•

Brines, Completion &

Workover Fluids
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Introduction

• A Variety of fluids may be in contact with the

producing formation throughout its economic life..
– Drilling In Fluids
– Completion Fluids
– Workover Fluids
– Stimulation Fluids
– Packer Fluids
• Any fluid that contacts the reservoir should be as non-
damaging as possible.
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Drill-in Fluids
• A Fluid that is used to drill into the reservoir
• Acid Soluble Systems
– Calcium Carbonate or Iron Carbonate
– Brine
– Acid Soluble Polymers (HEC)
• Oil Soluble Systems
– Oil Soluble Resin
– Brine
– Polymers
• Water Soluble Systems
– Brine saturated with Sodium Chloride
– Excess Salt
– Polymers
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Drill-in Fluids
• Minimise formation damage by reducing Solids and Filtrate
invasion;
• Low Fluid Loss
– HTHP Fluid loss < 15ml / 30 minutes
• Non Damaging Filtrate
– Low viscosity
– Compatible with formation water
– Inhibitive toward clays
– Not contain High Molecular Weight Polymers
• Selection of Bridging Agents
– Coarser particle size distribution
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

The Systems

• Systems classified according to the type of solids;

• OPT-CARB - Acid Soluble Calcium Carbonate -
weighting agent
– Fresh water
– Starch - fluid loss
– XC - viscosity
– KCl - inhibition of clays
– Biocide - bacterial protection
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Completion Fluids

• Any fluid used between the time the well reaches TD and when it
is put on production.
• Control formation pressures
• Minimise damage to reservoir permeability
• Minimise filtrate invasion
• Maximise geological information (from logs, cores etc.)
• Clear Brine Systems used as completion fluids
– Sodium Chloride
– Potassium Chloride
– Calcium Chloride
– Calcium Chloride/Calcium Bromide
– Calcium Bromide/Zinc Bromide
– Sodium Bromide
– Sodium, Potassium and Ceasium Formates
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Brine Density and Cost

 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Formate Density

Sodium Formate Potassium Formate Caesium Formate

 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Solids Free Brines

• Important factors
– Solids Content
• Filtration often carried out
– Crystallisation Point
• Low temperatures
– Corrosion
• Minimised by using corrosion inhibitors
– Compatibility with Formation fluids
– Compatibility with Elastomers (sealing materials)
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Advantages/Disadvantages of Brines

• Advantages of Brine
– They contain no solids which can damage the reservoir. If solids
are used they are usually acid soluble.
– They inhibit hydration of native clays in the reservoir.
• Disadvantages of Brine
– Corrosive.
– Restricted polymer use. The divalent nature of some brine
cations and high chloride content reduce the effectiveness of
most polymers.
– Cost for increasing mud weight
– Environmental
– Health
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Crystallization point

A brine's crystallization point is the temperature at which

salt crystals will begin to fall out of solution given
sufficient time and proper nucleating conditions.

Note: Nucleation is the process by which insoluble matter

provides a physical platform upon which crystals can
form.

The precipitation of insoluble salts can cause a number of

problems. For example, when the dissolved salt in the
fluid crystallizes and settles in a tank, the fluid density
usually drops.

Crystallization in brines can also cause lines to plug and

pumps to seize.
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Crystallization point
Four temperature values are used to describe a fluid's
crystallization point. These include the:
• First crystal to appear (FCTA)
• True crystallisation temperature (TCT)
• Last crystal to dissolve (LCTD)
• Pressurised crystallisation temperature (PCT)

Pressure which can raise the crystallisation point – this

becomes very important in deep wells especially in
deepwater
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Crystallization point of KCl vs. Density

Density vs. Crystallisation Point

70
60
Temperature (F)

50
40
30
20
10
0
8.2 8.4 8.6 8.8 9 9.2 9.4 9.6 9.8
Density - lb/gal
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Brine Crystallisation - TCT

 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Brine Crystallisation – Effect of Pressure PCT

 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Effect of Ignoring PCT

Brine has crystallised downhole inside pipe

 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Effect of Temperature on Brine density

Shallow water

Increasing Temperature causes density to decrease

 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Brine Density vs. Temperature

Brine Density will vary with temperature – downhole density will be lower –
this has to be taken into account when selecting correct brine density for
well control
Density variation for NaCl and KCl

