Method For Developing Oil And Gas Fields Using High-Power Laser Radiation For More Complete Oil And Gas Extraction

Abstract

A system for extracting oil and gas includes at least one drilling rod having an elongated body and a working head positioned at the distal end of the elongated body, wherein the working head has a proximal end and a distal end, a first mechanical drilling device positioned at the distal end of the working head, a second mechanical drilling device position at the proximal end of the working head, a central laser emitter positioned at the distal end of the working head, at least one lateral emitter positioned on a side wall of the working head between the distal end and the proximal end, a fiber optic cable positioned within a lumen of the elongated body and coupled to the central laser emitter and the at least one lateral emitter, and a laser source coupled to and supplying a laser beam to the fiber optic cable.

Claims

1. A system for extracting oil and gas, comprising: at least one drilling rod having an elongated body and a working head positioned at a distal end of the elongated body, wherein the working head has a proximal end and a distal end; a first mechanical drilling device positioned at the distal end of the working head; a second mechanical drilling device position at the proximal end of the working head; a central laser emitter positioned at the distal end of the working head; at least one lateral emitter positioned on a side wall of the working head between the distal end and the proximal end; a fiber optic cable positioned within a lumen of the elongated body and coupled to the central laser emitter and the at least one lateral emitter; and a laser source coupled to and supplying a laser beam to the fiber optic cable.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a controller coupled to at least one of the central emitter and the at least one lateral emitter, wherein said controller controls at least one characteristic of the laser beam.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the at least one characteristic comprises at least one of laser beam direction, laser beam intensity, time duration of laser beam emission, laser beam temperature, laser beam diameter, laser beam length, and laser beam focus.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising at least one lens positioned over the central emitter and the at least one lateral emitter.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising an additional central emitter positioned at the proximal end of the working head adjacent the second mechanical drilling device.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising a motor coupled to the working head, wherein the motor actuates a rotational movement of the working head.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising an expanding member coupled to the working head adjacent its distal end, wherein the expanding member comprises two or more drilling crowns coupled thereto and an actuator that expands the expanding member such that the drilling crowns come into contact with surrounding rock material.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the expanding member performs a forward movement to displace surrounding rock material as the drilling rod moves into a drill-hole.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising an additional expanding member coupled to the working head adjacent its proximal end, wherein the additional expanding member comprises two or more drilling crowns coupled thereto and an actuator that expands the additional expanding member such that the drilling crowns come into contact with surrounding rock material, wherein the additional expanding member performs a backward movement to displace surrounding rock material as the drilling rodis withdrawn from the drill-hole.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the drilling crowns of the expanding member and the additional expanding member perform a rotational movement to break down surrounding rock material.

11. The system of claim 1, further comprising at least one fixator positioned in the lumen of the elongated body, wherein the at least one fixator receives the at least one fiber optic cable to prevent it from coiling.

12. The system of claim 1, further comprising a fluid supply lumen positioned in the inner lumen of the elongated body and an outlet positioned at the distal end of the working head and coupled to the fluid supply lumen, wherein fluid is supplied through the fluid supply lumen and the outlet to cool down the surrounding rock material after it is impacted by the laser beam emitted from at least one of the central emitter and the at least one lateral emitter.

13. The system of claim 1, further comprising a steering mechanism coupled to the working head of the at least one drilling rod, wherein the steering mechanism changes a direction in which the working head travels.

14. A method of developing oil and gas fields, comprising the steps of: inserting at least one drilling rod into an existing well, the at least one drilling rod having a working head with a distal end and a proximal end; forming at least one elongated drill-hole from said well into surrounding material by impacting rock material via a laser beam emitted from an emitter positioned at the distal end of the working head; and extending a length of the at least one elongated drill-hole by moving the at least one drilling rod further into the elongated drill-hole while continuing to impact the rock material via the laser beam.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising a step of displacing the impacted rock material via a front drilling head positioned at the distal end of working head of the at least one drilling rod while moving the drilling rod into the elongated drill-hole.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising a step of displacing surrounding rock material via a rear drilling head positioned at the proximal end of the at least one drilling rod while withdrawing the drilling rod from the elongated drill-hole.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising a step of adjusting an angle between a longitudinal axis of the at least one elongated drill-hole and a longitudinal axis of the existing well by changing a direction of the laser beams emitted from the emitter positioned on the at least one drilling rod.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the direction of the laser beams emitted from the emitter is changed by articulating the distal end of the working head of the drilling rod.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the emitter is extendable relative the distal end of the working head and the step of impacting rock material via the laser beam comprises extending the emitter past the distal end of the working rod.

