DRILLING ENGINEERING I

(CGE577)
1

CHAPTER 6:

CEMENTING
(PART I)

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CONTENTS
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Definition and Functions of Oilwell Cementing

Classification of Cement
Properties of Cement

Cement Additives
Cementing Equipments
Cementing Operations & Procedure

Evaluation of cement
Cementing Calculation

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

Lesson Objectives
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At the end of this lesson, students should be able :

To explain the functions and principles of cementing

process

To describe cement properties, cement additives and

cementing procedures

To calculate cement volume in the borehole

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

INTRODUCTION
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Oil well cementing is a process

of mixing a slurry of cement and water and pumping

it through the casing pipe into the annulus between
the casing pipe and the drilled hole

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

FUNCTIONS OF CEMENTING
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To prevent movement of fluids between permeable zones isolate

zones e.g. loss circulation zones, water bearing zones.

To support the casing string in the borehole. It binds the casing to

the formation

To protect the casing from corrosive fluids in the formation.

Eg: Sulphate-rich formation water.

Support for the wellbore walls (in conjunction with the casing) to

prevent collapse of formations. Eg: weak and unconsolidated sand.

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

CLASSIFICATION OF CEMENT POWDERS

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The oil industry uses cement specified by API.

There are 8 classes of cement (Class A to Class H)

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CLASSIFICATION OF CEMENT POWDERS

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Class A (ordinary type) & B
(Moderate to high sulphate
resistance type)
Cheaper than others
Up to 6000 ft depth
Used when there is no special
requirements

Class C
Up to 6000 ft depth
High early strength cement
Class D
Use from 6000 ft to 10,000 ft
Known as retarded cement
Moderately high temperature and
pressure
Available in moderate and high
sulphate resistance types

Class E & F
Use from 10,000 ft to 16,000 ft
Known as retarded cement
Available in moderate and high sulphate
resistance types
Good for deep wells under extreme
HPHT condition
Premium cement because of its high cost
Class G & H
Up to 8000 ft depth
General purpose cement
Can be modified using additives to suit
application
Widely used

In Malaysia, the most common

cement used is Class G cement
produced by Lafarge Cement Pasir
Gudang

Chemical composition of cement

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Component

Formula

Trade
Name

Amount Function

Tricalcium
silicate

3CaO.SiO2

C3S

50%

Fastest rate of hydration

and is responsible for
overall strength of the
cement

Dicalcium
Silicate

2CaO.SiO2

C2S

25%

Slow reacting component

and responsible for long
term hardening (gradual
increase in strength)

Tricalcium
Aluminate

3CaO.Al2O3

C3A

10%

Rapid hydration and

responsible for initial set
and early strength

C4AF

10%

Similar to C3A but produce

more calcium and iron

Tetracalcium
4CaO. Al2O3.
Aluminoferrite Fe2O3

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API Mixwater Requirements for API cement

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Class

Mixwater
gal/sack

Slurry Weight
Lbs/gal

5.2

15.6

5.2

15.6

6.3

14.8

4.3

16.4

4.3

16.4

4.3

16.2

5.0

15.8

4.3

16.4

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

Mixwater is the water which is used

to make up the cement slurry

Its amount must be carefully

controlled

Too much, the cement will not set

into a strong, impermeable cement
barrier

If not enough,
Slurry density and viscosity increases
Pumpability will decrease
Less volume of slurry will be produced
from each sack of cement

In table, it is average value

It can be changed to meet specific
tempt and pressure

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MAIN PROPERTIES OF CEMENT

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Compressive Strength

The casing shoe should not be drilled out until the

cement sheath has reached a compressive strength of
about 500 psi

This is generally considered to be enough to support

a casing string and to allow drilling to proceed
without the hardened cement sheath disintegrating
due to vibration.

Compressive strength is dependent upon the

percentage of water and the curing time.

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

MAIN PROPERTIES OF CEMENT

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MAIN PROPERTIES OF CEMENT

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Thickening Time (Pumpability)

To determine the length of time a given cement slurry

remains in a fluid state under given laboratory conditions
It can be defined as time required for the slurry to reach 100
Bearden units (Bc) of consistency for a condition whereby
cement slurry became unpumpable under downhole
temperature and pressure.
However, 70 Bc is generally considered as the maximum
pumpable consistency
It is a vital to make thickening time longer than the actual
cementing job to avoid cementing surface pipes, cementing
heads, drillpipe or inside of the casing.
Thickening time should be equal to total job time plus a safety
factor of 1 hour or 30 min.
Thickening time = mixing time + surface time + displacement
time + plug release time + safety factor

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MAIN PROPERTIES OF CEMENT

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MAIN PROPERTIES OF CEMENT

Slurry Density

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Slurry density should be designed to meet a specific well condition. Low

strength formation may not be able to support the high hydrostatic pressure
of cement slurry whose density is around 15 ppg which could fracture the
formation.
Typically designed as 1 ppg higher than the drilling fluid density

Water Loss

Water can lost from slurry before it reaches the intended place during
hydration. If the water lost is high, the slurry viscosity will increase and
pumpability will decrease.
Its amount can be tolerated depending on type of cement job and cement
slurry formulation
Under standard laboratory conditions (1000 psi filter pressure, with a 325
mesh filter) a slurry for a squeeze job should give a fluid loss of 50 - 200 cc.
For a primary cement job 250 - 400 cc is adequate.

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

MAIN PROPERTIES OF CEMENT

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Corrosion resistance

Set cement could be penetrated by corrosive liquids especially those

containing CO3 or SO4 irons.
Cement corrosion decreases the final compressive strength render the
cement more permeable.
Reduction of the hardening time improves the cement resistance to
corrosion by corrosive fluids.

