AirLock system helps land casing in horizontal wells

Combines lateral buoyancy with vertical fluid weight to drive casing to the toe
The AirLockTM system facilitates landing casing strings in
horizontal wells, at nominal cost and without interrupting
casing and cementing operations. Unlike conventional
oat shoe systems, the AirLock seal allows the vertical
casing section to be lled with uid, while the lateral
section remains air-lled and buoyant. The enhanced
buoyancy reduces sliding friction more than 50%, while
the weight of the vertical section provides additional
force to push the string all the way to the toe of the well.

collar contains a pressure-calibrated, breakable seal

that locks air in the lower section while the upper section
is run and lled with uid. After the casing is landed, surface pressure is increased to fragment the disc, leaving
an unrestricted casing bore. Seal fragments are collected
by the AirLock debris trap, and cementing operations
proceed as usual.

The simple and passive AirLock system consists of only

two components: a seal collar installed in the casing
string just above the lateral section and a debris-trap
collar installed just above the oat shoe. Both collars
are made up in the casing string during run-in. The seal

The AirLock seal is a dome-shaped,

ceramic barrier that fractures at a
predetermined differential pressure,
leaving an unrestricted wellbore.

54% reduction in lateral casing weight and drag forces

Casing weight in air
Casing weight in water
Casing weight with AirLock

11.9 lb/ft (17.3 kg/m)

10.4 lb/ft (15.1 kg/m)
4.8 lb/ft (6.9 kg/m)

4.5-in (114.3-mm) casing, 4-in (101.6-mm) ID; fluid in lateral casing is air;
fluid in vertical casing and open hole is water.

The aluminum AirLock debris trap

ensures ample flow area for cementing,
while preventing seal fragments from
reaching the float valves.

CTE Industries Ltd.

245178th Avenue NW
Edmonton, Alberta T6P 1P6
1.780.485.8799
2013 NCS Energy Services, Inc.

Leave nothing behind.

AirLock is a trademark of NCS Energy Services. CTE Industries Ltd is a licensed distributor of the NCS AirLock system.