Download Papers

The purpose of this paper is to show how to evaluate fractured tight gas wells using readily available tools and production data. The paper will primarily deal with the application of coupling conventional analysis, type curve analysis, and a single-phase production simulator to find effective fracture length, fracture conductivity, and reservoir permeability.

Organic inhibitors have been used in many applications but most extensively in the petroleum industry. In general, they may be divided into two groups. One group may be classed as "rust inhibitors" insofar as their primary purpose are to inhibit against attack by oxygen. The other group, as used to prevent corrosion in producing oil and gas wells and in the refinement of oil, are made to be effective in the prevention of attack by acids such as hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, hydrochloric acid, acetic, and propionic acids, and the like.

The removal of polymers utilized in oilfield applications is important to the conductivity and productivity of a well. Unbroken gel residue and dynamically formed filter cake on the formation faces are two forms of damage resulting from drilling, fracturing, gravel packing and workover operations. Monitoring the extent of polymeric damage and its cleanup through removal treatments is best achieved through the analysis of flowback samples.

This paper presents a method of evaluating true load capacity of pumping units. Comparisons of various standard and special geometries will be presented along with application techniques to enable the operator to fully utilize maximum unit capacity.

Port sizes of 5/16 in., 3/8 in., _ in., 11/16 in., and 1 in. were tested from 6000 ft. Different tubing loads were lifted with each port size and each tubing load was lifted with varying gas volume per cycle. The efficiency increased as the port size increased.

In 1973 and 1974, the petroleum industry experienced shortages of many items which formerly had been available at a reasonable cost. Not the least of these items are sucker rods. Prior to 1972, manufacturers were producing several types of rods in rather large quantities. From time to time, these rods were sold at "bargain basement" prices to reduce their inventories. During this same time, prior to 1972, pulling units were available usually on a day's notice, to do well work at competitive rates.

The recent development of the Bryant - G- Devonian Field (BGDF) has been a significant success for Texaco in the Permian Basin. The field had been producing about 2.0 MMCFGPD with 100 BPD associated condensate production. Through the application of enhanced reservoir imaging and horizontal drilling technology, production was increased to about 60.0 MMCFGPD and 2600 BCPD with expected recoverable reserves being increased by 300 percent. An additional benefit realized by this program was the increase in loading at the Texaco operated gas plant which processes the liquids from this gas stream.

Presentation of the history and development of gas lift. An interesting coverage of gas lift from the first practical application in 1846 to present day equipment.

In an effort to reduce the emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), EPA has passed several regulations that affect the oil and gas industry in a variety of ways. The resulting regulatory quagmire can be difficult to understand and this can make ensuring compliance challenging. This paper examines the recently passed updates to 40 CFR 60 New Source Performance Standard (NSPS) Subparts J, Ja, KKK, LLL, IIII, JJJJ and the new Subpart OOOO.

Coiled tubing (CT) technology is continuing to evolve at a rapid pace due to the improvements in CT units, the CT and associated equipment. CT gives operators an alternative method for doing work traditionally reserved for drilling or workover rigs. The scope of this paper is to supply information on several applications currently expanding the use of CT. These include rig-less CT completions, CT electric line and drilling with coiled tubing

All environmental corrections which affect the determination of formation porosity have been experimentally and/or theoretically determined for a dual - detector thermal neutron porosity tool. Corrections which are a function of tool design have been derived from experimental data in over 100 laboratory test formation environments. These corrections are presented both in analytical form and as charts with the defining data points included. The theoretical bases for other corrections are discussed, and the resulting correction curyes are presented.

Important advances in oil-finding logs for cased hole use have been made in recent years. The Neutron Lifetime Log, now ten years old has been successfully demonstrated in California and Texas. It is now feasible to explore for new oil and gas in old wells using these logs, and it is confidently expected that further logging improvements would be made possible by additional research and development, to the point that nearly all types of oil bearing rocks could be identified and their oil content assayed.

Plungers have been considered by many operators as short term or intermediate solutions to liquid loading problems in gas wells and gassy oil wells. Data is presented in this paper indicating that some producers have routinely utilized plungers to stabilize production and keep wells producing for years at a nominal cost. Well histories, production decline curves along with cumulative production reports will support the producer's case for utilizing the plunger system for such an extended period of time.

