BHI Screen Selection

Gravel Pack Design
Baker Oil Tools

Outline
• Characterize the formation

• Select the appropiate gravel pack sand
• Select the appropiate screen
© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

sand control sytems/ppwork/botweb/teneral scs/gpdesign.ppt - 2
All rights reserved.
Formation Sand Sampling
• Produced samples
• Bailed samples
• Sidewall core samples
• Conventional core samples

Recommended
Sample Size and Frequency
• Minimum sample size is 15 cubic centimeters

• Samples required every 2 to 3 feet or at every
lithology change

Sieve Analysis
• Laboratory technique to
determine grain size and size
distribution of a sand sample
• Sand sample must be cleaned
to remove all fines (clays) and
cementation material
• Sand sample must be broken
down to individual grains for
accurate results
• Samples must be sieved long
enough to allow complete
separation of various grain
sizes

Good Grain Separation

Poor Grain Separation

Insufficient Sieving Time

U.S. Mesh Definition of Grain Size
• Mesh refers to the

number of openings
per linear inch
• The width of the
opening depends on
1 the mesh and
diameter of the wire
• The U.S. Mesh series
specifies the mesh
size and width of
opening

U.S. Mesh Sizes
U.S. Series Sieve Sieve U.S. Series Sieve Sieve

Mesh Size Opening (in.) Opening (mm) Mesh Size Opening (in.) Opening (mm)
2.5 0.315 8.00 35 0.0197 0.500
3 0.265 6.73 40 0.0165 0.420
3.5 0.223 5.66 45 0.0138 0.351
4 0.187 4.76 50 0.0117 0.297
5 0.157 4.00 60 0.0098 0.250
6 0.132 3.36 70 0.0083 0.210
7 0.111 2.83 80 0.007 0.177
8 0.0937 2.38 100 0.0059 0.149
10 0.0787 2.00 120 0.0049 0.124
12 0.0661 1.68 140 0.0041 0.104
14 0.0555 1.41 170 0.0035 0.088
16 0.0469 1.19 200 0.0029 0.074
18 0.0394 1.00 230 0.0024 0.062
20 0.0331 0.840 270 0.0021 0.053
25 0.028 0.710 325 0.0017 0.044
30 0.0232 0.589 400 0.0015 0.037

Sieve Analysis Procedure
• Sieves are weighed

before and after
sieving to determine
weight of sample
retained by each sieve
size
• Grain size versus
cumulative weight
percent can be plotted
on semilog
coordinates to obtain
grain size distribution
Laser Particle Size Analysis
• Determines size distribution through

measurement of degree of scatter of laser.
• If samples are poorly cleaned, mud cake
will be recorded and results will be
adversely affected.
• Results are generally close to sieve rsults.

Results From Sieve Analysis
U.S. Sieve Sieve Sieve Sand Cummulative Cummulative

Mesh Opening Weight Before Weight After Weight Sand Weight Sand Weight
Sieve (inches) (grams) (grams) (grams) (grams) (percent)
80 0.0070 35.83 36.19 0.36 0.36 5.40
100 0.0059 35.24 35.51 0.27 0.63 9.45
120 0.0049 34.88 35.68 0.80 1.43 21.44
140 0.0041 33.91 35.57 1.66 3.09 46.33
230 0.0024 35.13 37.95 2.82 5.91 88.61
400 0.0015 30.17 30.63 0.46 6.37 95.50
Pan --- 154.20 154.50 0.30 6.67 100.00

Grain Size Distribution Plot
100
90
80
Cumulative Weight (%)
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0.1000 0.0100 0.0010 0.0001
Grain Diameter (inches)

Regional Variations in Grain Size
100
90
Large Nigeria
80 Small Nigeria
California
Venezeula
70
Gulf Coast
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
10.00 1.00 0.10 0.01
Grain Diameter (millimeters)

Uniformity Coefficient
d 40
Cµ =
d 90
• Cµ = Uniformity Coefficient
• d40 = Grain Diameter at 40% Cumulative Weight
• d90 = Grain Diameter at 90% Cumulative Weight
• Cµ < 3 Uniform Sand
• 3 < Cµ < 5 Non-Uniform Sand
• Cµ > 5 Highly Non-Uniform Sand

Sieve Analysis Indicates
Uniform and Non-Uniform Formations
100
90
Poorly Sorted Sand

