StimGun sect 2 Intro 9/19/02 11:51 PM Page 14

Nitroglycerin and other

explosives came into general
use as stimulants in 1867 and
prevailed until the late 1940s
when explosive-based
stimulation was replaced by
hydraulic fracturing.
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Historical and technical perspectives
Joe Haney, HTH Technical Services, Inc.
John Schatz, John F. Schatz Research & Consulting, Inc.
R apid energy-release stimulation of oil and gas
wells commenced nearly 150 years ago. In
1860, a black powder “torpedo,” a 3 ft (0.9 m)
length of 2 in. (50.8 mm) copper tubing filled with
rifle powder, was first used successfully to stimulate
an oil well.
Nitroglycerin and other explosives came into
general use as stimulants in 1867 and prevailed
until the late 1940s when explosive-based stimula-
tion was replaced by hydraulic fracturing.
Solid propellants were introduced in the 1970s
and are the basis of modern propellant technolo-
gy for oil field use. The performance and success
rate of the initially slow burning cylindrical tool
with a top-to-bottom ignition system was an
improvement but still marginal by today’s stan-
dards and requirements. In successive years, con-
siderable research, development, improved engi-
neering design, and testing have been applied to
solid propellant technology in order to enhance
its stimulation effectiveness.
The latest steps forward, enabled by the com-
mercialization of high-speed downhole data
recorders, more sophisticated computer modeling,
and newer tool designs, have been made by the
Propellant Technology Development Group. This
recent work has resulted in three distinct tool
designs now available and in use:
✳ Well Stimulation Tool
✳ StimGun™ assembly
✳ StimTube™ tool
The successes of modern
oil-field propellant technology
developed by this group are due to:
✳ An integrated science and engineering
package
✳ New propellant tool designs
✳ High-speed data acquisition
✳ Computer modeling
✳ Data analysis and job optimization
✳ Extensive field experience
B a c k g r o u n d
Well Stimulation Tool (WST)
The WST is used primarily to stimulate: perforat-
ed cased intervals, open hole and long intervals in
horizontal wells. It is a cast cylindrical rod of pro-
pellant with a full length central ignition system.
The ignition system has been improved to increase
the tool’s reliability, burn rate, and reproducibility.
Although these steps have enhanced WST per-
formance and reliability, its use is somewhat limit-
ed by its design.
In cased wells, the interval must be perforated
prior to running the WST. This two-run require-
ment is less economical and not always physically
possible. Another consideration is that the tool
must be depth-correlated with the existing perfo-
rations. This is rarely a problem, but warrants
mentioning.
The WST requires an external steel, supporting
carrier similar in appearance to a perforating gun.
The carrier’s outside diameter sometimes prevents
WST use in wells with inside diameter restrictions.
Nevertheless, the WST remains an attractive
choice for many previously perforated wells and
open hole intervals.
StimGun™ assembly
The WST two-run requirement, mentioned
above, pointed out the need for a combined perfo-
rating gun/propellant stimulation tool and prompt-
ed the formation of the Propellant Technology
Development Group. In 1996, this group proposed
a new design comprised of a propellant sleeve
placed over the outside of the perforating gun. The
propellant sleeve is ignited by the perforating
charge; as the propellant sleeve burns energetic
gases are released.
The group conducted extensive field tests of dif-
ferent sleeve designs to optimize the ignition and
burn rate of this new StimGun™ assembly. The col-
lection and interpretation of the down-hole, high-
speed pressure data were essential in the optimiza-
tion. Computer modeling demonstrated that com-
bining propellant stimulation with the perforating
in one run resulted in a more efficient stimulation
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as compared to the two-run perforating gun/WST liquid in the well to penetrate the perforations (perfs)
combination. This new design was subsequently and cause breakdown with fracture propagation into
patented, trademarked, and is now in worldwide com- the formation. It also causes the liquid to compress
mercial use. and move upward and downward in the well.