20. The method of claim 14, further comprising a step of enlarging an inner diameter of the elongated drill-hole by displacing surrounding rock material via an expanding member coupled to the working head adjacent its distal end, wherein the expanding member comprises two or more drilling crowns coupled thereto and an actuator that expands the expanding member such that the drilling crowns come into contact with surrounding rock material and displace the rock as the at least one drilling rod is moved into the elongated drill-hole.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising a step of adjusting an angle between a longitudinal axis of said at least one elongated drill-hole and a longitudinal axis of the well by changing a position of the drilling crowns of the expanding member.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising a step of displacing rock material in the elongated drill-hole via an additional expanding member coupled to the working head adjacent its proximal end, wherein the expanding member comprises two or more drilling crowns coupled thereto and an actuator that expands the expanding member such that the drilling crowns come into contact with surrounding rock material and displace the rock as the at least one drilling rod is withdrawn from the elongated drill-hole

23. The method of claim 14, further comprising a step of removing fluid byproducts of gaseous hydrocarbons from the at least one elongated drill-hole via a fluid return lumen provided in the at least one drilling rod.

24. The method of claim 14, further comprising a step of supplying oxygen to the at least one elongated drill-hole via a lumen of the at least one drilling rod to initiate burn out of at least one of a gaseous hydrocarbon byproduct, gas and oil.

25. The method of claim 14, further comprising a step of forming at least one additional-drill hole via an additional drilling rod placed in an adjacent well such that the two drill-holes intersect each other.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0043] The invention is illustrated in the drawings, wherein FIGS. 1A-1B, 2 and 3 illustrate the high-power laser beam system of the present invention and the implementation of the method of the present invention for developing fields and providing for the most complete extraction of oil and gas via high-power laser beam systems.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0044] FIG. 1A shows the vertical cross-section of the rock mass, which illustrates one exemplary embodiment of the arrangement of inclined-horizontal production wells 1 within oil and gas layer 9 of large thickness with the laser system 3 positioned in the wells at a specified depth via hydraulic pipes 2 coupled to the system via gear mechanism. FIG. 1B illustrates a horizontal cross-sectional view along the line A-A of the well 1 and through the layer 9.

[0045] In the embodiment shown in these figures, the high-power laser equipment is used in the field being under treatment for extended period of time and having drilled production wells 1 with casing columns made of metal pipes placed in the well to reinforce well walls. The laser system 3 with flexible composite drilling rods 4 and crowns 20 having emitters of laser energy positioned at their ends is placed in the wells 1 and is connected via optical fiber cables to the high-power laser equipment positioned at the surface and to the alternating-current source via electrical cables, wherein the cables are positioned inside the pipes 2. Based on predetermined coordinates programmed into the laser system 3, a plurality of long drill-holes 5 and 6 with small diameters are drilled at high speed due to evaporation and destruction of layer material 9 at high temperatures, wherein the layer 9 is located between clay containing top layer 5 and bottom layer 7, which are impermeable to oil, gas and underground layer waters and which isolate the layer 9 from the rest of the mountain rock mass.

[0046] The high-power laser beams used in drilling are emitted from emitters of light energy positioned at distal ends of flexible composite drilling rods 4 with the crowns 15. The diameters of the long drill-holes 5 and 6 range from less than about 20 mm to more than 40 mm. The drill-holes 5 and 6 are drilled from adjacent production wells 1 towards each other until they intersect within the layer 9 by capacity (drill-holes 6) and by outstretch (drill-holes 5).

[0047] During the drilling, the drill-holes may be angled from their axes at the intersection points in the range from about few dozens of centimeters to several meters during their drilling towards each other, and this has no impact on efficiency of oil and gas inflow therefrom into the production wells because the areas of inflow of oil and gas from the layer into the long drill-holes are still in the range of many dozens and hundreds of meters. During the drilling of long drill-holes with small diameters, flexible composite drilling rods 4 having drilling crowns 50 positioned at their distal ends are rotated to a specified angle from about 0 degrees to about 180 degrees and more, and the direction of the drilling of the long drill-holes in controlled via laser beams transmitted through the dedicated optical fibers within the cables. Wherein a high accuracy of intersection between the long drill-holes is desirable, the drilling is also controlled by gyroscopes, which, together with the laser beams, determine the direction of drilling and the angle of rotation of the long drill-holes within the layer 9, as well as determine composition of rock material and temperatures, pressures and other characteristics within in-situ space by analyzing the measured data via computer processors positioned at the surface.