80
Well Sorted Sand
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0.1000 0.0100 0.0010 0.0001

Gravel Pack Schematic
Gravel Formation
Pack Sand Sand
• Gravel pack sand
must be be
properly sized to
control formation
sand
• Screen openings
must be properly
sized to control
gravel pack sand
Screen

Gravel Sizing Design Point Selection
100
90
Cumulative Weight Retained (%)
80
Design Point = d70

70
60
Design Point = d50

50
40
30
20
Design Point = d10

10
0
0.1 0.01 0.001 0.0001

Design Point Selection
• Coberly and Wagner - D10 ≤ 10(d10)

• Saucier - D50 ≈ 6(d50)
• Stein - D85 ≤ 4(d15)
• Schwartz - D10 ≈ 6(d10) for Cµ < 5
D40 ≈ 6(d40) for 5 < Cµ < 10
D70 ≈ 6(d70) for Cµ > 10
Upper case “D” designates gravel pack sand

Lower case “d” designates formation sand

Saucier’s Experiment
Gravel Pack Sand Formation Sand
Fluid Flow
• Establish initial flow rate (qi) and stabilized pressure drop,

calculate initial permeability (ki)
• Increase flow rate and establish new stabilized pressure drop
• Reduce flow rate to initial rate (qi) and establish stabilized
pressure drop, calculate final permeability (kf)
• Optimum sand control occurs when kf = ki

Saucier’s Results
1.2
• D50/d50 ≤ 6, good sand
1.0
control, no formation sand
Ratio of Final Permeability to
invasion of gravel pack

Initial Permeabilit (kf / ki)
0.8
sand
0.6
• 6 < D50/d50 ≤ 13, good sand
0.4 control, but restricted flow
due to formation sand
0.2
invasion of gravel pack
0.0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
sand
Ratio of Median Gravel Pack Sand Diameter to
Median Formation Sand Diameter (D50 / d50)
• D50/d50 > 13, no sand
control, formation sand
passes through gravel
pack sand

Optimization of Gravel Pack Sand Size
D50/d50 < 5, good sand control,

Increasing Gravel Pack Sand Permeability
but restricted flow due to low

as a Function of D50 and D50 / d50
No Sand
Optimum
Sand
Control gravel permeability
Control
5 < D50/d50 < 7, good sand
control and maximum pack
permeability
7 < D50/d50 < 9, good sand
control, but restricted flow due
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 to formation sand invasion of
Ratio of Median Gravel Pack Sand Diameter to
Median Formation Sand Diameter (D50 / d50)
gravel pack sand
D50/d50 > 9, no sand control,
formation sand passes through
gravel pack sand

Gravel Pack Sand Design Procedure
• Construct a representative sieve analysis curve for the

formation sand
• Determine d50 of the formation sand
• Multiply the d50 value by 6 to achieve D50 of the gravel pack
sand
Different layers in the formation sand may indicate
different required gravel sizes. Generally, the smallest
indicated gravel size is selected.

Commonly Available Gravel Sizes
Gravel Size Size Range Median Gravel Median Gravel

(U.S. Mesh) (inches) Diameter (inches) Diameter (millimeters)
6/10 .1320 - .0787 0.1054 2.677
8/12 .0937 - .0661 0.0799 2.029
10/20 .0787 - .0331 0.0559 1.420
12/20 .0661 - .0331 0.0496 1.260
16/30 .0469 - .0232 0.0351 0.892
20/40 .0331 - .0165 0.0248 0.630
40/60 .0165 - .0098 0.0132 0.335
50/70 .0117 - .0083 0.0100 0.254

Factors Affecting
Gravel Type Selection
• Size Availability
– Synthetics are generally available in tighter size
distributions.
– Some synthetics are not available in sizes
smaller than 20/40.
• Formation Stress
– Important when fracturing the formation.
– Synthetics generally have greater crushing
resistance than gravel pack sand.
• Gravel/Proppant Permeability
– Greater importance for fracture flow
– Typically does not significantly affect
productivity
Gravel Permeability
• Initial testing indicated gravel permeability is
difficult to measure accurately
– turbulence detected at very low flow rates
– flowing pressures are very low and require special attention
to measure accurately
– permeability is very sensitive to gravel pack porosity
– pack porosity is a function of packing arrangement
• Mathmatical simulators were researched to
determine most likely gravel pack porosity
• Correlations can be used to calculate
permeabity from porosity and grain size
distribution
– Berg’s Correlation
– Fair & Hatch Correlation
Roundness and Sphericity
Sphericity .9
.7
.5
.3
.1 .3 .5 .7 .9
Roundness

