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COMPLETION Technique
COMPLETION Technique
kh( Pe Pwf )
2 2
q= re
1424 ZT [ln s]
rw
For flow into the producing layer from
another formation, there will be
qcem
1424 ZT (L)1
• Conclusion
The above discussion demonstrates that the ability
of a well to achieve its production potential is
influenced most by the degree of zonal isolation
achieved during the completion. The quality of
the cement sheath is in turn the most important
factor influencing zonal isolation. Therefore, the
cementation of a well should be of critical
importance to every operator.
Section 2 Portland cement
• Introduction
Portland cement is by far the most important
binding material in terms of quantity produced. It
is used in nearly all well cementing operations.
Portland cement is the most common example
of a hydraulic cement., which involves chemical
reactions between water and the compounds
present in the cement, not upon a drying-out
process. In this section, fundamental information
is presented regarding the basic materials and
the classification.
2-1 Materials :
Portland cement consists principally of four
compounds: tri-calcium silicate(C3 S ) , di-calcium
silicate ( C2 S ), tri-calcium aluminate ( C3 A )
and tetracalium aluminoferrite ( C3 AF ). These
compounds are formed in a kiln by a series of
reactions at temperatures as high as 1500
between lime, silica, alumina, and iron oxide.
• In the above • Two types of raw
materials are needed
C CaO
to prepare a mixture
that will produce
Portland cement:
S SiO2 “calcareous” materials
which contain lime,
A Al2O3 and “argillaceous”
materials which
F Fe2o3 contain alumina, silica
and iron oxide.
2-2 Classification
• API classification system
There are 8 classes of API Portland cements,
designated A through H. They are arranged
according to the depths to which they are
placed, and the temperatures and pressures
to which they are exposed. If you meet some
problems in using the specifications, you can
refer to them in some handbooks. Here is the
simple classification.
• Class A : intended for use from surface to a depth of
6,000 ft (1830m), when special properties are not
required. Available only in Ordinary type, Class A is
similar to ASTM type I cement.
• Class B intended for use from surface to a depth of
6,000 ft (1,830m), when conditions require moderate to
high sulfate resistance.
• Class C: intended for use from surface to a depth of
6,000 ft (1830 m), when conditions require high early
strength. Class C is available in all three degrees of
sulfate resistance.
• Class D: intended for use at depths from 6,000 ft
(1830m), to 10,000 ft (3,050m), under conditions of
moderately high temperatures and pressures .
• Class E: intended for use from 10,000 ft (3,050m)
to 14,000 ft (4,270m) depth, under conditions of
high temperatures and pressures.
• Class F: intended for use from 10,000 ft (3050m)
to 16,000 ft (4,880 m) depth, under conditions of
extremely high temperature and pressures.
• Class G: intended for use as a basic well
cement from surface to 8000 ft
Class H: (2440m) depth as manufactured, or
can be used with accelerators
and retarders to cover a wide range
of well depths and temperature .they are
identical in chemical compositions
2-3 Cement additives
• 2-3-1 Introduction
In well cementing, Portland cement systems are routinely designed for
temperatures
0
ranging
0
from below freezing in permafrost zones to
700 F (350 C )in thermal recovery and geothermal wells. In
addition to severe temperatures and pressures, well cements must
often be designed to contend with weak or porous formations,
corrosive fluids, and over-pressured formation fluids. It has been
possible to accommodate such a wide range of conditions only
through the development of cement additives. Additives modify the
behavior of the cement system, ideally allowing successful slurry
placement between the casing and the formation, rapid compressive
strength development, and adequate zonal isolation during the
lifetime of the well. Today over 100 additives for well cements are
available, many of which can be supplied in solid or liquid forms.
2-3-2 Categories
• Eight categories of additives are generally
recognized.
1.Accelerators: chemicals which reduce the setting
time of a cement system, and increase the rate
of compressive strength development.
2.Retarders: chemicals which extend the setting
time of a cement system
3.Extenders: materials which lower the density of a
cement system, and/or reduce the quantity of
cement per unit volume of set product.
4.Weighting Agents: materials which increase the density of
a cement system
5.Dispersants: chemical which reduce the viscosity of a
cement system
6.Fluid-Loss Control Agents: materials which control the
loss of the aqueous phase of a cement system to the
formation.
