle of inclination of the upwardly inclined bottom corner of the retainer ring.

25. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in claim 24 wherein an angle of inclination of the upwardly inclined bottom corner of the retainer ring is 30°-60°.

26. An abrasion resistant frac head, comprising a top end and a bottom end respectively adapted for connection to other components of a well stimulation setup; at least one side port in fluid communication with an axial passage that extends between the top end and the bottom end;
the axial passage having a first diameter adjacent the top end, and a larger diameter below the at least one side port; and a wear sleeve removably retained in the larger diameter of the axial passage, characterized by:

a retainer ring received, when the quick-change wear sleeve is fully inserted in the axial passage, in respective ones of an annular groove in an outer wall of the quick change wear sleeve and a complementarily aligned groove in an inner wall of the larger diameter of the axial passage, the retainer ring having an outer side with an upwardly inclined bottom corner and the complementarily aligned groove having a bottom edge that is inclined at an angle of inclination complementary with the angle of inclination of the upwardly inclined bottom corner of the retainer ring.

27. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed claim 26 wherein the quick-change wear sleeve further comprises an O-ring groove in the outer wall of the quick-change wear sleeve between the annular groove and an end of the quick-change wear sleeve.

28. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in claims 26 or 27 wherein the frac head further comprises an O-ring groove in the inner wall of the larger diameter of the axial passage between the complementarily aligned groove and a top end of the larger diameter of the axial passage.

29. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 26-28 wherein the quick-change wear sleeve comprises an elongated hollow cylindrical sleeve of hardened steel.

30. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 26-28 wherein the quick-change wear sleeve comprises a case-hardened inner wall.

31. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 26-30 wherein the quick-change wear sleeve comprises a contoured inner wall to reduce flow turbulence in a stimulation fluid pumped through the abrasion resistant frac head.

32. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 26-31 wherein the top end of the frac head comprises a threaded union.

33. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 26-31 wherein the bottom end of the frac head comprises a threaded union.

34. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 26-31 wherein the top end and the bottom end of the frac head comprise threaded unions.

35. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 26-31 wherein the top end of the frac head comprises a bolted flange having a ring gasket groove.

36. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 26-31 wherein the bottom end of the frac head comprises a bolted flange having a ring gasket groove.

37. The abrasion resistant frac head as claimed in any one of claims 26-31 wherein the top end and the bottom end of the frac head comprise bolted flanges respectively having a ring gasket groove.

38. A method of refurbishing an abrasion resistant frac head, comprising:
removing a worn quick-change wear sleeve from a bottom end of an axial passage of the frac head;

selecting a replacement quick-change wear sleeve for refurbishing the abrasion resistant frac head;

compressing a retainer ring of the quick-change wear sleeve using a ring compression tool;

inserting the quick-change wear sleeve into the axial passage of the frac head until the ring compression tool abuts a bottom end of the frac head;

removing the ring compression tool from the quick-change wear sleeve;
and inserting the quick-change wear sleeve into the axial passage until the retainer ring engages a complementary groove in the axial passage.

39. The method as claimed in claim 38 wherein removing the quick-change wear sleeve from the frac head comprises:

inserting a puller wedge into the quick-change wear sleeve using a puller rod;

manipulating the puller wedge into a pulling position; and applying axial force to the puller rod to extract the quick change wear sleeve from the axial passage.

40. The method as claimed in claim 39 wherein applying axial force to the puller rod comprises:

moving a puller base having an axial bore into position so that the puller rod extends through the axial bore;

sliding a washer over a free end the puller rod;
threading a nut onto the free end of the puller rod; and tightening the nut to apply the axial force to the puller rod and the puller wedge.