SocIety of Petroleum Engineers

SPE26704

The First Successful Downhole Barium Sulphate Scale Dissolving

Operation
Hans de Vries* and Fabrice Arnaud, Total Oil Marine pic
'SPE Member

Copyright 1993, Society of Petroleum Engineers, Inc.

This paper was prepared for presentation at the Offshore European Conference held in Aberdeen, 7-10 September 1993.

This paper was selected for presentation by an SPE Program Committee following review of information contained in an abstract submitted by the author(s).Contents of the paper,
as presented, have not been reviewed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers and are SUbject to correction by the author(s). The material, as presented, does not necessarily reflect
. any position of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, its officers, or members. Papers presented at SPE meetings are subject to publication review by Editorial Committees of the Society
of Petroleum Engineers. Permission to copy Is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 words. Illustrations may not be copied. The abstract should contain conspicuous acknowledgment
of where and by whom the paper Is presented. Write Librarian, SPE, P.O. Box 833836, Richardson, TX 75063-3636, U.S.A. Telex 163245 SPEUT.

ABSTRACT
During the preparation for the summer shut-down in
An industry first was achieved by successfully the beginning of June 1992, it was found that the TR-
dissolving 200 kg of barium sulphate scale from the SSSV would not close. After several attempts it was
upper part of the tubing in a well on the Alwyn North decided to set a wireline plug in the wireline insert
field in the North Sea. This well experienced rapid and safety valve nipple. However, it was not possible to
very severe sulphate scale build-up resulting in the set the plug in the nipple. When back on surface, large
tubing retrievable safety valve being stuck in the open scale deposits were found inside the plug body. The
position. A new scale dissolver was used for the first Xmas tree was also found to be lined with a 1/4" layer
time in this operation and successfully removed enough of scale. Laboratory analysis of the scale showed it to
scale to reinstate the well. A full workover was be of the following composition:
prevented with a total cost saving of about £1 million.
76 % Barium Sulphate
This paper describes the well history, the investigation, 13 % Strontium Sulphate
the scale removal alternatives and the laboratory tests 5.2 % Calcium Sulphate
performed on the scale dissolver. It discusses the Trace Calcium Carbonate
operation design, the operation itself and the scale
dissolving results and concludes with a description of For removal purposes this is one of the 'worst' scale
the wireline re-instatement operations. It also compositions possible.
highlights the continuous advancement in success and
capability of the through tubing workover. INVESTIGATION

INTRODUCTION Since the upper and lower master valves of the Xmas
were passing and a wireline plug could not be set, the
Well N5 on the North Alwyn platform was drilled and well was killed before any further investigation took
completed in 1987. The well is an oil producer, place. Accurate measurements of the control line
producing from the Brent North West reservoir. volumes (pumped volume and returns) and the
During February 1992 seawater breakthrough occurred indications of the 'tlapper positioning tool' run on
and the watercut increased from 5 % to 65 %. A wireline, confirmed that the flapper and/or the flow
standard scale inhibitor squeeze was performed in the tube of the tubing retrievable sub-surface safety valve
following month and since no production decline was (fR-SSSV) was stuck in the fully open position.
noticed further action was not deemed necessary.

285
2 THE FIRST SUCCESSFUL DOWNHOLE SPE 26704
BARIUM SULPHATE SCALE DISSOLVING OPERATION

A calliper log was run from the Xmas tree to the much greater speed of reaction resulting in a dissolving
tailpipe. This log clearly showed the severity of the efficiency of over 30 times that of EDTA.
scale build-up which is along the whole length of the
tubing and ranges from 0.08" to 0.2" thick. Due to the
construction of the TR-SSSV (the valve is a sideguard RELATIVE EFFICIENCY OF 'X' & EDTA
Dissolving barium sulphate
valve with aside pocket mandrel) any build-up in the (AR gradal
safety valve is impossible to measure. However the
gamma-ray readings across the safety valve are above
~ID
'KXl
I. ox D EDTA I
1000 API indicating severe sulphate scale build-up. ~ID
The gamma-ray readings also show small peaks which ~iO
a:
correspond to the casing collars indicating a build-up of wID

