CN115898353A - Manifold assembly and purging control method - Google Patents

Abstract

The application discloses a manifold assembly and a purging control method, and relates to the technical field of oil-gas fracturing. A manifold assembly comprising: a low pressure manifold and a flexible pipe; the fracturing equipment comprises a fracturing pump and a manifold joint, wherein the fracturing pump is provided with a liquid inlet, the first end of a low-pressure manifold is connected with the fracturing pump and communicated with the liquid inlet, the second end of the low-pressure manifold is connected with the first end of a flexible pipe, and the second end of the flexible pipe is connected with the manifold joint and communicated with the manifold joint. A purging control method is applied to the manifold assembly. This application can solve at least because the vibration leads to liquid mouth, manifold to damage, perhaps appear leaking the scheduling problem.

Description

Manifold assembly and purging control method

Technical Field

The application belongs to the technical field of oil and gas fracturing, and particularly relates to a manifold assembly and a purging control method.

Background

At present, in an oil and gas field fracturing site, high-power and large-displacement fracturing operation equipment becomes a main stream, and the high-power and large-flow fracturing operation equipment can generate obvious vibration in an operation process, so that higher requirements are provided for the fracturing operation equipment.

In some fracturing operation equipment in the related art, a low-pressure liquid feeding manifold generally adopts a rigid structural member to convey liquid, so that in the fracturing operation process, vibration generated by a plunger pump is directly transmitted to a liquid feeding port at the tail part of the equipment through the rigid structural member, and the liquid feeding port and the manifold are damaged or are connected loosely to cause leakage.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application aims to provide a manifold assembly and a purging control method, which can at least solve the problems of liquid feeding port and manifold damage or leakage caused by vibration.

In order to solve the technical problem, the present application is implemented as follows:

the embodiment of the application provides a manifold subassembly is applied to fracturing equipment, the manifold subassembly includes: a low pressure manifold and a flexible pipe;

the fracturing equipment comprises a fracturing pump and a manifold joint, wherein the fracturing pump is provided with a liquid inlet, the first end of a low-pressure manifold is connected with the fracturing pump and communicated with the liquid inlet, the second end of the low-pressure manifold is connected with the first end of a flexible pipe, and the second end of the flexible pipe is connected with the manifold joint and communicated with the manifold joint.

A purging control method is applied to the manifold assembly;

the purge control method includes:

after the fracturing operation of the fracturing equipment is finished, the control element controls the automatic control valve to open, so that purge gas sequentially passes through the purge pipeline and the purge nozzle to enter the low-pressure manifold and/or the flexible pipe and is used for purging solid impurities accumulated in the low-pressure manifold and/or the flexible pipe.

In the embodiment of the application, under the action of the fracturing pump, liquid can enter the fracturing pump along the flexible pipe and the low-pressure manifold, and the liquid is pressurized by the fracturing pump to form high-pressure liquid so as to be conveniently applied to the oil and gas exploitation process; can make low pressure manifold and manifold joint flexonics through setting up the flexible pipe to can effectively alleviate the vibration that produces in the fracturing pump working process and lead to the manifold joint region to appear damaging via low pressure manifold transmission to manifold joint, thereby can effectively improve the life that the manifold connects, meanwhile, can also prevent effectively that the spare part of manifold joint department from appearing becoming flexible and leading to the problem of revealing through cutting off the vibration.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a manifold assembly and a manifold joint according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a connection region of a manifold joint and a flexible pipe in a union connection form disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of a connection region of a manifold joint and a flexible pipe in a flange connection form according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of the configuration of the connection region of a manifold joint and flexible pipe in the form of a bail joint as disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a connection area between a flexible pipe in the form of a union connection and a low pressure manifold according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a connection area of a flexible pipe in a flange connection form and a low pressure manifold according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of a connection region of a flexible pipe in the form of a clamp connection to a low pressure manifold as disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary schematic illustration of a first form of manifold joint disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary, diagrammatic view of a second form of manifold joint as disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of a structure of a flexible pipe and a first fixing bracket according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 is a structural schematic diagram illustrating an installation of a flexible pipe, a first form of a damping member, and a first fixing bracket according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 12 is a schematic structural view of the flexible pipe, the second form of damping member and the first fixing bracket assembly disclosed in the embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 13 is a schematic illustration of a low pressure manifold and purge feature disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 14 is a schematic illustration of a first form of low pressure manifold as disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 15 is a schematic illustration of a second form of low pressure manifold as disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 16 is a schematic illustration of a third form of low pressure manifold as disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 17 is a flow chart of the opening of various forms of control valves disclosed in embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram of the electrical connections of the detection element, the control element and the automatic control valve disclosed in the embodiments of the present application.