7.Lost Circulation Control Agents: materials which control
the loss of cement slurry to weak or vugular formations
8.Specialty Additives: miscellaneous additives, antifoam
agents
2-4 Special cement system
• 2-4-1 Introduction
As the technology of well cementing has
advanced, certain problems have been
encountered for which special cement
systems have been developed. This
chapter presents cement technologies
specific to such problems as slurry fallback,
lost circulation, micro-annuli, cementing
across salt formations, and corrosive well
environments.
2-4-2 Thixotropic cements
• Thixotropy is a term used to
describe the property exhibited
by a system that is fluid under
shear, but develops a gel
structure and becomes self-
supporting when at rest.
In practical terms, thixotropic
cement slurries are thin and
fluid during mixing and
displacement, but rapidly form
a rigid self-supporting gel
structure when pumping
ceases. Upon reagitation, the
gel structure breaks and the
slurry is again fluid and
pumpable.
2-4-3 Expansive cement systems
• Cement systems which expand slightly
after setting are recognized as a means of
sealing micro-annuli and improving
primary cementing results. The improved
bonding is the result of mechanical
resistance or tightening of the cement
against the pipe and formation. Good
bonding can be obtained even if mud is
left on the casing or formation surfaces.
2-4-4 Freeze-protected cements
• Permafrost is defined as any permanently
frozen subsurface formation. When
permafrost exists, thawing of the formation
must be avoided during drilling and
completion. Two types of cement systems
have been shown to perform successfully
in this severe environment: (1) calcium
aluminate cement, and (2)
gypsum/Portland cement blends
2-4-5 Salt cement systems
• Cement systems which contain significant
quantities of sodium chloride (NaCl) or
potassium chloride ( KCl) are commonly called
“salt cements” .
• 2-4-6 Latex-modified cement systems
Latex is a general term describing an emulsion
polymer. The material is usually supplied as a
milky suspension of very small spherical polymer
particles(200 to 500 nm in diameter). Most latex
dispersions contain about 50% solids.
2-4-7 Cements for corrosive
environments
Set Portland cement is a remarkably durable and
forgiving material; however, there are limits
beyond which it will rebel. In a well-bore
environment, Portland cement is subject to
chemical attack by certain formations and by
substances injected from the surface. In addition
to geothermal well cementing ,one must also
pay close attention to cement durability in wells
for chemical waste disposal and for enhanced oil
recovery by CO2-flooding.
Section 3 Cementing design
• 3-1 cementing materials
Before describing the design and function of
cementing equipment, one must be familiar with
the physical and chemical properties of the
various cementing materials.
1.Cement
2.Water Fresh water is normally used for
cementing onshore wells , and seawater for
offshore locations.
3.Dry cement additives
4.Liquid additives
3-2 cementing equipments
3-2 Basic equipment
1.Tansportation of bulk materials or blends to the well-site, such as
using land rigs or offshore rigs.
2.well-site storage of cement or blends
3.Metering of water A set of twin 10-bbl tanks is preferred.
4.Liquid-additives storage and mixing The mixing system consists of
two principal parts –a storage
unit and a metering unit (which consists of 3 or 4 25-gal or 10-L tanks
with visible level scales )
5.Cement mixing There are several mixing systems : conventional jet
mixer, recirculation jet mixer and without conventional jets.
6. High-pressure pumps
7.Cementing units
8.Casing hardware It includes rubber plugs, centralizer, float collar and
guide shoe.
Typical process
Mixing and pumping equipment on
rig site
• The equipment used on or within the casing
string to enhance casing placement and
cementing operations, within the oil industry, this
equipment is commonly referred to as casing
hardware and cementing tools. Casing hardware
consists of a wide variety of mechanical devices
which are used to enhanced primary cementing
operations. Some common types of casing
hardware include guide shoes, floating and auto-
fill shoes and collars, stage collars, and external
attachments such as scratchers and centralizers.
Cementing tools are generally retrievable
devices, and may require some form of
operation from the surface. Packers, bridge
plugs, and retainers are examples of cementing
tools.
