Wireline Operations

Tools & Equipment

 Introduction
Wireline Operations
The use of wireline in dowdnhole oilfield
operations began with cable tool rigs in the early
days of the oil industry. The wireline on the rig was
used to drill (with the cable tool assemblies) and to
also place and retrieve other simple tools.
Downhole tools began developing in the 1930s with
the advent of the first wireline replaced gas lift
valve. Twenty years later, dual completions became
popular and a multitude of tools were developed for
use in wireline operations.
 There are three types of wireline currently in
operation: slickline (a single-strand piano wire),
braided line, and braided lines with insulated
electrical conductors (electric logging line).

As shown in the following data, wireline

strength depends on thickness; all these
specifications are for “bright plow steel” wire.
 The most popular slick lines have diameters of
0.092 and 0.125 in. The 0.108 line is stronger but is
more affected by wellhead pressure. The wellhead
pressure creates an upward force or a resistance that
acts on the cross-section of the wireline. Added
weights or sinker bars are necessary for increasing
wireline diameters and increasing well pressure.

When diameters larger than 0.108 in. are

necessary, a braided line is commonly used. Various
sizes of the braided wireline are available, with the
most common sizes being 1/8 in., 9/64 in. and 3/16
in. Increasing the size of the wire increases the need
for larger surface equipment, and this increases the
cost.
Running speeds for the wire line depends on hole
condition and size, the type of tools being run and
the familiarity of the operator with the well. Normal
running speeds vary from less than 100 ft/minute up
to 1000 ft/minute. As the tool string nears restrictions
such as nipples, the line speed is reduced to a few
feet per minute.
Units & Tools
 Stuffing Box,
10” or 16”
sheaves
Surface Wireline Equipment:

Lubricator, 4’ or 6’
4 ½”, 3 ½”, 2 7/8”

Blow Out Preventor

(BOP)

Pump Sub

Adaptor
 Wellhead Adapters
 It used to connect the bottom of the BOP to the
top tree connections, there are two types
threaded connection and flanged connection.

flanged threaded
Adaptor Adaptor
 Pump Sub
It used below the BOP to test the
BOP or lubricator, chemical injection, or
bleed off.
 Blow Out Preventor (BOP)
The valve has pressure seal rams which are
designed to close quickly to seal around the
wireline without damage to the line.
Outer seal
Wireline
guide

Ram block

Inner seal
 Lubricator Assemblies
Allow the running and removal of the wireline
service tools from a well without having to kill it. The
wellhead adapter and BOP are attached to the top of
the well head, the wireline stuffing box and lubricator
sections with the wireline tool string inside, and then
it raised using the mast and attached to the top of
BOP, the lubricator’s component connected using
quick union which hard to loosen when the pressure
inside the lubricator. The Bop is opened slowly to
allow well pressure inside the lubricator, when the
operation complete, the BOP closed and bleed off
valves (in the lubricator) are opened to remove well
pressure from the lubricator.
 Stuffing Box
A ten-inch sheave is standard for
0.082 and 0.092 inch O.D. solid
wireline. A sixteen-inch sheaves is
used with heavy duty 0.105, 0.108,
and 0.125 inch O.D. wireline for longer
wireline life due to less fatigue. There
is another types of the stuffing box is
hydraulic stuffing box.
Seal
assembly
Wireline
plunger
 Subsurface Wireline Equipment:
 Rope Socket
 It provides a means for connecting the wireline
to the tool string. It is freely to rotate inside the
rope socket to provide a swivel connection
between the wireline and tools below the socket.
The connection point of the wireline to the tool
begins at the rope socket. The wire passes
through a "fishing neck" and into a cavity where
it is secured by circling a spool and then
wrapping around itself.
 The fishing neck is simply a device that allows an
overshot (a catch tool) to slip over the neck.
 The fishing neck is a part of almost all downhole
tools.
 Stem bars
It is used to overcome stuffing box packing
friction, and well pressure on the cross sectional
area of the wireline. Stem can also transmit force
either upward or downward to set or retrieve
subsurface controls. Size and weight of the stem
are determined by the impact force required and
the size of the subsurface control to be pulled or
run. For normal conditions five feet of 1 ½ inches
O.D. stem is used, made by combining two, three,
or five foot lengths of standard stem. For high
pressure applications use lead or Mallory stems.
 Roller stem
It’s like a stem but with rollers, it’s
used in the high deviated well to make the
wireline string pass easily through the
angle.
 Jars
There are five types of jars mechanical (spang) ,
hydraulic jars, spring jar, tubular jar, and knuckle jar,
the mechanical jars is set below the stem (if there is
no hydraulic jar), the weight of the jars and stem can
be used to jar up or down by pulling and then
releasing the wireline. Hydraulic jars are designed to
provide jarring action in wells where it’s difficult to
obtain good jarring action with mechanical jars, it
allow upward impact only, it run above the
mechanical jar. In small depths hydraulic jars will not
be used (to avoid the jumping of the tool to the well
head and also it permits hand jarring).
The other type used in case of fishing jobs,
Tubular Jar, is the same of mechanical jar but with
outside body to protect the wire to be around the jar.
Mechanical Jar Tubular Jar Hydraulic Jar
 Knuckle joint
It allows angular (as max. 15°) and rotating
movement between the mechanical jar and the rest
of the string.
 Crossover subs
It’s used to connect different sizes
of subsurface controls or different types
of thread (normal thread or quick lock).
 Blind box
It serves as the impact point
when downward jarring operations
are required (as hammer).
 Gauge cutter
It’s a tool with sharp edge to: (1)
determine if control will pass freely
through the tubing, (2) to locate the
top of the landing nipple if any are in
the tubing. The gauge cutter knife is
designed to cut away paraffin, scale
and other debris in the tubing.
 Long gauge cutter
The same of gauge cutter but with long body, it’s
used to clean above the subsurface safety valve
before the exercise job or any job done for the
subsurface safety valve.
 Swaging tool
It used to remove mashed spots in
the tubing and large obstructions, it also
may be used to get top of sand (Tag
sand).
 Impression block
It’s a lead-filled cylinder (L.I.M) with
a pin through the leaded section to
secure it to the body of the tool. It’s used
during the fishing operation to obtain an
imprint (the shape or size) of the top of
the fish and to indicate the type of the
tool necessary for the next operation.
 Sample bailers
Bailers are hollow body chambers
with a check valve (ball valve) that can
be used to carry cement into a well or
retrieve samples or debris from a well.
 Gauge cutter sample
The same of gauge cutter but with plugged end
and scratched to get sample from hard scale or
paraffin which formed on the inside pipe wall.
 Kick Over Tool
There are two types (OM1 &
OM5), these tools are used to set or
retrieve gas lift valve from its
mandrel with conjunction to JDC or
RK.
 Exercise Tool
It’s a tool using in exercise job with conjunction
to bar and NO GO, to make the SSSV work probably
and remove its stuck. The shear pin sheared by
jarring up.
 Scratcher
It’s used to clean the tubing
walls from scale or paraffin.
 Some of Fishing Tool:

 Wireline grab
It’s a fishing tool designed to
extract broken wireline or cable from
the tubing or casing.
 Go-devil
It’s a slotted stem having a fishing
neck. A small strip of metal is pinned in
the slot to inhibit the wireline from
coming out. It has a sharp end to cut the
wireline at the wireline socket.
 Wireline Finder
It’s used in fishing jobs, when the
wire is cut it’s used to gather the wire
in a small area to easy to fish using
wireline grab.
 Over Shot
It’s used to fish any downhole
control without fishing neck or external
fishing neck, using internal slips.
 Bulldog spear
It’s used to catch tubular sections
lost in the well bore or internal fishing
neck, using external slips.
 Running Tools
Running tools for internal fishing necks

 OTIS X-Running Tool

It is used to set Otis X, XN, R, and RN
lock mandrels in their respective Otis
landing nipples (X has 90º profile shape,
XN has 45º profile shape). These tools are
similar in design with nipple locator dogs
serving to locate the proper landing nipple
and positioning the lock mandrel prior to
locating and locking. It has selective
position to allow the lock pass through
more than one nipple to set in specific
nipple.
 It has 2 shear pins, the upper one is steel in
the body of the X-running tool which broke with
jarring down when the lock in its nipple depth then
dogs will be out and set in the nipple profile, the
lower shear pin is brass in the core of the X-
running tool which broke with jarring up but before
that wire will be tension to be sure that the dogs
has completely set in place (the weight in the
Martine Decker will rise more than the actual
weight) , if not jarring down again and jarring up
to free the X-running tool from the brass shear pin.
 Sure Set (X Lock Set Check)
It’s a tool used to be sure that the Otis lock has
been set in it’s place, using ¼ inch shear pin, with
jarring down if the lock is completely set then the
shear pin is sheared.
 Camco Z-6 Running tool
It’s used to run the lock of Camco in its profile,
it has 2 shear pins, the lower one is steel in the
body of the Z-6 tool which broke with jarring down
then the collet behind the dogs in the lock will move
and set the dogs in place, the upper one is brass
which connect the lock with a free ring in the Z-6
tool which broke with jarring up to make the running
tool free and pull it out from the hole. There is a
spring that gives sure that the lock is set or not, the
spring is in the free position during running in the
hole, after pulling from the hole note the spring, if
the spring is lower the free position then the lock is
unset, if it’s above the free position then the lock is
set.
Running tools for external fishing necks