scale in the tubing joints. ~ID

There are in principle two methods for sulphate scale
removal; one is mechanical and the other is the
chemical method.
Mechanical scale removal can either be achieved by
pulling the production tubing (workover by rig
intervention) or by milling / under-reaming performed
with coiled tubing or a 'snubbing' unit (through tubing
workover). The rig workover is a successful but very
expensive option. Milling scale with coiled tubing is a
relatively quick and cheap way of cleaning-up tubing.
Cleaning-up a TR-SSSV , especially a side pocket
valve, with a mill or under-reamer is impossible.
The removal of sulphate scale by chemical means has
in the past met with only very limited success despite
the numerous chemicals tried. Sulphate scale is
insoluble in acids and has a very poor solubility in
solutions of strong complexing compounds such as
EDTA. Up-till now it has been taken for granted that
no chemical exists which can successfully dissolve
sulphate scale in 'commercial' quantities.
A new sulphate scale dissolver manufactured by a
Aberdeen company was claimed to be able to dissolve
up to 10 percent weight/volume of sulphate scale.
Since, apart from a full workover, there were no other
alternatives, tests were initiated to verify the
effectiveness of this scale dissolver.
(/l
w40
"
~:D
~Z)
ffi 10
l1.
0
0 234 6 6 7 8 9 10 n U
TIM E I Hoursl
Figure 1 - Relative Efficiency of x'
Several tests were performed on actual scale samples
retrieved from the well. These tests were designed to
simulate downhole volume to surface area conditions
and to determine the volume of the dissolver and the
soak period required to bring about removal of scale
under a range of temperatures. The results showed that
the dissolver 'X' can dissolve up to 100 grams of
sulphate scale per litre or 10 percent weight/volume.
The time it takes to reach saturation under static
conditions and a constant volume to surface-area ratio
is governed by the temperature. At 800 C the dissolver
reached saturation after about 2 hours whilst at 400 C it
took 8-10 hours. Even at 2()O C 'X' dissolved all the
scale but dissolution took place over a period of 72
hours (see figure 2). As with most chemicals, agitation
will increase the speed of the reaction.
DISSOLUTION OF FIELD SULPHATE SCALE
AS A FUNCTION OF TEMPERATURE
10% w/v scale/'X'

SCALE DISSOLVER 'X'

--"-" -"- ..
The composition of the scale dissolver 'X' is unknown,
it is described by the manufactures as a chelating agent
in alkaline aqueous solution. It is a colourless and
odourless liquid and is classified as a mild irritant.
8 8 10 11 12

A test was performed to measure the effectiveness of

the dissolver 'X' compared with EDTA. The results of 1-,,-, 20 C -.-.- 40 C······· 60 C ---- 80 C -100 C I
this experiment, shown in Figure 1, reveal that 'X'
dissolves much more barium sulphate scale and has a Figure 2 - Temperature Dependency of x'