Description of reference numerals:

100-a low pressure manifold; 110-a first tube; 120-a connection terminal; 130-a second tube; 140-a first connecting tube; 150-a second connecting tube; 160-a third connecting tube; 170-a third tube;

200-a flexible tube;

300-manifold joints;

410-a first fixed mount; 411-a fixed seat; 412-a clamp member; 420-a vibration damping member; 430-a second fixed bracket;

500-a purge component; 510-a purge line; 520-a control valve; 530-purging the spray head;

600-a control element;

700-a detection element;

800-air source;

a-union junction; b, flange connection; c-clamp connection.

Detailed Description

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are some, but not all, embodiments of the present application. All other embodiments obtained by a person of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments in the present application without making any creative effort belong to the protection scope of the present application.

The terms first, second and the like in the description and in the claims of the present application are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It will be appreciated that the data so used may be interchanged under appropriate circumstances such that embodiments of the application may be practiced in sequences other than those illustrated or described herein, and that the terms "first," "second," and the like are generally used herein in a generic sense and do not limit the number of terms, e.g., the first term can be one or more than one. In addition, "and/or" in the specification and claims means at least one of connected objects, a character "/" generally means that a preceding and succeeding related objects are in an "or" relationship.

The embodiments of the present application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings through specific embodiments and application scenarios thereof.

Referring to fig. 1 to 18, the embodiment of the application discloses a manifold assembly applied to a fracturing device to supply fracturing fluid to the fracturing device through the manifold assembly so as to realize fracturing operation. The disclosed manifold assembly includes a low pressure manifold 100 and a flexible pipe 200, the low pressure manifold 100 being used for pumping fluid, the flexible pipe 200 serving to connect, cushion, dampen, etc.

The fracturing equipment (not shown) may include a fracturing pump (not shown) which is a power component that may provide the driving force for the fracturing operation, and a manifold joint 300 for circulating the fracturing fluid so that the fracturing fluid enters the fracturing pump to be pressurized by the fracturing pump. Illustratively, the manifold joint 300 may be an inlet joint at the rear of the fracturing apparatus. In some embodiments, the fracturing pump has a top fluid port for low pressure fluid to enter the fracturing pump; the first end of low pressure manifold 100 is connected in the fracturing pump to with last liquid mouth intercommunication, so, can carry low pressure liquid through low pressure manifold 100, and get into the fracturing pump through last liquid mouth, so that pressurize low pressure liquid and form high-pressure liquid through the fracturing pump, supply the fracturing operation process to use.

Considering that a fracturing pump may generate large vibration during operation, the first end of the low pressure manifold 100 is connected to the fracturing pump, and meanwhile, in order to ensure a service life of the low pressure manifold 100, the low pressure manifold 100 may be a rigid pipe, specifically, a steel pipe, or the like, and thus, the vibration generated during operation of the fracturing pump may be transmitted through the low pressure manifold 100, so that other components connected to the low pressure manifold 100 are damaged due to vibration.

Based on the above situation, the embodiment of the present application adds the flexible pipe 200, as shown in fig. 1, a first end of the flexible pipe 200 is connected to a second end of the low pressure manifold 100, and the second end of the flexible pipe 200 is connected to the manifold joint 300 and is communicated with the manifold joint 300. Based on this, the low pressure manifold 100 and the manifold joint 300 can be connected through the flexible pipe 200, so that the low pressure liquid input by the manifold joint 300 can be sequentially conveyed to the fracturing pump through the flexible pipe 200 and the low pressure manifold 100, so as to form the high pressure liquid required by the fracturing operation through pressurization of the fracturing pump, furthermore, the flexible pipe 200 is soft and easy to deform, so that when vibration energy generated in the operation process of the fracturing pump is transmitted to the flexible pipe 200 through the low pressure manifold 100, the vibration energy is released through the flexible deformation of the flexible pipe 200, the vibration energy transmission to the manifold joint 300 is greatly reduced, so that the manifold joint 300 can be ensured not to be damaged due to vibration, and the problem of liquid leakage caused by loosening of parts in the area of the manifold joint 300 can be effectively relieved.

Based on the arrangement, under the action of the fracturing pump, liquid can enter the fracturing pump along the flexible pipe 200 and the low-pressure manifold 100, and the liquid is pressurized by the fracturing pump to form high-pressure liquid so as to be conveniently applied to the oil and gas exploitation process; can make low pressure manifold 100 and manifold joint 300 flexonics through setting up flexible pipe 200 to can effectively alleviate the vibration that the fracturing pump working process produced and transmit to manifold joint 300 via low pressure manifold 100 and lead to manifold joint 300 regional damage appearing, thereby can effectively improve manifold joint 300's life, meanwhile, can also prevent effectively that the spare part of manifold joint 300 department from appearing not hard up and leading to the problem of revealing through cutting off the vibration.

