Silicate foam wellbore insulation

Conference · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1973 · Soc. Pet. Eng. AIME, Pap.; (United States)

OSTI ID:6677699

Penberthy, Jr, W L; Bayless, J H

An effective and relatively inexpensive well-bore insulating procedure has recently been developed using liquid sodium silicate. The liquid forms a rigid, open-celled foam when it boils. Laboratory and field tests have shown that the foam will form a layer about 1/2-in. thick that adheres only to the exterior of well tubing when steam is injected down the tubing with liquid sodium silicate in the annulus. Excess silicate solution can be lifted from the annulus, and saved for future case. Laboratory and field work have shown that the foamed insulation reduces thermally caused compressive stresses in wells, thus preventing casing failures. To date, over 40 steam-injection wells have been insulated using this procedure. The insulation technique is currently being used routinely in wells that range in depth from 2,500 to 4,500 ft, with steam-injection pressures that normally vary from 1,250 to 1,650 psi. No serious operating problems have resulted from using this insulation technique, which has been shown to be as effective as and less expensive than conventional methods for reducing well bore heat loss and preventing casing failures. (17 refs.)

• Research Organization: Esso Production Res. Co.
• OSTI ID: 6677699
• Report Number(s): CONF-7309153-
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Soc. Pet. Eng. AIME, Pap.; (United States) Journal Volume: SPE-4666
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020300* -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
ALKALI METAL COMPOUNDS
BENCH-SCALE EXPERIMENTS
BOREHOLES
CAVITIES
COLLOIDS
DISPERSIONS
ENERGY LOSSES
ENHANCED RECOVERY
FIELD TESTS
FLUID INJECTION
FOAMS
HEAT LOSSES
INJECTION WELLS
LOSSES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
RECOVERY
SILICATES
SILICON COMPOUNDS
SODIUM COMPOUNDS
SODIUM SILICATES
STEAM INJECTION
TESTING
THERMAL INSULATION
THERMAL RECOVERY
USES
WELL CASINGS
WELLS