Expansion Cone Research Articles

Numerical Analysis of Silencers Composed of Screw Tube, Expansion Cone, Orifice Plate, and Perforated Tube by Finite Element Method

Numerical Analysis of Silencers Composed of Screw Tube, Expansion Cone, Orifice Plate, and Perforated Tube by Finite Element Method

Analytical analysis of spherical cavity expansion considering particle breakage effect of sand and its application for CPT tests

Particle breakage in sand significantly influences the stress and deformation predictions of the spherical cavity expansion theories. However, existing theories often overlook or lack a quantitative description of particle breakage, leading to significant errors in the actual results. Based on the Simple Critical State Sand (SIMSAND) model, considering the particle breakage effect, the traditional Euler’s problem of the drainage spherical cavity expansion is converted into a set of first-order ordinary differential equations described by Lagrangian. Fontainebleau sand is taken as an example, and the influence of the initial stress of the sand on the stress state and void ratio is studied. An analysis of the relative breakage surrounding the cavity reveals that the primary impact zone extends to a distance thrice the expansion radius. An axisymmetric model of the cone penetration test is established, the analytical and numerical solutions of expansion stress and cone tip resistance are analysed and the correctness of the spherical cavity expansion theory is verified. Furthermore, the cone tip resistance results, derived from the theory of spherical cavity expansion, are consistent with the results of numerical calculations. Notably, when the particle breakage effect is not considered, the calculated results of cone tip resistance significantly increase.

Optimization of pneumatic mufflers hybridized with metal sintered bronze porous material, expansion cone, and extended tube

Because of high pressure impulse noise emitted from the outlet of pneumatic equipment, an appropriate noise abatement device installed at the top of a venting outlet is compulsory. However, a given known noise reduction using a bronze-made sintered porous plug at the venting outlet is insufficient. An exploration of advanced noise reducing device is required. In this paper, three kinds of mufflers (Muffler A: with part AA (a bronze-made sintered porous inlet); Muffler B: with part BB (a casing with expansion cones and extended perforated/non-perforated tubes); and Muffler C: part AA (a bronze-made sintered porous inlet) + part BB (a casing with expansion cones and extended perforated/non-perforated tubes)) have been introduced and acoustically analyzed. To assist the optimization of mufflers composing of complicated acoustical mechanism, a finite element method using finite element method (run on COMSOL) together with a simplified objective function model and Genetic Algorithm (GA) is presented. Here, the simplified model of objective function is established by means of Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs). In addition, three kinds of frequencies, including one low frequency (500 Hz) and two high frequencies (3000 Hz, and 5000 Hz), have been chosen as the target frequencies during the muffler C’s optimization process. Consequently, considering a space-constrained situation, an optimally shaped muffler using both parameters D and L is efficiently accomplished within space-constraint situation.

High-resolution spectroscopic measurements of cold samples in supersonic beams using a QCL dual-comb spectrometer*

ABSTRACT Optical frequency-comb spectroscopy has proven a very useful tool for high-resolution molecular spectroscopy. Frequency combs based on quantum-cascade lasers (QCL) offer the possibility to easily explore the mid-infrared spectral range (4 µm to 12 µm), but are characterised by large repetition frequencies (∼ 10 GHz) which make them seemingly unsuitable for high-resolution spectroscopy. Here, we present techniques to overcome this limitation. We have employed the combined advantages of high temporal and high spectral resolution to measure the infrared (IR) spectra of CF4 and CHCl2F in pulsed, skimmed supersonic beams. The low rotational temperature of the beams and the narrow expansion cone after the skimmer enabled the recording of spectra of cold samples with high resolution. The spectra cover the range from 1200 cm−1 to 1290 cm−1 and the narrowest lines have a full width at half maximum of 15 MHz, limited by the Doppler effect. The results demonstrate the potential of QCL dual-comb spectroscopy for broadband (> 60 cm−1) acquisition of spectra at high spectral (better than 5·10−4 cm−1, 15 MHz) and temporal (better than 4 µs) resolution and high sensitivity in the mid-infrared range. The power of the new technology is demonstrated by comparison with previous results for these molecules obtained by FTIR and diode laser spectroscopy.