286
SPE 26704 H. DE VRIES, F. ARNAUD
Based on the results from the calliper log it was
estimated that the total scale build up from the SSSV to
the Xmas tree was about 140 kg. From the results of
the laboratory tests it was calculated that a minimum of
2000 litres of the dissolver 'X' would be required to
dissolve all the.scale present.
Tests were also carried out to measure the corrosivity
of the dissolver. The results showed that 'X' has a
corrosion rate similar to that of seawater. Tests on a
viton seal from the TR-SSSV showed that no swelling
occurred after an incubation period of 24 hours at 800
C.
Based on these laboratory test results it was decided to
use the dissolver 'X' in an attempt to dissolve the scale
and to bring the well backon production.
SCALE DISSOLVING OPERATION
Due to the ongoing drilling operations, the remedial
operations on the well had to be prioritised. It was
decided to limit the initial scale removal operation to
the re-instatement of the TR-SSSV, the clean-up of the
wireline insert safety valve nipple and the clean-up of
the back pressure valve nipple profile.
As described above, the dissolver 'X' is very effective
at reservoir temperatures. Unfortunately in this case
the TR-SSSV is situated in probably the coldest section
of the completion. The temperature at the safety valve
during shut-in conditions is likely to be ambient or
even less. For this reason it was decided to utilise
coiled tubing and to create a circulation loop. By
designing the operation in this way several parameters
could be optimised and also additional benefits were
created Le. the dissolver could be maintained at a
suitable operating temperature, agitation was achieved
at all times, return samples could be taken to monitor
the amount of scale dissolved and also the scale
deposits on the production tubing and Xmas tree should
be dissolved.
A flow diagram of the hook-up is presented if Figure 3.
Since the perforations were not mechanically isolated
(the well was only hydrostatically killed) the returns
from the well could not be taken in an open tank. To
that effect a surge tank, with the associated vent and
relief lines, was incorporated in the tlow loop.
The circulation path of the dissolver was as follows;
from the surge tank the dissolver was going to the
pump from where it was pumped through the heat
287
3
FlARE 800M ---.
_..,...--------jrl....J I
GAS OUTLET
I
].= ,....---'-""'" '1iN
RELlEI' LINE
SURGE
TANK
'"'_.
- FLUID OUTLET
HEAT .... FLUtD
EXCHANGER 1-4----1
Figure 3 - Offshore Hook-up Diagram
exchanger in the coiled tubing and into the well. To
reduce the amount of chemical required a short coiled
tubing string (1200 ft) was used. The returns were
taken from the riser outlet between the BOP rams
through the clean-up choke manifold and back into the
surge tank.
Several safety systems were incorporated in the hook-
up. A high pressure pilot from the surge tank, set at
25 psi, would close a safety valve upstream of the
surge tank and thus protect the surge tank from any
over pressure. The same pilot would also shut-down
the pump. The surge tank was also equipped with a
pressure relief valve set at 50 psi, which would blow
down the surge tank through a dedicated relief line. A
pressure relief valve set at 4800 psi on the pump was
protecting the high pressure pipe work.
After completing the rig up- and pressure testing, the
coiled tubing was run in hole to 310 m. A 2 bbl XCD
viscous polymer plug was spotted to separate the kill
fluid from the dissolver. The coiled tubing was pulled-
up to 275 m (15 m below the SSSV) and 15 bbl's of
fresh water was pumped to ascertain that circulation
could be achieved. The kill brine was displaced with a
2 bbl XCD pill followed by 10 bbl's fresh water
followed by a 2 bbl XCD pill with dye added. This
was followed by 32 bbl's of the dissolver 'X'. The
fresh water and the two XCD pills were dumped
overboard through the flare boom. The dye was added
to the last XCD pill to obtain a visual indication of
when· the dissolver returns were on surface. The
dissolver was routed to the surge tank.
4 THE FIRST SUCCESSFUL DOWNHOLE
BARIUM SULPHATE SCALE DISSOLVING OPERATION
During the displacement of the kill brine and the
pumping of the dissolver it was noted that there were
losses downhole. After pumping all the dissolver (32
bbl's) the surface volume was less than 1 bbl. Since
the hole volume was only 20 bbl's and the pipe work
volume was less than 2 bbl's, it meant that 10 bbl's of
the dissolver was lost downhole. The reasons for the
losses are not clear. The kill brine had a density of
1.37 SG while the dissolver 'X' has a density of 1.25
SG, which should result in a reduced hydrostatic head
during the" scale removal operation. The ECD was kept
to a minimum by circulating with a low rate (0.5 BPM)
and by keeping a back pressure of only 5 psi.
However, losses were experienced during the whole
operation and averaged at about 1 bbl per hour.
Even by using the surge tank drain outlet as the
circulating outlet, the minimum level needed in the
surge tank for circulating was 2 bbl's. To maintain this
minimum level, fresh water was added to the dissolver.
A total of 19 bbl's of fresh water was added to the
dissolver during the whole operation.
The temperature achieved during circulating was about
700 C. As can be seen in Figure 4, the temperature
profile was not a smooth curve. This was due to, as
described above, the necessity of adding cold water to
the circulating stream.
TEMPERATURE & WATER ADDED
vs TI ME
III
;0
:i lll
~ -
Temperature
~
~~B)
=>0
S~4)
~ffi:D
~~ Cum. Water
...;:: ;p
o Addedl~~_-r~_--
o6-<~--<>-I<>--IO---O)--<>---i>---o--If--<X>-!<IJ""",,_~-o--i
Qm 2m 4m am 9.CXl 1Q(X) 12.00
TIME (Hourol
Figure 4 - Temperature & Amount of Water Added
Samples were taken at regular intervals to monitor the
effectiveness of the dissolver and also to be able to
determine when the dissolver reached its saturation
point or when all the scale had been dissolved. The
field test consisted of an adapted sulphate detection
procedure utilising a standard "Hach kit". Due to the
dilution of the dissolver during the operation, it was
SPE26704
difficult to obtain stable readings regarding the amount
of scale dissolved. When after a 4 hour period,
without a requirement for adding any water, four
readings were obtained which showed no increase in
the amount of scale dissolved, it was decided to cease
the dissolving operation.
Pulling out of hole with the coiled tubing was
performed at a low speed of 10 ftlmin while pumping
at 1.5 BPM. A spinning jetting nozzle, which was
included in the BHA, was used in an attempt to jet the
remaining, if any, scale of the tubing wall. The jetting
nozzle was reciprocated sev"eral times across the TR-
SSSV and the tubing hanger/Xmas tree.
It was" originally planned to displace the dissolver to
kill brine upon completion of the operation. Since"
there were constant losses down:..hole i.e. the formation
was taking fluids due to a too high hydrostatic head, it
was decided to leave the dissolver in the well.
SCALE DISSOLVING RESULTS
As mentioned in the previous section, samples of the
dissolver were taken at regular intervals. A field test
was used to estimate the amount of scale dissolved.
Upon completion of the operation, all the samples were
sent to a third party laboratory for analysis by
Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission Spectrometry of
the Calcium, Strontium, Barium, Potassium and
Sulphur contents. Both results are plotted in Figure 5.
DISSOLVED SCALE CONCENTRATION
Field Test vs Lab Test
14m lam 18.m :D.m
--FIELD TEST
--LAB TEST
oI-........{....----<>----+----+--+--+----=:::;::::==:::;:==:;::::::
QCX) 2(1) 4"<Xl 6CO a<Xl 1QQ) 12(1) 14<0 l6CO la<Xl
TIME (Hour.1
Figure 5 - Results q{Sample Analysis
As can be seen from Figure 5, the field test results are
fairly close to the laboratory results. The accuracy of
both test results is difficult to establish. The field test
is a purely visual test, while the lab test is very
288
SPE 26704 H. DE VRIES, F. ARNAUD 5

