US1683031A - Oil and gas well sand tester - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 4, 1928.

w. O. HARRIS 011. AND GAS WELL SAND TESTER Filed Dec. 21, 1927 the hole.

Patented Sept. 4, 1928.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM O. HARRIS, OF OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA.

OTL AND GAS WELL SAND TESTER.

Application filed December 21, 1927. Serial No. 241,552.

My invention relates to improvement in oil and as well sand tester.

The 0 j ects of my invention are to provide a device of the class described which will be new, novel, simple, cheap, strong, durable, efiicient and of utility; which will make it possible at any time desired to make a test of the sand in a well without the necessity of easing the hole, or well; which will under such test prevent the caving in of the hole, or well, and the possible consequent loss of the hole, or well; makes practically a standard rig out of a rotary drilling outfit in so far as testing the sand is concerned; will be cheap in operation; will save the necessity of spendin thousands of dollars in casing in each well drilled by a rotary rig; and will accomplish eflicicntly the-purposes for which my device is intended.

At the present time in the drilling of a well with a rotary drilling outfit it is necessary to reduce the size of the hole from that which is then being used. That is, when a cap rock. or a. change of formation is found which indicates the approach of a producing sand it is necessary to reduce the size of the hole from that which is then being used and to thereby form what is known as a rathole, and to thereafter drill by a bit of a reduced size into the formation therebelow suspected of being productive of either gas or oil. When a sufiicient dept-h has been reached therebelow and a test is desired to be made it is necessary to set a string of easing from the top of the well to the seat made by the rat-hole by the reducing of the size of Before the sand can be tested this must be cemented into the hole and can not thereafter be removed. This necessitates the loss of that string of easing. If no production is found then the hole is continued on the inside of the set casing and necessarily of a reduced size to a greater depth in said reduced sized hole. If a formation is reached causing the belief of another sand having been found the above described process is of,

necessity repeated and a new rat-hole formed and another set of casing is installed and set from the top of the hole to the second reduced sized hole at said rat-hole. And if production is not found here this casing is also lost since it too has to be cemented. This process continues unless a paying sand is found until it can not go further in the sized hole then being drilled and the size of the hole then is reduced to such an extent that a now well must be begun and practically all of this casing is lost. This-results in the loss of the hole or well before the desired hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in. the accompanying one-sheet drawing, and pointed out in the claims hereto appended; it being understood that various changes in the form, proportion, size, shape and minordetails of construction, within the scope of the claims, may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or principle of; the invention, or sacrificing any of the adv-antages thereof.

The novel features, invention and other objects will be more fully shown in the specification, claims, and accompanying one-sheet drawing, of which,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device, partly in section; Fig. 2 is'a perspective view showing a breakable bottom cap, a ring holding Inen'ibcr and their cap sheath; Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a portion of the device showing the presence of a ball-valve; Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the ball-valve and its outer casing; and Fig. 5 is an elevational view of a reducing nipple.

Like characters of reference designate like parts in all the figures.

One embodiment for the accomplishing of the purposes for which my invention is intended is as follows:

The larger sized drilling hole is shown at 1 and the reduced or smaller size is shown at 2; the drill stem is shown at 3 with an upper broken-off portion at 4 and a. lower broken-off portion at 5. I provide a packer 6 around the drill stem 1 constituting it in that instance a packer stem 7 The object of the packer 6 is to entirely fill what is known to those familiar with the art as the rathole 8 formed of the juncture of the larger hole 1 and the smaller hole 2 and permit said packer to be securely held in said rat-hole, and to permit the parts therebelow to depend in the smaller hole 2. At the packer 6 on the lower end of the drill stem 3 I provide an ex.

terna lly threaded portion 9. I also provide a perforated casing 10 having a pluralityof erforations 11 for the admission therein fi'om the outside of water oil, gas and the like, from the portion of t e smaller hole 2. Said perforated casing is sealed at the bottom end 12 with heav metal. -At its upper end it is externally tireaded to match the threads 9 and the circumferential size of the lower end of the packer stem 7. I also revide a reducing nipple 13 provided for a s 1ort space wit-h upper external threads 14 their external circumference beingof the same circumferential size as the threaded portion of said packer stem 7 and the threaded portlon 150i said perforated casing 10,said externally threaded portion 14 being adapted to fit between said lower end of said acker stem and upper end of said perforate casing; a tool.

joint 16 internallly threaded at 16 is provided for securely iolding said reduced nipple and said packer stem and said perforated casing in a union.

The lower end of said reduced nip le 13 is provided with external threads 17. elow the lower end thereof I provide a breakable bottom cap 18 for closing the lowerend of said reduced nipple, and a ring gasket member 19 therebelow held in place b an internally threaded open ended cap s'eath 21 for holding said breakable bottom cap 18 and said member 19 securely against the lower end of said reduced nipple 13. The lower portion of nipple 13 is threaded 13 to receive threads 20 on cap sheath 21.- An ordinary plunger 22 for inserting into the drill stem for breaking said bot-tom cap is provided. I also provide a ball 23 preferably covered with a coat of rubber 24, or other suitable substance, for making a valve connection, as

' will be more fully described later.

