Cemented Fiber Glass Tubulars For Downhole Well Applications
Authors: Bowers J.H. , Mayfield G.B. , Sydow J.R. 
Published: December 2007

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Cemented fiber glass tubulars have been used successfully in 128 wells in Shell's Mid-Continent Division over the past three years. The first use of these tubulars was in the Shell Denver Unit, Wasson San Andres Field, Gaines and Yoakum Counties, Texas. The cemented fiber glass liners were set to control fill and provide injection profile control in open-hole completed water injection wells. These wells have casing set at 4700 feet and have been open-hole completed at a TD of 5200 feet. Recently, fiber glass casing has been run below steel casing to cover the San Andres pay interval in newly drilled infill injection wells in the Denver Unit and in the Shell-operated Jordan-University San Andres Unit, Crane and Ector Counties, Texas. Fiber glass liners have also been run in several chemical flood observation wells in the Benton Field, Franklin Country, Illinois.

Fiber glass tubulars were selected for injection well applications as the most economical alternative to steel pipe for protection from corrosive injection water. protection from corrosive injection water. Injection equipment, consisting of internally plastic-coated steel tubing with packers to plastic-coated steel tubing with packers to isolate the crossover between the steel and fiber glass casing, provide a protected system to the corrosive injection water. Fiber glass casing was chosen for the Benton Field application to permit periodic electrical logging to monitor flood front advance.

We have encountered no problems to date that are unique to using fiber glass tubulars in these applications. Other than perforating with a hollow carrier gun and using packers without slips in the fiber glass, no special consideration was given the fiber glass pipe. Most conventional evaluation logs may be run in fiber glass, with the exception of cement bond logs and focused resistivity devices.

HISTORY

Prior to November 1969, the use of downhole fiber glass tubulars (fiber glass reinforced thermal resin pipe) in Shell's Mid Mid-Continent Division was limited to a few tubing strings in shallow corrosive wells, and uncemented liners to control fill in open hole completed injection wells. This limited application was due to very conservative burst, collapse, and tensile strength ratings by the manufacturers and a lack of knowledge of the suitability of fiber glass as cemented and perforated downhole tubulars.