Typical cementing truck
Types of centralizing
Cementing plugs
• Retrievable
squeeze
packers are
used in
multiple
setting
operations
3-3 Cement job design
3-3-1 Introduction
The factors need to
be examined are:
1.
Depth/configuratio
nal data
2. well-bore
environment
3. Temperature data
• 1 Depth/ configurational data
These include information concerning the vertical depth,
measured depth, casing size ( and weight), open-hole
size, and string type. Depth data are particularly
important because they strongly influence the
temperature, fluid volume, hydrostatic pressure, and
friction pressure. High angles of deviation can have a
tremendous impact on many well parameters, and may
require the design of special systems for mud
displacement and cement slurries exhibiting no free
water. In principle, open-hole size is dictated by drill-bit
size which, along with casing size and type, should be
selected on the basis of the expected well conditions and
the final expected completion configuration.
• 2 Well-bore environment
The specific problems posed by the nature of the
open-hole interval traversed by the casing string
require careful evaluation. One must consider
the presence of pay zones, of over-pressured
formations, or, etc. Pore pressures are important
from a those with low fracture gradients, gas,
massive salt zones well-security standpoint, and
information on this chemical properties of the
mud also need to be may be obtained by mud
logging. The physical and considered when
designing a cement job. Chemical washes,
spacers, or other flush fluids must be compatible
with the mud as well as the cement, and may
need to contain special additives.
• 3 Temperature data
Both bottom-hole circulating temperature (BHCT) and
bottom-hole static temperature
(BHST) need to be considered as well as the temperature
differential (DT) between the bottom and top of the
cement column. The first of these, BHCT, is the
temperature to which the cement will , theoretically, be
exposed as it is placed in the well. As such, it is the
temperature which will be used for high temperature,
high-pressure thickening time testing of the proposed
cement formulation. BHST is important principally for
either the assessment of the long-term stability, or the
rate of compressive strength development of a given
cement system. The temperature differential between the
top and bottom of the cement can be extremely
important when embarking upon a cementing design.
3-3-2 The design of casing size
1.Longitudinal force
W=L*q
W-the force exposed at the casing head ,N
L-the length of the casing, m
q-the weight per meter, Kg/m
Considering the force of the mud:
Wf=L*q*(1-Rn/Rg) 3
Rn-the density of the mud , g / cm
Rg-the density of the casing, 7.8 g / cm3
2. The compression from the outside
P=0.1*H*Rn
H-the length of the casing
3-3-3 The design of cement
1.The volume of cement
V k1 ( D d ) H
2
1
2 2
d h
2
4 4
D-the diameter of the well-hole
d1-the outside diameter of the casing
d2-the inside diameter of the casing
H-the height of the mud to be lifted
h-the height of the slurry
2. G=k2*Q*V
G-the volume of the cement , bag
Q-the volume of dry cement needed per 1 m3
V-the volume of theV cement
( L d L d slurry
mud
4
1 1
2
2
2
2 L d )
n
2
n
hk
PI th
R
ln
rw
With :
numerical coefficient depending, among other things
h reservoir thickness
K reservoir permeability
u- viscosity of the fluid in the reservoir
R- well drainage radius
rw- well-bore radius
• As far as the real well is concerned, all of the
disturbances in the vicinity of the well-bore (skin
effect) are lumped together under the term “s”
(skin factor) in the following way:
hk
PI
R
(ln s )
rw
furthermore, the flow efficiency (Fe) is defined as
the ratio between the actual flow rate and the
theoretical flow rate that the “ideal” well would
have under the same bottom-hole pressure
conditions:
R
ln
Q PI rw
Fe
Qth PI th (ln R s)
rw
• In practice lnR/rw often ranges between 7
and 8 , hence the simplified form :
PI 7 8
Fe to
PI th 7 s 8 s
• A skin factor of 7 to 8 therefore
corresponds to a flow capacity that has
been divided by two. A factor of 14 to 16
therefore means it has been reduced by
two-thirds. In contrast, a skin factor of -3.5
to -4 (after well stimulation for example)
means that it has been doubled.
1-3 Major types of completion
configurations
• 1. The purpose of completion is to enable wells to be
exploited as rationally and economically as possible and
it can involve a large number of configurations. In
selecting the type of completion, certain principles of
relativity and anticipation must be kept in mind:
(1) How do completion and maintenance costs compare
with expected profits?