Gravel Pack Sand
• Naturally occurring quartz sand

• Primary source is Ottawa formation in Northern
USA
• Must meet specifications of API Recommended
Practices Number 58
• Adhering to API specifications ensures
maximum permeability

API RP58 Gravel Quality Specifications
• Sieve analysis
– Less than 0.1% oversized and less than 2% undersized
• Sphericity and Roundness
– Average sphericity and roundness of 0.6
• Acid solubility
– Less than 1% soluble in 12%-3% HCl-HF acid
• Silt and Clay Content
– NTU reading less than 250
• Crush Resistance
– Less than 2% fines created by 2000 psi confining stress

Gravel Substitutes
• Resin coated gravel
– Resin coating is thought to provide some protection against
quartz dissolution due to high pH steam
– Resin coating subject to attack by HCl-HF acid
– Primary use is in prepacked screens
– Gaining renewed interest for screenless frac packing
• Aluminum Oxides (Sintered Bauxite, Carbo-Lite,
etc.)
– Processed product with extremely high permeability
– Resists dissolution due to high pH steam
– Moderately to highly soluble in HCl-HF acid
– Size ranges limited
– Primary gravel pack application is frac-packing and thermal wells
Permeability & Size Availability Chart
900
Bauxite
800 Carbolite
Naplite
700 Econoprop
Gravel
Permeability (Darcys)
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
12/18 12/20 16/20 16/25 16/30 20/40 30/40 30/50 30/60 40/60 50/70
U.S. Mesh Size
Effect of Gravel Type on Productivity
1600
1550
Bottomhole Pressure (psi)
1500
2-7/8 inch Tubing
1450
1400
1350
1300
1250
1200
1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800
Total Flow Rate (bpd)

8/12 G.P. Sand 12/20 G.P. Sand 20/40 EconoProp 20/40 G.P. Sand 40/60 G.P. Sand

Liner/Screen Selection
Slotted liners and

Gravel Pack Formation
Sand Sand
screens in a
gravel pack are
RETENTION
DEVICES
Wire Wrapped
Screen

Required Liner/Screen Opening
Gravel Size Size Range Recommended Screen Recommended

(U.S. Mesh) (inches) Opening (inches) Screen Gage
6/10 .1320 - .0787 0.06 60
8/12 .0937 - .0661 0.05 50
10/20 .0787 - .0331 0.02 20
12/20 .0661 - .0331 0.02 20
16/30 .0469 - .0232 0.018 18
20/40 .0331 - .0165 0.012 12
40/60 .0165 - .0098 0.006 6
50/70 .0117 - .0083 0.006 6
Screen or slotted liner opening should be

no larger than 80% of the smallest gravel
pack sand grain diameter

Horizontal Open-Hole
Completion with Slotted Liner
• Reasonably inexpensive
• Allows access in event of
PACKER
hole collapse
• Total lack of zonal isolation
• Can not or should not be
rotated to get in place
• Susceptible to plugging
• Only 3 to 6% inlet area SLOTTED LINER

Slot Design
• Straight slots are subject

to plugging
Straight Slot
• Keystone slots allow for
self-cleaning action
• Slot width tolerance is
±.002” for widths less
than .040”
• Slot width tolerance is
±.003” for widths greater
Keystone Slot than .040”

Standard Slot Lengths
±3-1/8"
±2-1/2"
±2"
1-1/2"
2"
2-1/2"
• Length of slot measured on ID of pipe

• Slot widths less than .030” are cut 1-1/2” long
• Slot widths between .030” and .060” are cut 2”
long
• Slot widths greater than .060” are cut 2-1/2” long
Slotted Liner Geometries
6"
Horizontal Slotted Single Slotted Single Slotted Gang Slotted

Non-Staggered Rows Staggered Rows Staggered Rows

Slots Per Foot to
Achieve Required Flow Area
12π D C
N =
100W L
• N = required slots/foot (if N < 32, round up to
the nearest multiple of four, if N > 32, round up to
the nearest multiple of 8)
• π = constant (3.1416)
• D = outer diameter of pipe (inches)
• C = required open area (percent)
• W = slot width (inches)
• L = length of slot measured on ID of pipe
(inches)