accurate but had to be performed at a high dilution. amount of scale dissolved (200 kg) is more than the
The results do not exhibit a smooth curve, this is due scale build-up indicated by the calliper log (140 kg).
to the regular addition of water to the dissolver. One of the reasons for this could be the scale build-up
in the Xmas tree cavities.

DISSOLVER CONCENTRATION
SCALE REMOVAL
vs Time
~Theoretic.1

-+-Lab Taat

I
,,/- r- ' .......

/'
/
O+--t----+--+---t---+--+------t---+--~

Q(X) 200 4<Xl &.<Xl &.<Xl 1QOJ

TIME IHoura'
1200 14<Xl 1&.<Xl 1&.<Xl
o
Q(X)
lJ 1:!lJ 6:15 lQ10 l3ID 1&.<Xl
TIM E I Hour.)
Figure 6 - Dissolver Concentration
Figure 7 - Total Amount ofScale Dissolved
It can be clearly seen from Figure 6 that the dissolver
concentration as measured by the "lab from the samples To be able to establish the efficiency of the dissolver,
do not correspond to the calculated concentration based the lab measurements of the barium, strontium and
on the actual amount of water added to the dissolver calcium levels have been adjusted (using the lab
circulation stream. This indicates that there was poor measured dissolver concentrations) to a solution of 100
mixing of the dissolver and the water. The poor % dissolver. The individual scale levels were then
mixing should not had any effect on the operation but it added together to obtain the efficiency of the dissolver
does complicate the analysis of the test results. 'X' as a neat chemical. The results are shown in
Figure 8.
The total amount of scale dissolved is presented in
Figure 7. The dissolver concentration was calculated
using the lab measurements. The barium, strontium DISSOLUTION OF TOTAL SCALE
and the calcium sulphate levels from the lab 100% Dissolver 'X'