Permeability of cement

Permeability of set cement should be the lowest possible (must be less than
0.1 mD)
The following factors influence the permeability of the set

High W/C ratio increases the permeability

Downhole conditions: high pressure and confinement due to their compacting effects decrease the permeability
of set cement

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

CEMENT ADDITIVES
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The eight classes of API cement above are used for wells with

moderate bottom hole conditions

It is necessary to modify cement properties to meet specific well

conditions such as deep wells, HPHT, lost circulation zones, etc. by

adding chemicals
The chemicals can be classified as follows :

Accelerators
Retarders
Fluid Loss reducers
Weighting materials
Lost circulation materials

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

CEMENT ADDITIVES (contd)

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Accelerators

Retarders

To reduce thickening time and

thus WOC

To increase thickening time and thus

WOC

NaCl2, CaCl2, gypsum

For deeper wells or to combat

thickening time reduction in high
temperature environment

CEMENT
ADDITIVES

Lignosulfate, cellulose, sugar and their

derivative

Lost Circulation
Materials
To combat cement slurry lost
into formation

Fluid Loss
To minimize amount of water loss
from cement slurry
Organic polymers, dispersants
and synthetic polymers

Fibrous, granular, flakes LCM

Weighting Agents
To increase cement slurry density
Barite, ilmenite, hematite

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Other Cement Additives

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Dispersant
To improve the flow properties of the slurry by
lowering the viscosity of the slurry.
Eg: Polymers, Calcium lignosulphanate

Light weight additive

Lower cement density and hydrostatic pressure for low
fracture gradients and more economic slurries
Eg: Microspheres

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Classification of Oilwell Cementing

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Two general classification of oil well cementing are:

Primary Cementing

It is used to support the casing pipe and restrict the movement of

formation fluids behind the casing

Secondary or Remedial Cementing

It is used as supplement to a faulty primary cementing job filling

void, repairing liner top, repairing casing defects/leaks

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PRIMARY CEMENTING
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Primary cementing is a process whereby the borehole is

lined with a steel casing down which cement slurry is

pumped and then displaced up into the annular space
between the casing and the borehole wall.

Two types of primary cementing are:

Single stage cementing

Most common

Multi stage cementing

- Split the placement of cement sheath into two when long
intermediate string of casing is to be cemented at weak
formation and may not be able to support the hydrostatic
pressure generated by a very long colom of cement slurry

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SECONDARY CEMENTING
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Most common secondary cementing jobs are : Plug back cementing

Squeeze cementing

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SECONDARY CEMENTING
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Plug back cementing

Squeeze cementing

Hole is plugged by cement in order to

initiate a new drilling operation

Involves forcing the cement slurry under

pressure into open holes or channels behind
the casing or into perforation tunnels.

Plug back is carried out for a number

of reasons
Abandonment of the hole
Sidetracking the hole
Seal off lost circulation
Shutting off of water or gas
encroachment

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Main purpose of squeeze cementing : Supplementing a faulty primary

cementing job filling void or channel
& repairing liner top
Repairing casing defects/leaks
Supplementing a faulty perforation job
Reducing water cut in a producing well
squeezing lower perforation

OTHER CEMENTING OPERATIONS

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Stinger Cementing/ Stab in Cementing

An improved method for cementing large diameter casing. Cement the casing
through drillpipe/tubing rather than casing itself .
The drill pipe is stabbed directly into the float shoe or collar and cement is pumped
through the drill pipe (stinger) until returns reach surface.
Recommended for large diameter casing more than 13-3/8 such as conductor and
surface casing.

Liner Cementing

Liners are run on drillpipe and therefore the conventional cementing techniques
cannot be used for cementing liner.

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CEMENTING EQUIPMENT
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Guide shoe

device with a rounded nose

To guide casing through the hole
Float Collar
As a seat for plugs
One way valve prevents re-entry of
cement placed 1 or 2 joints above shoe
Centralisers
to keep casing away from the borehole for
better cementing job
Maintain annulus clearance
Cement Plugs (Wipers/Scratchers)
Inside casing to remove mud cake
Assist in displacement

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SINGLE STAGE CEMENTING PROCEDURE

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SINGLE STAGE CEMENTING PROCEDURE

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Bottom plug/ wiper plug is released wipes mud off

Cement slurry is pumped in and top plug is released
Top plug/shut off plug wipes cements off wall and prevent mixing of

cement with displacing fluid

When bottom plug reaches float collar, the pump pressure increases

Diaphragm of the bottom plug will ruptures, allowing cement slurry to flow

into the annular space

Top plug is solid; once it lands on top of bottom plug, flow stops and

pressure rises
The increase in pressure indicates cement is fully in place and the pump

are bled off

When pressure inside casing is released, the valve in the float collar

closes and keeps the cement from flowing back up the casing
Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

Evaluation of Cement Jobs

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A cement job is considered to be a failure if the cement does not:

Fill the annulus to the required height
Provide a good seal
To assess the effectiveness of the cement job:
Detecting Top-of-Cement (TOC)
Temperature surveys - the thermometer will detect the
increase in temperature due to cement hydration
Radioactive surveys as a logging tool
Detecting TOC and measuring the quality of the cement bond
Cement Bond Logs (CBL) - The high amplitude in CBL
indicates free pipe while the low amplitude indicates good
bond
Variable Density Log (VDL)

Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki

Evaluation of Cement Jobs

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Prepared by: Mrs. Arina binti Sauki