US 12,247,473 B1
Energy dissipating flow block for hydraulic fracturing
Syed Muhammad Bin Syed Taha, Dhahran (SA); Amr Mohammed Zahran, Al Khobar (SA); Abdullah Mohammed Khair Alkassab, Dhahran (SA); and Wafaa Hassan Alnakhli, Dammam (SA)
Assigned to Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA)
Filed by Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA)
Filed on Feb. 27, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/588,177.
Int. Cl. E21B 43/26 (2006.01)
CPC E21B 43/2607 (2020.05) 9 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for reducing kinetic energy of an energized stimulation fluid upstream of a wellbore, the method comprising the steps of:
introducing the energized stimulation fluid to an energy dissipating flow block installed in a frac tree, the energy dissipating flow block comprises:
a body, the body having an internal geometry configured to produce cyclonic flow of the energized stimulation fluid, the body comprising a top and a bottom, where the diameter of the body is wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, where the internal geometry is selected from the group consisting of a conical frustum, a pyramidal frustum, a polyhedron, or combinations of the same, where the body is configured to withstand a centripetal force exerted by the cyclonic flow;
an inlet nozzle, the inlet nozzle positioned proximate and parallel to the top of the body, the inlet nozzle is configured to receive the energized stimulation fluid;
a cushioning sub, the cushioning sub positioned parallel to the top of the body and opposite the inlet nozzle; and
an outlet nozzle, the outlet nozzle positioned perpendicular to the bottom of the body; reducing the kinetic energy of the energized stimulation fluid in the energy dissipating flow block due to the cyclonic flow in the body to produce a stimulation fluid, where the cyclonic flow follows a cyclonic flow path trajectory in the body such that the cyclonic flow travels along walls of the body in a spiral from the inlet nozzle to the outlet nozzle, where the cyclonic flow exerts the centripetal force;
introducing the stimulation fluid to the frac tree fluidly connected to the outlet nozzle of the energy dissipating flow block; and
introducing the stimulation fluid to the wellbore through the frac tree.