Acoustical simulation of pneumatic mufflers hybridized with metal sintered bronze porous material, a spiral tube, and expansion cones

This paper aims to eliminate the pneumatic noise using a muffler hybridized with a metal sintered bronzed porous material, a spiral tube, and expansion cones. In this paper three kinds of mufflers (Muffler A: with part AA (a bronze-made sintered porous inlet); Muffler B: with part BB (a casing with a spiral tube and expansion cones); and Muffler C: part AA (a bronze-made sintered porous inlet) + part BB (a casing with a spiral tube and expansion cones)) have been introduced. A finite element method run on the COMSOL software will be adopted in the acoustical analysis of the mufflers. The influence of TL with respect to two kinds of design parameters (QQ: the number of expansion cone; σ1: the acoustical flowing impedance of the acoustical wool) has been assessed. Simulated results reveal that the muffler C with acoustical components of AA and BB is superior to the other two mufflers. Moreover, the design parameters of QQ and σ1 have essential acoustical influence to the muffler C.

Experimental investigation of R744 transcritical flow and mixing in the two-phase ejector

In this work, the laboratory test rig for visualisation of the CO2 ejector is shortly presented. The internal flow structures in the premixing chamber and expansion cone are visualised using two different measurement arrangements, i.e. Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) system and high-speed camera system. Both systems allow to determine some characteristic features of the R744 flows and propose some important quantities (i.e. expansion and mixing angles) describing expansion and mixing processes. Potentials of those preliminary results for field validation data are also pointed out.

Investigation of amplification process of heavy oil viscosity reduction device based on jet cavitation using lab experimental and numerical simulation method

ABSTRACT With the increasing requirement of global energy resources, researchers seek for new ways to deal with unconventional crude oil resources. Using the Computational Fluid Dynamics numerical simulation method, the standard k-ɛ turbulence model and the cavitation dynamics model are used to simulate the internal flow field of the 105t/a heavy oil viscosity reduction spray nozzle device which is designed by the jet cavitation theory. The jet cavitation intensity is evaluated by cavitation number and gas content. The influence of spray nozzle structural parameters such as inlet diameter, contraction length, expansion cone angle and expansion length on the cavitation effect of the spray nozzle are studied. The results show that the cavitation effect is the best when the inlet diameter, contraction section length, expansion section cone angle, and expansion section length of the large capacity device are 120 mm, 110 mm, 10°, and 150 mm, respectively. A laboratory test device with a processing capacity of 2000 t/a is built to conduct jet cavitation test on a batch of Saudi crude oil to obtain the change rate of crude oil viscosity, density and molecular weight. The numerical results are consistent with the outcome of laboratory experiments, and it is concluded that this spray nozzle can meet the needs of large processing capacity while ensuring a high cavitation rate.

Research on Large-diameter Solid Expandable Tubular Subsidy Technology and Suspension Seal Device

In view of the issue that the diameter is small and the suspension force is uncertain after solid expandable tubular (SET) subsidy. The uniaxial tensile test of SA106B metal is carried out, and the parameters of metal elastoplastic constitutive model are fitted accordingly. Then, a solid expandable tubular laboratory test is designed, and a finite element model of SET is established based on this test. Finally, the effects of the expansion cone radius and the thickness of the rubber ring on the expansion stress and contact pressure are researched. The results show that the established finite element model has small errors and reliable results. The optimal expansion cone radius is selected through the maximum stress and the residual stress of expanded tubular to improve the expansion quality of the tube. The thickness of the rubber ring has a great influence on the contact pressure and the suspension force, so it must be reasonably optimized under the premise of ensuring the sealing ability. The optimal solution of the expansion cone radius and the thickness of the rubber ring is given by comparison. This study provides a theoretical basis for the optimization of solid expandable tubular technology.

Buckling study on Two-Stage absorption energy coupler

A two-stage absorption energy structure composed of an expanding tube and a buffer has been conventionally applied to the couplers of the China Railway High-speed system. Previous investigations have revealed the energy-absorption characteristics of the couplers. However, in dynamic experiments, some of the couplers were found to buckle at the expansion cone. To analyse the buckling problem of the couplers, a simple theoretical model was established and verified via the finite element method (FEM) and experiments. The critical conditions for the couplers buckling and the bending strengths of the expansion tubes were studied. The results indicate that a slight initial misalignment between the expansion cone and outer tube can cause buckling of the couplers. Further, the stabilities of expansion tubes can be significantly improved by increasing the contact area of the expansion cone, reducing the length of expansion tubes, maintaining separation between the expansion cone and the midpoint of the couplers, and increasing the stiffness of expanding tubes. This study is expected to provide guidelines for solving the stability problems of long-stroke expansion tubes and advances the design of such expansion tubes.