10.000

9.750

9.500

9.250

9.000
Density ppg

8.750

8.500

8.250

8.000

7.750

7.500
50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200 210 220 230 240 250 260 270 280 290 300
Temperature Deg F
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Formulation
• Brine is either mixed in location or is supplied as a liquor and
diluted back to the required weight.
• When mixing ensure that the volume increase due to the brine has
been accounted for.
• When diluting back a liquor, ensure that the correct volume of
water is added.
• For very concentrated brines it may be necessary to check the
crystallisation points. Below this temperature some of the salt
could go out of solution with a disastrous loss of hydrostatic head.
• Brine density is normally measured with a hydrometer.
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Example Calculation

Mix 1200 barrels of Calcium Chloride Brine @ 11.4 ppg

• How much fresh water do I need in barrels?

• How many 50 lb sacks of 77/80% CaCl2 do I need?
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids
Material Requirements for Preparing Calcium Chloride brines at 60 oF using 77% Calcium
Chloride

300 1.5
280 1.4
260 1.3
240 1.2
220 1.1
Pounds of CaCl2 / bbl of solution

Bbls of water / bbl of solution

200 1.0
180 0.9
160 0.8
140 0.7
120 0.6
100 0.5
80 0.4
60 0.3
40 0.2
20 0.1
0 0.0
8.4 8.9 9.4 9.9 10.4 10.9 11.4 11.9
Brine Weight (ppg)

Pounds of CaCl/bbl of solution

Bbls of water/bbl of solution
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Hygroscopic Nature of Salts

• Salts are also hygroscopic - they absorb water from the air. KCl
and NaCl absorb very little water and are normally pure, however
divalent salts (e.g.. CaCl) absorb considerable amounts of water.
Purity depends on the supplier.
• When adding any salt the purity needs to be checked to ensure the
correct additions are being made. If a purer grade is mistakenly
used, the concentration added could exceed the solubility and rock
salt could form in the pits !
• egg. CaCl2 comes in several grades.
77/80 % - Flakes
Increasing 85/88 % - Powder
Cost 95/98 % - Powder
96/98 % - Granules
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Workover Fluids
• Any operation carried out on a producing well to
increase production or to repair or replace damaged
or corroded equip.
– Seawater
– Brines
– Milling Fluids - RHEOPLEX
– Low Solids Polymer Muds
– Cross Linked Muds
• Whatever fluid is used it has to be non-damaging to
the formation
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Stimulation Fluids
• Any fluid used to try and increase production or to
remove formation damage.
– Acidisation
– Fracturing Fluids
• Water based Fluids
• Oil Based Fluids
• Acid Frac Fluids
– Surfactants
• Scale Inhibitor Fluids
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Packer Fluids

• A fluid left in the annulus between the casing and

production tubing, above the packer.
– Minimal settlement
– Fluid must remain pumpable
– Excellent corrosion protection
– Long term stability
– Minimise pressure differential across the
packer
– Preferably non damaging
– Able to seal casing or tubing leaks
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Packer Fluids
• Brines make ideal packer fluids as they are solids free.
– The required brine weight is mixed. Then the following is
added.
• Caustic to pH 11 or higher to minimise corrosion and
bacterial attack. (Calcium based brines do not allow
such high pH's due to lime precipitation).
• A biocide is added to eliminate anaerobic bacteria and
sulphate reducing bacteria.
• An oxygen scavenger is required to stop the initially
high corrosion rates due to oxygen.
• A film forming amine is added to protect the tubulars.
(This is biodegradable so ensure a biocide is used).
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Packer Fluids (cont)

• Packer fluids which contain solids need the following treatment as
well .

– The viscosity and gel strengths need to be high enough to

avoid any settling of solids
• XC polymer is often used. All products must be stable at
bottom hole temperatures. The initial gel should be in the
20 - 30 range.

– Products are available which buffer the pH values thus

improving polymer stability.

• For extreme temperatures or where corrosion due to H 2S or CO2

is expected. OBM's provide stable packer fluids with excellent
corrosion protection. The OBM should have a strong emulsion. E s
of 800+ for a 70/30 oil water ratio.
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Material Requirements for Preparing KCl brines at 32oF.

100 1.0

90 0.9
Pounds of KCl / bbl of solution

80 0.8

70 0.7

Bbls of Water / bbl of solution.

