A brief report discussing the Black Sand processing
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Full description
ALCPT 72
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Sand Control Techniques Reservoir Stimulation Techniques
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
What we learnt in last lecture l ecture •
Reason for Sand Production
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Factors Factors Affecting Affecting Sand Production
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Formation Sand Characteristics and Classification
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Predicting Sand Production
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Sand Production Monitoring
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Content •
Introduction
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Sand Control Techniques •
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Reactive Techniques Resin Consolidation Standalone Screens Gravel Pack High Rate Water Pack Frac-Pac
Summary
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Learning Outcomes •
At the end of this session student will be able to understand the techniques for sand control
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Introduction •
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The objective of any sand control completion is to control sand while maintaining/maximizing hydrocarbon production Various techniques are used in the industry, including reactive, mechanical and chemical Selection of a particular technique for a well depends on many factors • • • •
Reservoir and wellbore conditions Availability of surface and downhole equipment Completion cost Etc.
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Sand Control Techniques •
Reactive • •
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Chemical •
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Surface Sand Handling Rate Control Resin Consolidation
Mechanical • • • • • •
Slotted liners Standalone screens Pre-packed screens Gravel packs High rate water packs Frac packs
Generally Increasing Cost and Complexity
Reactive Techniques Surface Sand Handling •
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Allow sand to be produced and handle/ disposed at surface Surface handling equipment is required Downhole equipment/ tubulars still susceptible to erosion and failure Wellbore access can be impacted by accumulation of sand Generally not feasible as a long term solution
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Rate Control •
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Restricted Production rate to minimize drag forces and likelihood of sand production Cheap and easy option but results in lost production Rate will need to be continuously reduced which is usually not viable economically Generally not feasible as a long term solution
Resin Consolidation •
Pump commercially available liquid resins into formation: • •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Epoxies Furan (Including furan/phenolic blends) Pure phenolic
Consolidates individual sand grains and increases unconfined compressive strength Increase in UCS must be sufficient to withstand drag forces at desired production rate
Resin Consolidation •
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Resin usually pumped in liquid form but can also be applied to the gravel (resin coated gravel) Catalyst or curing agent required for hardening which can be mixed with resin or pumped separately (activates with time and/or temperature) Treatment guidelines • •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Need a good cement job Perforations and near wellbore should be cleaned to ensure resin treatment is effective Ideal for short zones with uniform permeability
Resin Consolidation Pros •
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Good technique for marginal well with relatively low flow rates
Cons •
Comparatively inexpensive and easy to install
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No hardware deployment required
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Leaves wellbore open for large completion
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Difficult to get good zonal coverage (limited to perforated intervals of 20 – 30 ft) Limited to formation with temperature < 250 deg F Generally leads to impairment of permeability Careful treatment planning required as many stages involved
Standalone Screens •
Screens (no gravel pack) installed across producing interval: • • •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Slotted Liner Wire Wrap Premium
Screens allow hydrocarbon to pass but contain formation sand Generally sized for D 10 of the formation PSD to retain larger particles but allow fines to be produced
Standalone Screens •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Sand control mechanism relies on formation of a natural sand pack Larger grains form stable arches (or bridges) agains the filter with progressively smaller grains being held behind them Generally used in formations with well-sorted, clean sands and relatively large grain sizes The industry as a whole is trying to extend the application envelope of these types of completions
Slotted Liners •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Pipe with fixed size slots to prevent sand production Manufactured by machining slot openings through oilfield tubular using rotary saws or laser Slot available only in rage of 0.012” to 0.250” (increased cost for slots <0.02”) Open flow area varies between 1 – 4 % Generally used for low cost wells with large grained uniform sands
Slotted Liners
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Pros Relatively simple solution good for low cost wells Fized slot size good for wellsorted, clean sands with relatively large particle sizes Comparatively inexpensive and easy to instal
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Cons Low open flow area results in higher pressure drops during production Expensive to manufacture with slot size less than 0.02” Natural sand pack is inherently unstable and can breakdown with changes in rate or shutdown Susceptible to plugging, especially in poorly sorted sands
Wire-Wrap Screens •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Wire wrapped around a perforated base pipe with fixed gap between wires providing sand control filter mechanism Gap size can be between 0.006” and 0.02”(typically keystone or house shaped) Screen jacket can be slip-on or wrap-on type Significantly higher flow area than slotted liners (6-12%) Gap size tolerances are typically plus 0.001” and minus 0.002”
Wire-Wrap Screens
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Wire-Wrap Screens
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Pros High open flow area results in low pressure drops during production Robust, proven design Fixed and controllable gap size Lower cost than premium screens