(2) How does a possible money-saving measure
compare with the risks it implies? Is the risk worth
taking?
(3) How will the production of the field and of the given
well evolve in theory ?
• 1-3-1 Basic requirements
Above all the completion configuration must be able to
solve the following problems effectively:
(1) maintain borehole wall stability
(2) ensure selective production of the fluid or formation
(3)create a minimum amount of restrictions in the flow
path
(4) ensure well safety
(5) allow the well flow rate to be adjusted
(6) allow operations to be performed on the well at a later
(7) make work-over easier when it does become
necessary
• 1 bore-hole wall stability
This point is self-evident for wells with wall
stability problems from the beginning. For
some bore-holes , wall stability may
deteriorate with time due to various factors
(depletion, water, cut, etc). even in this
case, it is important for the problem to
solved as soon as the well is brought on
stream to maintain technical efficiency and
avoid costly work-over jobs.
• 2 Selectivity
The problem may either involve one bore-hole that
penetrates several reservoir formations or one reservoir
containing several fluids. It is necessary to understand
the reservoir and its behavior over time , especially in the
second case.
The contrast in mobility (ratio between permeability and
viscosity for a given fluid )
between the target fluid and the other fluids present is also
a very important parameter. It is particularly unfavorable
for oil and gas.
3. Minimizing restrictions in the flow path
In the long run all energy consumption in the form of
pressure losses has a negative effect, either in terms of
flow rate or natural flow capability. As a result, it is
important to endeavor to minimize these restrictions.
• 4 Well safety
Here we mean both safety during completion operations as
such and also safety later on during production. The
main points that need to be taken into consideration are
the pressure , equipment corrosion and erosion, and
effluent toxicity.
5. Flow adjustment
During production the flow of a well needs to be controlled.
In particular reservoir considerations or local regulations
may mean that the flow rate must be deliberately limited.
6. Operations at a later date
A number of measurement and maintenance operations
are required in order to monitor the reservoir and
maintain the means of production . This should be
practicable without having to resort to workover. It may
also be advisable to be able to carry out certain
adaptations or modifications according to the changing
operate conditions without having to pull out equipments.
1-3-2 Pay zone-borehole
connection: basic configurations
• There are two main types of connections between the
pay zone and the borehole:
* open hole completion
* cased hole completion
Here we will only deal with the general criteria for choosing
between open hole and cased hole systems.
However, there are three essential points that should not
be forgotten:
• The perforation method ( and the type of perforation )
used if cased hole completion is selected.
• The sand control method ,should one be required.
• The well stimulation method, if the problem arises.
• 1 Open hole completion
The pay zone is drilled after a casing has been run in and
cemented at the top of the reservoir. It is left as is and
produces directly through the uncased height of the
borehole. This simple solution can not solve any
problems of borehole stability, or selectivity of fluid or
level to produced.
A variation on the system consists in placing a perforated
liner opposite the producing layer, thereby keeping the
borehole walls from caving in. Open hole completions
are used where there is only one zone which is either
very well consolidated or provided with open-hole gravel
packing for sand control. This is valid as long as there
are –theoretically at least – no interface problems.
Because of this, open hole completions are seldom
chosen for oil wells, but it may be suitable to gas well
Open hole completion
• 2 Cased hole completions
After the pay zone has been drilled, a casing is run in and
cemented opposite the layer. Then it is perforated
opposite the zone that is to be produced in order to
restore a connection between the reservoir and the well.
The perforations will have to go through the casing and
the sheath of cement before they penetrate the
formation . The preceding drilling phase was stopped
just above the reservoir or at some distance above it and
an intermediate casing was then run in and cemented.
Cased hole completions are used when there are
interface problems and/or when there are several levels.
As a result, they are not only much more common, they
are the most widespread type of completion.
Cased hole completion
1-3-3 Main configurations of
production string
• These configurations basically depend on the
number of levels due for production and whether
a production string is used (conventional
completion ) or not (tubeless completion ).
• 1 Single-zone completion
Single-zone completions with just a tubing and no
production packer are used when the only aim is
to have the right pipe diameter with respect to
the flow rate.