Slots Per Foot Required for
3% and 6% Flow Area in Slotted Liners
3½” Liner 4½” Liner 5½” Liner 7” Liner

Slot Width 3% 6% 3% 6% 3% 6% 3% 6%
(inches) (4.0 sq in/ft) (7.9 sq in/ft) (5.1 sq in/ft) (10.2 sq in/ft) (6.2 sq in/ft) (12.4 sq in/ft) (7.9 sq in/ft) (15.8 sq in/ft)
0.012 224 440 288 568 352 696 440 880
0.015 176 352 232 456 280 560 352 704
0.018 152 296 192 384 232 464 296 592
0.020 136 264 176 344 208 416 264 528
0.025 112 216 136 272 168 336 216 424
0.028 96 192 128 248 152 304 192 384
0.040 56 104 64 128 80 160 104 200
0.060 40 72 48 88 56 104 72 136
0.125 16 32 24 48 28 56 32 64
0.250 8 16 12 24 16 28 16 32

Effective Inlet Areas of
Wire Wrapped Screen Jackets
(Square inches per foot of screen)
Pipe Screen Gage

Base OD 6 8 10 12 15 20 30
(inches) (6.25%) (8.16%) (10.00%) (11.76%) (14.29%) (18.18%) (25.00%)
1.050 3.53 4.61 5.65 6.65 8.07 10.28 14.13
1.315 4.14 5.41 6.63 7.80 9.47 12.06 16.58
1.660 4.97 6.49 7.95 9.35 11.36 14.46 19.88
1.900 5.53 7.23 8.85 10.42 12.65 16.10 22.14
2.063 5.91 7.72 9.46 11.13 13.51 17.20 23.64
2.375 6.64 8.67 10.63 12.50 15.18 19.32 26.56
2.875 7.82 10.21 12.51 14.72 17.87 22.75 31.27
3.500 9.30 12.15 14.88 17.51 21.26 27.06 37.21
4.000 10.48 13.69 16.77 19.73 23.95 30.49 41.92
4.500 11.68 15.26 18.69 21.99 26.70 33.98 46.72
5.000 12.88 16.83 20.61 24.25 29.44 37.47 51.53
5.500 14.06 18.36 22.49 26.46 32.14 40.90 56.24
6.625 16.74 21.87 26.79 31.52 38.27 48.71 66.98
7.000 17.97 23.47 28.75 33.82 41.07 52.27 71.87
7.625 19.45 25.41 31.12 36.62 44.46 56.59 77.81
8.625 21.83 28.51 34.93 41.09 49.90 63.51 87.32
9.625 24.21 31.62 38.74 45.57 55.34 70.43 96.84

Standard Screen Types
• Wire Wrapped Screen
• Prepack Screens

Wire Wrapped Screens
Wire Wrap
Rib(s)
Pipe Base
Fluid Flow
• .006” to .030” or larger openings available

• Flow area 6% to 35%
• Triangular wire for keystone shape (i.e., self-cleaning)
• Available in wide variety of materials

Bakerweld® Screen
• Consists of base pipe

with drilled holes and
wire wrapped screen
jacket
• Jacket is welded or
mechanically attached
to base pipe

Prepack Screens
• Incorporate consolidated media in addition to

wire wrapped screen
• Erosion resistant
• Strength
• Effective at stopping sand production

Purpose of Prepack Screens
Gravel Pack
Sand
Formation
Sand • Maintain sand
control in the event
of voids in the
gravel pack
• Intended for use
with a gravel pack
as a secondary
sand control
technique
Prepacked
Screen • Designed to plug

Types of Prepack Screens
• Single Screen Prepack

• Dual Screen Prepack
• Slim-Pak™

Single Screen Prepack
• Consists of base pipe with

drilled holes, wire wrapped
screen jacket, consolidated
prepack material, outer
shroud with punched holes
• Jacket and outer shroud
are welded or mechanically
attached to base pipe
• Prepack material thickness
ranges from .34” to .41”
depending on size

Dual Screen Prepack

drilled holes, inner wire
wrapped screen jacket,
consolidated prepack
material, outer wire
wrapped screen jacket
• Inner and outer jacket are
welded or mechanically
attached to base pipe
depending on size

