Process of selecting completion or workover fluids requires series of trade offs
Good fluid design requires a series of trade-offs to match cost against formation needs. Here are the fundamentals and current technology for workover or completion fluids along with guidance for the trade-off choices. A completion fluid can be broadly defined as any borehole fluid placed across the producing zone prior to bringing a new well in. Workover fluids are used during remedial work on a well which has been on production for a period of time. Both fluids have the same goal: to maximize the recovery of hydrocarbons from the producing reservoir. This article presents an overview of completion and workover fluids specifically designed to maximize the recovery of hydrocarbons. Poor productivity of promising new wells, or reworked old wells, can almost always be traced to undesirable characteristics of the borehole fluid used in the completion or workover operation. For this reason, considerable care and planning should always go into the selection of these fluids. Many factors should be considered, keeping in mind that compromises often must be made. The secret to handling completion or workover fluids is to keep them clean. They should contain no particulate matter considered damaging to the formation. If handling equipment is not clean, then the expense and effort used to secure clean, uncontaminated completion or workover fluid is wasted.
- Research Organization:
- IMCO Services, Houston, TX
- OSTI ID:
- 6804069
- Journal Information:
- Oil Gas J.; (United States), Vol. 82:5
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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