8TH INTERNATIONAL GEOMECHANICS SYMPOSIUM

COURSE: ROCK MECHANICS ASPECT OF SAND

CONTROL METHODS (MAY 6-MAY 7)

Place: Campus Universidad Industrial de Santander- Bucaramanga

(Colombia)
Course Investment: 225 USD
Symposium+Course Investment: 320 USD

By Nobuo Morita , Professor

Petroleum Engineering Department
Texas A&M University,
501P Richardson Building
Phone/Fax: 1-979-458-3273 nobuo.morita@tamu.edu
Content

0. General
0.1 Select of sand control methods judging from production rate, sand rate and fluid viscosity
0.2 Allowable sand rate
0.3 Applications of sand control methods vary between companies

1. Theory of sand production from oil/gas reservoirs

1.1 Linear elasticity

1.2 Finding analytical solutions useful for petroleum engineers
1.3 Application of the linear elasticity to TWC test for predicting the onset of sand production
1.4 A quick method to determine subsidence, reservoir compaction and in-situ stress change
during reservoir depletion
1.5 Fundamental equations and solutions for non-linear plasticity

2. Basics of sand production mechanism

2.1 Allowable sand production in various fields
2.2 Five conditions to induce sand production
2.3 Rock failure (tensile failure vs shear failure)
2.4 Sand arch effect for failed unconsolidated sandstone
2.5 Sand particle transport
2.6 Sand production change during a reservoir life -- cavity evolution, well inclination, reservoir
depletion, cyclic loading, water break-through
2.7 Field and laboratory observations of post-failure stabilizations during sand production
2.8 Typical sand production observed in the field

3. Evaluation tools of predicting onset of sand production and sand rate

3.1 Onset of sand production prediction methods
3.2 Development of a portable UCS tester
3.3 In-situ rock strength evaluation using neural network
3.4 TWC and Triaxial Perforation Stability tester
3.5 Demonstration of Sand3d/Window version

4. Downhole completion methods for weak formation

4.1 Gravel pack (openhole and cased hole)
4.1a Equipments for gravel packing
4.1b Selection between openhole and cased hole gravel packs
4.1c Skin damage induced during gravel packing due to perforation stability
4.1d Proper under-balance and after-flow
4.1e One trip gravel packing
4.1f Gravel size
4.2 Five types of fracture packs
3.2a Service company’s mistake
3.2b Flow efficiency
4.3 Selective perforation
4.3a Formation strength analysis
4.3b Flow performance due to partial perforation
4.3c Perforation design to minimize sand problems
4.3d Operational considerations to minimize sand problems
4.4 Openhole completion with a compartmentalized pre-packed liner
4.4a Requirements
4.4b Sand control packers
4.5 Openhole completion methods
4.5a Merits for applying to inclined/horizontal wells
4.5b Perforated liners, pre-pack liners, screens and slotted slotted liners
4.5c Strength
4.5d Openhole stability
4.5e Installing an enlarged pre-pack liner
4.5f Pre-pack linear with perforated liner protection (Texaco’s method)
4.5g Compartmentalize with sand-control packers
4.6 Expandable sand screen
4.7 No sand control: a good option for some special cases
4.8 Oriented perforation
4.9 Resin treatment (strength gained with resin)
4.10 Skin factors of popular completion methods from literatures
4.11 Downhole sand separator up to 5-10 tons of sand
4. 12Sand rate monitoring to prevent erosion
4.13 Sand rate measurement methods
4.14 Erosion control

5. Field examples of sand control project

Case1 Medium rate gas reservoir – V-fields
Case 2 High rate gas/condensate reservoir (200-400mmscfd/well)
Case 3 Water-Injection (Oil)
Case 4 CHOPS- Alaska