18 3/4" 15000 Psi Shear Anything KBOS for Subsea Well Applications

Abstract

Kinetic Pressure Control has developed the 18 ¾" 15000 psi blowout stopper (KBOS) system for applications on all subsea well activities. The 18 ¾" 15000 psi systems builds upon the successful development of the 5-1/8" 15000 psi KBOS system for surface BOP applications[5]. The system can be configured within the existing subsea BOP, by replacing a casing shear ram or blind shear ram, or can be configured as a shut-in device below the BOP. The KBOS system provides a significant improvement over existing shear ram technology, providing the ability to shear/seal any items in the wellbore, which reduces the likelihood of a blowout, resulting in an improved risk profile. The KBOS is a proprietary design which uses a pyro-technical, electrically initiated process the actuate the shearing process. The system has been designed and tested to actuate and shear/seal in milliseconds, under full wellbore flowing conditions and meets NACE/ISO sour service requirements without exemptions. The control system includes real-time monitoring and function testing capabilities, and requires minimal in-service maintenance, as the working components are isolated from the wellbore fluids. A computational predictive model has been developed, with a test regime conducted to validate the model results. A full qualification program, with 3rd party certification, has been completed to industry standards. Shearing tests have been conducted for a large range of tubulars which have been challenging to shear with existing technology. These include: 9 ½" drill collars, combinations of large OD casing and inner strings, high strength drill pipe and tool joints, wireline, and production tubing. A subsea test of the system was successfully performed in 2019 to shear large OD casing and inner string. The KBOS system utilizes technology from other industries (ballistics, military, automotive) to provide improved shearing and sealing capabilities for all well activities (drilling, completion, intervention). The improved shearing/sealing capacity and reduced time enable a reduced likelihood of a blowout and improved risk profile