Squeeze job

Last updated

Squeeze job, [1] or squeeze cementing is a term often used in the oilfield to describe the process of injecting cement slurry into a zone, generally for pressure-isolation purposes. [2]

Contents

Background

The term probably originated from the concept that enough water is "squeezed" out of the slurry to render it unflowable, so the portion that has actually entered the zone will stay in place when the squeeze pressure is released. After surface indications (e.g., pressure reaching a predetermined maximum) that a squeeze has been attained, any still-pumpable cement slurry remaining in the drill pipe or tubing ideally can be reverse circulated out before it sets.

Usually the zone to be squeezed is isolated from above with a packer (and possibly from below with a bridge plug), but sometimes the squeezing pressure is applied to the entire casing string in what is known as a bradenhead squeeze, [3] (named for an old manufacturer of casing heads).

Even if a drilling rig is on location, pumping operations usually are done by a service company's cementing unit that can easily mix small batches of cement slurry, measure displacement volume accurately to spot the slurry on bottom, then pump at very low rates and high pressures during the squeeze itself, and finally measure volumes accurately again when reversing out any excess slurry. A squeeze manifold is a compact arrangement of valves and pressure gauges that allows monitoring of the drill pipe and casing pressures throughout the job, and facilitates quick switching of the pumping pressure to either side while the fluid returning from the other side of well is directed to the mud pit or a disposal pit or tank.

The generic term "squeeze" also can apply to injection of generally small volumes of other liquids (e.g., treating fluids) into a zone under pressure. Bullhead squeeze (or just plain bullheading) refers to pumping kill-weight mud down the casing beneath closed blowout preventers in a kick-control situation when it isn't feasible to circulate in such from bottom.

See also

Related Research Articles

Oil well Well drilled to recover hydrocarbons

An oil well is a boring in the Earth that is designed to bring petroleum oil hydrocarbons to the surface. Usually some natural gas is released as associated petroleum gas along with the oil. A well that is designed to produce only gas may be termed a gas well. Wells are created by drilling down into an oil or gas reserve that is then mounted with an extraction device such as a pumpjack which allows extraction from the reserve. Creating the wells can be an expensive process, costing at least hundreds of thousands of dollars, and costing much more when in hard to reach areas, i.e. when creating offshore oil platforms. The process of modern drilling for wells first started in the 19th century, but was made more efficient with advances to oil drilling rigs during the 20th century.

Roughneck Term for a person whose job is hard labor

Roughneck is a term for a person whose occupation is hard manual labor. The term applies across a number of industries, but is most commonly associated with the workers on a drilling rig. The ideal of the hard-working, tough roughneck has been adopted by several sports teams who use the phrase as part of their name or logo.

Well logging, also known as borehole logging is the practice of making a detailed record of the geologic formations penetrated by a borehole. The log may be based either on visual inspection of samples brought to the surface or on physical measurements made by instruments lowered into the hole. Some types of geophysical well logs can be done during any phase of a well's history: drilling, completing, producing, or abandoning. Well logging is performed in boreholes drilled for the oil and gas, groundwater, mineral and geothermal exploration, as well as part of environmental and geotechnical studies.

A mud engineer works on an oil well or gas well drilling rig, and is responsible for ensuring the properties of the drilling fluid, also known as drilling mud, are within designed specifications.

Well control is the technique used in oil and gas operations such as drilling, well workover and well completion for maintaining the hydrostatic pressure and formation pressure to prevent the influx of formation fluids into the wellbore. This technique involves the estimation of formation fluid pressures, the strength of the subsurface formations and the use of casing and mud density to offset those pressures in a predictable fashion. Understanding pressure and pressure relationships is important in well control.

Casing (borehole)

Casing is a large diameter pipe that is assembled and inserted into a recently drilled section of a borehole. Similar to the bones of a spine protecting the spinal cord, casing is set inside the drilled borehole to protect and support the wellstream. The lower portion is typically held in place with cement. Deeper strings usually are not cemented all the way to the surface, so the weight of the pipe must be partially supported by a casing hanger in the wellhead.

Production tubing is a tube used in a wellbore through which production fluids are produced (travel).

Wellhead Component at the surface of a well that provides the structural and pressure-containing interface

A wellhead is the component at the surface of an oil or gas well that provides the structural and pressure-containing interface for the drilling and production equipment.

Drilling fluid Aid for drilling boreholes into the ground

In geotechnical engineering, drilling fluid, also called drilling mud, is used to aid the drilling of boreholes into the earth. Often used while drilling oil and natural gas wells and on exploration drilling rigs, drilling fluids are also used for much simpler boreholes, such as water wells. One of the functions of drilling mud is to carry cuttings out of the hole.

Blowout (well drilling) Uncontrolled release of crude oil and/or natural gas from a well

A blowout is the uncontrolled release of crude oil and/or natural gas from an oil well or gas well after pressure control systems have failed. Modern wells have blowout preventers intended to prevent such an occurrence. An accidental spark during a blowout can lead to a catastrophic oil or gas fire.

Blowout preventer Specialized valve

A blowout preventer (BOP) is a specialized valve or similar mechanical device, used to seal, control and monitor oil and gas wells to prevent blowouts, the uncontrolled release of crude oil or natural gas from a well. They are usually installed in stacks of other valves.

Completion (oil and gas wells) Last operation for oil and gas wells

Well completion is the process of making a well ready for production after drilling operations. This principally involves preparing the bottom of the hole to the required specifications, running in the production tubing and its associated down hole tools as well as perforating and stimulating as required. Sometimes, the process of running in and cementing the casing is also included. After a well has been drilled, should the drilling fluids be removed, the well would eventually close in upon itself. Casing ensures that this will not happen while also protecting the wellstream from outside incumbents, like water or sand.

Oilfield terminology refers to the jargon used by those working in fields within and related to the upstream segment of the petroleum industry. It includes words and phrases describing professions, equipment, and procedures specific to the industry. It may also include slang terms used by oilfield workers to describe the same.

Mud tank

A mud tank is an open-top container, typically made of square steel tube and steel plate, to store drilling fluid on a drilling rig. They are also called mud pits, as they were once simple pits in the earth.

A mud pump, is a reciprocating piston/plunger pump designed to circulate drilling fluid under high pressure down the drill string and back up the annulus. A mud pump is an important part of the equipment used for oil well drilling.

Oil Well Cementing Equipment are essential for the Oil/Gas exploration or production wells and are must used oilfield equipments while drilling a well.

Offshore oil spill prevention and response

Offshore oil spill prevention and response is the study and practice of reducing the number of offshore incidents that release oil or hazardous substances into the environment and limiting the amount released during those incidents.

Oil well control is the management of the dangerous effects caused by the unexpected release of formation fluid, such as natural gas and/or crude oil, upon surface equipment of oil or gas drilling rigs and escaping into the atmosphere. Technically, oil well control involves preventing the formation gas or fluid (hydrocarbons), usually referred to as kick, from entering into the wellbore during drilling or well interventions.

References

  1. ↑ "Offshore Minerals Management Glossary SQ-SY". Minerals Management Service . Retrieved January 24, 2009.
  2. ↑ "Oilfield Glossary". Schlumberger . Retrieved January 24, 2009.
  3. ↑ "Offshore Minerals Management Glossary BO-BY". Minerals Management Service . Retrieved January 24, 2009.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.