Joseph D Schmidt, Age 591170 Colonial Dr, Wasilla, AK 99654

5370187, Dec 6, 1994

Sep 24, 1993

8/126945

Keith R. Ferguson - Anchorage AK
Joseph H. Schmidt - Anchorage AK

Atlantic Richfield Company - Los Angeles CA

E21B 4326

166308

Hydraulic fractures are initiated or extended into earth formations from a first well by filling a space within the wellbore and a tubing string extending within the well with a fracturing fluid, placing the first well in fluid flow communication with a tubing string extending within a second well and increasing the pressure of fluid in the respective tubing strings sufficient to initiate or extend the fracture. The second well serves as an accumulator for accumulating a sufficient charge of pressure fluid, such as gas, to drive the fracturing fluid in the first well into the formation to a suitable extent.

5617921, Apr 8, 1997

Sep 29, 1995

8/535978

Joseph H. Schmidt - Anchorage AK
Keith R. Ferguson - Anchorage AK
Andrew J. Bond - Anchorage AK
Roger F. Keese - Eagle River AK

Atlantic Richfield Company - Los Angeles CA
Schlumberger Technology Corporation - Houston TX

E21B 4326
E21B 43267

166308

Fractures are initiated or extended into fluid producing earth formations from a well by providing a reservoir of high pressure gas at the earth's surface together with a flow control valve or a frangible closure, such as a shear disk, interposed in a conduit connecting the reservoir to the well. The well is precharged with high pressure gas at a pressure less than or about the same as the reservoir gas pressure. Fracture initiation and/or extension may be carried out by firing the perforation gun and opening the flow control valve between the reservoir and the wellhead in timed relation or by allowing a pressure drop across a shear disk interposed between the reservoir and the wellhead to effect rupture of the shear disk to release the reservoir charge. In wells where perforations are already formed, a shear disk or other frangible closure in the well tubing may be ruptured to release a precharge of high pressure gas in the tubing string to begin fracture formation or extension followed by flow of high pressure gas discharged from the reservoir to continue the fracture initiation or extension.

5400856, Mar 28, 1995

May 3, 1994

8/237612

Joseph H. Schmidt - Anchorage AK

Atlantic Richfield Company - Los Angeles CA

E21B 4326

166271

Methods are provided for overpressured perforating and fracturing of a subsurface formation in a substantially deviated well. A perforating gun is run into the well and is pushed through the deviated portion thereof on a coiled tubing string. The coiled tubing string contains an internal supporting pressure which is high enough to prevent collapse of the coiled tubing string prior to perforation of the well and which is low enough to avoid rupturing the coiled tubing string. After the perforations are formed and the fractures are initiated, the supporting gas pressure in the coiled tubing string is bled off to the atmosphere and the coiled tubing string and perforating gun are retrieved.

5413174, May 9, 1995

May 18, 1994

8/245283

Joseph H. Schmidt - Anchorage AK

Atlantic Richfield Company - Plano TX

E21B 4700
G01V 326

166250

Fluid production or injection wells may be used to transmit or receive seismic signals by lowering a signal transmitting device within a tubing string disposed in the well and exerting a pressure fluid force on a free bottom end of the tubing string to cause the tubing string to helically deflect within the well and engage the wellbore wall firmly over a large portion of the tubing string to enhance the quality and intensity of the signal transmitted between the transmitting device and the earth formation penetrated by the well.

5387737, Feb 7, 1995

Apr 6, 1993

8/043323

Joseph H. Schmidt - Anchorage AK
Michael L. Bill - Anchorage AK
Ahmed S. Abou-Sayed - Sugarland TX

Atlantic Richfield Company - Los Angeles CA

A62D 300
B09B 300

588250

Slurries of particulate solids wastes are injected into a disaggregated earth formation through an injection well by predetermining the formation to have a compressive stress in a range of about 300 psi to 2500 psi, a porosity of at least about twenty percent (20%) and disposed between overburden and underburden layers which have a substantially lower permeability than the disposal zone. The disposal zone is disaggregated or "liquified" by injecting substantially solids-free liquid followed by injection of the solids-laden slurry.

5685374, Nov 11, 1997

Feb 14, 1996

8/601192

Joseph H. Schmidt - Anchorage AK
Frank E. Bergren - Anchorage AK
Michael L. Bill - Anchorage AK
Donald F. Scheve - Anchorage AK

Atlantic Richfield Company - Los Angeles CA

E21B 4300

166369

Weakly consolidated hydrocarbon fluid bearing earth formation zones having a cohesive strength of about 500 psi or less are produced by completing a well penetrating the zone and initiating production of solids laden fluid from the zone through the well to generate a near wellbore cavity. Production of solids laden fluid is continued until the cavity grows to a point wherein the fluid velocity across the cavity face decreases to a value below the solids particulate transport velocity wherein continued production of fluid will result in a very low or negligible rate of production of solids particulates. Solids particulates are separated from the produced mixture at the surface, the solids are treated to reduce the particle size and reinjected in a slurry into a disposal well for disposal in a hydraulically fractured or disaggregated formation zone remote from the production zone. Cavity growth and production may be carried out by throttling a free flowing well or by artificial lift, preferably utilizing power fluid and a hydraulic jet pump or gas lift techniques.

5271465, Dec 21, 1993

Apr 27, 1992

7/874159

Joseph H. Schmidt - Anchorage AK
James C. Abel - Anchorage AK
J. Lawrence Bacak - Anchorage AK
Dennis R. Reimers - Wasilla AK
Ching H. Yew - Austin TX

Atlantic Richfield Company - Los Angeles CA

F21B 4326

166297

Hydraulic fractures are initiated or extended into fluid-producing earth formations from a cased well by filling a space within the casing adjacent the formation zone of interest with liquid which extends into a tubing string and forming a pressure gas charged portion of the tubing string by introducing pressure gas or liquid into the tubing string to compress a column of gas therein to a pressure which exceeds the formation fracture breakdown pressure. By perforating the casing or, if perforations already exist, releasing a frangible disk type closure interposed in the tubing string, the gas charge in the tubing string forces fluid into the formation at sustained pressure and flow conditions not attainable by surface pumped fracture fluids.

5429191, Jul 4, 1995

Mar 3, 1994

8/205910

Joseph H. Schmidt - Anchorage AK
Thomas K. Perkins - Dallas TX
James C. Abel - Anchorage AK
Charles R. Eason - Englewood CO

Atlantic Richfield Company - Los Angeles CA
Dowell Schlumberger Incorporated - Sugar Land TX

E21B 4326

166297

Fractures are initiated or extended within an earth formation from a well which includes a tubing string extending to a wellbore space adjacent the fracture zone from a conventional wellhead. Carbon dioxide, nitrogen or a similar highly expansible fluid is pumped into the wellbore space and/or at least a portion of the tubing string at a pressure greater than the fluid critical pressure and greater than the fracture initiation or extension pressure required in the formation zone. A perforating gun is fired or a shear disk is actuated to release the expansible fluid to flow into the formation at an initial velocity and kinetic energy which substantially exceeds that which is obtained with water or similar conventional fracturing fluids so as to initiate or extend hydraulic fractures with a minimum radius of curvature with respect to the wellbore.