Mechanical plugging—solid expandable tubular refracturing technology

To solve the three major problems of low production, low efficiency and low permeability of oil fields, it is necessary to develop new tight oil layers or shale oil outside the original perforated section in the well that has been perforated. The key to the success of repeated fracturing operations is the ability to block the original perforation of the well. At present, with tubing fracturing construction, volume fracturing of the target reservoir cannot be achieved due to limited displacement, and the effect of reservoir transformation is not obvious, affecting the productivity of the old well. Based on the above problems, this paper proposes a new blocking method suitable for fracturing wells - solid expansdable tubular (SET) plugging. In this paper, it established SET-expansion cone-casing-rubber ring 2D dynamic model which considers the friction, and contact, to analyze the effect of compression and length of rubber ring and the constraint condition of SET on sealing performance; laboratory experiments were carried out and data on driving force, sealing capacity and suspension force were obtained. The results show that optimizing the parameters of expansion cone structure can effectively reduce the residual stress of SET and driving force after expansion; the construction method of SET and the parameters of rubber ring are the main factors that affect the suspension sealing ability, and paper proposes an effective solution; in addition, experiment results show that the SET meets the requirements of fracturing construction with internal pressure greater than 60 MPa and suspension force greater than 600 kN after expansion, and can be used to seal the well body structure of refracturing wells with fewer perforations and shorter distances, and the diameter can be guaranteed to reach 112 mm. The research results provide new ideas and solutions for repeated pressure wells and high-pressure plugging.

A CO molecular gas wind 340 pc away from the Seyfert 2 nucleus in ESO 420-G13 probes an elusive radio jet

A prominent jet-driven outflow of CO(2–1) molecular gas is found along the kinematic minor axis of the Seyfert 2 galaxy ESO 420-G13, at a distance of 340–600 pc from the nucleus. The wind morphology resembles the characteristic funnel shape, formed by a highly collimated filamentary emission at the base, and likely traces the jet propagation through a tenuous medium, until a bifurcation point at 440 pc. Here the jet hits a dense molecular core and shatters, dispersing the molecular gas into several clumps and filaments within the expansion cone. We also trace the jet in ionised gas within the inner ≲340 pc using the [Ne II]12.8 μm line emission, where the molecular gas follows a circular rotation pattern. The wind outflow carries a mass of ∼8 × 106 M⊙ at an average wind projected speed of ∼160 km s−1, which implies a mass outflow rate of ∼14 M⊙ yr−1. Based on the structure of the outflow and the budget of energy and momentum, we discard radiation pressure from the active nucleus, star formation, and supernovae as possible launching mechanisms. ESO 420-G13 is the second case after NGC 1377 where a previously unknown jet is revealed through its interaction with the interstellar medium, suggesting that unknown jets in feeble radio nuclei might be more common than expected. Two possible jet-cloud configurations are discussed to explain an outflow at this distance from the AGN. The outflowing gas will likely not escape, thus a delay in the star formation rather than quenching is expected from this interaction, while the feedback effect would be confined within the central few hundred parsecs of the galaxy.

Study on the Expansion Force of TWIP Steel Expandable Tubular in Solid Expandable Tubular Technology

Abstract This paper focuses on the expansion process of twinning-induced plasticity (TWIP) steel tubular undergoing the large circumferential plastic deformation in expandable tubular technology. The expansion process was performed by propagating a mandrel through the tubular mechanically. This paper aimed at developing the mathematical models to predict the expansion force required for the radial expansion of the TWIP steel tubular using the rigid-perfectly plastic model and the linear hardening rigid plastic model, respectively. The volume incompressible condition together with the Tresca yield criterion was used to describe the plastic behavior of the tubular material in the expansion process. Besides, the finite element analysis of the expansion process was developed using the commercial software abaqus to validate the theoretical results and determine the scope of application of the derived expansion force formula. Further to this, the effect of the process parameters, such as the expansion ratio, friction coefficient and the cone angle, on the expansion force was investigated. It was found that the expansion force difference of two models have similar variation trend. The accuracy and applicability of the expansion force formula using the linear hardening rigid plastic model improve as the expansion ratio increases and the expansion cone angle decreases.