• 2 Multiple-zone completions
In the past, the technique of producing
several levels together through the same
tubing was used. It required only a
minimum amount of equipment. However,
the subsequent reservoir and production
problems that were experienced have
caused this practice to become much less
common.
Parallel tubing string completion
• Here several levels are produced in the
same time but separately through different
strings of pipe. Double-zone completions
are the most common, but there can be
three, four and even more levels produced
separately . However, this significantly
complicates the equipment that needs to
be run into the well and especially makes
any work-over operations much more
complex.
Alternate selective completion
• Here the idea is to produce several levels in the
same well separately but one after the other
through the same tubing without having to resort
to work-over. Production alternates in fact and
wire-line techniques are used to change levels.
This type of completion is especially suited to a
situation where one of the two levels is a
secondary objective which would not warrant
drilling a well.
• Parallel tubing sting and alternate selective
completion systems can be combined. For
example two parallel tubes, each equipped for
two levels in an alternate selective manner, can
produce four levels separately , provided that
only two are produced at the same time.
3.Tubingless completions
A tubeless completion uses no tubing, but production flows
through a cemented pipe instead. This rather unusual
type of completion, which will be covered only briefly
here, is mainly used in certain regions and only under
specific conditions. There are two kinds: single-zone and
multiple-zone tubeless completions. For single-zone
tubeless completions, production flows directly through a
casing, usually of large diameter. Wells that are big
producers of trouble-free fluids can be exploited in this
way with minimum pressure losses and the lowest
possible initial investment. This system is found in the
Middle East. For multiple-zone tubeless completions,
production flows directly through several casings whose
diameters may be very different from one another
depending on the production expected from each level.
Section 2 Connecting the pay zone
and the borehole
2-1.Drilling and casing the pay zone
The pay zone that is going to be produced is by nature
porous, permeable and contains fluids under pressure.
This means that the conditions for a blowout are all
present. As such, it is critical to be sure that the drilling
fluid in the well has sufficient density to counter the
reservoir pressure before starting this phase. Since the
pay zone formation pressure is high, so it to important to
maintain safety. In practice, at least for development
wells, the excess pressure is generally set at around 0.5
to 1.5 MPa.
When the pay zone is being drilled in, the drilling fluid must
be treated in order to remove fine-grained solids.
• Completion fluids
This is the term of the specific fluid that is used opposite the
pay zone, it is designed to cause the least damage possible
to the reservoir. it must be pumped into the well before the
formation is penetrated, whatever the configuration chosen
for the connection between the borehole and the pay zone.
This is particularly true and important for sandstone type
formations which do not react well to acid. It is often
difficulty to formulate a fluid which:
* does not damage the reservoir
* provides good characteristic with respect to drilling
The completion fluid is therefore used mainly:
* if possible or necessary as soon as the pay zone is
drilled in
*during initial completion
* to control the well
* during work-over, after the well has been produced, to
repair or modify the well
2-2 Perforating
2-2-1 The aim of perforating is to re-establish the
best possible connection between the pay zone
and the borehole when the chosen configuration
is cased hole. Although perforating was done
originally by bullets and even though in some
very special cases other techniques such as
hydraulic perforation may be advantageous,
today shaped charges are used almost
exclusively. An effective connection depends
largely on the perforation method and of the
type of support or gun.
• Main parameters affecting the productivity
of the zone produced by perforating
1.Number of effective perforations
A fact that is unfortunately often overlooked
is that the important thing is not the shot
density but the number of effective
perforations . Though there is a
relationship with the shot density, it is
mainly the conditions lf firing and cleaning
that are determining. Wells have been
known to have less than 1 to 10% of the
perforations effectively flowing.
• 2 Distribution of perforations over the producing zone
(partial penetration effect )
This is also a fundamental parameter.
3. Perforation penetration
this parameter is mainly significant for a penetration of
less than 0.3 m, but much less so beyond this figure.
4. Number of shot direction
Going from one to two shot directions (located at 180’)
raise the productivity index by about 20%. Beyond this,
(three [120’],or four [90’] shot directions), the increase is
only slight.
5.Perforation diameter
From a diameter of 6 mm (0.25m ) and above, this
parameter usually has little impact. However, it is
essential because of pressure loss.