[0048] Lengths of the drill-holes 5 and 6 may vary depending on a distance between the drilled production wells 1 from and may be in the range from less than about 20 meters to more than about 200 meters. Distances between axes of the long drill-holes with small diameters may vary depending on permeability of rock material within the layers, rate of filtration of oil and gas therefrom, and oil viscosity, and may be in the range from less than about 5 meters to more than about 50 meters.

[0049] The rock dust displaced from the bottom-holes of the long drill-holes 5 and 6 by drilling is completely evaporated via the high-power laser beams, and the light energy emitters are protected from penetration by water, oil and fine rock particles via lenses made with high strength transparent materials, such as, for example, sapphire lenses, made of artificial crystals. The lenses are also used to refocus the high-power laser beams to increase or reduce their influence based on varying strength of the rock and layer material and based on various modes of use, for example, during complete evaporation of rock dust drilled from the wells and drill-holes, or during depositing of melted mixtures of drilled out material and artificial substances injected into the wells from the surface or melting the layers of suitable rock material.

[0050] It is desirable to drill many closely-spaced long drill-holes with small diameters via the laser units in the production wells drilled in impenetrable oil and gas layers with high-viscosity oil, as well as in shale layers for extraction of shale oil and shale gas. In order to extract shale gas from the shale layers, the drill-holes with small diameters are drilled from the production wells located in the shale layers to maximum lengths possible under particular conditions, with optimal distances between the drill-holes based on sizes of closed cavities containing shale gas within the layers. This way, during the drilling by power, outstretch and falling of the layers, the long drill-holes will be introduced into a maximum number of closed cavities containing shale gas, allowing for inflow of gas from these cavities into the production wells. In the layers containing kerogens, from which shale oil may be extracted under increased temperatures in in-situ spaces, in order to extract shale oil a large number of drill-holes is drilled from the production wells positioned at an optimal distance from each other, and diameters of the drill-holes are increased to maximum values possible under given conditions, while lengths of the drill-holes and distances between the axes of the drill-holes are decreased to obtain maximum efficiency, and a plurality of emitters of high-power light energy are introduced into the drill-holes via the optical fiber cables. After in-situ temperatures are thus increased to 500-550 degrees Celsius, shale oil is formed out of kerogens, and the formed oil flows from the layers into the production well under the influence of simultaneous pressure increase.

[0051] Most mountain rocks and layers begin evaporating under the influence of high-power laser beams under the temperature of more than about 750 degrees Celsius, and in some cases, even under lower temperatures, such as, for example, carbonate rocks. As a result, large cracks, channels and cavities are formed in such rocks. Under temperatures of more than about 950 degrees Celsius, all minerals start evaporating with water, carbon-dioxide gas, sulfur dioxide and other gas emissions, and under temperatures of more than about 1450 degrees, silicon oxide mixed with other gas impurities starts evaporating from rocks, and under temperatures of more than about 1750 degrees, methane and ammonia begin evaporating from rocks and layers. With further temperature increase, the majority of rock material will turn into gases.

[0052] As illustrated in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the long drill-holes with small diameters 5 drilled along the plane of the layer 9 and the long drill-holes 6 drilled through the thickness of the layer 9 are positioned at optimal distance from each other within in-situ space, and this arrangement allows for the most complete and efficient extraction of oil and gas from the layer 9, with the predetermined permeability of the layer and recoverable reserves of mineral resources contained within the layer. If certain properties and characteristics of the layer 9 change during the treatment of the layer, the positioning and characteristics of the long drill-holes with small diameters 5 and 6 may also be adjusted by increasing or decreasing the distance between the drill-holes and by changing their lengths and diameters, as well as by increasing in-situ temperature and pressure, to maintain the target level of oil and gas extraction. Because the production wells 1 and the long drill-holes with small diameters 5 and 6, drilled by power and outstretch of the layer 9, evenly cover large areas within the layer 9, it is possible to extract even non-commercial oil and gas reserves that were not taken into account while calculating recoverable reserves as an object for potential extraction, due to cross-flows through the systems of cracks and channels in the areas of intensive extraction.

[0053] FIG. 2 illustrates a vertical cross-section of the rock mass with an more detailed exemplary embodiment of the laser-mechanical drilling system 3 of the present invention positioned in a vertical production well for drilling of a well and subsequent enlargement of the well diameter by gradual removal or cutting off layers of given thickness along all the thickness of oil and gas layer. In this embodiment, the flexible drilling rods 4 coupled to the drilling system 3 are not shown for ease of illustration.

