The paper refers to the numerical analysis of the internal flow in a hydraulic cross-flow turbine type Banki. A 3D-CFD steady state flow simulation has been performed using ANSYS CFX codes. The simulation includes nozzle, runner, shaft, and casing. The turbine has a specific speed of 63 (metric units), an outside runner diameter of 294 mm. Simulations were carried out using a water-air free surface model and k-εturbulence model. The objectives of this study were to analyze the velocity and pressure fields of the cross-flow within the runner and to characterize its performance for different runner speeds. Absolute flow velocity angles are obtained at runner entrance for simulations with and without the runner. Flow recirculation in the runner interblade passages and shocks of the internal cross-flow cause considerable hydraulic losses by which the efficiency of the turbine decreases significantly. The CFD simulations results were compared with experimental data and were consistent with global performance parameters.
The objective of primary cementing is to protect the casing and to ensure zonal isolation. It can be difficult to obtain a good cement job along the full length of a well, and casing centralization is one of the main factors that influence this. Even if the dependence of cement placement on casing centralization is well-known, little information is available on how the degree of casing centralization affects the well during its production phase. Well temperatures cycle up and down as a part of normal production operations – and well barrier materials, in particular steel, cement and rock, will consequently repeatedly expand and contract their volumes. Over time, this is likely to induce debonding and radial cracking of the cement sheath which threatens well integrity. This paper reports the results of an experimental study mapping how, where and when the annular cement loses its sealing ability upon temperature variations, and how this is dependent on casing centralization. The studied samples consisted of rock, cement and casing, and the temperature was cycled in a controlled and programmable manner. In-situ monitoring by Acoustic Emission (AE) sensors detected the development of cracking and debonding in the samples during thermal cycling. Initial and post-experiment computed tomography (CT) scans provided complementary three-dimensional (3D) information on the geometry and location of the induced cracks and debonding. Our study compared the thermal cycling resistance of two samples, one with centralized casing and one with a 50% casing stand-off. The AE monitoring results indicated that most of the cracking/debonding occurred during the actual heating and cooling, and not in between cycles when the temperature was held constant. The CT analyses showed that the thermal cycling caused considerable enlargement of cracks and voids initially present in the cement sheath, and this enlargement was significantly more severe when the casing was not centralized. The paper presents, for the first time, a 3D visualization of cracks and debonded volumes in the cement sheath, and it underlines the importance of obtaining a good initial cement job. Also, it is shown that it is important to obtain a good casing centralization during well construction – not only for optimal cement placement, but also for maintaining well integrity during production.
Petroleum activities in the sensitive Arctic environment require increased focus on well integrity, since even small leaks can affect production and surrounding ecosystems. It is therefore of the utmost importance that the sealing ability of the annular well cement can be maintained here. This is challenging in normal locations, and difficulties are intensified when moving north. Due to the harsh topside conditions in the Arctic, the operational windows are short -and production will necessarily be turned on/off repeatedly. The temperature of any unheated injected fluid will also be lower here. As a result, Arctic wells will be subjected to strong downhole temperature variations over their life cycles. These cause the volume of well construction materials, like casing steel and annular well cement, to repeatedly expand and contract, which might lead to loss of well integrity through debonding or cracking of the annular cement sheath.In the present paper we describe an experimental laboratory set-up that has been designed for studying the sealing ability of annular cement as a well is exposed to thermal cycling. The samples studied are small-scale well sections including casing, annular cement and rock formation. These are exposed to thermal cycles by using a computer controlled thermal platform, which heats up by means of electrical resistance and cools down through expansion of liquefied nitrogen. It has a temperature span from -50°C to +200°C, and adjustable heating/cooling rates and holding times. During the thermal cycling experiments, any cracking and debonding occurring in the system is continuously monitored in-situ by Acoustic Emission (AE). To demonstrate the functioning of the set-up we present some initial results obtained using ordinary Portland G cement as annular sealant. In this work, the AE events collected during cycling are compared with data from post-experiment computed tomography (CT) scans.The testing methodology presented in this paper is flexible, thus rock type, annular sealant type and casing type can be varied at will. Mud or filter cake effects can also be included. For all samples, the procedure will enable determination of when leakage paths appear (as a function of applied thermal cycles and time), where they appear (in the bulk cement or at its interfaces) and what their sizes, geometries and distributions are. This opens for improved material choices for Arctic well construction, and optimization of operational patterns and remediation strategies for the high north. Most of today's Arctic research and development (R&D) aims to overcome the many topside challenges associated with petroleum operations in the north. These are of obvious importance, comprising extremely cold Arctic temperatures, large temperature variations, harsh weather conditions, drifting ice and ice loads, strong ocean currents, long periods of darkness and remote locations. In fact, the strong focus on topside challenges has led to a down-prioritization of the many subsurface challenges in the Arctic -which stil...
