Planning and Deployment of Glass-Based Chemical Consolidation Systems

Abstract Effective chemical consolidation of carbonate/chalk formations now offers the tantalizing possibility of both increasing and sustaining the productivity of wells, while minimizing their continued operational expense or requirement for restimulation. A highly novel glass-based chemical stabilisation solution has been extensively trialled (Hoq et al., 2024) and deployed to demonstrate the resulting consolidation capability that can be achieved under such scenarios. Substantial planning for the deployment and placement operations, along with the executional response will be shared and discussed. The information that is presented here will summarize the Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) and planning sequence that was closely followed for the delivery and distributed placement of the newly developed glass-based consolidation material. The extensive aspects, associated with the offshore mobilization, the boat delivery system compatibility, assured placement/diversion (via Coiled Tubing System (CT) or bull-heading) of the chemical system will be reported on in detail. The conventional preparations included the usual detailed considerations of HAZOP, HAZID and JSA. However, for these chemically sensitive deployments a number of chemistry and technique specific tests and additional considerations were required. Preparation included the Coiled Tubing placement considerations and all supporting yard-testing, associated compatibility tests as well as the detailed calculation of pressure and temperature development and associated diversion simulations. Learning from these investigative and preparative operations, was then directly integrated with the initial deployment strategies to enhance, adapt and augment them, in support of achieving best in class results. The impact of these detailed preparations was then measured throughout the field execution phase, where a careful means of validating and recording the executional behaviour and the lessons-learned, was then put into play across a number of wells. The detailed chemical reaction kinetics including the fluid pH, % chemical concentration (Olsen et al., 2021a & 2021b) as well as placement temperature, were balanced with the fluid distribution dynamics, to ensure an effective treatment would result and that the required consolidation effect would be achieved. This deliverable, combined with the treatment execution characteristics and reporting, demonstrated that the treatments were able to safely achieve effective and impactful consolidation of the existing chalk completions, in a range of cased-cemented, open-hole and even hydraulically fractured environments. Glass-based chemical solutions are relatively new to the Oil & Gas industry and present a unique opportunity for the creation of bespoke solutions to a range of consolidation and sealing challenges, that are potentially faced within carbonate fields. However, whenever testing new technologies such as this, it is incredibly important that the preparation and execution do not introduce their own hazards and uncertainties, which then mask or risk the fundamental trials and outcome. This paper summarises the coherent and integrated process that has been applied to ensure that the field trials achieve what their intention was, the planned and desired accurate placement of the chemical solution.