StimTube™ tool Perforation breakdown and tortuosity

When run without its required protective steel carrier, reduction
the WST failure rate is unacceptably high because of its Perforating guns release energy in microseconds
mechanical weakness. Work to strengthen the WST led (1/1,000,000 of a second), the gas energy from pro-
to the concept and testing of a tool with an endoskele- pellant burn releases in tens to hundreds of a millisec-
ton, or central steel mini-perforated strengthening tube onds (1/1000 of a second), and hydraulic fracturing
which also contains the igniter. This design together stimulations expend energy over many minutes. A pro-
with a modified propellant type increases the maxi- pellant is therefore “intermediate” to the other meth-
mum temperature rating and enhances the burn rate. ods in its energy release rate.
In addition to through-tube applications, the Figure 2 (a, b, c) shows laboratory test results and
StimTube™ tool, because of reduced equipment require- typical pressure-time records for (a) explosive events,
ments, is an excellent replacement for the WST for full (b) propellant events, (c) hydraulic fracture events.
inner diameter (ID), cased well stimulations. ✳ Explosive events, such as perforating, create very
The StimTube™ tool, both patented and trademarked, high pressures, necessary to penetrate the well
is the Propellant Technology Development Group’s casing, that also crush and damage the rock.
newest product, and has shown good success since its ✳ Propellant events rapidly exceed the fracture
introduction. pressure of the rock and maintain the pressure but
Propellant stimulation technology and do not crush the rock.
dynamic fracturing ✳ Hydraulic fracture events balance the driving
The burn of a propellant in a well is a rapid oxida- pressure and the fracture pressure.
tion reaction causing the release of gaseous energy as As a result, propellants pressurize and break down
shown in Figure 1. This gaseous energy mixes with the many perforations along a significant proportion of
their length; while a hydraulic fracture, entering only
the path energetically allowed, breaks down only a
small subset of perforations. These breakdowns may
Wellbore
Tamping interior be very near to the sand face or in a micro annulus.
liquid
Fracture propagation and orientation
Fluid motion
Expanding in well Propellant-driven fractures originating at the perfo-
gasified
bubble
ration tunnels will then move (propagate) into the
formation from a few feet to a few tens of feet, as
Propellant shown schematically in Figure 1 and in the scaled lab-
energy Flow through
source perforations and oratory simulation of Figure 3. The high pressure
into fracture
gas/fluid pulse generated by the burning of the pro-
(Two fractures pellant temporarily creates local stress concentrations
shown)
High-speed that are two to three times the normal fracture gradi-
recorder
ent. These stresses are oriented on a plane through
the axis of the wellbore/perforation tunnels.
Propellant-driven fractures will always tend to initiate
in the plane of the axis of the wellbore. This is true
whether the well is vertical or deviated, no matter
what the depth of the well. Contrarily, hydraulic frac-
tures only will initiate in the in-situ stress preferred
Figure 1 – Representation of the release of gaseous propel-
lant energy and its exit from the wellbore into the formation. plane in deeper vertical wells (Figure 5a). For wells in
the depth range of 500 to 2000 ft (152 to 609.6 m)

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B a c k g r o u n d

Explosive event

~>105 psi
Rock Crushing

P Fracturing

Time – Microseconds
(a) Laboratory explosive test Pressure vs. time for typical explosive event.

Propellant event

~>104 psi

P P
Fracturing

Time – Milliseconds
(b) Laboratory propellant test. Pressure vs. time for typical propellant event.

Gas/liquid event

~>103 psi

Fracturing

Time – Seconds
(c) Laboratory hydraulic fracture test. Pressure vs. time for typical hydraulic fracturing.

Figure 2 – Laboratory test results and typical pressure-time records for explosive, propellant, and hydraulic fracture
events.

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Figure 3 – Propellant stimulation with 90° perforation phasing (Laboratory Scale).

Figure 4 – Perforation erosion caused by propellant gas energy (Large Block Surface Test)

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B a c k g r o u n d

(depending on local conditions) and in highly devi-
ated wells, hydraulic fractures will tend to be out
of the plane of the wellbore axis (Figure 5b).
Propellant-driven fractures will tend to curve back
into the in-situ stress preferred direction, but gen-
erally propagation is finished before much of the
curvature occurs. Because late-time propellant-
driven fracture propagation is ultimately controlled
by in-situ stress, the longest propellant fractures
tend to be bi-wings and in the plane nearest the
in-situ stress preferred plane, although shorter
fractures will occur in the other planes.
Near-wellbore stimulation
Propellant-driven fractures will not contain
proppant in the formal sense, but will retain
some aperture due to erosion, ablation, debris,
and closure misalignment caused by shear as
shown in Figure 4 from a surface field test.
Although these fractures cannot compete with
long propped hydraulic fractures in absolute con-
ductivity values, they can penetrate near-well-
bore damage, reducing skin and mildly stimulat-
ing wells. They can also act as effective pre-
hydraulic frac treatments, reducing breakdown
pressure and improving proppant placement.
Propellants can be used economically to
improve well productivity or injectivity. They are
not meant to be replacements for other processes
such as hydraulic fracturing, but they can be
excellent solutions or solution enhancements in
many situations to perforating limitations, near
wellbore damage, or reservoir problems that
restrict well potential.

a b

Figure 5 – (a) Initial orientation of propellant-driven fractures in all wells and hydraulic fractures in deeper vertical
wells. (b) Orientation of hydraulic fractures in shallower wells and some deviated wells.

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