Failure analysis and solution study of 203 mm solid expandable tubular

The solid expandable tubular technology (SETT) is a permanent radial plastic deformation of the casing, which serves to block the leaking section and subsidize the casing. The difficulty of the SETT lies mainly in the material selection of the solid expandable tubular (SET) and the design of the expansion cone structure. The 20G steel casing pipe with 203 mm × 10 mm specification in dagang oilfield is subject to an expansion test with a variable-diameter expansion cone (an expansion rate of 20.2%), during which the casing pipe ruptured and failed. In this paper, the microstructure is analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and the failure analysis of SET is studied macroscopically by finite element analysis method, and the corresponding solution is proposed. The research shows that when the expansion ratio is 20.2% and the 20G steel casing is used as the material of SET, the maximum stress of SET during the expansion process exceeds the ultimate tensile strength of the material, the SET fracture fails, and 20G steel pipe is not suitable for use as materials of SET in the case of a large expansion ratio (20.2%). In this paper, the expansion cone is continuously optimized. It is found that the single-stage expansion cone is more conducive to the expansion operation than the variable-diameter expansion cone. The expansion cone chamfer and friction coefficient have a significant influence on the driving force, and should be fully lubricated during the expansion operation. In addition, this paper also prefers 316L steel material with better plasticity and toughness. It is found that 316L can expand successfully without failure at large expansion ratio. The research results provide a theoretical basis for the material selection of SET and the structural design of the expansion cone, and have important significance for ensuring the success of the expansion work.

Study of the effect of the expansion cone on the expansion process in solid expandable tubulars with thread joints

As the core technology of petroleum extraction engineering in the 21st century, Solid Expandable Tubular (SET) technology is applied to drilling, well completion, and cementing. However, the expansion process for tubulars in site operation may well lead to stress concentration, leakage, or even fracture failure in thread joints of the tubular assembly due to the irregular deformation of thread teeth. With the aim of studying the issue with regard to the thread joint of J55 steel expandable tubulars, this study extended a series of finite element models using the commercial software ABAQUS to investigate the structural response of tubulars during the expansion process. The simulation results include the stress evolution, deformation of the thread joint of the tubular assembly, and the effect of expansion cone geometry on the expansion consequences. A laboratory experiment was performed to validate the validity of the simulated solution. It was found from results that both the axial and hoop compressive stress concentrations were generated in the thread teeth edges near the contact surfaces of threads during the expansion process due to the mutual squeezing of box and pin thread teeth. An increase of the tubular diameter led to a reduction of wall thickness and axial length due to the law of volume-constancy. The expansion process resulted in a deterioration of the contact condition between the thread teeth. A cone angle of 9° and sizing section length of 65–75 mm were the optimal choice of the geometric size of the expansion cone according to their superior analytical results.

Transient calculation of pressure waves in a well induced by tubular expansion

Shell has developed a novel mono-diameter well concept for oil and gas wells as opposed to the traditional telescopic well design. A Mono- diameter well contains multiple casing sections with the same internal diameter. This is achieved by expansion of the casing sections concerned using an expansion cone. Since the well is drilled in stages and casings are inserted to support the open hole, an overlap section between two consecutive (expandable) casings exists which has to be expanded. When the cone enters the overlap section, the expansion force increases dramatically due to the expansion of two casings, cured cement and formation layers. When the cone finalizes the expansion of the overlap section it pops out, the expansion force vanishes and the cone accelerates upwards and it generates an empty volume to be filled by the well fluid (mud). As a result of this, fluid starts to flow through the drill pipe, around the cone and the fluid volume below the cone starts to decompress. This induces a surge pressure wave traveling upwards and a swab pressure wave in the expanded casing traveling downwards. If the pressure difference between outside and inside of the expanded casing exceeds the collapse rating of the casing, the casing will collapse which leads to the loss of the concerned well section. Repair of such a failure costs time and money, therefore this swab pressure must be well predicted to enable the installation process to be designed such that this collapse can be avoided. A model of fully coupled fluid-structure interaction between cone and the well fluid is built for calculating the swab pressure propagating downward and surge pressure propagating upward resulted from transient process occurring after cone pops out. This model has shown an effective tool for predicting the swabbing pressure in field deployments performed lately in Gulf of Mexico and according to its output the suitable cone is selected in order to avoid the casing collapse.

Interplay between collective expansion and Mach cone

By using a hybrid dynamical model which describes space-time evolution ofthe bulk medium, (mini-)jet propagation and interactions between medium and (mini-)jets, we study hydrodynamic responses to (mini-)jet propagation in high energy nuclear collisions. When an energetic jet traverses the bulk matter, it loses its energy into the matter and forms a Mach-cone like structure. On the other hand, the bulk matter expands radially due to pressure gradient. As a result, there happens an interplay between radial expansion and the Mach cone. We discuss possible phenomena and observables related with this in asymmetric gamma-jet events. We also discuss phenomena in which many mini-jets propagate the bulk matter at once in an event and calculate higher harmonics of azimuthal angle distribution.