In order to facilitate the disassembly and assembly between the low-pressure manifold 100 and the fracturing pump, the first end of the low-pressure manifold 100 is detachably connected with the fracturing pump. For example, the low pressure manifold 100 and the area around the upper fluid port of the fracturing pump may be in threaded connection, including bolt connection, screw connection, etc., so that vibration generated during operation of the fracturing pump may be transmitted to the low pressure manifold 100 to enable the low pressure manifold 100 to vibrate synchronously with the fracturing pump, and then the vibration energy is released through the flexible pipe 200, so that the vibration energy is not substantially transmitted to the manifold joint 300 to avoid damage to the manifold joint 300, and vibration during operation of the fracturing equipment is weakened, which is beneficial to prolonging the service life of the fracturing equipment.

Besides the bolt connection, other connection forms can be adopted between the low-pressure manifold 100 and the fracturing pump, and the connection forms can be union connection A, flange connection B or clamp connection C, so that stable connection or disassembly between the low-pressure manifold 100 and the fracturing pump is facilitated.

To facilitate the disassembly and assembly between the low pressure manifold 100 and the flexible pipe 200, the second end of the low pressure manifold 100 is detachably connected to the first end of the flexible pipe 200. Referring to fig. 5-7, a union connection a, a threaded connection, a flange connection B, or a clamp connection C may be used, for example, between the second end of the low pressure manifold 100 and the first end of the flexible pipe 200. Of course, in order to further improve the firmness and stability of the connection, the connection can be combined to ensure the firmness of the connection between the low pressure manifold 100 and the flexible pipe 200 and prevent the liquid leakage, and at the same time, the vibration energy transmitted to the low pressure manifold 100 by the fracturing pump can be transmitted to the flexible pipe 200, so that the vibration energy is released through the flexible pipe 200 to achieve the purpose of weakening the vibration.

To facilitate the detachment of the flexible pipe 200 from the manifold joint 300, the second end of the flexible pipe 200 is detachably connected to the manifold joint 300. Referring to fig. 2-4, a union connection a, a threaded connection, a flange connection B, or a clamp connection C may be illustratively employed between the second end of the flexible pipe 200 and the manifold joint 300. Of course, in order to further improve the firmness and stability of the connection, a combination may be used, so that the firmness of the connection between the flexible pipe 200 and the manifold joint 300 may be ensured and the leakage of the liquid may be prevented.

Alternatively, the fluid ports of the manifold joint 300 may be equal diameter manifold joints 300, e.g., 5 "fluid ports, etc., as shown in fig. 8; of course, the manifold joint 300 may also be a reducing manifold joint, for example, in the form of a 4-to-5-inch liquid port, as shown in fig. 9, and the specific form may be selected according to actual operation conditions on site.

Alternatively, a manifold joint 300 may be connected to the flexible pipe 200, as shown in fig. 8; it is also possible that a plurality of manifold joints 300 are connected to the flexible pipe 200 at the same time, e.g., two, as shown in fig. 9. The specific connection mode can be selected according to the actual working condition.

Based on the arrangement, the angle and the position of the flexible pipe 200 can be adjusted through the bending characteristic during installation, so that the liquid supply liquidity and convenience are ensured, and the sand deposition amount of the manifold assembly in the liquid supply process is reduced; in addition, the flexible pipe 200 can be disassembled for convenience, damaged flexible pipe 200 can be replaced in time, and sand settled inside the flexible pipe 200 can be cleaned in time, so that liquid supply is prevented from being influenced due to blockage of the flexible pipe 200.

Referring to fig. 2 to 12, in consideration of the vibration energy transferred to the flexible pipe 200 to cause the flexible pipe 200 to shake, the manifold assembly may further include a first fixing bracket 410, and the flexible pipe 200 may be installed and restrained by the first fixing bracket 410 to prevent the flexible pipe 200 from shaking largely.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 10, the first fixing bracket 410 may include a fixing seat 411 and a clamp member 412, wherein the clamp member 412 is detachably connected to the fixing seat 411, the fixing seat 411 is used for being connected to a main body portion of the fracturing equipment, a limiting space is enclosed between the clamp member 412 and the fixing seat 411, and the flexible pipe 200 is inserted into the limiting space. Through this kind of setting, can guarantee the firm installation between the main part of first fixed bolster 410 and fracturing equipment to cooperation through clamp piece 412 and fixing base 411 both can realize the support to flexible pipe 200, can carry on spacingly to flexible pipe 200 again, thereby can effectively avoid flexible pipe 200 unsettled distance too big and lead to flexible pipe 200 to rock and cause flexible pipe 200, low pressure manifold 100 and manifold joint 300 the condition emergence of damage to appear. Here, the main body of the fracturing equipment may be a base frame or other members of the fracturing equipment, and the specific form thereof is not limited as long as the main body can function as a mount for the first fixing bracket 410.

