Cementing 1

Cement Composition
API Classes of Cement

Cement Additives
Density control
Accelerators
Retarders
Viscosity control
Types of Cementing
Cementing Operation
Cementing equipment
Cementing process
Performing a good cementing job
Cement is made of limestone and clay/or shale mixed in
the right proportions
Cement (oxides of Ca, Al, Fe, and Si) is heated in a rotary
kiln to between 2,600 oF to 2,800 oF.
The result from the kiln is called Clinker.
Clinker is ground with a controlled amount of gypsum
(CaSO4.2H2O) to make Portland cement.
Gypsum retards setting time and increases ultimate
strength.
Clinker
The classes used today are primarily Classes A, C, G,
and H.
Classes A, B, and C are used for surface casing job.
Class A is used in some areas because it is very similar
to construction cement and can be obtained locally.
Classes Aand C are already ground with an accelerator.
Classes G and H are basic cements.
Class G is a finer grind and requires more mix water
resulting in a lower density.
Class G is more common around the world.
Classes E and F are used for deep wells under high
temperature and pressure.
Cement additives will be sub-divided into these
functional groups:
Density control
Accelerators
Retarders
Viscosity control
Others
Density of cement should be high enough to prevent
the high-pressured formations from entering the well.
Density of cement should not be so high as to cause
fracture of the weaker formations.
Density of normal slurry (cement mixed with normal
amount of water) is usually too high for formation
strength.
It is desirable to lower slurry density by:
Lowering slurry density reduces cost.
Methods of lowering slurry density:
Increase water/cement ratio
Add low-specific-gravitysolids
Effect of high (excess) water/cement ratio:

Increase thickening time
Increase free water
Reduces compressive strength
Lowers resistance to sulfate attack
Increases permeability of the set cement
Common low-specific-gravity solids in use are:
Bentonite
Diatomaceous earth
Solid hydrocarbons
Pozzolan
Expanded perlite
Bentonite
Most common light-weight additive
Ability to hydrate permits the use of high water
concentration.
High amount will reduce cement strength and
thickening time.
Cement strength retrogress with at high temperature
above 230 oF.
Diatomaceous earth (Diacel D)
Lower specific gravity than bentonite
Permits higher water/cement ratios without resulting in
free water.
Like in bentonite, high amount will reduce cement
strength and thickening time.
More expensive than bentonite.
Solid hydrocarbons
Gilsonite (lustrous asphalt) and Kolite (crushed coal)
Almost no effect on slurry thickening time.
Higher cement compressive strengths than other types
of low-density solids.
Pozzolans
Siliceous and aluminous materials that react with lime
and water to a form a calcium silicates that possesses
cementitious properties.
Natural pozzolans are volcanic ash
Artificial pozzolans include glass, furnace slag and fly
ash (residue from chimneys of coal-burning power
plants.
Only slight reduction in slurry density is achieved.
Perlite
Volcanic glass bubbles that has sometimes been used in
geothermal wells because of its insulating properties.
Considerably more expensive
If there is need for higher slurry density, additives that
are used are:
Hematite
Reddish iron oxide ore (Fe2O3)
Very common because of its high specific gravity (5.02)
Barite
Barium sulfate
For smaller increases in density
Requires more water to keep slurry pumpable
Sand
Additional water not needed to be added to the slurry
Little effect on strength and pumpability of the cement
Accelerate cement hydration
Decrease thickening time
Applicable for shallow, low-temperature wells.
They are inorganic compounds:
Calcium chloride
Sodium chloride
Gypsum
Little amount is needed. If in excess, it will retard the
cement.
In offshore drilling: NaCl, CaCl2, MgCl2 in seawater act
as accelerators.
Calcium chloride
Used in concentration of up to 4%
Anhydrous type is preferable because it absorbs
moisture less readily
Sodium chloride
Best result is achieved at a concentration of 5%
Saturated type are used in salt formations or reactive
shale formations.
Gypsum
Special grade of gypsum hemihydrate cement is mixed
with portland cement.
Maximum working temperature is 140 oF for the regular
grade, and 180 oF for the high-temperature grade.
Also called thinners or dispersants
Increase the thickening time of cement
Applicable for deeper, high temperature wells.
Are typically organic compounds
Lignins
Borax
Sodium chloride
Cellulose derivatives
Lignins
Calcium lignosulfonate
Most common retarder
Very low concentration is needed
Organic acids can be added for high temperature jobs
Borax
Sodium tetraborate decahydrate
Sodium chloride
At high concentrations
Cellulosederivatives
CMHEC (carboxylmethyl hydroxyethyl cellulose)
Commonly used
Works with all portland cements
High slurry viscosity will:
Increase pump horsepower
Increase annular frictional pressure loss, which may lead
to formation fracture.
Common viscosity-control additives are:
Organic deflocculants (e.g. calcium lignosulfonate)
Sodium chloride
Certain long-chain polymers
Silica flour – to form stronger, more stable, and less
permeable cements at high temperature.
Hydrazine – oxygen scavenger to control corrosion.
Radioactive tracer – to determine where cement has
been placed.
Nylon – to make cement more impact resistant
Paraformaldehyde and sodium chromate – to
counter the contamination effect of organic
deflocculants from drilling muds.
Primarycementing
Casing cementing – cementing of casing to the borehole
Liner cementing – cementing of liner. More complex
than casing cementing
Secondary/remedial cementing
Plug cementing – to separate lower section of a well
from upper section. Open hole or cased hole.
Squeeze cementing – to plug off abandoned perforation,
repair annular leaks, and plug severe lost circulation
zones.
Cementing Equipment
Cementing Process
Performing a Good Cementing Job

