Basic Concepts of Cementing

Basic Concepts of
Oilwell Cementing
“Confidential –Internal Halliburton Use Only. © 2004 Halliburton. All Rights Reserved.”
WHAT IS OIL WELL CEMENTING ?
• IT IS THE PROCESS OF MIXING A SLURRY OF

CEMENT AND WATER ON SURFACE.
• PUMPING IT DOWN THROUGH THE CASING
• PLACING CEMENT IN CRITICAL POINTS
AROUND THE CASING (ANNULUS) OR IN
OPEN HOLE BELOW THE CASING.
What is the purpose of Cement?
• Bond and Support Casing

• Isolate Zones (Productive & Non-Productive)
• Protect Against Drilling Shock (Pressure
which occurs while running pipe in the hole)
Why Do We Cement Wells?
Zonal Isolation
• Keep fluids in one zone
from migrating to another
zone
Reinforce Casing
• Effectively add
compressive strength to
casing string while
fracturing or otherwise
applying pressure
Protect Casing
• Protect casing from
corrosive materials in well
Four Primary Strings of Casing
Conductor
Surface
Intermediate
Production
36 " hole
conductor
30 " casing pipe
surface
26 " hole
18 5/8 " casing casing
intermediate
16 " hole
12 1/4 " hole production

9 5/8 " casing
casing
Conductor Casing
Functions:
 Prevent washing out under rig
 Provide elevation for the flow line
 Provide support for part of the wellhead
 BOP’s are usually not attached to conductor casings
Characteristics:
 Usually big casing OD: 16 to 30 in diameter
 Set from 6 to 450 m
 The hole for the casing may have severe washout
 Casing can be pumped out easily and is usually tied down
36 " hole
conductor
30 " casing pipe
surface
26 " hole
intermediate
16 " hole

9 5/8 " casing
casing
Surface Casing
Functions:
 Protect fresh water zones
 Control gas & fluid flow
 Case off unconsolidated formations and lost
circulation zones
 Provide a place to nipple up the BOP’s
 Provide a place to attach surface equipment as
well as completion flanges for the wellhead.
 Give support at the surface for deeper strings of
casing
36 " hole
conductor
30 " casing pipe
surface
26 " hole
intermediate
16 " hole

9 5/8 " casing
casing
Intermediate Casing
Purposes:
 Seal off large amounts of open hole

 Protect the open hole from increased mud weight
 Case off gas, water, salt, shale and lost circulation zones
 Protect formations from high or low pressure caused by
drilling or cementing operations
 Control high pressure zones
 Can be used as production casing (upper zones)
 Provide a place to hang a production liner
36 " hole
conductor
30 " casing pipe
surface
26 " hole
intermediate
16 " hole
12 1/4" hole production

9 5/8 " casing
casing
Production Casing
Purposes:
 Case off gas, water, salt and shale zones
 Provide control of the well at the wellhead
(production & pressure control)
 Protect pay zones from unwanted fluids
 Provide a place to change out drill fluids to
completion fluids which are compatible with the
formations
MIXING and PUMPING CEMENT
• DRY CEMENT IS MOVED PNEUMATICALLY TO A

MIXING APPARATUS WHERE WATER IS ADD TO
FORM A SLURRY
• CEMENT AND WATER MIXTURE ARE SUBJECT OF
SHEAR IN A MIXING TANK
• THE SLURRY IS PUMPED INTO THE CASING
USING TRI-PLEX POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT
PUMPS.
Recirculating Cement Mixer
• Accurate mix of slurry

• Combines water, slurry, and dry cement
Cement
Water
Recirculated
Cement
HT-400
The following fluid flow diagrams, while very basic,
demonstrate the typical cement job sequence.
Click through each slide.
Cement Casing
Circulating to condition mud
Pumping Spacer Ahead
drop bottom plug
Pumping Lead Cement
Pumping Lead Cement
Pumping Lead Cement
Pumping Lead Cement
Pumping Lead Cement
Pumping Tail Cement
Drop Top Plug & Start Displacing with Spacer
Displacing
Displacing
Displacing
Displacing
Displacing
Plug Down
Liners
In the past, it was common to have several

strings of casing in a deep well. All these
strings extended from the wellhead to different
depths. However, another method is now used
for varying well conditions. This time, and
money, saving method involves the hanging of
a casing string from the bottom of cemented
casing string. These hanging casing strings are
called liners and they are used in almost every
deep well completion
Plugs:
During its life, every well will require a plug-

back cementing job. Slurry is pumped down
drillpipe or tubing and into the annulus; unlike
primary cementing jobs, the cement levels in
the annulus and inside the tubular goods are
the same. This creates a blocked area which is
referred to as a cement plug.
Slurry Design Parameters
• Compatibilities
• Compressive Strengths
• Rheologies
• Fluid Loss Control
• Free Water Control
• Viscosity / Suspension
• Additives
• Lightweight
• Heavyweight
• Retarders
• Accelerators
• Gas Migration
• Job Simulation
• OptiCem
• Well Cat
Other common cement properties
• If you stop pumping during a job for
any extended period of time, the
thickening time is virtually cut in half.
• Inorganic materials, such as calcium
chloride tend to reduce thickening
time.
• Organic materials, such as sugar tend
to extend thickening times.
GENERAL CEMENTING DESIGN CRITERIA
• BOTTOM HOLE TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE
• WEIGHT AND COMPOSITION OF THE
DRILLING FLUID
• FRACTURE PRESSURE LIMITATIONS
• SIZE OF HOLE AND DEPTH OF WELL
• SIZE AND WEIGHT OF CASING
• TYPE OF MIXING WATER
• FORMATION STABILITY
• CASING EQUIPMENT TO BE USED
• VOLUME OF CEMENT REQUIRED
• JOB TIME REQUIREMENTS
Various testing apparatus in our Duncan Technology Center
Cementing is a lot more complicated than it looks!
Cementing in old days
Elite Cementing Trailer
Control Stand - Elite Cementing Trailer
 Aluminum control stand
 Shock mounted on rubber
isolators
 Removable panels on all sides for
maintenance access
 Contains ACE 2500 unit
controller with Windows NT
operating system
 Contains associated CAN
modules & wiring
 Air heater standard; all units
 Houses control valves for air
actuated butterfly valves
 Includes low pressure piping
flow diagram

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Basic Concepts of

• IT IS THE PROCESS OF MIXING A SLURRY OF

• Bond and Support Casing

12 1/4 " hole production

12 1/4 " hole production

12 1/4 " hole production

 Seal off large amounts of open hole

12 1/4" hole production

• DRY CEMENT IS MOVED PNEUMATICALLY TO A

• Accurate mix of slurry

In the past, it was common to have several

During its life, every well will require a plug-

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