For example, the fixing base 411 may be formed by welding a steel plate and a square pipe, and has a strong load-bearing performance so as to prevent the fixing base 411 from being damaged due to vibration energy transmitted from the flexible pipe 200 to the first fixing bracket 410.

Referring to fig. 11 and 12, to further dissipate the vibrational energy, the manifold assembly may further include a vibration damper 420, through which vibration damper 420 the vibrational energy may be further attenuated. In some embodiments, the damping member 420 may be disposed between the clamp member 412 and the flexible pipe 200, for example, the damping member 420 may be a damping ring, or the like, which is wrapped on the outer side of the flexible pipe 200, and then the clamp member 412 is sleeved on the outer side of the damping member 420, so that the flexible pipe 200 may be separated from the clamp member 412 by the damping member 420, so as to prevent vibration energy of the flexible pipe 200 from being directly transmitted to the clamp member 412 and transmitted to the fixing seat 411 through the clamp member 412, and finally transmitted to the main body of the fracturing apparatus through the fixing seat 411 to reinforce the vibration of the fracturing apparatus.

In other embodiments, the damping member 420 may also be disposed between the hoop member 412 and the fixing base 411, for example, as shown in fig. 11 and 12, the damping member 420 may be a polyurethane pad, a steel wire vibration isolator, or the like, which connects the hoop member 412 and the fixing base 411, so that the vibration energy transmitted to the hoop member 412 by the flexible member or the vibration energy transmitted to the damping member 420 directly is weakened, so as to prevent the vibration energy from being transmitted to the fixing base 411 directly and transmitted to the main body of the fracturing equipment by the fixing base 411 to strengthen the vibration of the fracturing equipment.

In other embodiments, the damping member 420 may also be disposed between the fixing base 411 and the flexible tube 200, which may also play a role in buffering and damping.

Of course, in order to achieve better buffering and vibration damping effects, a mode of combining the multiple setting modes can be adopted to further improve the buffering and vibration damping performances, so that a better effect is achieved.

Referring to fig. 2 to 4, 8 and 9, in order to prevent vibration energy from being transmitted to the flexible pipe 200 to shake the flexible pipe 200 to cause vibration at the manifold joint 300, the manifold assembly may further include a second fixing bracket 430, the second fixing bracket 430 is used for connecting the manifold joint 300 and a main body portion of the fracturing apparatus, and the second fixing bracket 430 is detachably connected to at least one of the manifold joint 300 and the main body portion of the fracturing apparatus.

Exemplarily, the second fixing support 430 may be fixedly connected to the outer wall of the manifold joint 300, and specifically may be welded, riveted, and the like, so as to ensure the firmness and stability of the fixing connection, meanwhile, the second fixing support 430 may be connected to the main body portion of the fracturing equipment in a bolt connection, a screw connection, a clamping connection, and the like, so as to facilitate the detachment, so that the manifold contact portion may be effectively prevented from shaking due to the influence of the flexible pipe 200 by the second fixing support 430, and the disassembly and assembly of the manifold joint 300 may also be facilitated, thereby facilitating the maintenance or replacement of the manifold joint 300.

In still other embodiments, a clamp connection C, a bolt connection, and the like may be further used between the second fixing bracket 430 and the manifold joint 300 to facilitate disassembly and assembly, and meanwhile, the second fixing bracket 430 may be fixed to the main body of the fracturing equipment by welding, riveting, and the like to ensure firmness and stability of the fixing connection. Based on this, both can guarantee that manifold joint 300 is difficult for rocking, can make things convenient for the dismouting again.

In still other embodiments, the second fixing bracket 430 and the manifold joint 300 are connected by a clamp C, a bolt, and the like, and meanwhile, the second fixing bracket 430 and the main body of the fracturing equipment are connected by a bolt, a clamp, and the like, so that the manifold joint 300 is not easy to shake, and can be conveniently disassembled and assembled.

Considering that the sand content of the liquid is relatively high in the process of conveying the liquid by the manifold assembly, the sand deposition phenomenon can be caused in the manifold assembly in the past, the manifold assembly is easy to block, and the normal liquid supply is influenced. Based on this, the manifold assembly in the embodiment of the present application may further include a purging component 500, as shown in fig. 13, the purging component 500 may purge the settled sand in the manifold assembly, so that the occurrence of the settled sand may be effectively alleviated, and the normal liquid supply of the manifold assembly may be further ensured. The purge component 500 may be disposed on at least one of the low pressure manifold 100 and the flexible pipe 200, and the specific arrangement may be selected according to the operating condition.

