Pre-positioning a meltable seal for plug and abandonment

Abstract

Systems and methods of the present disclosure relate to plug and abandonment operations for wells. A method comprises moving a sliding sleeve of a conduit to expose a meltable sealant that is pre-installed on an inner diameter (ID) of the conduit. The conduit is disposed in a wellbore, and the meltable sealant is configured to melt and flow upon heating. The meltable sealant is further configured to cool, solidify, and plug the conduit upon dissipation of heat.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system comprising:
 a conduit;   a sealant disposed on an inner diameter (ID) of the conduit, the sealant configured to melt and solidify to form a plug within the conduit; and   a sliding sleeve (SS), wherein the sealant on the ID is disposed between the ID and the SS.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the conduit is disposed in a wellbore. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the sealant is also disposed on an outer diameter of the conduit. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the sealant comprises a metal and/or a thermoplastic. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a heater configured to melt the sealant. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a valve that is attached to the ID with a material that includes a lower melting temperature than the sealant. 
     
     
         7 . A system comprising:
 a conduit, wherein the conduit forms an interior flow path for fluids through an interior of the conduit;   a sealant disposed on an inner diameter (ID) of the conduit, the sealant configured to melt and solidify to form a plug within the conduit to block the interior flow path inside the conduit; and   a sliding sleeve (SS), wherein the sealant on the ID is disposed between the ID and the SS.   
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , further comprising a ball or dart in the conduit. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the sliding sleeve is moved with the ball or dart. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the ball or dart supports the meltable sealant in the molten state in the interior flow path. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 7 , further comprising a second meltable sealant that is pre-installed on an outer diameter of the conduit. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the sealant further comprises a metal and/or a thermoplastic. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 7 , further comprising a valve that is attached to the ID with a material, wherein the material has a first melting temperature that is lower than a second melting temperature of the meltable sealant. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 7 , further comprising a heater in the wellbore to heat the meltable sealant. 
     
     
         15 . A method comprising:
 disposing a plug in a conduit, wherein sealant is pre-installed on an internal diameter of the conduit;   positioning a heater in the conduit, the conduit disposed in a wellbore; and   melting the sealant with the heater, wherein molten sealant is configured to solidify and seal the conduit upon dissipation of heat from the heater to form a barrier made of the plug, the heater, and the sealant.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising melting sealant that is disposed on an outer diameter of the conduit. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising locking the plug within the conduit with locking profiles. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the sealant includes a metal and/or a thermoplastic. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the heater is pumped into the conduit. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising producing heat with the heater via exothermic chemical reactions.