Wear resistance and anti-friction of expansion cone with hard coating

Abstract To improve wear resistance of expansion cone and decrease the friction between cone and tube, an expansion cone covered by hard coating was prepared and applied in the field. The carbide-based hard coatings were fabricated on the expansion cone surface by using high-velocity oxygen fuel thermal spraying technology, and the coating improved surface hardness of the cone by nearly 60%. The wear tests indicate that: the hard coating reduces friction coefficient of expansion cone sample by over 30% and wear loss by 33% with lithium grease lubricating; the hard coating reduces friction coefficient of expansion cone sample by about 25% with water lubricating; the hard coating reduces the wear and friction between expansion cone and tube significantly, and extends the cone life. Field tests indicate that: the expansion cones with hard coating have excellent wear resistance; the coating bound well with the expansion cone substrate after application for four wells, and no evident abrasion happens on the cone surface; the cone is successfully applied in the field to repair the damaged casings.

Theoretical Study on Working Mechanics of Smith Expansion Cone

The deformation failures of many casings are in urgent need of one reliable repair technology recently. Smith expansion cone (SEC) repair technology is high efficient to repair deformed casing. However, the reshaping force is a very important parameter for designing and optimizing the SEC and construction parameters. Hence, the mechanical mechanism of SEC repair technology is studied, and one mechanical model of SEC used to repair deformed casing is proposed based on twin shear unified strength theory in this paper. In this model, the effects of material hardening and the ratio of yield strength to tensile strength on casing repair were taken into full account. The mechanical model can calculate reshaping force that is used to repair the deformed casing under any confining pressure, and there is a good agreement between calculated results and experimental data. Based on this model, the effects of expansion amount every time, friction efficient, cone angle and length of equal diameter section on the reshaping force were analyzed in detail, by which the correlations between the reshaping force and the expansion amount every time, friction efficient, cone angle and length of equal diameter section were obtained. Research results can provide theoretical guidance for design and optimization of the structure and construction parameters of SEC.

Dynamic Analysis of Solid Expandable Tubular and Its Applications in Tahe Oilfield

For ultra-deep horizontal wells in Tahe Oilfield in China, the solid expandable tubular (SET) technology was applied in the buildup section to isolate unstable mud stone with clays above the pay zone. This technology satisfies the requirements of geological water avoidance, and a larger hole size is adopted in the pay zone. This paper proposed a finite element dynamic model to analyze the expansion of the SET, and the impacts of the following factors on the expansion force required for the expandable tubular were analyzed: yield strength of the tubular material, solid tubular expansion ratio, the coefficient of friction between the expansion cone and the tubular, the angle of the expansion cone, movements velocity of the expansion cone, and DLS (dogleg severity). The calculation results indicate that a higher expansion ratio, a higher yield strength, and a higher friction coefficient of the SET result in a larger expansion force to different degrees, whereas the other factors have little effect on the expansion force. The dynamic expansion force calculation model established in this paper is consistent with the actual conditions, and the simulation calculation results can be applied to provide theoretical guidance for SET expansion operations.

Effective Application of Solid Expandable Tubular During the Enhancement of Heavy Oil Recovery in China, Lessons Learned and Experience Shared

As the traditional thermal recovery became less effective in exploring the heavy oil reservoirs, some newly developed techniques such as chemical flooding, SAGD and HDCS are demonstrating their advantage in the recovery process in China. However, the ever increasingly used new techniques often compromised severely the well integrity as the flow of extremely high temperature fluid or gas caused quick damage to casing, leaving the wellbore less reliable. This compromise requires urgently a workover strategy that would maximize the well’s life span and guarantee the effectiveness of new techniques. Solid expandable tubular (SET) was field-proven in casing patching activities, but its application in the heavy oil recovery has not been attempted due to severe temperature challenge. We made innovations on the traditional structure of SET and got valuable results. The tubular after expansion was integrated with the original casing as a whole and the rubber was removed in-between, the wellbore size was maintained utmost and the casing was further strengthened. Meanwhile the expansion cone was put outside the tubular which is a big step forward in SET structure. Indoors experiments demonstrated sound performance of the new structure in the simulative temperature of 350 ℃, the plan for the field application was optimized based on the lessons collected in this experiment. High temperature well applications by SET were carried out in Liaohe oilfield which is famous for its heavy oil resource in China, and the detailed process as well as the outcome were compared and analyzed, finally the conclusions were drawn as a result of the whole study. We expect our work will help expand this enabling technology to better facilitate the enhancement of heavy oil recovery and maintain solid well integrity during the heavy oil production. Key words : Solid expandable tubular; Heavy oil recovery; China