With continued reference to FIG. 13, in some embodiments, the purge component 500 may include a purge line 510 and a control valve 520, wherein the low pressure manifold 100 and/or the flexible tubing 200 is provided with a purge nozzle 530, one end of the purge line 510 is connected to the purge nozzle 530, the other end of the purge line 510 is adapted to be connected to the gas source 800, and the control valve 520 is provided to the purge line 510 or the purge nozzle 530. By means of the arrangement, the purge gas output by the gas source 800 can be delivered to the purge nozzle 530 through the purge line 510, and the purge gas is sprayed out through the purge nozzle 530 to purge the settled sand in the low-pressure manifold 100 and/or the flexible pipe 200, and in the process, the on-off state or the gas flow rate of the gas can be controlled through the control valve 520, so that the normal liquid supply cannot be influenced by the settled sand in the low-pressure manifold 100 and/or the flexible pipe 200. It should be noted here that the purge nozzle 530 may be disposed on a side wall of the low pressure manifold 100 and a side wall of the flexible pipe 200, or may be disposed on both the side wall of the low pressure manifold 100 and the side wall of the flexible pipe 200, and a position where the purge nozzle 530 is disposed corresponds to a position where deposited sand is likely to accumulate, which may be specifically selected according to actual conditions. In addition, the control valve 520 may be a valve body such as an on-off valve, a flow valve, and the like, and may specifically be a ball valve, a butterfly valve, and the like, and the specific type thereof is not limited. The gas source 800 may be an air compressor, a gas cylinder, or the like, and may supply gas for blowing and desilting.

Referring to fig. 18, in some embodiments, the control valve 520 may be an automatic control valve to facilitate automatic opening, automatic closing, or automatic adjustment of the opening. Correspondingly, the fracturing equipment can also comprise a control element 600, wherein the control element 600 is electrically connected with the automatic control valve and is used for controlling the opening, closing or regulating the opening degree of the automatic control valve. Specifically, the control element 600 may control the automatic control valve to open, close or adjust the opening at fixed time, of course, a detection element 700 may be additionally provided, the detection element 700 is used to detect the sand deposition condition in at least a part of the area in the manifold assembly, and when the sand deposition amount detected by the element 700 to be detected exceeds a preset amount, a signal is sent to the control element 600, so that the control element 600 is used to control the automatic control valve to open, thereby purging the deposited sand. After the preset time of purging, the automatic control valve may be controlled to close to stop purging, and of course, the opening of the automatic control valve may be adjusted according to the amount of settled sand detected by the detecting element 700, so as to purge the settled sand quickly.

For example, as shown in fig. 17 (b), the automatic control valve may be an electric control valve, which may be electrically connected with the control element 600 through an electric system to receive an electric control signal sent by the control element 600. As shown in fig. 17 (c), the automatic control valve may also be a pneumatic control valve, in which case, a gas supply system of the pneumatic control valve is electrically connected to the control element 600 to receive an electric control signal of the control element 600 through the gas supply system, thereby switching the state of the pneumatic control valve under pneumatic action. As shown in fig. 17 (d), the automatic control valve may also be a hydraulic control valve, in which case, a hydraulic system of the hydraulic control valve is electrically connected to the control element 600 to receive an electric control signal from the control element 600 through the hydraulic system, so as to switch the state of the hydraulic control valve under the hydraulic pressure.

In other embodiments, the control valve 520 may also be a manual control valve, which is opened or closed periodically by a worker to effectively relieve the influence of sand deposition on normal liquid supply, as shown in fig. 17 (a).

In some embodiments, the low pressure manifold 100 may include a first pipe 110 and a plurality of connection terminals 120, wherein one end of the first pipe 110 is connected to the flexible pipe 200, and the plurality of connection terminals 120 respectively communicate with the first pipe 110 and the fracturing pump, wherein the first pipe 110 may function as a manifold to realize the transportation of the low pressure fluid, and the plurality of connection terminals 120 may function as branches to realize the distribution of the low pressure fluid. Based on this kind of setting, can distribute the low pressure liquid that the flexible pipe 200 was carried to a plurality of connection end 120 through first body 110 to supply to the last liquid mouth of fracturing pump respectively via a plurality of connection end 120, thereby can guarantee to supply sufficient low pressure liquid to the fracturing pump, and then guarantee normal fracturing operation.

It should be noted that in the low pressure manifold 100 of the above-mentioned type, the first pipe 110 may be in a thick cylinder form, as shown in fig. 16, and in this case, a plurality of connection terminals 120 may be disposed at various positions along the axial direction and the radial direction of the first pipe 110, so as to improve the liquid supply efficiency. Of course, the first tube 110 may also be provided with a plurality of connection terminals 120 only in the axial direction, or other arrangements, which is not particularly limited in the embodiment of the present application.