A greater number of deviated wells are being drilled to increase production and prolong the life of a well. Many times the build rates are very high and result in a well that is very difficult to artificially produce. Designing a pumping system that will give extended run times is an important part of maximizing profits. Working with Crimson Resources in the Bakersfield, CA area and ChevronTexaco in the Eunice, NM area, R&M Energy Systems has completed several case studies. We will examine these studies, showing best practice and cost saving.

In 2006, 18 subject wells were selected to increase the Mean Time between Tubing Leaks by strategically installing EndurAlloy Tubing. From August 4, 2006 through August 31, 2008, failure performance was monitored for these 18 wells. All 18 wells were initially installed with bare 2-3/8" tubing and 6 joints of 2-3/8" EndurAlloy on the bottom. As a result of 19 well service events (17 failures and 2 non-failures) in 10 wells, initial tubing designs were modified from the original design.

Recent developments of casing plunger technology have provided reliable tools that successfully remove well-bore fluids and reduce liquid loading in marginal or stripper gas wells producing in 4 _ inch casing strings of nonuniform casing weight. These advances are the result of better selections of elastomeric compounds suitable for variations in the casing inside diameter that occur with non-uniform casing weight strings in deeper wells.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a concentrated review of significant water characteristics and treating methods as related to steam flood boiler operation. In recent years, considerable interest has developed in the direct application of high pressure steam for the purpose of recovering crude oil not obtainable otherwise. With the increasing size and number of steam flood operations; there has been a turn toward higher capacity generators and higher operating pressures. As these pressures increase, water supply characteristics and water treatment methods have increased in importance.

Fluid pound is thought to be a result of the pump hitting the fluid level when the pump is partially full of gas. However gas always is compressed to a value of pressure sufficient to open the traveling valve before the pump hits the fluid. The load on the pump is released very quickly and the pump is traveling faster when fluid pound occurs than at the beginning of the stroke. However, most down hole dynamometer cards do not show compression when fluid pound occurs.

There have been many papers, both technical and non-technical, written on this broad subject. This paper will be directed to those in attendance who are primarily responsible for the amount of crude oil that can be accumulated in the stock tanks. Improper operation of the surface pump is the major cause of failure in this assignment.

Foamed fluids have indeed become recognized as effective fluids for stimulation treatments. The unique properties of foam make it particularly suited for stimulation. The low fluid loss, low liquid content and high proppant-carrying capability of foams are among the many advantages. In addition, the lightened fluid column provides a built-in gas assist in returning the treatment fluid. Foam stimulation, however, often presents abstruse problems in fluid design and application. Successful foam stimulation treatments require careful design of foam quality, bubble texture and half-life.

There are several factors which differentiate the operating methods of the independent operator from those of the major company. Some of these differences have a rational basis; some of them are debatable, while others may prove costly to the independent in the long run. As a starting point for this paper on the methods of independent operators, a definition of the independent operator, as used in this paper, should be given.

Failures in the sucker rod industry can be costly and time consuming. As an end user in this industry, it is very critical to understand the mechanics behind couplings. This paper addresses some of the important aspects of couplings which play an important role in the overall reliability of the rod string. The topics addressed in this presentation are as follows: 1. Strength of material analysis of coupling and sucker rods, 2. What happens to a sucker rod coupling joint during an improper makeup process, 3. Types of manufacturing processes for couplings, 4. Recommended field practices.

The Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) is assigned the responsibility for the Federal gas pipeline safety programs. These responsibilities involve a network of more than a million miles of gas transmission pipelines, distribution systems, and non-rural area gathering lines. Those systems under OPS jurisdiction are constructed, operated and maintained by more than 2990 separate operators who supply 40 percent of the nation's energy needs while serving 41 million customers.

This paper will highlight the overall effectiveness of fiberglass rods used in a portion of the Eagle Ford oil shale play. Data captured form real time SCADA software as well as from the POC, will be utilized to construct a clear picture of how fiberglass rods perform. The benchmarks used to determine the efficiency of fiberglass rods will be capital cost and LOE, power usage and fluid production.

Fiberglass sucker rods (FSRS) were developed in the early 1970s as an alternative material to help combat problems caused by corrosion. As with most new products introduced to the oil production industry, there were numerous problems to overcome before the product was accepted as a viable tool by oil producers. Over the Past ten Years many situations have arisen that have caused aggravating problems to users of FSRs. Many of these situations were caused by improper use of the rods, but some of the problems resulted from poor manufacturing processes.