[0054] The vertical production well 21 is drilled at the new development site from the surface towards the oil and gas layer 22 via the laser-mechanical drilling system 3 of the invention. The drilling is implemented by using light energy emitters and the optical fiber cable 23, which includes a plurality of optical fibers (light guides) that transmit light energy without losses from the high-power laser equipment positioned at the surface to the light energy emitters positioned within the wells. The emitters are positioned in an internal lumen 28 of the laser-mechanical drilling equipment 3 having hollow actuating rods and positioning devices or fixators 25 that prevent the optical fiber cable 23 from curling. The mountain rock layer 26 is destroyed and evaporated and the gas and oil layer 22 and its bottom 10 is treated with high-power high-temperature laser energy 14 emitted from a central emitter 13 positioned at a distal end of a central drilling crown 11 and from secondary extendible lateral emitters 12. The central drilling crown 11 and lateral drilling crowns coupled to the expandable well-expanding device 29 are used to completely destroy the rock material to achieve the necessary diameter of the well 21.

[0055] A controller 20 is coupled to the central emitter 13 and the at least one lateral emitter 12, wherein the controller controls at least one characteristic of the laser beam emitted by the emitters 12 and 13. The characteristics controlled by the controller 20 include laser beam direction, laser beam intensity, time duration of laser beam emission, laser beam temperature, laser beam diameter, width and length, and laser beam focus. These characteristics are controlled based on a composition of rock material surrounding the well, as well as size and shape of formation layers, and other parameters. The direction of the laser beam emitted by the emitters 12 and 13 may be changed by reflecting the laser beam via a reflecting mirror or a prism.

[0056] During the drilling of the vertical production well 21, the well walls are reinforced to prevent them from collapsing by either simultaneously melting the well wall material, if it is suitable for this purpose, via high-power light emission 14 from the lateral emitters 12, or by depositing one or more layers on the well walls, wherein the layers are made of mixtures of substances prepared at the surface and remaining rock dust drilled from the bottom-hole of the well, or by completely evaporating the rock dust drilled from the bottom-hole of the well via the high-power laser emission 14 and then depositing layers of mixtures prepared at the surface onto the well walls 21.

[0057] In certain circumstances, it is necessary to deposit layers made with artificially prepared mixtures of substances on the well walls 21 in order to reinforce them because not all mountain rock material can be melted during the drilling of the well 21 and not under all conditions. For example, carbonate rocks and certain other types of rock material are very difficult or even impossible to melt due to fast destruction and evaporation of mixed-in weak minerals, such as calcite, dolomite, marlstone, chalk-stone and others, that quickly evaporate under high-power light influence and thus, cavities and cracks can be formed within the walls of the well. In such cases, the power of laser emission may be regulated via the controller 20 coupled to the lateral emitters 12 by refocusing of transparent protective lenses 22 and 24, for example, sapphire lenses made of artificial crystals, that are positioned over the emitters 12 to reduce (by increasing divergence) or increase intensity of light emission based on changes in strength characteristics of the rock and layer material, or based on changes in the mode of operation, such as during depositing of various melted mixtures onto the well wall to reinforce them, or melting of the layers of suitable rock material, or complete evaporation of rock and layer material.

[0058] In case of formation of water inflows or areas of weakened mountain rocks, for example carbonate rocks, with formation of cavities and cracks after the treatment with high-power laser beams, the well walls are reinforced by depositing a plurality of layers made from melted rock dust drilled out of the bottom-holes of the wells and left over after evaporation, wherein the rock dust is extracted out of the bottom-holes by compressed air and deposited onto circular welding devices 15 equipped with emitters of laser energy. The rock dust is combined with mixtures of quartz sand with other necessary substances, such as, for example, lead oxide, and materials for glasifying these materials within wells and depositing them on the well walls. In other embodiments, the rock dust drilled from the bottom-holes of the wells is completely evaporated and mixtures of substances prepared at the surface are supplied to the wells to be melted and deposited on the well walls for their reinforcement. All of the above mixtures are melted and deposited via the circular welding devices 15 on the well walls or on the melted rock and layer material within the wells with changing diameter and the emitters of high-power light energy located therein with the use of lateral laser energy emitters 12 positioned at a specified distance from the central crown of the laser-mechanical drilling system, with the capability of radial movement and full-circle rotation, either separately or together with the hollow actuating drilling rods.

