TAMU - Pemex

Offshore Drilling

Lesson 4
Blowout Preventers
and Their Control

1
 Lesson 4 - Blowout
Preventers and Their Control

 The BOP Stack

 Hydraulic Connectors
 Kill and Choke Valves
 BOP Controls

2
 Blowout Preventers
and Their Control

 Control Pods & Shuttle Valves

 Redundancy
 Accumulator Capacity
Requirements
 Backup for BOP Controls
3
 Major Changes in BOP
Equipment for Subsea Use:

 1. The size of the BOPs is

increased.
 2. External hydrostatic
pressure at the ocean floor
must be considered.

4
 Major Changes in BOP
Equipment for Subsea Use:

 3. Hydraulics have become more

important in reaction times, because
the longer flow lines increase the
pressure drop,
while the larger BOPs require more
fluid to operate than their land
counterparts.
5
 Major Changes in BOP
Equipment for Subsea Use:

 4. To avoid the pressure drop in the

return lines, the hydraulic fluid is
vented to the sea. This requires a
fluid that is non-polluting as well as
non-corrosive, yet has low
viscosity, and is a good lubricant,

6
 Major Changes in BOP
Equipment for Subsea Use:

 4 (cont’d.) and can mix with water

of high mineral content.

 5. The philosophy of stack

arrangement, especially the location
of the kill and choke lines has been
changed.
7
 Major Changes in BOP
Equipment for Subsea Use:

 6. Pressure drop in the long choke

line influences well control
procedures.

8
9
10
 TELESCOPIC JOINT

CHOKE AND KILL LINES

INTEGRAL MARINE
RISER JOINTS
MARINE RISER
FLEX JOINTS CONNECTOR

CONNECTOR

BOP STACK
UNITIZATION GUIDE
CONNECTOR
FRAME SYSTEMS
WELLHEAD HOUSING
TEMPORARY GUIDE
GUIDE STRUCTURE BASE
11
A Subsea
Blowout
Preventer
Stack

12
Figure 11-1 Subsea
Blowout
Preventer
Equipment

Failsafe
Valve

13
 Figure 5-1. Cameron U-type ram
blowout preventer.
High pressure, close around pipe, usually for one size pipe only, hang pipe - 600k 14
 STEEL
FINGERS

RUBBER SEAL
OPENING
PORT
ANNULAR PISTON
CLOSING
PORT

Annular Blowout Preventer.

Close around pipe of any size, open hole. Used for stripping and snubbing, often 2 EA

15
Annular Blowout Preventers
in Operation

Illustrations
and Diagrams

16
Annular: Element Partly Closed
17
Annular: Stripping Out
18
Annular: Stripping In
19
Complete Shutoff
20
Wellbore Pressure, psig
Shaffer
spherical
BOP with
5” D.P.

Annular Preventer Closing Pressure, psig

21
 Figure
5-7
Piston
The GL
Hydril
Blowout
Preventer

The preferred Hydril for subsea. Hydrostatic due to mud -> open. Compensate 22
Secondary Chamber to Riser
The mud may plug off the opening... 23
Secondary Chamber to Open Chamber
24
Secondary Chamber to Close Chamber
25
Shear
Rams

26
 Dog

Cam
Piston

Mandril
Type
Hydraulic
Connector

27
 Collet
Finger
Cam

Collet Type Hydraulic

Connector
28
Fail-Safe Kill and
Choke Valve

* Spring loaded
* Hydraulic pressure
* Two in series
* Same WP as BOPs

29
 Figure 5-12
Examples

Configurations
of kill/choke
line outlets for
conventional
four-ram stack

Wellhead Connector
30
Schematic
of a
hydraulic
control
system.

31
 Hose Bundle
Hydraulic
Subsea BOP
Pod (2 EA)
Control
System Accumulators

32
Figure
5/16” Pilot Lines
5-15
Power Fluid Line
1”+

1/4” Pilot Lines

Typical hose bundle for hydraulic system.

33
Typical
1. Hydraulic Hose
2. Multiple-Conductor Electric Cable
(faster - better for deep-water wells)

34
Electro-Hydraulic Hose Bundle - cont’d
3. Protective Inner Cover
4. Strength Member
5. Outer Protective Jacket (Optional)

35
 Pilot Valve
- Poppet Type Vent
Opening

Pilot Line
Attachment
Power Fluid

To Function
36
 BOP
Control
Pod

* Pilot valves
* Pressure regs.
* Retrievable
* Two for
Redundancy

37
 GAS CHARGE
Accumulator PORT
- BladderType.
BLADDER

TAPERED
VALVE INLET/OUTLET

38
 POWER FLUID
FROM POD

POWER
FLUID TO
FUNCTION

Fig. 5-19
SEAL
Shuttle valve
Directs power fluid to function. Isolates inactive pod.
Lines from valve to pod not redund.
39
 Pilot valves

Shuttle
valve

Redundancy between pods on a stack.

40
 Fig. 5-22

Flow Paths to close rams from driller’s panel.

Driller’s Handle; Air signal to Hydraulic unit; pressurize pilot line; pilot valve at pod, power fluid -->41
Fig. 5-23

Flow paths to open rams from the

driller’s panel.
42
43
0.577

1,465

44
 Example: 1,000 ft of water

Precharge pressure is 1,000 psi above ambient

Pc = 15 + 1,000 + 0.45 * water depth = 1,465 psia

P = 15 + 3,000 + 0.45 * water depth = 3,465 psia

 PC 
V.F.  1    0.577
 P

45
 Friction Losses

 Pressure losses caused by friction

in the plumbing is a major source of
decreased reaction times.
 Fluid flow is difficult to define and
various books have been written on
the subject.

46
 Fanning or Darcy Equation

 A simple approach can be taken by

considering the friction losses as
described by the Fanning or Darcy
equation that may be expressed as:
2
f Lq
FK
D5
50 gal in 30 sec => 100 gal/min
10 gal in 8 sec => 75 gal/min
47
 2
f Lq
Where: FK
D 5

F  friction loss in the line

L  line length
q  flow rate
D  line diameter
K  constant for unit conversion
f  friction factor, function of Re
48
And Where:

Dv
Re  Reynold's number 

D = line diameter
V = fluid velocity
 = fluid density
 = fluid viscosity

49
 Figure 5-25. BOP Stack Schematic
Connected by clamps. Stresses from Tension, bending and pressure. Frequent stack testing.
50
Figure 5-26.
Pressure
Differentials
Acting on
Preventer.

51
Example Calculations

See text

52
 Allowable Operating Pressure, psig

Tension at the ball joint, kips

For a fixed ball joint angle, the maximum tension at the ball joint decreases as press.53incr.
 Figure
5-29
5-29

Surface Unit- Acoustic backup for BOP

control
54
 Example from the GOM

WL

300 ft of 36”csg, jet -in

3,200 ft
2,300 ft of 20”csg, run in 24” hole
ML

55
Jetting-in the 36” Conductor

WL

300 ft of 36”csg, jet -in

3,200 ft

ML

56
 Drilling a 24” Hole

WL

300 ft of 36”csg 3,200 ft

ML

24” Hole
57
Running the 20”Casing

WL

2,300 ft of 20” csg.

3,200 ft

ML

24” Hole
58
Cementing the 20”Casing

WL

Drillpipe

3,200 ft

ML

24” Hole
59