Cyclic Steam Well Design: A New Approach to Solve an Old Problem of Cement 
Sheath Failure in Cyclic Steam Wells

Bour, Daniel

doi:10.2523/93868-ms

Cited by 5 publications

(7 citation statements)

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“…These techniques expose the cement sheath to large temperature variations during its operating life, which expose the cement to extreme stress states (Bour, 2005;Dean and Torres, 2002).…”

Section: Accepted Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A geopolymer cementing system for oil wells subject to steam injection

Paiva

Silva

Melo

et al. 2018

Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering

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“…These techniques expose the cement sheath to large temperature variations during its operating life, which expose the cement to extreme stress states (Bour, 2005;Dean and Torres, 2002).…”

Section: Accepted Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Beside the high costs of remedial jobs, there is a risk of contaminating aquifers used by the local population. Bour (2005) analyzed numerically a model well in Central California in a very compliant formation. Tensile failure was the primary failure mechanism for all well geometries, since the formation did not confine the cement.…”

Section: Accepted Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 99%

A geopolymer cementing system for oil wells subject to steam injection

Paiva

Silva

Melo

et al. 2018

Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering

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“…On the basis of stress analysis of cement in a wellbore, many scholars have established the fracture strength criterion of cement [13][14][15][16]. However, research on the interface microannulus of cement is relatively sparse, and the microannulus formation mechanism at the cementing interface has not been well explained.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microannulus Formation Mechanism at the Cementing Interface of a Thermal Recovery Well during Cyclic Steam Injection

Wang

Song

et al. 2020

Advances in Civil Engineering

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During the thermal recovery of heavy oil when using cyclic steam injection technology, a microannulus tends to form at the cementing interface subjected to high temperature and pressure during steam injection, and large temperature and pressure differences after injection can lead to wellbore integrity failure. In this study, a thermomechanical coupled finite element casing-cement-formation model of a thermal recovery wellbore is established. The deformation of the wellbore during both the steam injection stage and the steam shutdown stage is analyzed. The microannulus formation mechanism at the cementing interface of the wellbore is studied. During steam injection, under the large thermomechanical coupling load, the wellbore generates a high stress that leads to elastic-plastic deformation. In the steam shutdown stage, with the load on the wellbore decreasing, elastic deformation recovers mostly, while plastic deformation continues. If the plastic deformation is large enough, a microannulus will form at the cementing interface. Increasing the elastic moduli of the casing, cement, and the formation can enlarge their plastic deformation during steam injection. The increase of plastic deformation of the cement or formation can enlarge the microannulus of the casing-cement interface or the cement-formation interface correspondingly in the steam shutdown stage.

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“…First, the cement should set at the relatively low placement temperatures (Bour 2005) and acquire compressive and tensile strengths sufficiently high to withstand the first heating cycle. Second, the cement should possess sufficient flexibility (low Young's modulus) to adequately respond to the expansion of the metal casing during heating and cooling steps of the process.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Cement is an inorganic material and usually for this class of materials, the increase of its strength is accompanied by an increase in Young's modulus (Bour 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Innovative Cementing Solution for Long-Term Steam Injection Well Integrity

DeBruijn

Loiseau

Chougnet-Sirapian

et al. 2010

SPE EUROPEC/EAGE Annual Conference and Exhibition

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Operators involved in the recovery of hydrocarbons from heavy-oil reservoirs often face the problem of maintaining well integrity in steam-injection wells. A significant portion of these wells suffer various forms of leaks and in the most severe case complete steam breakthrough to surface. Throughout the life of heavy-oil wells, cement material degradation and stresses in the cement sheath induced by extreme temperature cycling result in severe mechanical damage and ultimate failure of the cement sheath. These problems motivate different operators to explore new cementing technologies that are capable of achieving reliable longterm zonal isolation in these extreme conditions.The main challenge for operators is to design thermally stable cement with mechanical properties sufficient to withstand stresses induced by the large temperature changes. This paper describes the development of a new cement system, which is stable, strong, impermeable and flexible up to a temperature of at least 350°C(650°F), corresponding to the maximum steam injection temperature. Depending on the curing temperature this new cement system provides low Young's modulus of 1,800 to 4,000 MPa while maintaining excellent compressive and tensile strengths compared to cements currently used in the oilfield industry. Aging the cement system for 6 months at steam temperatures demonstrates the stability of the set material properties, including maintaining a low permeability.Field trials in North America show that this new cement system can be easily implemented into standard cementing operations using conventional equipment. Cement evaluation logs after cement operations confirm that excellent zonal isolation and wellbore integrity are readily achieved.By keeping adequate strength and flexibility, this new cement system reduces the risk of cement sheath failure and steam migration throughout the life of these steam-injection wells. It provides a long-term well integrity solution for any well exposed to very large temperature increase after the cement initial set, such as in fields exposed to steam temperatures.

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Cyclic Steam Well Design: A New Approach to Solve an Old Problem of Cement Sheath Failure in Cyclic Steam Wells

Cited by 5 publications

References 0 publications

A geopolymer cementing system for oil wells subject to steam injection

A geopolymer cementing system for oil wells subject to steam injection

Microannulus Formation Mechanism at the Cementing Interface of a Thermal Recovery Well during Cyclic Steam Injection

Innovative Cementing Solution for Long-Term Steam Injection Well Integrity

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