[0059] Whenever needed, the method of the invention may be used to carry out continuous or major repairs of the well 21 by using the expandable well-expanding device 29 with the lateral crowns in order to achieve a desired diameter of the well via the laser-mechanical drilling system. The waste material created after the repairs, together with collapsed rock particles and pieces of destroyed layers deposited on the well walls, get into a bottom of the well 21, which primarily functions to collect miscellaneous waste material from the well and in some cases, to facilitate advancement of the drilling equipment below the bottom of the layer 22. After the well 21 is created, its walls are polished to a desired depth by depositing artificially created layers on the walls to create smooth wall surfaces and uniform diameter along the entire well 21, except the region where a thick oil and gas layer 22 is opened. At this region of the oil and gas layer 22 opened by the vertical production well 21 the diameter of the well 21 is gradually increased along the thickness of the layer 22 to a specified value via the laser-mechanical drilling system of the invention with the expandable well-expanding device 29 with the lateral crowns. In order to do that, the layers made with mixtures deposited onto the well walls for reinforcement during the drilling are cut off by gradually moving the drilling equipment up and down along the well. During the exploitation of the production well, its diameter is increased repeatedly and multiple subsequent layers 27 of specified thickness are cut off the well walls within the layer 22 by the laser-mechanical equipment of the present invention, together with asphalt, tar and paraffin deposits accumulated on the walls during the exploitation period, thereby improving the infiltration of oil and gas out of the layer into the well and also increasing the inflow area. The well diameter is increased to maximum value suitable under particular conditions for a particular layer type and taking into account capabilities of the laser-mechanical drilling system. At the same time, the area of inflow of oil and gas from the layer 22 to the well 21 is maximized, as well as the amount of oil and gas extracted out of the layer. After a prolonged time period of exploitation of the production well 21, which leads to inevitable decrease in well's productivity, multiple long drill-holes with small diameters are drilled throughout the entire layer 6 thickness in directions towards other long drill-holes drilled from the adjacent production wells located within the same layer 22 to again improve oil and gas inflow into the well by significantly increasing the inflow area out of the layer, thus resulting in virtually complete extraction of oil and gas out of the layer and thereby reducing the time needed for effective exploitation of the layer.

[0060] Currently, the methods used to develop oil and gas and shale fields are not suitable for drilling many long drill-holes with small diameters from the production wells into the layers and rocks to evenly cover large areas within in-situ spaces in order to create conditions suitable for most efficient and complete extraction of oil and gas from the layers. Hydraulic fracturing technologies, which are currently utilized to extract oil and gas from the layers, are only capable of creating a few cracks (a single hydraulic fracturing cycle creates a single crack with an opening of few millimeters) that propagate in directions within the in-situ spaces that cannot be controlled, wherein those hydraulic fracturing cracks are quickly compressed by mountain rock pressure, despite pumping of expansion materials therein, such as quartz sand, small rocks, and other substances, which leads to significant reduction or elimination of oil and gas inflow out of the layers. This is especially true in cases wherein layer waters break into the production wells due to unexpected and occasional cracks forming through the water-bearing layers. For shale layers, large amounts of chemical components are typically added to liquids pumped into the wells during repeated hydraulic fracturing of the layers to improve efficiency thereof, and those substances and agents cause pollution of the environment around the formation layers. These known technologies cannot guarantee good efficiency and a high degree of oil and gas extraction from the production fields, and at the same time, cause significant harm to the environment.

[0061] The system and method of the present invention is ecologically clean compared to the known technologies that pollute and poison territories surrounding the field with agents and substances used during the oil and gas production process, as well as with miscellaneous production wastes and mud spills out of outdated wells that had not been worked out fully, as well as remaining oil and gas being vented into the atmosphere, such as methane that contributes into the greenhouse effect. The method of the present invention also allows for full and highly efficient extraction of oil and gas out of the production fields to gain valuable profit when implemented both at new undeveloped fields and fields that have been in operation for a long time. The method of the invention further allows for efficient elimination of underground disposals of harmful radioactive and chemical substances via evaporation of these substances underground via high-power laser beams. This method also allows for melting into the underground workings out of the ore bodies, lenses and veins, various metals contained therein, such as iron, copper, nickel, aluminum, silver, gold, platinum, and others.

[0062] FIG. 3 is a more detailed illustration of an exemplary embodiment of a drilling rod of the system for extracting oil and gas shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. The drilling rod 100 can be used with the laser mechanical system shown in FIG. 2. Alternatively, the drilling rod 100 is used in an existing well produced by any type of drilling equipment, such as, e.g., convention mechanical drilling system. The drilling rod 100 is particularly suitable for extracting gaseous hydrocarbons from oil and gas formations.

