Wellhead Completion&

Completion Fluids
Lecture - 4 ,Y-3
 Lecture Outline
• Oil/Gas well before and after
completion
• Completion Productivity
• Production packer
• Wellhead Completion
• Completion Fluids.
• Case Study from oil field
Field Oil well before completion
 Field Oil well after completion

Oil Well After Completion Tubing

hanger

Well Head
X-mas Tree

Hydraulic
Control Line

Safety
Valve Production
Tubing

Reservoir
Gas Lift
Valve

Packer Perforation

Pump Out
Plug Sump

Surface and subsurface equipment's in oil well

 Field Flowing oil / gas well

Out-flow
dependent on the
fluid properties,
like water cut, gas
liquid ratio, and oil
gravity. It also
depends on the
backpressure
Reservoir
imposed by the energy
surface facilities.
overcomes all
pressures
losses
In-flow
Dependent on through the
productivity index
and reservoir
entire
pressure. production
system
 COMPLETION PRODUCTIVITY

There are external parameters that limit

choice flexibility of tubing size:
• Initial reservoir pressure,
• Formation breakdown pressure,
• Bubble-point pressure,
• Reservoir injectivity and productivity,
• Oil properties.
 COMPLETION PRODUCTIVITY
SIZING THE TUBING
• The primary function of the tubing is to provide a
conduit for transportation of hydrocarbons or injection
water.
• Undersizing the tubing is the most common and
costly mistake made by many completion designers.
• Undersized tubing will limit the amount of production
or injection that can be achieved, or result in inefficient
artificial lift.
• Oversizing the tubing can also cause liquid hold-up
problems and unnecessarily increase equipment costs.
 COMPLETION PRODUCTIVITY

• From Darcy's semi steady state flow

equation, the PI for a well producing 100%
oil is
Koh
PI 
141.2o o [ln( re / rw )  0.75  S ]
bbl/Day/psi
 COMPLETION PRODUCTIVITY

• It is commonly assumed that production is

directly proportional to drawdown.
• The constant of proportionality is termed the
productivity index, and is commonly denoted
as PI or
q
J 
PR  Pwf
What is a production packer?
A Packer is a sub-surface device or
equipment used to provide a seal between
the Tubing and Casing of a well , thus
preventing the movement of fluids past this
sealing point.

Why is a Packer run?

Well Control
• Well Testing
• Casing Protection
• Well repair and stimulation
• Zonal Isolation
• Artificial Lift
Types of packers
Permanent packer
Retrievable packer
 Packer fluids
• Packer fluids remain between the
casing and tubing to prevent collapsing
of casing and burst of the production
string.
• Therefore, a good packer fluid must
be stable with time and temperature,
non-corrosive, and economical.
• The fluid must also be able to be
pumped and must not harm packer
seals.
Wellhead Completion
 Wellhead and Christmas tree
• Wellhead and Christmas tree is the main
equipment for oil production, water
injection and downhole operation.
• It is installed on the casing head to seal
the annular space between casing and
tubing, control wellhead pressure, adjust
• well flow rate and transport oil to pipeline.
 Wellheads and Christmas Trees
• The wellhead consists of three components
- casing head
- tubing head
- Christmas tree

• The wellhead must be able to withstand pressures of up

(1,400 Bar, or about 2,100 psi) or greater.

• Once the well has been drilled, it is completed to provide

an interface with the reservoir rock and a tubular conduit
for the well fluids. The surface pressure control is
provided by a Christmas tree, which is installed on top of
the wellhead, with isolation valves and choke equipment
to control the flow of well fluids during production
 Installing the Christmas Tree
 A collection of valves called a
Christmas tree is installed on the
surface at the top of the casing
hanger.
 As the well’s production flows up the
tubing, it enters the christmas tree.
 So, the production can be controlled
by opening or closing valves on the
christmas tree.
A wellhead is used
during both drilling
and production.
During drilling, it is
used without a
Christmas tree while
during production it
is used in
combination with the
Christmas tree, to
which the wellhead
connects
Wellheads and Christmas Trees

Components of a Wellhead

- Tubing pressure gauge

- Wing valve
- Flow fitting
- Choke

- Tubing head
- Christmas tree
- Master valve
- Casing valve

- Tubing
- Casing pressure - Tubing head
gauges

- Production casing

- Intermediate casing
- Uppermost casing head
- Casing head
- Lowermost casing head - Surface casing
 Christmas Tree Functions
• The purposes of the Christmas tree are
• To provide the primary method of closing in a
well; isolate the well from adjacent wells;
• Connect a flowline; provide vertical access for
well interventions (slickline, electricline, coiled
tubing, etc.) whilst the well is live;
• Interface with the tubing hanger;
• Connect or interface the tree to the wellhead.
• Safety Valve
• The purpose of the Safety valves is to
protect people, environment and property
from uncontrolled production.
• Type of Safety Valve
• SSV: Surface Safety Valves: an automatic
fail-safe closed valve fitted at the
wellhead.
• SSSV: Subsurface Safety Valve: a valve
installed in the tubing down the well to
 What Is Subsurface Equipment?
• A production/injection is equipped
with many surface and subsurface
equipment.
• The surface equipment are x-mas
tree, wellhead, surface safety valve,
etc.
 Completion Fluids -

Completion fluids shall be:-

Able to assist in well control.
Not cause reservoir
or environmental damage.
Not allow solids to settle on tools during
operations.
keep the well in the best possible condition
during its producing life”.
Functions of Completion Fluids
1) Improve well productivity by reducing damage to
the producing zone.