In other embodiments, as shown in fig. 13 and 14, the low pressure manifold 100 may further include a second pipe body 130, a first connection pipe body 140, a second connection pipe body 150, and a third connection pipe body 160, wherein the second pipe body 130 and the first pipe body 110 are spaced apart from each other in a radial direction of the low pressure manifold 100, one end of the first pipe body 110 facing away from the flexible pipe 200 communicates with one end of the second pipe body 130 through the first connection pipe body 140, the other end of the second pipe body 130 communicates with an area of the first pipe body 110 between the flexible pipe 200 and the first connection pipe body 140 through the second connection pipe body 150, and the third pipe body 170 communicates with the first pipe body 110 and the second pipe body 130 and is located between the first connection pipe body 140 and the second connection pipe body 150. Based on this kind of setting, first body 110, first connecting pipe body 140, second body 130, second connecting pipe body 150 links to each other in proper order, an annular duct has been formed, thereby can make the low pressure liquid in the first body 110 pass through first connecting pipe body 140 and second connecting pipe body 150 and get into second body 130, in order to guarantee the low pressure liquid supply to the both ends department of second body 130, meanwhile, third connecting pipe body 160 can be to the regional low pressure liquid supply of middle part of second body 130, therefore, in fracturing pump operation process, can guarantee that sufficient low pressure liquid flows into second body 130 from first body 110, in order to guarantee the high-efficient operation of fracturing pump. In addition, the formed annular pipeline enables low-pressure fluid to circularly flow, and the problem of sand deposition can be relieved to a certain extent.

For example, the first connecting pipe 140 may have an elbow structure to accommodate the position relationship between the first pipe 110 and the second pipe 130. In addition, the connection form between the first connection pipe 140 and each of the first pipe 110 and the second pipe 130 may be flange connection B, union connection a, clamp connection C, etc. so as to facilitate disassembly and cleaning of settled sand. Of course, the present invention may be embodied in any other forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein.

The second connection pipe body 150 may include a straight pipe structure and an elbow pipe structure connected to each other, the elbow pipe structure being connected to the second pipe body 130, the straight pipe structure being connected to the first pipe body 110, so that the first pipe body 110 and the second pipe body 130 can be communicated with each other by the cooperation of the straight pipe structure and the elbow pipe structure.

Further, a part of the plurality of connection terminals 120 is disposed on the first pipe 110, and another part is disposed on the second pipe 130, so that in the operation process of the fracturing pump, low-pressure liquid can be supplied to the fracturing pump through the first pipe 110 and the second pipe 130 at the same time, thereby ensuring sufficient supply of the low-pressure liquid and realizing efficient operation of the fracturing pump.

In still other embodiments, as shown in fig. 15, the low pressure manifold 100 may further include a plurality of third pipes 170, the plurality of third pipes 170 are connected to the plurality of connection terminals 120 in a one-to-one correspondence, and the plurality of third pipes 170 are respectively communicated with the first pipe 110. Illustratively, the plurality of third pipes 170 are respectively connected to the first pipe 110 at an angle, and an axis of each third pipe 170 forms an acute angle with an axis of the first pipe 110 along a direction in which the low-pressure liquid flows, so that the low-pressure liquid can flow more smoothly to ensure sufficient supply of the low-pressure liquid to the frac pump.

In order to ensure the normal liquid supply of the low pressure manifold 100, an inspection port (not shown) may be provided, through which inspection of the internal state of the low pressure manifold 100 may be facilitated to prevent the influence of sand deposition on the normal liquid supply. For example, the inspection opening may be disposed on a sidewall of the first tube 110 or a sidewall of the second tube 130, and may also be disposed on both the sidewall of the first tube 110 and the sidewall of the second tube 130, etc. to facilitate inspection.

Referring to fig. 1 to 18, based on the manifold assembly, an embodiment of the present application further discloses a purge control method applied to the manifold assembly, where the purge control method includes:

after the fracturing operation of the fracturing equipment is finished, the control element 600 controls the automatic control valve to open, so that the purge gas sequentially enters the low-pressure manifold 100 and/or the flexible pipe 200 through the purge pipeline 510 and the purge nozzle 530, and is used for purging solid impurities such as settled sand and the like accumulated in the low-pressure manifold 100 and/or the flexible pipe 200.

Based on the above steps, the purge gas may be blown to the interior of the low pressure manifold 100 and/or the flexible pipe 200 through the purge nozzle 530, so that the purge of the settled sand may be implemented to prevent the settled sand in a partial region of the manifold assembly, and further, the smooth flow of the low pressure liquid in the manifold assembly may be ensured to ensure that the sufficient low pressure liquid is supplied to the fracturing pump.

