Large bore rotary safety valves for wells

Claim 2

A subsurface well safety valve including: an elongate tubular valve housing having means for connecting it in a well flow conductor and having a bore therethrough in flow communication with the flow conductor for flow of fluids therethrough from the well formation; a rotatable valve closure member having a transverse flow passage therethrough; an upper seat member and a lower seat member above and below said valve closure member and engageable therewith for controlling flow through the valve closure member and the housing bore; and means for supporting the valve seat members on the valve housing for movement with respect thereto including: tubular fluid pressure operating piston means connected to the upper valve seat member and sealing with the bore of the housing to provide a fluid pressure chamber in said housing for receiving control fluid pressure for moving saiD operating piston means to move the valve seat members and valve closure member longitudinally axially of the housing; a spring housing; connecting means for releasably connecting the upper end of the spring housing with the tubular valve housing above the seat members and closure member; elongate operator means movable longitudinally in said spring housing for moving said lower seat member longitudinally of the spring housing toward said tubular housing; spring means in said spring housing engageable with said elongate operator means for biasing the lower seat member and valve closure member toward said tubular valve housing; actuating means between the tubular housing and the spring housing and engageable with the valve closure member for rotating said closure member about a transverse axis relative to the longitudinal axes of the housings for moving the closure member between open and closed positions; said connecting means connecting said spring housing with said tubular housing comprising a pair of circumferentially spaced longitudinally extending arm members providing openings therebetween between said tubular housing and said spring housing in which the valve closure member, seat members, and actuating actuator means are disposed, said openings permitting said closure member to have a transverse dimension substantially equal to the external diameter of the tubular housing, whereby the bore of flow passage through the valve closure member, through the tubular operating piston means, through the valve seat members and through the tubular housing may be a maximum in diameter.

Claim 3

A safety valve of the character set forth in claim 1 wherein said actuating means comprises: a pair of link members connecting the seat members on opposite sides of the closure member for moving the seat members simultaneously with said closure member, each of said link members having a pivot member centrally thereof projecting into a central pivot recess in said closure member on diametrical opposite sides thereof and forming an axis of rotation for said closure member extending diametrically transverse to the flow passage through the closure member to provide for rotation of the closure member thereabout during movement between open and closed position, whereby said link members positively move said seat members with said closure member longitudinally axially of the tubular housing, said link members being positively moved in opposite directions longitudinally of said actuating means by said operating piston means and by said spring means, said actuating means also having opposed stationary pin means engageable in complementary opposed recesses in said closure member offset from and extending radially from said diametrically opposed central pivot recesses, whereby movement of said link members and the closure member with which they are connected with respect to said stationary pin means on said actuating means causes rotation of the closure member about said diametrically transverse axis between open and closed positions relative to said seat members.

Claim 4

A safety valve of the character set forth in claim 1 wherein the connecting means connecting the tubular valve housing and the upper end of the spring housing includes: means on said tubular valve housing providing connecting shoulder means; oppositely facing shoulder means on the ends of the elongate arm members of said spring housing engageable with the connecting shoulder means on the tubular valve housing; and cup means on said tubular valve housing engageable with the ends of the arm members to releasably hold said shoulder means on said arm members in connecting engagement with the connecting shoulder means on said valve housing.

Claim 5

A safety valve of the character set forth in claim 1 wherein the connecting arm means connecting the spring housing and the tubular valve housing comprises: depending circumferentially spaced longitudinally extending arm members having shoulder means on their lower projecting ends; connecting Shoulder means on said spring housing coengageable with the shoulder means on the lower end of said arm members; and means in said spring housing disposed to engage said ends of said arm members to hold said shoulder means on said arms members and the connecting shoulder means on said spring housing in coengagement.

Claim 6

A safety valve of the character set forth in claim 1 wherein said operating piston means comprises: a plurality of piston members movable in the valve housing and defining a plurality of fluid pressure chambers therein, said piston members being engageable with each other upon application of fluid pressure thereto to cause simultaneous movement of said piston members in a common longitudinal direction in said tubular valve housing for moving the link members, and the valve seat members and the closure member connected therewith longitudinally of the valve housing to rotate the closure member in one direction between open and closed positions.

Claim 7

A safety valve of the character set forth in claim 1 wherein the spring means comprises: a plurality of spring modules in said spring housing movable simultaneously longitudinally in said spring housing and engageable with said link members for moving said link members and the valve seats and closure member connected therewith longitudinally relative to said tubular valve housing to cause rotation of said closure member in one direction between open and closed positions.

Claim 8

A subsurface well safety valve of the character set forth in claim 1 wherein said operating piston means comprises: a plurality of piston members movable in the valve housing and defining a plurality of fluid pressure chambers therein, said piston members being engageable with each other upon application of fluid pressure thereto to cause simultaneous longitudinal movement of said piston members in a common longitudinal direction in said tubular valve housing for moving the link members and the valve seat members and closure member connected therewith longitudinally of the valve housing in one direction in said valve housing to rotate the closure member in one direction between open and closed positions; and said spring means comprises: a plurality of spring modules in said spring housing movable simultaneously longitudinally in said housing and having operator means engateable with the said link members for moving said link members and the valve seat members and closure member connected therewith longitudinally relative to said tubular housing in a direction opposite the direction of movement of the link members and the valve seat members and closure member connected therewith caused by the operating piston menas to cause said closure member to rotate in a direction opposite the direction of rotation of the closure member caused by the operating piston means.

