Downhole apparatus and method
A downhole apparatus, such as a wellbore packer, is provided with a swellable member and a fluid supply assembly. The fluid supply assembly is to receive fluid and expose the swellable member to the fluid to cause expansion of the swellable member, and comprises a support structure for supporting the swellable member on the body. In a preferred embodiment, the support structure defines a chamber and is configured to allow fluid to flow and access the swellable member. A method of use and method of sealing a wellbore is described.
1. A downhole apparatus comprising:
a body;
a swellable member disposed on the body which expands upon contact with a predetermined fluid; and
a fluid supply assembly configured to receive the predetermined fluid and expose the swellable member to the predetermined fluid, comprising:
a support structure for the swellable member, formed from a porous material,
wherein the fluid supply assembly is supplied with fluid from a reservoir of fluid coupled to the apparatus,
wherein the reservoir is located downhole and longitudinally displaced from the apparatus.
2. The downhole apparatus of claim 1 wherein the porous material comprises woven fibres.
3. The downhole apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the porous material comprises braided wire, metal wool or a sintered metal.
4. The downhole apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the support structure is formed from a combination of support members and spaces bounded by the body and the swellable member.
5. A wellbore packer comprising the downhole apparatus claim 1 .
6. A downhole assembly comprising:
the apparatus of claim 1 ; and
a downhole fluid reservoir in fluid communication with a supply line of the apparatus.
7. A method of operating a swellable downhole apparatus, the method comprising:
providing an apparatus according to claim 1 ;
supplying a predetermined fluid to the fluid supply assembly; and
expanding the swellable member by exposing the swellable member to the predetermined fluid from the fluid supply assembly via the porous material.
8. The method of claim 7 , further comprising: running the apparatus to a downhole location after supplying the predetermined fluid to the fluid supply assembly.
9. The method of claim 7 , further comprising: running the downhole apparatus to a downhole location before supplying the predetermined fluid from surface.
10. The method of claim 7 , wherein supplying a predetermined fluid to the fluid supply assembly comprises:
supplying the predetermined fluid from a reservoir of fluid located downhole.
11. The method of claim 7 , wherein expanding the swellable member by exposing the swellable member to the predetermined fluid from the fluid supply assembly via the porous material comprises:
exposing the swellable member to a supplied volume of the predetermined fluid to expand the swellable member from a first run-in condition to a sealing condition to create a seal in a wellbore of approximately known dimensions.
12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the supplied volume comprises an excess of fluid over a required volume for expanding the swellable member from the run-in condition to the sealing condition.