SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE

1. «Oil and Gas Horizons» Moscow 2014
Russian State Geological Prospecting University MGRI – RSGPU
Faculty of exploration and mining technologies
Department of modern drilling technology
Postgraduate student: Ramil Absatdarov
Report:
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF
UNDERGROUND GAS
STORAGE

2. The purpose and task of the report
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 2
Introduction - underground gas storage
The Purpose - sand control in wells of underground gas storage
The task - calculation the parameters of the gravel pack for wells
of Kasimovskoye UGS (underground gas storage)
Future research work – Gravel Pack in Horizontal Offshore Wells
Conclusion of the report

3. UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE (UGS)
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 3
balancing of peak consumption;
security of supply via the Unified Gas Supply System (UGSS);
reducing peak-loads in the UGSS;
security of gas exports via main pipelines in cases of unforeseen
interruptions;
seasonal balancing of gas exports;
additional gas supply in emergency situations (force majeure) and gas
deposits for extremely severe winters;
long term / strategic reserves (balancing over years).
Underground gas storage is designed for:
seasonal balancing of domestic consumption;

4. UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE (UGS)
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 4
Types of Underground Gas Storage:
Salt cavernsDepleted oil and gas
reservoirs
Aquifer Storage

5. UGS Working Gas Volume by storage types
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 5

6. UGS Working Gas Volume by countries
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 6

7. UGS: number of facilities
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 7

8. UGS Working Gas Volume by operators
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 8

9. UGS distribution worldwide
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 9

10. CAUSES OF SAND PRODUCTION
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 10
Sand production occurs when:
- A destabilizing action exceeds or removes the
forces, which hold sand grains together;
- The drag force from produced or injected fluids can shear the
intergranular cement bonds and destroy the natural arches
of unconsolidated sands;
- Unconsolidated fine collector;
- Destruction processes in the reservoir near-wellbore;
- A sharp increase in drawdown during the development and
operation of wells.

11. EFFECTS OF SAND PRODUCTION
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 11
Area Problem Effect
Reservoir Wellbore fill
- Restricted access to production interval
- Loss of productivity
- Loss of reserve
Subsurface
Equipment
Sand fouling - Difficult wire line operation
Erosion
- Equipment replacement
- Equipment failure
Surface
installation
Sand
accumulation
- Malfunctioning of control equipment
- Unscheduled shut down
Erosion
- Deferred production
- Sand separation and disposal

12. Sand Control Methods
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 12
1. Rate Control
2. Non-impairing Completion Techniques
3. Selective Perforating
5. Gravel Packs
6. Frac Packs
4. Screens (without gravel packing)
a. Slotted Liner d. Premium Screens
b. Wire-wrapped Screens e. Expandable Screens
c. Prepacked Screens
7. Chemical Consolidation
a. In Situ Formation Consolidation b. Consolidated Gravel
Sand Control Methods:

13. Sand Control Methods Classification
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 13
Mechanical exclusion methods
(prevent sand production by filter type retention)
Arch Stabilization
(prevent sand production by chemical bonding agent)
Sand Control Methods Classification
- Consolidated Gravel
(Filling Perfs Only)
- Screens Alone
- Consolidated Gravel
(Filling Perfs & Wellbore)
- Prepacked Screen
- Expandable Screen
- Gravel Packing
- Frac Packing
(listed in order of increasing
effectiveness and reliability)
Natural Arches
- Non-impairing Completion
Techniques
- Selective Perforating
- Rate Control
Reinforced Arches
- In Situ Chemical Formation
Consolidation

14. Gravel Pack – The Conventional Sand Control Method
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 14
Introduction
Gravel pack is the most efficient and trusted method of sand control.
Gravel Pack Design
Completion Design for a Gravel Pack
Screen Design
Gravel Slurry design
Gravel Pack Placement

15. Gravel Pack Design
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 15
Gravel Size
0,0
10,0
20,0
30,0
40,0
50,0
60,0
70,0
80,0
90,0
100,0
0,0100,1001,000 Sieve Opening, mm
PercentRetained,%
Particle Size Distribution
D50 = (5~6) d50
Saucier's criterion:
where,
D50 is the median gravel diameter
d50 is the median formation sand diameter
Cumulative curve
d50
Step 1: plot the formation size distribution
Step 2: determine the 50% intercept grain size
Step 3: gravel size for gravel pack – 6 x d50
Gravel pack permeability is a function of the gravel pack sand diameter (D50)
which itself is a function of the formation sand diameter (d50).