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Cons Lower flow area than premium screens Difficult to manufacture with gap size < 6 gauge Screen plugging could be an issue in poorly sorted sands or due to poor completion practices Limited applicability as standalone screens in non-uniform sands
Premium Screens •
Different types of filters offered by various companies: •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Multiple layers of sintered woven wire mesh that form a filter Compressed stainless steel wool as filtration medium
Gap size cannot be directly controlled but is quoted as an average value Include a drainage layer to minimize erosion and pressure drop during production
Premium Screens
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Pros High open flow area (20 – 40%) results in low pressure drops during production Better plugging resistance than other types of screens Better sand retention capabilities than other types of screens
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
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Cons Comparatively high cost Relatively new, unproven technology Cannot replace gravel packs in all types of reservoir
Pre-Packed Screens •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Layer of resin-coated gravel prepacked between two concentric screens Can be used as standalone screen or in conjunction with a gravel pack Gravel layer acts as a secondary or backup filter (e.g. in case of void in gravel pack) Thickness and size of gravel can be varied for specific conditions Not commonly used today
Pre-Packed Screens
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Pros Gravel layer provides backup for voids in gravel pack Cheaper than premium screens and gravel pack
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Cons Tend to plug easily, leading to high skins and eventual failure due to hot spots For a given basepipe, they have a larger OD than other screens Cannot replace the sand control effectiveness of a gravel pack Not commonly used
Gravel Pack •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Screen placed in the wellbore and the surrounding annulus packed with high permeability gravel Gravel is sized to retain the formation sand and the screen is sized to retain the gravel Gravel pack stabilizes formation with minimal impairment to well productivity Complete packing of wellbore annulus is critical for preventing movment of formation sand
Gravel Pack •
Alpha/Beta and Alpha/Alpha •
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Slurry Pack •
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Viscous carrier fluid with higher gravel concentration Can avoid fracturing by allowing placement at lower pump rates
Shunt Tubes •
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Brine carrier flud with low gravel concentration Primarily used in horizontal open hole completions
Slurry pack with the use of shunt tube technology to overcome bridging
Gravel Pack
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Pros Generally accepted as the most successful and widely applicable sand control technique Proven effective in controlling sand production in poorly sorted and fine sands Provides an additional filtration layer via the gravel to contain formation sand Stabilizes the open hole
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
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Cons Expensive in comparison to standalone screens and resin consolidation Successful design and execution may present challenges depending on reservoir/wellbore conditions Requires pumping equipment which brings additional cost and logistical considerations
High Rate Water Pack •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Gravel packs pumped above fracture pressure to initiate small fractures in the formation Aim to place very short (5 - 15 ft) and relatively thin fractures Generally use brine carrier fluis at low gravel concentration Important to pack both perforations and wellbore annulus with gravel to ensure success Can be cheaper alternative to frac-packs in low cost wells
High Rate Water Pack
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Pros Provides some of the benefits of fracturing (e.g. bypass near wellbore damage) Saves cost of fracturing fluids and breakers Minimizes risk of fracturing into proximate water or gas zones Preferred over frac-packs in wells requiring low cost completion
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
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Cons Can be more expensive, complex and risky than gravel pack Requires the same equipment as a frac-pack, which brings additional cost and logistical considerations Short, thin frac do not provide the high conductivity and and low skin associated with fracpacks
Frac-Pack •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Simultaneous hydraulic fracturing of the formation and placement of gravel pack Used primarily in cased hole wells with moderate to high permeability that are prone to sand production Performed above fracturing pressure using viscous fluid with high gravel concentration Typical designed for relatively short fractures (around 30-50 ft) with large width (>1”)
Frac-Pack •
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Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Bypasses near wellbore damage and creates a highly conductive path for fluid to flow Lowers sand production by reducing flow velocity and drawdown Potential to obtain negative skins and increases productivity Can be more expensive, complex and risky than other sand control techniques
Frac-Pack Pros •
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Bypasses near wellbore damage Increases effective wellbore radius (can result in negative skin) Reduces sand production by lowering flow velocity and pressure drop Gravel pack prevents formation sand being produced
Dr Sia Chee W ee (Petroleum Engineering Department)
Cons •
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Increased cost, complexity and risk in comparison to other techniques Not feasible in reservoirs without containment or those with proximate water/gas zones Productivity limitations in wells with very high transmissibility (kh/m) due to presence of perforations
Summary •
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A number of techniques are used in the industry to control sand production Reactive techniques are usually not economically viable, so proactive techniques are required for longer term solutions Chemical techniques are cheap and relatively easy to install but have limited applications (usually in marginal wells with low flow rates) Mechanical techniques are the most commonly used with each having its own advantages and challenges Technique selection depends on a number of factors including: • • • •