The specific control process is as follows:

after the fracturing operation is finished, the manifold purging is performed, at this time, the control element 600 sends a control signal to the automatic control valve to open the automatic control valve, at this time, the purge gas output by the gas source 800 may reach the purge nozzle 530 along the purge line 510 and be blown to the inside of the low-pressure manifold 100, or the inside of the flexible pipe 200, or simultaneously blown to the inside of the low-pressure manifold 100 and the flexible pipe 200 through the purge nozzle 530, so that accumulated solid impurities (such as sand and the like) can be purged, and the influence of the sand on the normal liquid supply of the manifold assembly is prevented.

In some embodiments, an automatic control valve is provided for each purge nozzle 530, and the manifold assembly may further include a plurality of sensing elements 700, wherein the plurality of sensing elements 700 are provided in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of purge nozzles 530, and the plurality of sensing elements 700 are electrically connected to the control element 600 respectively. In this way, the sand deposition near the purge nozzles 530 can be detected by the detection elements 700.

Based on the above arrangement, the purge control method further includes:

when at least some of the sensing elements 700 of the plurality of sensing elements 700 sense that solid impurities are accumulated in the low pressure manifold 100 and/or the flexible pipe 200 at a region corresponding to at least some of the sensing elements 700, the control element 600 controls the automatic control valve of the purge nozzle 530 corresponding to at least some of the sensing elements 700 to be opened.

Specifically, when the detecting element 700 at a certain position of the manifold assembly detects that the sand deposition amount of the area reaches the preset sand deposition amount, a signal is sent to the control element 600 to send a control signal to the purge nozzle 530 of the corresponding area through the control element 600, so that the automatic control valve on the purge nozzle 530 is opened, and therefore purge gas can be sprayed through the purge nozzle 530 to clear the sand at the area.

Of course, it can also be detected that the sand deposition amount of multiple areas reaches the preset sand deposition amount by the detecting element 700 at multiple locations of the manifold assembly, and at this time, the control element 600 controls the automatic control valves on the purge nozzles 530 of multiple corresponding areas to open, so that the purge gas can be sprayed through the purge nozzles 530 to remove the sand at multiple areas.

For example, the detecting element 700 may be a distance sensor, which is disposed at a position opposite to a region in the manifold assembly where the sand deposition is prone to occur, and the distance detected by the distance sensor gradually decreases as the sand deposition amount of the region gradually increases, and when the detected distance reaches a preset distance, it indicates that the sand deposition amount reaches a preset sand deposition amount, and purging is required. It should be noted here that the detection mode can perform detection under the condition of stopping the fracturing operation, so as to avoid the detection of the distance influenced by the low-pressure liquid conveyed in the manifold assembly.

Of course, the detecting element 700 may also be a flow rate sensor, which is disposed in a region of the manifold assembly where sand is likely to settle, and the cross-sectional area of the region is gradually reduced along with the gradual increase of the sand settling amount of the region, and under the condition of the same flow rate, the smaller the cross-sectional area is, the faster the flow rate of the low-pressure liquid is, so as to determine whether the sand settling amount of the region reaches the preset sand settling amount according to the flow rate of the low-pressure liquid.

In summary, in the embodiment of the present application, the flexible pipe 200 is connected between the low-pressure manifold 100 and the manifold joint 300, so that vibration during operation of the fracturing equipment can be reduced, damage to components of the fracturing equipment due to vibration can be reduced, and the flexible pipe 200 has a bending characteristic, and can be adjusted at different angles and orientations to ensure smoothness of liquid supply and reduce sand deposition; the flexible pipe 200 and the manifold joint 300 and the flexible pipe 200 and the low-pressure manifold 100 are detachably connected so as to be convenient to disassemble and assemble; the first fixing bracket 410 can prevent the flexible pipe 200 from shaking violently due to an excessively large suspension distance, so that the service lives of the flexible pipe 200, the manifold joint 300 and the low-pressure manifold 100 can be prolonged; by designing the shape of the low pressure manifold 100, sufficient liquid supply can be ensured, and the problem of sand deposition can be relieved; the influence of sand deposited in the manifold assembly on the normal supply of low-pressure liquid can be relieved by the purging component 500; the vibration damping effect can be further achieved by the vibration damping member 420.

While the present embodiments have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise embodiments described above, which are meant to be illustrative and not restrictive, and that various changes may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims (13)

1. A manifold assembly for use in a fracturing apparatus, the manifold assembly comprising: a low pressure manifold (100) and a flexible pipe (200);

the fracturing equipment comprises a fracturing pump and a manifold joint (300), wherein the fracturing pump is provided with a liquid inlet, the first end of a low-pressure manifold (100) is connected to the fracturing pump and communicated with the liquid inlet, the second end of the low-pressure manifold (100) is connected with the first end of a flexible pipe (200), and the second end of the flexible pipe (200) is connected to the manifold joint (300) and communicated with the manifold joint (300).

