Method for stopping unwanted water and gas in oil wells earns patent for Cypress man

A Cypress man is part of a team that received a U.S. patent last week for a method of stopping unwanted water and gas in an oil well.

Striking upon pockets of water and gas can be a costly problem when drilling for oil. In the patent, the inventors describe a way of plugging sections of a well using a certain kind of gel. They claim this makes it possible to easily create plugs against water and gas deep within the well without stopping oil production.

The inventors all live in the Houston area; they include Tianping Huang of Spring, James B. Crews of Willis and John R. Willingham of Cypress. The patent was originally filed on April 9, 2007, and its official number is 7,875,575. The filers were represented by Houston-based intellectual property firm Mossman Kumar & Tyler; its offices are located at 2000 W. Sam Houston Parkway S. The patent is owned by Baker Hughes Inc.

Baker Hughes specializes in technologies designed to help petroleum companies get the greatest value from their wells, and offers integrated operations and reservoir consulting. Its global headquarters is located in the River Oaks area at 2929 Allen Parkway, Suite 2100. The company's U.S. division also has offices in the Aldine area at 17015 Aldine Westfield Road.