Restoring Casing Integrity Using an Expandable Steel Patch Prior to Drilling Ahead With Minimal Reduction of Next Hole Size

Saltel, Benjamin; Gonzalez, Luis; McIntosh, T.S.; Weems, Matt

doi:10.2118/174524-ms

Cited by 11 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Preventing SCP requires improvement of cement-sheath quality (Landry et al, 2015) by using specialized cementing techniques providing effective zonal isolation-such as casing expansion (Kupresan et al, 2014), casing patching (Saltel et al, 2015), use of self-healing cement (Khattak et al, 2015;Landry et al, 2015;Shadravan and Amani, 2015), or expandable cement system (Tanoto et al, 2016). Despite the new technology, most wells may still develop SCP so there is a need for advancing the SCP remediation technology.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design and field-scale demonstration of the buoyant-kill process for restoring integrity of wells with sustained casing pressure

Demirci,

Wojtanowicz

2023

Front. Energy Res.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Sustained Casing Pressure (SCP) is the persistent casinghead pressure resulting from the well’s annular integrity loss and migration of gas above the leaking cement sheath. Downhole—intervention methods for SCP removal employ workover rigs to access and plug off the leaking annulus at depth from within the well. The inexpensive rig-less method of Buoyant Kill involves surface injection of immiscible heavy fluid at the casinghead into the well’s annulus to replace the annular fluid column above the gas-leaking cement and stop gas migration. Laboratory and pilot-size testing have shown feasibility of the method. Presented here, is a field-scale demonstration experiment conducted in a pressurized 2750-foot well with water displaced by an immiscible brominated organic fluid over 20-h long operation. Discussed is experimental design supported by fluid selection study, benchtop and pilot tests, and fluid transport model. Also analyzed is the process performance and operational problems. The results confirm feasibility of the Buoyant Kill technique for SCP removal. The overall change of the wellhead and downhole pressures follows the expected patterns indicating partial removal of the simulated SCP. The removal is incomplete due to pumping pressure pulses and wellhead pressure variations resulting in some emulsification of the two fluids and partial loss of the injection fluid into the overflow. The results show that wellhead pressure control and injection pump operation are critical for successful SCP removal using the Buoyant Kill technique.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design and field-scale demonstration of the buoyant-kill process for restoring integrity of wells with sustained casing pressure

Demirci,

Wojtanowicz

2023

Front. Energy Res.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

The chemistry insight: epoxy sealant as an alternative remedial operation for well integrity

Pang

Arsad

Sidek

et al. 2022

Reviews in Chemical Engineering

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Epoxy resin is commonly used in the oil and gas industry due to its excellent toughness, low shrinkage, good adhesive strength, and relatively good thermal resistance. It is used for water shutoff, zonal isolation, cementing, enhanced oil recovery, and preventing leakage in wells. This paper reviews the chemistry aspect of using an epoxy resin system as a sealant to prevent well leakage and it offers insights into the chemistry of the epoxy resin system, as applied in previous studies. The paper also unveils the reasons for the application of this system from the chemistry perspective, allowing this aspect to be better understood. Success in the investigated cases depended on the formulation design. The epoxide and hydroxyl functional groups have been found to contribute substantially to the excellent performance of the sealant system. Furthermore, the amine curing agent triggers the abrupt reaction of the oxirane ring to stabilise when the cured sealant is perfectly applied. Based on the findings, it is suggested that other types of epoxies, namely epoxidised oils, require further study. Finally, in terms of safety and sustainable energy, it is suggested that more curing agent and diluent studies are undertaken.

show abstract

Pilot-Scale Experimental Study and Mathematical Modeling of Buoyant Settling of Immiscible Heavy Fluid in Mud To Stop Annular-Gas Migration Above Leaking Cement

Demirci¹,

Wojtanowicz

2017

SPE Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Summary Annular casing pressure (ACP) is defined as the accumulated pressure on the casing head. If pressure returns after bleed-down, then the casing annulus is said to be showing sustained casing pressure (SCP). SCP is caused by late gas migration in the annular-fluid column above the top of leaking cement and may result in atmospheric emissions or underground blowouts. Removal of SCP is required in places where SCP is regulated, particularly before the well-plugging and abandonment operations. Annular-intervention methods for SCP removal, which are less expensive than the conventional downhole-intervention methods, typically involve injecting heavy fluid into the affected annulus that would displace the annular fluid (AF), balance the pressure at the top of cement, and stop the gas leakage. Previous studies stated that the use of immiscible combinations of two fluids is more effective for the purpose; however, inattentive applications may result in excessive use of heavy fluid. In this study, a 20-ft carbon-steel pilot-well annulus was manufactured and used for displacement experiments with various water-based drilling muds and heavy fluids with different properties. Pressure-change data were collected from four different levels of the annulus, and volumes of fluids going in and out of the annulus were measured. Experiments indicated the formation of a mixture zone that would build bottoms up and expand during ongoing displacement. The proposed pressure-buildup model suggests an exponential distribution of density of this zone, and shows its high dependency on fluids’ properties and injection rate. The mathematical models were also converted into dimensionless process measures and proposed for use in real-well applications. The study demonstrates the viability and recommends the correct application of the method.

show abstract

Restoring Casing Integrity Using an Expandable Steel Patch Prior to Drilling Ahead With Minimal Reduction of Next Hole Size

Cited by 11 publications

References 0 publications

Design and field-scale demonstration of the buoyant-kill process for restoring integrity of wells with sustained casing pressure

Design and field-scale demonstration of the buoyant-kill process for restoring integrity of wells with sustained casing pressure

The chemistry insight: epoxy sealant as an alternative remedial operation for well integrity

Pilot-Scale Experimental Study and Mathematical Modeling of Buoyant Settling of Immiscible Heavy Fluid in Mud To Stop Annular-Gas Migration Above Leaking Cement

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About