The cement sheath is one of the most important well barrier elements in the well, both during production and after abandonment. However, normal production operations which involve temperature variations in the well, such as steam injection, stimulations and shut-down periods, may damage the integrity of the cement sheath. Temperature increase and decrease, i.e. thermal cycling, cause the casing to expand and contract, which creates debonding and cracking of the cement sheath and thereby loss of zonal isolation. This paper presents novel results from an experimental study of cement sheath integrity during thermal cycling. The temperature was cycled repeatedly from 5°C to 125°C in a controlled manner from inside the casing, and Portland cement with silica additive was tested with both sandstone and shale as surrounding rock. Debonding and cracking of cement were quantified and visualized by X-ray computed tomography (CT), and it was found that cracking and debonding occurred for the sandstone sample, whereas the shale sample remained almost unaffected. There were some initial defects in the cement sheath in the sandstone sample, and these small and scattered defects grew together during thermal cycling into a continuous leak path; i.e. resulting in a loss of zonal isolation.The digitalized 3D geometry of this leak path was imported into Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software, thereby enabling a unique visualization of fluid flow through an actual leak path in degraded cement and an estimation of leak rates for different pressure differences. It is seen that microannuli are not homogeneous or uniform, and that fluid flow through microannuli and cracks is complex and not easily predictable.
Summary The annular cement sheath is one of the most-important well-barrier elements, both during production and after well abandonment. It is, however, well-known that repeated pressure and temperature variations in the wellbore during production and injection can have a detrimental effect on the integrity of the cement sheath. A unique laboratory setup with downscaled samples of rock, cement, and pipe has been designed to study cement-sheath-failure mechanisms during thermal cycling, such as debonding and crack formation. With this setup, it is possible to set the cement under pressure and subsequently expose the cement to temperature cycling under pressure as well. Cement integrity before and after thermal cycling is visualized in three-dimensional by X-ray computed tomography (CT), which enables quantification of and differentiation between debonding toward the casing, debonding toward the formation, and cracks formed inside the cement sheath itself. This paper describes in detail the development and functionality of this laboratory setup along with the experimental procedure. Several examples to demonstrate the applicability of the setup, such as tests with different types of casing surfaces and different rocks, are also shown.
Well cement is placed into the annulus between casing and formation to provide structural support and zonal isolation through the well lifecycle. Nevertheless, operators in the North Sea have been concerned by the ability of the cement sheath to maintain sealing integrity given to the increasing number of reported failures in mature wells. As a result, recent efforts have been undertaken to achieve enhancements in the technology and standardization of tools to assess the status of this barrier. Yet, progress seems slow due to the high complexity of performing the task downhole. Hence, a new laboratory setup is designed to permit a detailed assessment of cement sheath failure mechanisms for realistic wellbore curing and operating conditions. The laboratory set-up is conceived to allow visualizing the development of possible leak paths throughout the cement sheath, such as de-bonded areas and cracks in the bulk of cement, when exposed to pressure- and temperature-related varying loads. It comprises downscale concentric cylinders of rock, cement and pipe attempting to resemble a cased wellbore section. Temperature and pressure inside the casing can be varied in a controlled manner. In addition, cement pore pressure and rock confining pressure can be controlled independently. Computed tomography (CT) scans of the sample before and along the cyclic loads provide geometric three-dimensional information that aids identifying how and where the cement sheath is damaged. The first trials of the pressurized cell deal with two samples, one with sandstone and one with shale rock, with centralized pipe and Portland G cement. During the curing process temperature and pressure are kept constant. After the cement sets, pressure is kept constant while casing temperature is varied along several cycles. Initial CT analyses show that cement hydraulic pressure provides a better initial cement job than for previous cemented samples with no pressure. In that sense, it was found better cement bonding to casing and formation, as well as less volume of voids after cement cured. Moreover, the cracking failure mechanisms resulting from thermal cyclic loads were mitigated due to the reduction of tensile stresses, since cement hydrostatic stress and confining pressure around the rock exists. With this new laboratory set-up it is possible to evaluate the capabilities of any type sealant material to withstand varying temperature and pressure loads by visualization and quantification of de-bonded areas and cracks propagation along the time. The method offers an alternative to study in detail and compare sealant materials used as annular barrier when exposed to realistic wellbore thermal loads.
Cross Flow Turbines (CFT), also known as Banki or Ossberger turbines are broadly used in small scale hydropower generation. Easy construction and operation, low CAPEX and OPEX and fairly independent efficiency from flow rate are the main characteristics of the CFT. However, they also tend to have a modest efficiency (80%), hence they are not considered for large scale power plants. Previous work have focused on use of Internal Deflectors (ID) for CFT efficiency improvement. However experimental flow observation and characterization inside CFT is hard to achieve. This work proposes use of Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) tools as an aid in ID design. A transient regime, two-dimensional, numerical model of a CFT without any internal deflectors was carried out. Deviation from experimental results at BEP was close to 5%. CFT w/o ID results were used as ID design starting point. Parameters: Upper Blade Position and ID Length were defined and varied obtaining six different ID versions. Numerical models were carried out for evaluation of ID effect on CFT. CFT hydraulic efficiency improvement was achieved for all ID versions studied (range 0.5%–3%, average:1.9%). Output power was also augmented (range 0.3%–4%, average:2.5%)for all cases.
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