2-2-2 Perforating methods and
corresponding types of guns
• The choice of the method is the result of a
tradeoff between :
1.Well constraints (reservoir pressure, thickness,
porosity , permeability and homogeneity)
2.Optimum perforating conditions (which are not
necessarily compatible with one another)
3. TCP perforating ( Tubing Conveyed Perforator)
We will restrict discussion to the three most
conventional basic methods
• Under-balanced
pressure perforating
after equipment
installation
Perforations are made
after well equipment
has been run in and
once the production tree
has been installed, with
the well full of a “light”
fluid. The guns are run
into the well through the
tubing by means of an
electric cable through a
lubricator.
• Overbalanced pressure
perforating here a
large gun can be run
directly through the
casing with the
following advantages:
* large explosive loads
* Multiple shot directions
with close clearance
and consequently good
geometric
characteristics,
particularly penetration.
• 3 TCP perforating (Tubing Conveyed Perforator)
Here the gun are run in directly with the tubing .
This method combines the advantages of the
first two since:
* large diameter guns can be run in
* they can be fired with under-balanced pressure
and with the permanent well equipment in place
if so desired.
Very ling stretches of casing can also be
perforated in one single operation , high shot
density can be used, considerable pressure
under-balance can be applied, the guns can be
run in highly deviated wells.
However, there are some drawbacks that are far
from negligible:
• With permanent equipment in the well, if access
is required opposite the pay zone for wire-line
jobs it is necessary to release the gun after
shooting and let it fall to the bottom of the well.
This will entail extra costs because a “trash
dump” has to be drilled .
• Charges’ temperature resistance and
performance decrease with time. Here, since
they are run on the tubing rather than with a
cable, a lot more time is required to get them to
the bottom of the well.
• It is impossible to check that all the charges
have been fired except by pulling out the
equipment.
2-2-3 Cleaning the perforation
• The state of the perforations after firing mainly depends
on the method used for perforating and on the type of
the fluid in place in the well.
• Laboratory studies have shown that:
* when perforating under-balanced in clean brine, the
perforations can be made to flow as soon as a pressure
differential is exerted. Moreover, there is only a small
reduction in the productivity index.
* In contrast, when perforating over-balanced, depending
on the type of fluid in the well and the exposure time, the
required reverse pressure may be several MPa and the
productivity index may be considerably reduced .
When cleaning is required after shooting, one of the
methods listed below is usually implemented.
1. Well cleaning
The well is made to flow through a large diameter choke so
that the perforations are exposed to maximum reverse
pressure. However, as soon as a few perforations start
flowing they limit the reverse pressure that can be
applied to others. It is more difficult to lower the
bottom-hole pressure and, as it actually becomes
lower, the pressure in the reservoir neat the well-bore
also tends to decrease. in addition, there would be a
risk of detaching fine particles from the matrix, not
being able to get them out of the formation and having
them plug up inter-pore connections– especially in
insufficiently consolidated formations.
2 Back surging
This technique consists in using a temporary string
equipped with an atmospheric pressure chamber on the
lower end. By opening the lower valve, a considerable
negative pressure is applied almost immediately to all of
the perforations while the flow volume is restricted at the
same time.
3 Circulation washing with a washing tool
The perforations are cleaned by circulating from one to the
other beginning at the bottom by means of a tool
equipped with cups. The circulating flow rate is in the
range of several hundred liters per minute. The
technique is mainly used when gravel packing is due to
be installed later on for sand control. It is designed to
make sure that all the perforations are open, but the
circulating fluid and the fines that are stirred up may
damage the formation.
4. Acid washing
Acid is injected under pressure to restore the connection
between the formation and the well-bore. Acid is
pumped down to bottom either before final equipment
installation by using a temporary string or after it.
• Conclusion
Whatever the cleaning method used, the perforations are
never 100% unplugged and the modifications brought
about by treatment may even promote plugging.
Additionally, each time that cleaning is undertaken with a
temporary string, temporary plugging agents may have
to be used afterwards to re-stabilize the well so that the
temporary string can be pulled out and the final
completion equipment can be run in.
As a result, when the formation itself is not badly plugged
up the best way of “cleaning “ the perforations is to
perforate under under-balanced pressure conditions
after equipment installation to keep from damaging the
perforations.