In operation in the drilling of a well b a rotary ri with my invention for a deep we 1 they usually start with a 14 inch hole for surface casing. The surface casing is usually set at about forty or fift feet then they ordinaril drill down to t e first cap rock or formatlon that would likely have a roductive sand under it with a ten inch bit without cas-v ing. The hole at that size is then stopped and the hole reduced to a six inch bit forming what is known to the art as arat-hole. They then drill down into the formation below. If the formation is found favorable for oil or gas they then remove the drill stem 3 and unite packer stem 7 with the lower end of the drill stem by tool joint union 5. The drill stem with the packer stem therebelow is then lowered into the hole from the top until the packer '6 on packer stem 7 fits into the ratole 8 tigthly like a cork in a bottle below said packer 6 and above erforated casing 10 joined at its up r end y tool joint union to the lower en of said packer stem. The reduced valve nipple 13 will be securely seated between the lower end of the acker stem 7 and the up er end of the per orated casing 10 and the reakable plate or cap 18 see lrely held in place by ring 19 and cap sheath 21. When t is set plunger 22 is dro ped into the drill stem at the top of the well and falls against breakable plate or cap 18 breaking the same and by its weight goes on down to the lower end 12 of said perforated casing 10. This will relieve all of the water pressure which will go through the perforated casin up into the packer stem and drill stem. I

the sand struck is (productive of gas or of oil and gas combine it will in a few seconds come out of the top of the drill stem at the top of the well which is what is known as going over the top. If instead of sand productive of as or of oil and gas combined it is of oil san only after waiting a reasonable length of time, say thirty minutes or an hour and permitting the oil to raise throu h the perforations in the casing 10 up into t e packer stem and drill stem, ball 23 which is preferably coated by rubber 24 or other suitable material, is dropped into the top of the hole and goes down into the drill stem and through the packer stem to the reduced valve nipple. This ball may be of metal or may be filled with shot or other suitable substance so as to make the same sink in either oil or water or other liquid. Said ball then sinks into the reduced valve ni 1e and is seated therein forming a cork anddiolding all of the liquid in the packer stem. and drill stem thereabove so t at it can be drawn out and tested. The taking out of the oil can be done in any of the ordmar and usual ways or it can be done by with rawing the drill stem and packer stem. Thereafter the tests for oil or salt water or other kind of liquid can.

be made. If no production is found the packer stem containing my invention there elow is removed from the drill stem by loosening the tool joint above the packer stem and the ten inch bit is then refitted on the drill stem and the regular ten inch hole proceeded with without reduction as to size. This is continued until it is believed another favorable formation has been reached and the above proceedin as heretofore detailed is repeated. It will be seen by those familiar w1th the art to which my invention pertains that under my invention the drill stem is used in lieu of the casing and that no casing has to be set or cemented and therefore none is lost thereby, it will also be seen that there is no necessary reduction of the size of the hole after having made one or a dozen tests under my devic It will also be seen that if a producing well is found and the sand being tested under in invention and the well goes over the top a 1 that is necessary to be done to do what is known in the art as mudding it in until the casing can be procured, is to raise the stops the rat-hole therebydett-ing the mud pressure back on the sand in the bottom of the plunger means for breaking said well and holding it there until my invention and the drill stem are removed from the hole and the ordinary and usual procedure in getting ready for the operation of a producing well is carried out.

I claim:

1. A device of the classdescribed for testing the sands of oil and "as wells, comprising means for corking up the hole adjacent its lower end,- a perforated casing having its lower end securely capped, its upper end being adapted to be securely fastened to the .lower end of said corking means, a reduced nipple valve being seated between the lower end of said corking means and the upper end of sai'd. pe1'forated casing, its smaller end ex tending downwardly and being adapted to be normally closed by a breakable cap for preventing the flow of liquid therethrough, a gasket ring member and an open ended capsheath for holding said breakable ca in lace, rea able cap, a ball valve means for closing the lower neck portion ofsaid nipple valve and shutting off the inflow-of li uidthereinto.

2. A device of t e class described for testing oil and gas sands in wells, comprising a drill stem, a packer stem and packer, said drill stem being adapted to be securely fastened at its lower end to. the upper end of said packer stem, said packer being adapted to fit tightly on a shoulderbetween an upper large hole and an under smaller hole-in the well and to seal said hole thereat, a perforated casing, its upper end beingadapted to be fastened to the lower end of said packer stem, its lower end being adapted to be securely closed, a reduced nlpple valve being adapted to be securely seated etween said upper end of said perforated casing and said lower end of said packer stem its reduced end extending downwardly, and being adapted to be' normallyclosed by a breakable cap, for preventing liquid from entering thereat until desired, and at certain periods to receive a ball valve inside its lower neck portion, a gasket ring member for positionin said breakable cap, an open ended cap sheath for securely holding said breakable cap and said ring gasket member normally securely against the lower end of said nipple valve, means for breaking said breakable cap, a heavy ball valve bein coated externally for tightly fitting said nipple valve in its lower inside neck portion and for preventing the fiow of liquid therefrom from inside and thereinto from there surrounding.

3. The combination with a drill stem, packer stem and packer, said packer being adapted to fit tightly in a shoulder between the larger hole and a smaller hole therebelow of an oil and, gas well, of a device for testing oil and gas sands without using and setting a string of easing, of the class described, comprising a perforated casing having an open upper end and a closed lower end, a reduced nipple valve being adapted to be seated between the lower end of said packer stem and the upper end of said perforated casing its reduced smaller end extending downwardly, a breakable cap for closing the lower end of said nipple valve and shutting out oil, gas and liquid therefrom when desired, a ring gasket member and an open ended cap sheath for positioning said breakable cap, a suitable plunger for dropping in said drill stem and for breaking said breakable cap when the admitting of oil,i

gas and liquid therethrough is desired, a suitable ball valve having a resilient outer coating being adapted to be seated inside the neck of said nipple valve adjacent its lower end for holding in said packer stem and drill stem oil and other liquids.

.WILLIAM O. HARRIS.

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