[0063] The drilling rod 100 is shown as being positioned in a drill-hole 103 (also shown as 6 in FIGS. 1A and 1B), which is drilled outward from the main production well designated as 1 in FIGS. 1A and 1B. Once the main production well 1 is created via the laser-mechanical system shown in FIG. 2 or any other known drilling system, the drilling rod 100 is introduced into the well 1 via a coiled tubing, a pumping pipe, or via any other suitable device. Once the drilling rod 100 is positioned at a desired location within the well 100, the drilling rod is actuated to create an elongated drill-hole 103 (or 5 and 6 in FIGS. 1A and 1B) out of the well and into surrounding oil and/or gas layers 105.

[0064] The drilling rod 100 includes an elongated body 107 with a working head 110 positioned at a distal end of the elongated body. The working head has a proximal end 114 and a distal end 112. The working head includes a first mechanical drilling device 116 positioned at the distal end 112 of the working head 110. The working head 110 further includes a second mechanical drilling device117 positioned at the proximal end 114 of the working head. Any suitable mechanical drilling devices, such as drill bits, may be used in accordance with the present invention. The size and shape of the drilling devices 116 and 117 is chosen depending on conditions of a particular oil and/or gas development field.

[0065] The drilling rod 100 further includes a central laser emitter 118 positioned at the distal end 112 of the working head 100. The central laser emitter 118 may be positioned inside a central opening in the first drilling device 116, as shown in FIG. 3. In other embodiments, one or more central emitters may be positioned around the perimeter of the first drilling device 116.

[0066] There are also a plurality of lateral emitters 124 positioned on a side wall of the working head 110 between the distal end 112 and the proximal end114. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, there are four lateral emitters 124 positioned on the working head 110. In other embodiments, less than four or more than four lateral emitters may be provided. The lateral emitters 124 may be positioned at any desired location on the side wall of the working head 110 between the distal and proximal ends of the working head.

[0067] The central emitter 118 and the lateral emitters 124 are coupled to a fiber optic cable 122 positioned within a lumen138 of the elongated body 107 of the working head 110. At its proximal end, the fiber optic cable 122 is coupled to a laser source 140, which may be positioned on the surface outside of the well, or in some cases may be positioned somewhere inside the well. Any suitable type of the laser source, such as described above, may be used. The laser source supplies a laser beam to the central emitter 118 and the lateral emitters 124 to melt down and/or evaporate rock material to create the drill-hole 103. The lumen 138 may include one or more fixators 132 that receive the fiber optic cable 122 to prevent it from coiling. Any desired number of fixators 132 may be positioned inside the lumen 138 along the length of the elongated body of the drilling rod.

[0068] The system further includes a controller 142 coupled to at least one of the central emitter 118 and the lateral emitters 124. The controller 142 controls at least one characteristic of the laser beam, including laser beam direction, laser beam intensity, time duration of laser beam emission, laser beam temperature, laser beam diameter, laser beam length, and laser beam focus. The controller receives various data via the fiber optic cable that is used to control the characteristics of the laser beam. The data includes information about laser beam reflected from surrounding surfaces, composition of surrounding rock material, size of openings in formation layers after evaporation via the laser beams, and other information about the formation containing hydrocarbons.

[0069] The drilling rod 100 also includes an additional central emitter 134 positioned at the proximal end 114 of the working head 110 adjacent the second mechanical drilling device 117. In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 3, two or more emitters 134 are positioned around the perimeter of the second mechanical drilling device 117. It is understood, however, that other configurations of the additional emitter may be used. The additional central emitter 134 is also coupled to and receives laser beams from the optical cable 122 and is also coupled to the controller 142 that controls the laser beams emitted by the emitter 134.

[0070] The central emitter 118, lateral emitters 124 and/or the additional lateral emitter 134 may be covered with protective lens to protect the emitters from elements present during drilling process. In some embodiments, the lens are made with artificially grown crystals. Any other suitable lens material may also be used that withstands aggressive environment conditions, such as high temperatures and/or pressures, and transmits laser beams.