2) It is the fluid placed against the producing

formation while conducting perforation.

3) It is the solids-free liquid used to "complete" an oil

or gas well.

4) To remove solids from the well

5) To control formation pressures.

Requirements of Completion Fluids

1)The fluid is meant to control a well should

down hole without damaging the producing
formation or completion components.

2) Completion fluids should be proper density

and flow characteristics.

3) The fluid should be chemically compatible

with the reservoir formation and fluids, and is
typically filtered to a high degree to avoid
introducing solids to the near-wellbore area
which may cause formation damage.
 Characteristics required for
completion fluids
1- Specific gravity.
2- Viscosity.
3- Filtration rate.
4- Compatibility.
5- Stability at reservoir temperature.
6-Safety Handling.
7- Cost or price.
Completion Fluids - Selection Criteria
1- Fluid Density
Fluid Density Should Not Be Higher Than Needed to
Control Formation Pressure.
2- Oil Content
Ideally Fluids Should Not Contains Solids to Avoid
Formation & Perforation Plugging.
3- Filtrate Characteristics
Characteristics of Filtrate Should Be Tailored to
Minimize Formation Damage Considering Clay
Swelling, Dispersion & Wettability Changes and
Emulsion Stabilization.
Completion Fluids Selection Criteria

4- No Corrosion

5- Economics

6- No Formation Damage Related to Solids

7- Complete Solids Removal

To be effective, fluid in contact with the
formation must not contain any solids
larger than 2 micron size.
 What risks attack the Tubing String ?
1. Corrosion:
Corrosion is caused by presence of H2S. Tubing steel will suffer from hydrogen
embrittlement in the presence of moisture H2S. The embrittlement process
(sometimes called sulfide corrosion cracking) results from the penetration of
hydrogen atoms which can migrate into the steel similarly to fine sand passing
through a gravel pack.

2. Errosion:
Ve = c / pm 0.5
where:
Ve = fluid erosional velocity, ft/sec
c = empirical constant (range 80 to 300)
Usually c = 125 for intermittent service, or 100 for continuous service
pm = gas/liquid mixture density, Ibs/ft3
 Steps For Selecting Fluid Type

1- Knowing PR, Get Fluid Density to Control PR.

2- Add 100-200 psi for Safety.
3- Define Viscosity Requirement.
4- Choose Completion Fluid that Meets Above
Criteria With No Formation Damage.

Fluid Density = (BHP + Overbalance)/ 0.052xDepth in feet ) ppg

 Types of Completion Fluids
1- Oil Base Fluids
 Crude Oil
Availability makes crude oil a common choice where low (8.3 Ib/gal)
density is required. Loss of oil to the formation is usually not harmful.
Low viscosity crude has limited carrying capacity.
 Diesel Oil
This is often used where a low density clean fluid is required.
2- Water Base Fluids
 Formation Saltwater
When available, formation saltwater is a common workover fluid since
the cost is low. If it is clean, formation saltwater should be ideal for
minimum clay swelling
 Seawater or Bay Water
Due to availability, it is often used in coastal areas. Again, it frequently
contains clays and other fines that cause plugging. Fresh water is often
desirable as a basic fluid due to the difficulty of obtaining clean sea or
formation water. Desired type and amount of salt is then added.
 Types of Completion Fluids
3- Conventional Water-Base Mud
Economics and availability sometimes suggest use of water-base
mud rather than weighted saltwater where weights above 11.5 Ib/gal
are required.
Water-base mud should never be used except in zones to be
abandoned.

4- Oil-Base or Invert-Emulsion Muds

These muds are usually less damaging from the standpoint of clay
problems than conventional water base mud's since filtrate is oil
and very low filtration rates can be obtained.

5- Foam
Foams can be used for certain workover operations (very low BHP)
such as washing out sand, drilling in or deepening.
Depending on the ratio of air to foam water circulated, flow
gradients as low as 0.1 to 0.2 psi/ft are possible.
Foam is a mechanical mixture of air or gas dispersed in clean fresh
water or field brine containing a small amount of surfactant.
 Completion Fluids - Practical Application

 Formation Damage

Laboratory core flow tests apparently do not show

unfavorable fluid/rock interactions with heavy brines.
Incompatibility with formation water should be carefully
observed specially if formation water contains significant
sulfate or bicarbonate.

 Cost
Heavy brines are very expensive. A 15.0 Ib/ gal CaCl2-
CaBr2 brine costs about 25 times more than a 10.0 Ib/gal
CaCl2 "new" brine. Fluid Recovery and reuse may minimize
cost.
 Completion Fluids - Practical Application

 Viscosity and Fluid Loss Control

A number of additives are available to provide

"viscosity," thereby increasing the lifting,
carrying, and suspending capacity of the fluid.
Ideally, fluid loss control should be obtained
strictly by a bridging mechanism at the face of
the formation. This can be done effectively by
use of properly sized particles. Particles larger
than one-half the pore size should bridge at the
pore entrance.
 Completion Fluids - Practical Application

 Fluid Loss Control

Due to un-regained permeability loss, most currently available
viscosity builders should not be used without proper bridging
particles to prevent movement of the viscosity colloids into the
formation pore system. Bridging particles must meet two criteria:

 Form a stable, low-permeability bridge quickly.

 Be removable by degradation or backflow.

 Calcium Carbonate
This material is available in several size ranges
 Oil Soluble Resins
These are available in graded size ranges needed for effective
bridging action.
 Graded Rock Salt
Where saturated salt fluids are used, graded rock salt with
HEC can provide effective fluid loss control.