16. Gravel Pack Design
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 16
Round - better permeability
Proppant Shape
Gravel Selection
Angular - lower permeability
sand
bauxite
resin-coated proppants
precoated gravel
low density gravel
(also called neutrally buoyant)
ceramic media

17. Completion Design for a Gravel Pack
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 17
Two basic types of gravel pack
(a) (b)
a) The inside gravel pack or cased-hole gravel pack (CHGP)
b) The external gravel pack or openhole gravel pack (OHGP)

18. SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 18
Screen Design
Various Screen Types
Regular Applications
a) Non- Staggered
Slotted
b) Staggered Slotted
c) Gang Slotted
Staggered
d) Horizontal Slotted
Shape and geometry of different types
of slots in a slotted liner
Slotted Liner Wire-wrapped Screen
a) b) c) d)

19. Screen Design
Various Screen Types
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 19
Special Applications
a) Dual-Screen Prepack
b) Single-Screen Prepack
c) Slim-Pak
a) Sintered Metal Screen
b) Stratapack Screen
c) Excluder Screen
Prepacked Screens Premium screens
Expandable
Screens
Expandable
Sand Screen
a) b) c) a) b) c)

20. Gravel Slurry design
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 20
1) have adequate gravel suspension to provide a
uniform slurry throughout mixing, pumping, and transport downhole
2) have sufficient leak-off to provide gravel compaction in perforation
cavities (for cased hole) and screen annulus
3) be non-damaging to formation permeability
A gravel packing fluid must:

21. Gravel Pack Placement
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 21
Top-Down Circulating Pack
3. Top-Down Circulating-
Squeeze Pack
Top-Down Squeeze Pack
4. Bottom-Up Circulating Pack
5. Bidirectional Pack
6. Washdown Pack
7. Gravitate Pack
1. 2.
1.
2.

22. Calculation the parameters of the gravel
pack for wells of Kasimovskoye UGS
SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 22
The Kasimovskoye UGS
located near Kasimov city of
the Ryazan region.
Type of UGS:
Aquifer Storage
Operation Kasimovskoye
UGS began in 1978.
The volume of stored gas:
22 bcm.
Annual selection:
8-9 bcm.

23. SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 23
samplenumber
laboratorysample
number
formation
depth,m
Content of fraction, %
1-0,7mm
0,7-0,5mm
0,5-0,25mm
0,25-0,1mm
0,1-0,05mm
0,05-0,01mm
0,01-0,005mm
0,005-0,001mm
<0,001mm
1 655/6 collector 785,27 0,5 1,5 3,5 18,9 67,8 3,4 4,5
2 656/6 collector 786,07 0,1 4,0 5,2 20,6 60,9 3,9 5,2
3 659/6 collector 786,72 0,9 2,5 4,6 13,8 71,2 3,0 4,0
Calculation the parameters of the gravel
pack for wells of Kasimovskoye UGS
The results of particle size analysis

24. SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 24
0,0
10,0
20,0
30,0
40,0
50,0
60,0
70,0
80,0
90,0
100,0
0,0100,1001,000
D50 = 6 · d50
Gravel size:
D50 = 0,474 mm
Calculation the parameters of the gravel
pack for wells of Kasimovskoye UGS
Sieve Opening, mm
PercentRetained,%
Particle Size Distribution
The cumulative particle size distribution curves of formation sand
laboratory samples
BS EN ISO 13503-2:2006+A1:2009
API Recommended Practice 58
(RP58) (1986)
d50 = 0,079 mm
Slot width of screen:
0,3 mm

25. SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 25
Future research work –
Gravel Pack in Horizontal Offshore Wells
Key issues in project planning and
execution openhole horizontal gravel
packs:
Reservoir study
Shale stability study
Formation integrity test
Gravel pack sand sizing
Gravel pack screen
Workstring design
Well displacement
Fluid loss control

26. SAND CONTROL IN WELLS OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE 26
Conclusion of the report
Openhole Gravel Pack
Screen GP sand Formation
• GP sand is (by design) 5-6 times larger
than formation sand d50.
• GP’ing does not alterscreen behavior.
• GP’ing will arrestannular flow, i.e.
transport of moveable material.
• GP screen must allowproduction of
fines, otherwise completion will plug.
• Pore throat of most GP sands will
restrictproduction of fines.
• GP’ing will arrest/trap formation filter
cake on the formation surface.
• GP’ing will not allow formation to
relax/de-stress.

27. SAND CONTROL IN WELLS
OF UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE
«Oil and Gas Horizons» Moscow 2014
Ramil Absatdarov
Postgraduate student at
Russian State Geological Prospecting University
Department of Modern drilling technology
Mob.: +7 (964) 777-94-24
E-mail: absatdarov.ramil@mail.ru