[0071] The working head 110 of the drilling rod 100 further includes an expanding member 126 coupled to the working head adjacent its distal end 112. The expanding member has two or more drilling crowns coupled thereto. The drilling crowns 126 are actuated via a suitable mechanical, pneumatic or electrical actuation device such that the drilling crowns move outwards from the working head and come into contact with surrounding rock material, as shown in FIG. 3. The drilling crowns 126 are positioned such that they displace surrounding rock material as the drilling rod 100 with the first drilling device is moves forward into the drill-hole. The expanding member with the drilling crowns 126 is used to enlarge an inner diameter of the drill-hole as necessary. In some embodiments, the drill crowns 126 may be actuated separately to cause the drilling rod 100 to change direction in its forward movement such that the drill-hole may be angled if necessary. It is contemplated though that in some embodiments, a suitable separate steering mechanism is coupled to the working head 110 to change the direction in which the working head travels.

[0072] An additional expanding member 128 may also be provided coupled to the working head 110 adjacent its proximal end 114. The additional expanding member also includes two or more expanding drilling crowns 128 that are actuated via any suitable mechanism. The drill crowns 128 are expanded such that they come into contact with surrounding rock material and displace the material as the drilling rod 100 is withdrawn from the drill-hole 103. This may be particularly advantageous in a situation where material drilled out of the drill-hole during the forward movement of the drilling rod blocks the exits of the drilling rod from the drill-hole. Additionally, walls of the drill-hole may collapse after drilling, which may also impede the withdrawal of the drilling rod from the drill-hole. The rear expanding member with the drilling crowns 128 displaces the material blocking the way such that the drilling rod 100 can be successfully removed from the drill-hole. Furthermore, the working head 110 may be moved back and forth within the drill-hole such that both the front and rear expanding members 126 and 128 displace rock material from the walls of the drill-hole to enlarge the inner diameter of the drill-hole. The rear expanding member with the drilling crowns 128 can also be used to change the direction of the working head 110, as discussed above.

[0073] The working head 110 of the drilling rod 100 is coupled to a motor that actuates a rotational movement of the working head 110. The motor is positioned downhole and is coupled to an electric cable, which is in turn coupled to an electric power source positioned either on the surface outside of the well or at some place within the well. The electric cable may be held in place by the fixators 132 to prevent it from coiling. It is noted that any other suitable type of a motor, such as hydraulic or pneumatic motor, may be used instead. The advantage of using the downhole motor as opposed to rotating the working head via a mechanism provided at the surface outside of the well is that it provides for a more efficient rotation actuation of the working head that requires less power.

[0074] The rotation of the working head 110 also causes rotation of the first and second drilling devices 116 and 117, as well as the rotation of the front and rear emitters 118 and 134, and the lateral emitters 124, to melt down and/or evaporate and break down surrounding rock material. The rotation of the working head 110 also causes rotation of the front and rear expanding members 126 and 128 and if they are in the expanded position, the drilling crowns of the expanding members break down and displace the surrounding rock material.

[0075] It is also contemplated that the first and second drilling devices 116 and 117 may be rotationally actuated separately from the working head 110 and/or from each other to perform drilling and displacement of the rock material. Similarly, the front and rear expansion members 126 and 128 may be actuated separately from each other and/or from other components of the drilling rod 100.

[0076] In some embodiments, the drilling rod 100 also includes a fluid supply lumen 130 positioned in the inner lumen 138 of the elongated body of the drilling rod and an outlet positioned at the distal end 112 of the working head 110 and coupled to the fluid supply lumen 138. The fluid supply lumen may be encased in a flexible fiberglass tube or any other suitable encasing. The fluid supply lumen 130 is coupled to a source of fluid positioned on the surface outside of the well and is used to supply a desired fluid or gas to the drill-hole 103 to cool down the rock material after it is being exposed to the laser beams emitted from the working head 110.

[0077] When in use, the drilling rod 110 is inserted into the existing well via a coiled tubing or other suitable mechanism. Once the drilling head is positioned at a desired location within the well, the forward central emitter 118 is actuated to emit laser beams to weaken, melt and/or evaporate rock material of the well wall to create an opening in the wall and to create an elongated drill-hole 103 extending away from the well into the oil and/or gas containing formation layer 105. The weakened rock material is then displaced by the rotating first drilling device 116 to elongate the drill-hole and to enlarge its diameter as necessary.

[0078] In some embodiments, the central emitter 118 is extendable relative the distal end 112 of the working head 110. The central emitter 118 is first extended out of the opening in the working head 110 such that it is positioned ahead of the drilling rod 100 and the rock material ahead of the working head 110 is impacted by laser beams emitted from the central emitter 118.