 RK tool
It’s used to run the gas lift
valve to set in the mandrel,
using 2 shear pins (one steel
and one brass) holding the
fishing neck of the gas lift
valve.
 C Running Tool
It’s used to run the lock of Camco (CC lock), it
has two shear pins, the upper one is connect the
body of the running tool to the moving part of the
tool, the shear pin is sheared first by jarring down
then complete jarring down to set the dogs of the
lock by moving the collet behind the dogs (there is
NO. GO ring in the lock to locate the lock in its
profile), then check the set by tension, if set, then
jarring up to shear the lower shear pin which connect
the running tool to the lock and POOH.
 Pulling Tool
Pulling tools for internal fishing necks
 OTIS GS Pulling Tool
It is used during operation to unlock
and pull(or run) a variety of subsurface
controls with internal fishing necks of Otis
tool. Designed to shear with a jarring down
action (it has one shear pin, safety shear
pin, used when the control can’t be pulled
then it will be sheared then the collet will
be free and out from the control), this
pulling tool is utilized where excessive
jarring upward is necessary to retrieve
subsurface controls.
 OTIS GR Pulling Tool
It is the same use of GS, but it
can be free by jarring up using shear
up adapter(GU).
GU

GS
 Camco PRS pulling tool
It’s used to pull the DB-5 locks of
Camco; it moves the collet inside the
lock (the collet have different outside
diameter behind the dogs of the lock, it
changes the position of the dogs by
moving up and down using PRS). Incase
of BA6 SSSV prong will be used to keep
the flapper open during pulling the valve.
By jarring up dogs will be in the unset
position.
Pulling tools for external fishing necks

 Camco JD pulling tool

It’s used when upward action is
wanted to pull wireline controls, it may
be released with jarring down to shear
the releasing shear pin. (C or S, C this
mean capital core, S means small
core).
 Camco JU pulling tool
It’s used when downward action is
wanted to pull wireline controls, it may be
released with jarring up to shear the
releasing shear pin. (C or S, C this mean
capital core, S means small core).
 Otis S pulling tool
It’s used where extensive upward jarring
is required to pull a bottomhole control. It’s
designed to pull various subsurface flow
controls, stems, wireline rope sockets, choke
extractors, etc. it may be released with
downward jarring sufficient to shear the
releasing shear pin. (B or S, B this mean big
core, S means small core).
 Otis R pulling tool
This type has a set of three dogs
held in their engaged position against a
cylinder spring. This design permits a
gripping action to provide additional
strength throughout. These tools are
designed to be released by jarring
upward when necessary.
 Completion Accessories
 Subsurface safety valve.

 Expansion joint.

 Slide Side Door (SSD)

 Nipples.

 Packer.

 Tubing end.
 Subsurface Safety Valve

 Subsurface control subsurface safety valve

 Velocity type (depend on flow speed)

This type is normally opened, it used for

high volume wells.

 Tubing pressure type (Ambient)

This type is normally closed and recharged
with a set dome pressure.
 Surface control subsurface safety valve
 Permanent subsurface safety valve
Run with the completion, it has many
types showed later some self equalizing
and the other is non self equalizing.

 Retrievable subsurface safety valve

(Wireline insert) such as BA-6 which
run with DB-5 locks.
SSSV Type / Equalizing Nipple
TRDP - A Non-Self DB Camco
TRDP - ASSA Non-Self DB Camco
TRDP - A Self DB Camco
TRDP - E Self DB Camco
TRDP - AE Self DB Camco
TRDP - LE Self DB Camco
TRDP - FSR Self DB Camco
TRM - E Self DB Camco
S- Self X Otis
Well Star Self X Otis
TE - Self X Otis or B Baker
W -E Self QX Weatherford
TRM - H Non-Self X Otis

& / , / , / , / , BA- , OB-

 Expansion Joint

 It gives more flexibility for the completion up and down, and

avoid the effect of shrinkage and expansion of the completion
due to temperature.
 Slide Side Door (SSD)

To provide communication between annulus

and tubing also to make forward or reverse
circulation to control kick. It opened and closed
using B shifting tool.

SSD
B Shifting Tool
 Nipples and Locks

 Nipple: is a tool to receive any flow control device such

as plugs.
The nipple often has a special diameter or a
combination of grooves (called a profile) that will only
accept one type of plug. In wells using multiple nipple
installations, each nipple may be designed to receive a
particular mandrel or all nipples may be of the same
design. In the first case, the nipple is said to be profile
sensitive, and in the second case, the mandrel is profile
sensitive. Thus, several nipples may be placed at
different points in a string and, by selecting the right
plug, the operator can be very selective about where
the plug is set.
 At the end there is XN nipple which has NO.GO in
its design to catch the string when the wire is cut.

 One disadvantage of a nipple is that it is a likely place

for formation of scale or paraffin. If the profile
grooves are blocked by any type of deposit, the
mandrel cannot be set.
X Nipple (90° profile)
and its lock.

R Nipple (double 90°

profile) and its lock.
XN Nipple (45° profile)
and its lock.

RN Nipple (double 45°

profile) and its lock.
 Plugs

 Plugs is a type of mechanical barriers which prevent the flow

of the fluid.
 It should be tested after setting in the direction of the flow.
 A pressure tight seal is provided by a packing element on the
plug and a polished bore in the nipple.
 It contains of two part, the lock and equalizing sub which is
plugged and it has equalizing ports to equalize the pressure
above and below the plug before retrieve to avoid the tool
jump, this equalizing is done using prong in one trip or two.
 XX plug
PXX plug
(with prong)

Equalizing
Sub
Thank You