60 0.6

50 0.5

40 0.4

30 0.3

20 0.2

10 0.1

0 0.0
8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 8.9 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 9.7 9.8
Brine Weight (ppg)

Pounds of KCl/bbl of solution

Bbls of Water/bbl of solution.
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Material Requirements for Preparing NaCl brines at 60oF.

120 1.2
1.1
100 1.0
0.9
Pounds of NaCl/bbl of solution

Bbls of water/bbl of solution

80 0.8
0.7
60 0.6
0.5
40 0.4
0.3
20 0.2
0.1
0 0.0
8.4 8.6 8.8 9.0 9.2 9.4 9.6 9.8 10.0 10.2
Brine Weight (ppg)

Pounds of NaCl/bbl of solution

Bbls of water/bbl of solution
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids
Material Requirements for Preparing Calcium Chloride brines at 60 oF using 95% Calcium Chloride

240 1.20
220 1.10
200 1.00
Pounds of CaCl2 / bbl of solution

180 0.90

Bbls of water / bbl of solution

160 0.80
140 0.70
120 0.60
100 0.50
80 0.40
60 0.30
40 0.20
20 0.10
0 0.00
8.0 8.5 9.0 9.5 10.0 10.5 11.0 11.5 12.0
Brine Weight (ppg)

Pounds of CaCl/bbl of solution

Bbls of water/bbl of solution
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Wellbore Cleanup
• On completion of the drilling process, and with the liner or casing cemented in
place, the well is usually left full of oily mud.

• The mud generally consists of an oily base fluid, to which water and clay have
been added for viscosity. Barite or dolomite is added as a weighting agent.

• It is suspended in the mud to raise the density, hence imparting a higher

hydrostatic pressure.

• The oil phase contains emulsifiers, which are powerful oil wetting agents.

• These ensure that all surfaces (tubulars, barite, formation) are oil wet and any
water is encapsulated as microscopic droplets.

• When displacing the well to water, not only does the oily mud require
displacing, but also the casing surfaces need to be changed from oil wet to
water wet.
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Wellbore Cleanup

The oily mud is removed by pumping solvents, to dissolve any oily residues, and
surfactants (surface active agents) to change the casing surface from oil wet to
water wet, i.e. counteracting the emulsifiers in the oily mud.

The chemical pills are pumped at maximum pump rate to generate turbulent flow,
with a 10-minute contact time desired.

The well is then displaced to inhibited freshwater, seawater or brine, depending on

the completion requirements. Water and or brine will be circulated until the
required standard of cleanliness is achieved.

Cleanliness is usually measured with a turbidity meter in units of NTU. This is a

measure of the clarity and suspended solids in the fluid

Newer methods involving Infrared technology are now coming into use
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Wellbore Cleanup Chemicals

2 Types used

Solvents

• Solvents are chemicals which dissolve the oily mud. The simplest solvents are the mud
base fluids themselves.
• Mutual solvents have both polar (water-soluble) and non-polar (oil soluble) parts.
• Both parts exert similar influence, so they are soluble in both oil and water. They are
usually pumped as dilute solutions in water. Dilute solutions of mutual solvent are effective
in removing thin layers of oily mud.

Surfactants

• Surfactants are surface-active agents. In the oilfield, surfactants are synonymous with
detergents.
• However, in reality, they include emulsifiers as well.
• They have polar heads, which are water-soluble and non-polar tails, which are soluble in
the oily layer.
• Surfactants encapsulate oil allowing it to be dispersed into the water and will displace oil
from surfaces, rendering the surfaces water wet.
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Wellbore Cleanup Chemicals

Shown below is a schematic of a surfactant molecule and a representation of
surfactant attack on an oil droplet.
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Wellbore Cleanup – Mechanical Tools

Mechanical tool strings comprising generally of a scraper, a brush or a
combination of both have been introduced over the years as an aide to the
chemicals during the clean-up process.

Scrapers and brushes

clean cuttings beds
and debris especially
in directional wells
 Brines, Completion & Workover Fluids

Wellbore Cleanup Planning

Each Cleanup should have a well specific program which will detail:-

• Pills to be pumped
• Pill Sequence if different products used
• Displacement Procedures
• Cleanliness requirements (NTU or equivalent)

Detailed pit management plans may also be provided OR will have

to be prepared on the rig. Fluids have to be separated.