[0079] The length of the drill-hole 103 is extended by moving the drilling rod 100 further into the drill-hole while continuing to impact the rock material via the laser beam from the central emitter 118 with subsequent drilling of the weakened rock material by the first drilling device 116. As described above, the diameter of the drill-hole 103 can also be enlarged via impacting the rock material with laser beams emitted from the rear central emitter 134 and displacing the weakened rock material via the second drilling device 117 positioned at the proximal end 114 of the working head 110.

[0080] The inner diameter of the drill-hole is then enlarged further by impacting surrounding material with laser beams emitted from the lateral emitters 124 positioned on the side wall of the working head 110. The drill-hole diameter can also be mechanically enlarged by displacing surrounding rock material via the front expanding member 126 and/or the rear expanding member 128, as described above.

[0081] An angle between a longitudinal axis of the drill-hole 103 and a longitudinal axis of the existing well may be adjusted as necessary by changing a direction of the laser beams emitted from the central emitter 118 and/or the lateral emitters 124. The direction of the laser beams emitted from the central emitter 118 may be changed by articulating the working head 110 of the drilling rod. The angle between the longitudinal axis of the drill-hole and the longitudinal axis of the well can also be changed by changing a position of the drilling crowns of the expanding members 126 and 128.

[0082] Once the gaseous hydrocarbons within the formation layers are exposed to extremely high temperatures of the laser beams, they break down into water and natural gas, such as methane. These water and gas byproducts are then removed from the drill-holes and the well via a fluid return lumen provided in the inner lumen 138 of the drilling rod 100. A pump may be coupled to the fluid return lumen to facilitate more efficient removal of the byproducts from the drill-holes and wells. The removal of water and gas byproducts creates depressions and lowers pressure within the formation layers. This in turn speeds up and facilitates more efficient break down of the gaseous hydrocarbons into their byproducts, which leads to more effective and complete extraction of oil and gas from formation layers.

[0083] As illustrated in FIGS. 1A and 1B, additional drill-holes may be formed in adjacent wells by the same drilling rods positioned in those well, such that the drill-holes 5 and 6 from the neighboring wells intersect each other or extend adjacent each other. The temperature and mechanical stress caused by the laser-mechanical drilling in accordance with the present invention causes formation of numerous cracks in the formation rock material from the neighboring drill-holes. All of this increases the inflow of oil and gas and gaseous byproducts from the formation layers onto the drill-holes and the wells, leading to a more efficient extraction.

[0084] Diameters of the elongated drill-holes 5 and 6 are enlarged to a desired size by moving the drilling rods backward out of the drill-holes by impacting surround rock material by laser beams emitted from the rear central emitter 134 positioned at the proximal end 114 of the working head 110 and then impacting the weakened rock material by the second mechanical drilling device 117. The diameter of the drill-holes is further enlarged by gradually expanding the rear expanding device 128 such that its drilling crowns displace the rock material from the drill-hole walls. The working heads of the drilling rods can also be displaced back and forth within the drill-holes, which together with the gradual expansion of the front and rear expansion devices displaces the rock materials from the drill-hole walls and enlarges the diameter of the drill-hole.

[0085] If even a bigger diameter of the drill-holes is desired, the drilling rods may be withdrawn from the drill-holes and additional drilling rods with larger diameters may be positioned in the drill-holes to create larger diameter openings. The positioning of the additional drilling rods within the drill-holes may be facilitated by the controller 142 based on predetermined location coordinates programmed into the drilling system.

[0086] In some embodiments, the method of the present invention further includes supplying oxygen to the drill-hole 103 to initiate burn out of gaseous byproduct of the hydrocarbons that have been exposed to the high temperature of the laser beams, or oil and/or gas present in the formation layers. This significantly lowers the amount of energy needed for the laser-mechanical drilling in accordance with the invention. It also lowers viscosity of oil and increases internal temperature of the formation layers, which leads to much faster drilling process and increases the efficiency of oil and gas extraction as compared to known drilling methods.

[0087] After the extraction of oil, gas and gaseous byproducts, e.g. methane, is completed, fluid that has been previously withdrawn from the drill-holes and wells in case of on-shore drilling and ocean water in case of off-shore drilling may be mixed in with particular polymers and other chemical ingredients and pumped back into the wells and drill-holes. This chemical solution hardens and functions as a support structure in voids in the formation layers created by extraction of gaseous hydrocarbons. This prevents weakening and sagging of the ocean floor or icy rock formations onshore and improves environmental impact of the extraction process.

[0088] It should be understood that the foregoing is illustrative and not limiting, and that obvious modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. Accordingly, reference should be made primarily to the accompanying claims, rather than the foregoing specification, to determine the scope of the invention.