2. The manifold assembly of claim 1, wherein a first end of the low pressure manifold (100) is removably connected to the frac pump;

and/or a detachable connection between a second end of the low pressure manifold (100) and a first end of the flexible pipe (200);

and/or the second end of the flexible pipe (200) is detachably connected with the manifold joint (300).

3. A manifold assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that the detachable connection comprises a union connection (a), a screw connection, a flange connection (B) or a clip connection (C).

4. The manifold assembly according to claim 1, further comprising a first fixed bracket (410), the first fixed bracket (410) comprising a fixed seat (411) and a collar member (412), the collar member (412) being detachably connected to the fixed seat (411), the fixed seat (411) being for connection to a main body portion of the fracturing apparatus;

the clamp piece (412) and the fixing seat (411) are enclosed to form a limiting space, and the flexible pipe (200) penetrates through the limiting space.

5. The manifold assembly of claim 4, further comprising a damping member (420);

the vibration damping member (420) is disposed at least one of between the clamp member (412) and the flexible pipe (200), between the clamp member (412) and the fixing base (411), and between the fixing base (411) and the flexible pipe (200).

6. The manifold assembly of claim 1, further comprising a second fixed bracket (430), the second fixed bracket (430) being configured to connect the manifold joint (300) and the body portion of the fracturing apparatus, and the second fixed bracket (430) being removably connectable to at least one of the manifold joint (300) and the body portion of the fracturing apparatus.

7. The manifold assembly of claim 1, further comprising a purge component (500), the purge component (500) comprising a purge line (510) and a control valve (520);

the low-pressure manifold (100) and/or the flexible pipe (200) is provided with a purging spray head (530), one end of the purging pipeline (510) is connected with the purging spray head (530), the other end of the purging pipeline (510) is used for being connected with a gas source (800), and the control valve (520) is arranged on the purging pipeline (510) or the purging spray head (530).

8. The manifold assembly of claim 7, wherein the control valves (520) are automatic control valves, the fracturing apparatus further comprising a control element (600), the control element (600) being electrically connected to the automatic control valves for controlling the automatic control valves to open, close, or adjust opening;

alternatively, the control valve (520) is a manual control valve.

9. The manifold assembly of claim 1, wherein the low pressure manifold (100) comprises a first pipe body (110) and a plurality of connection tips (120);

one end of the first pipe body (110) is connected to the flexible pipe (200), and the connecting ends (120) are respectively communicated with the first pipe body (110) and the fracturing pump.

10. The manifold assembly according to claim 9, wherein the low pressure manifold (100) further comprises a second pipe body (130), a first connecting pipe body (140), a second connecting pipe body (150), and a third connecting pipe body (160);

the second pipe body (130) and the first pipe body (110) are arranged at a distance from each other in a radial direction of the low pressure manifold (100), one end of the first pipe body (110) facing away from the flexible pipe (200) communicates with one end of the second pipe body (130) through the first connection pipe body (140), the other end of the second pipe body (130) communicates with a region of the first pipe body (110) located between the flexible pipe (200) and the first connection pipe body (140) through the second connection pipe body (150), and the third connection pipe body (160) communicates the first pipe body (110) with the second pipe body (130) and is located between the first connection pipe body (140) and the second connection pipe body (150);

a part of the plurality of connection terminals (120) is disposed on the first tube (110), and another part is disposed on the second tube (130).

11. The manifold assembly of claim 9, wherein the low pressure manifold (100) further comprises a plurality of third tubes (170), wherein the plurality of third tubes (170) are connected to the plurality of connection tips (120) in a one-to-one correspondence, and wherein the plurality of third tubes (170) are in communication with the first tubes (110), respectively.

12. A purge control method applied to the manifold assembly of claim 8, wherein the purge control method comprises:

after the fracturing operation of the fracturing equipment is finished, the control element (600) controls the automatic control valve to open, so that the purge gas sequentially enters the low-pressure manifold (100) and/or the flexible pipe (200) through the purge line (510) and the purge spray head (530) and is used for purging solid impurities accumulated in the low-pressure manifold (100) and/or the flexible pipe (200).

13. A purge control method according to claim 12, wherein each of the purge spray heads (530) is provided with the automatic control valve;

the manifold assembly further comprises a plurality of detection elements (700), the detection elements (700) and the purge spray heads (530) are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence manner, and the detection elements (700) are respectively and electrically connected with the control element (600);

the purge control method includes:

when at least some of the detecting elements (700) of the plurality of detecting elements (700) detect that solid impurities exist in a region corresponding to at least some of the detecting elements (700) in the low pressure manifold (100) and/or the flexible pipe (200), the control element (600) controls the automatic control valve of the purge nozzle (530) corresponding to at least some of the detecting elements (700) to be opened.

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