measurements were adjusted to levels found if the

dissolver and the added fresh water were completely
mixed. Since the dissolver lost to the formation also
contained a certain amount of dissolved scale, the
calculation of the total amount of scale dissolved was ,..
performed by an iterative process. If a constant :/
circulating volume is presumed, every time water was
=t~~~~':::::=::t::=::~:;:ta~ : : :
added the same amount of fluid was lost to the O~~==~=------+--~;"-'---+---+---+--------+-­
formation. The amount of dissolved scale in this Q(X) 200 4<Xl &.<Xl &.<Xl 1QOJ 1200 14<Xl 1&.<Xl 1&.<Xl
TIME IHoura)
volume lost to the formation was calculated and the
cumulative amount of these was added to the amount of 1-+-8aS04 --SrS04 -+- CaS04 -+-TOTAL
SCALE
dissolved scale present in the circulating stream. This
method gives the most representative value of the total
Figure 8 - F;fficiency ofDissolver X'
amount of scale dissolved at each time.
As can be seen from Figure 8, the total amount of scale
The total amount of scale dissolved was about 200 kg.
dissolved in the dissolver is about 60 grams per litre.
Since not all the scale was removed from the well (see
It is interesting to note that maximum saturation of the
next section), it can be concluded that the dissolver was
dissolver occurred after 8 hours, much quicker than
saturated. This saturation level is slightly less than
estimated during the dissolving operation. The total

289
6 THE FIRST SUCCESSFUL DOWNHOLE
BARIUM SULPHATE SCALE DISSOLVING OPERATION
anticipated; a possible explanation is that the dilution
could have a negative effect on the efficiency. Unlike
many other chemicals the dissolver 'X' is to be used as
a neat chemical.
Overall it can be concluded that the dissolver 'X'
performed as anticipated and proved to be a very
efficient sulphate scale dissolver.
WELL RE-INSTATEMENT OPERATIONS
Upon completion of the dissolving operation, wireline
was rigged-up to investigate the results of the scale
dissolving operation. A control line test indicated that
the TR-SSSV was still not closing, which was
confirmed by a flapper positioning tool run on
wireline. The next run was to pull the seal and control
element ('brain') from the side-pocket of the TR-SSSY.
After several attempts to latch on, the 'brain' was
successfully pulled to surface. Inspection of the tishing
neck revealed a coating of scale, however the scale was
very soft and could be scraped away with a tingernail.
A new brain was set in the TR-SSSY and the flapper
positioning tool was run again which showed that the
safety valve still would not close. The next wireline
run was an attempt to set a plug in the wireline insert
safety valve nipple, however the plug could not be fully
set. A wire brush, run on wireline, was reciprocated
for 20 minutes across the nipple profile. The plug was
run again and this time was set and pressure tested
successfully.
After successfully setting and pressure testing a back
pressure valve in the tubing hanger, the leaking valves
in the Xmas tree were able to be repaired. A chemicals) came to a total cost of £65,000.
boroscope inspection was carried out on the Xmas tree
as part of the five yearly recertification programme.
This inspection revealed that scale was still present in
the Xmas tree, but that the build-up was very patchy
(some areas were totally clean). Since no boroscope
inspection was performed prior to the scale dissolving
operation it is very difficult to draw any conclusions,
although the calliper survey showed a uniform scale
build-up in the tubing. Upon completion of the Xmas
tree inspection and repair the back pressure valve and
wireline plug were pulled.
The next wireline operation was to pull the 'brain'
from the TR-SSSY. The 'brain' was replaced with a
Lock Open Tool (LOT). The LOT is located in the
same position in the side pocket of the TR-SSSY as the
'brain' but allows control line pressure to be directed to
the wireline insert valve nipple. After successful
SPE 26704
pressure testing of the LOT the burst disc in the insert
valve nipple was sheared allowing full control line
pressure communication. A wireline insert safety valve
was set and successfully passed all the pressure and
function tests.
The well was now fully reinstated and was opened to
production. A flow test was performed which indicated
that the well was flowing at the same rate as before and
did not suffer any damage during the whole operation.
CONCLUSION
Contrary to the previous accepted view, barium
sulphate scale can be successfully dissolved.
As described in this report 200 kg of sulphate scale has
•
been removed from a well by using a scale dissolver.
Not all the scale was removed from the well but this
can most likely be attributed to operational problems
(losses to the formation).
This report also clearly highlights that scale is still a
major problem in the oilfield. The speed and the
severity of the scale build-up in this well was a
surprise, even to the most experienced engineer.
This report also shows the ever increasing effectiveness
and efficiency of the through tubing workover. Apart
from the short lead time and the quick intervention, the
cost savings are substantial. A full workover would
have cost about £1 million excluding the cost for
decontamination of LSA scale from all the tubulars and
completion equipment. The whole scale dissolving
operation (including all equipment, personnel and
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors wish to thank the management of Elf
Exploration U.K. p.l.c. and Total Oil Marine p.l.c. for
permission to publish this paper.