Cement head
Guideshoe
Guides the casing

past irregularities in
the borehole wall.
Centralizer
They are placed on

the outside of the
casing to help hold
the casing in the
center of the hole.
Float collar
Acts as a check
valve to prevent
cement from
backing up into the
casing.
Float shoe
Serves the function

of both a guide
shoe and a float
collar when no
shoe joints are
desired.
Cement basket
Placed on the
outside of the
casing to help
support the weight
of the cement slurry
at points where
porous or weak
formations are
exposed.
Bottom plug
Top plug
Scratchers
Placed on the
outside of the
casing to help
remove mudcake
from the borehole
walls, either by
reciprocating the
casing or by
rotating the casing.
Bottom rubber wiper plug is released to minimize cement
contamination from drilling fluid.
Spacer fluid (or mud preflush) may be pumped also.
Desired volume of slurry is pumped
Top wiper plug is released
Drilling fluid displaces the top plug down the casing
When bottom plug reaches the float collar, its diaphragm
ruptures.
The whole cement slurry has been fully displaced when
the top plug bumps the bottom plug.
Cement excess
* Note: care should be taken to ensure cement does not

reach the subsea well or mudline.
Casing centralization
Pipe movement
Drilling fluid condition
Hole condition
Displacement velocity
Spacer fluids
Mud-cement density difference
Directional wells
Centralization promotes a good cementing job
Centralizers are used to keep the pipe in the center of
the hole
For a non-Newtonian fluid when pipe is not well
centralized, the velocity on the narrow of the annulus
is slower than the velocity on the wide (Popcorn
theory).
The point between the centralizers is the hardest to
centralize
The degree of centralization is called % Standoff.
 (C + D) 
%Standoff = − 100%
1 
 ( Rb
− R )
c 
100% - perfectly centralized

0% - pipe touchingwall
A minimum standoff of
70% is a good rule-of-thumb
Rule of thumb:
1centralizer per 2 joints in vertical wells.
1centralizer per 1joint in directional wells
2 centralizers per 1joint in high angle or horizontal
wells.
Smaller hole clearance will require more centralizers
Pipe movement is rotation and/or reciprocation.
It increases the displacement efficiency
Drag forces associated with rotation will pull the
cement into the narrow side of the annulus.
Reciprocation has a tendency to break the gel strengths
of the mud in the narrow side of the annulus.
The pipe should be reciprocated from the time the pipe
reaches bottom until the cement plug bumps.
Pipe sticking may be a problem
Landing the casing if it starts to stick
Higher viscosity mud is harder to displace
Viscosity of mud can be reduced prior to cementing by
adding water (or thinners in a weighted mud).
Move the casing
The thicker the mud, the longer it should take to
circulate.
A clean hole allows the ease of running casing and
getting centralizers to bottom.
Washouts are hard to cement
If washouts are a problem, change the mud to try and
minimize the washouts.
Which should be employed: turbulent, laminar or plug
flow?
Laminar flow:
Has the smallest displacement efficiency (75% and less).
Laminar flow gives inadequate cementations and should
be avoided when possible since it promotes channeling
Plug flow:
Lowest annular velocity (30 to 90 feet/min, depending
upon cement properties).
Very efficient
Limited to cementations of small volumes and where the
mud in the hole is of low density.
Can be used when high displacement rate is possible
because of ECD or hole size.
Turbulent flow:
High displacement efficiencies.
Applicable to large volume cementations
Applicable where the mud and cement slurry weight are
similar.
Limited in use by excessive bottomhole circulating
pressure.
Can be limited by insufficient surface pump horsepower.
Primarily chosen because it requires shortest of all
cementation times.
Cement and mud are not compatible and should be
kept separate.
A spacer fluid is used to separate the cement and mud
in the annulus.
The spacer fluid should compatible with both cement
and the mud
The spacer volume should equal at least 500 ft in the
annulus.
In water based muds (WBM), water is a very good
spacer
Water is thin and will easily go into turbulent flow
Compatible with both cement and mud
Cost effective
In weighted muds, spacer may have to be weighted
with barite.
Little effect on displacement efficiency
The cement should be at least 0.5 ppg greater than
mud density to prevent movement after the pump
stops
Difficult to get adequate centralization
Cuttings bed
There may be cuttings
beds on the bottom of
the hole.
They should be removed
before cementing.
Free water
Should be zero to
minimize the possibility
of a free water channel
on the high side of
the hole.

Cementing 1

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Cement Composition

API Classes of Cement

Effect of high (excess) water/cement ratio:

Performing a Good Cementing Job

Guides the casing

They are placed on

Serves the function

* Note: care should be taken to ensure cement does not

100% - perfectly centralized

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