Slim-Pak™ Screen

drilled holes, inner wire
mesh, consolidated prepack
material, outer wire wrapped
screen jacket
• Jacket is welded or
mechanically attached to
base pipe
depending on size
• Dimensions of screen are the
same as standard Bakerweld
Screen
Prepack Screen Design
• Prepack material usually sized on median grain size

of formation sand using Saucier’s criteria
– Select “one-size larger” to account for pore throat size reduction
caused by resin coating of grains
• Wire wrapped screen sized to retain selected
prepack material

Dimensional Data on
Baker Oil Tools Screens
Pipe Base Hole Pipe Base Number of Baker- Baker- Slim-Pak Single Screen Dual Screen
Size Weight ID Coupling Size Holes Per Foot weld weld 140 Screen Prepack Prepack
(inches) (ft/lb) (inches) OD (inches) (inches) Std Hi-Flow OD (in.) OD (in.) OD (in.) OD (in.) OD (in.)
1.050 1.140 0.824 1.313 3/8 30 60 1.5 1.64 1.5 2.27 2.11
1.315 1.700 1.049 1.660 3/8 30 60 1.76 1.9 1.75 2.44 2.35
1.660 2.300 1.380 2.054 3/8 36 72 2.11 2.25 2.11 2.8 2.82
1.900 2.750 1.610 2.200 3/8 42 84 2.35 2.49 2.35 3.13 3.32
2.063 3.250 1.751 2.500 3/8 42 84 2.51 2.65 2.51 3.25 3.32
2.375 4.600 1.995 2.875 3/8 48 96 2.82 2.96 2.82 3.63 3.95
2.875 6.400 2.441 3.500 3/8 54 108 3.32 3.46 3.32 4.13 3.95
3.500 9.200 2.992 4.250 3/8 66 132 3.95 4.09 3.95 4.75 4.96
4.000 9.500 3.548 4.500 3/8 72 144 4.45 4.59 4.45 5.25 5.47
4.500 11.600 4.000 5.000 3/8 78 156 4.96 5.1 4.96 5.75 5.97
5.000 15.000 4.408 5.563 3/8 84 168 5.47 5.61 5.47 6.25 7.11
5.500 15.500 4.950 6.050 3/8 90 180 5.97 6.11 5.97 6.75 7.11
6.625 28.000 5.791 7.390* 3/8 108 216 7.11 7.25 7.11 7.88 8.12
7.000 23.000 6.366 7.656* 3/8 114 228 n/a 7.63 7.49 8.25 n/a
7.625 29.700 6.875 8.500* 3/8 114 228 n/a 8.26 8.12 n/a n/a
8.625 32.000 7.921 9.625* 3/8 156 312 n/a 9.27 9.13 n/a n/a
9.625 36.000 8.921 10.625* 3/8 180 360 n/a 10.28 10.14 n/a n/a

Summary
• Representative formation samples are required
for gravel pack sand size design
• Gravel pack sand is typically designed to be six
times larger than the formation sand at the
median grain size
• Only gravel pack sand meeting API RP58
specifications should be used
• Gravel pack sand substitutes are available for
special applications
• In a gravel pack the screen serves only to retain
the gravel pack sand
• Prepack screens offer “second line of defense”

BHI Screen Selection

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

You might also like

BHI Screen Selection

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

BHI Screen Selection

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gravel Pack Design

Baker Oil Tools

• Characterize the formation

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

• Minimum sample size is 15 cubic centimeters

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

• Mesh refers to the

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

U.S. Series Sieve Sieve U.S. Series Sieve Sieve

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

• Sieves are weighed

• Determines size distribution through

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

U.S. Sieve Sieve Sieve Sand Cummulative Cummulative

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

Grain Diameter (inches)

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

Grain Diameter (millimeters)

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

Poorly Sorted Sand

Well Sorted Sand

Grain Diameter (inches)

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

Design Point = d70

Design Point = d50

Design Point = d10

Grain Diameter (inches)

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

• Coberly and Wagner - D10 ≤ 10(d10)

Upper case “D” designates gravel pack sand

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

Gravel Pack Sand Formation Sand

• Establish initial flow rate (qi) and stabilized pressure drop,

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

invasion of gravel pack

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

D50/d50 < 5, good sand control,

but restricted flow due to low

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

• Construct a representative sieve analysis curve for the

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

Gravel Size Size Range Median Gravel Median Gravel

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

• Naturally occurring quartz sand

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

Total Flow Rate (bpd)

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

Slotted liners and

© 1998 Baker Hughes Incorporated.

Gravel Size Size Range Recommended Screen Recommended