Claim 9

A safety valve of the character set forth in claim 1 including: bypass means on the tubular operating piston means above the upper seat means communicating the bore of the tubular valve housing with the exterior thereof; valve seat means on the tubular valve housing; and oppositely facing valve seat means on the upper movable seat member movable into engagement with the seat means on the tubular valve housing for closing said bypass opening between the exterior of the housing and the bore thereof.

Claim 10

A safety valve of the character set forth in claim 8 wherein said seat means on said upper seat member is movable out of seating engagement with the seat means on the tubular valve housing prior to rotation of the valve closure member between closed and open positions.

Claim 11

A safety valve of the character set forth in claim 8 including: deformable seal means on one of said seat means on said tubular valve housing and said seat means on said upper seat member engageable with the other seat means for positively sealing therebetween under low pressure.

Claim 12

A subsurface well safety valve including: an elongate tubular valve housing having a bore therethrough; means for connectinG said valve housing in a well flow conductor for controlling flow through the said conductor; a rotatable valve closure member mounted in said valve housing and having a transverse flow passage therethrough rotatable into and out of communication with the flow passage of the housing; an upper valve seat member in the valve housing above the valve closure member and engaging said valve closure member to coact therewith to control flow through the housing; a lower valve seat member in engagement with the valve closure member below and opposite the upper valve seat member and movable therewith for also controlling flow through the valve closure member and the valve housing; link members connecting the valve seat members on opposite sides of the valve closure member and having pivot means thereon engaged with complementary pivot means on the valve closure member providing for pivotal movement of the valve closure member between open and closed positions in engagement with said seat members; piston means slidable in the bore of said valve housing above said upper valve seat and engageable with said valve seat member to move the same; means for conducting fluid pressure into the valve housing to act on the piston means to move the upper seat members to cause the same to move the valve closure member; a spring housing connected at its upper end with the lower end of the valve housing and having spring biasing means therein and spring actuator means engaged by said spring biasing means and engaging said lower valve seat member for moving said lower valve seat member in opposition to the pressure of the fluid on the piston means acting on the upper valve seat member in the valve housing; actuating means fixedly secured between the valve housing and the spring housing and having actuating pin means thereon engageable with complementary radially extending groove means on the valve closure member for causing rotation of the valve closure member about the pivotal pins on the link members as the valve seat members and closure member are moved longitudinally by the piston means and by the actuator means energized by the spring means; elongate connector arm means connecting the spring housing with the valve housing providing enlarged window openings therebetween in which the valve closure means member is movable to permit the valve closure member to have a diameter substantially equal to the exterior diameter of the valve housing and the spring housing and so permit a larger flow passage through the valve closure member and the valve housing.

Claim 13

A subsurface well safety valve including: an elongate tubular valve housing having a bore therethrough; means for connectinG said valve housing in a well flow conductor for controlling flow through the said conductor; a rotatable valve closure member mounted in said valve housing and having a transverse flow passage therethrough rotatable into and out of communication with the flow passage of the housing; an upper valve seat member in the valve housing above the valve closure member and engaging said valve closure member to coact therewith to control flow through the housing; a lower valve seat member in engagement with the valve closure member below and opposite the upper valve seat member and movable therewith for also controlling flow through the valve closure member and the valve housing; link members connecting the valve seat members on opposite sides of the valve closure member and having pivot means thereon engaged with complementary pivot means on the valve closure member providing for pivotal movement of the valve closure member between open and closed positions in engagement with said seat members; piston means slidable in the bore of said valve housing above said upper valve seat and engageable with said valve seat member to move the same; means for conducting fluid pressure into the valve housing to act on the piston means to move the upper seat members to cause the same to move the valve closure member; a spring housing connected at its upper end with the lower end of the valve housing and having spring biasing means therein and spring actuator means engaged by said spring biasing means and engaging said lower valve seat member for moving said lower valve seat member in opposition to the pressure of the fluid on the piston means acting on the upper valve seat member in the valve housing; actuating means fixedly secured between the valve housing and the spring housing and having actuating pin means thereon engageable with complementary radially extending groove means on the valve closure member for causing rotation of the valve closure member about the pivotal pins on the link members as the valve seat members and closure member are moved longitudinally by the piston means and by the actuator means energized by the spring means; elongate connector arm means connecting the spring housing with the valve housing providing enlarged window openings therebetween in which the valve closure means member is movable to permit the valve closure member to have a diameter substantially equal to the exterior diameter of the valve housing and the spring housing and so permit a larger flow passage through the valve closure member and the valve housing.