Taming Complexities of Coupled-Geomechanics in Rock Testing: From Assessing ReservoirCompaction to Analyzing Stability of Expandable Sand Screens and Solid Tubulars

摘要

Well geomechanics and 'smart' completion designs inmany of Saudi Aramco's fields are essential to support thecompany's efforts to apply the extended-reach and MRCwell technologies. MRC wells are being aggressively tar-geted to optimize development economics, enhance recov-ery, maximize production, minimize differential drawdownacross the sand face, reduce sanding potential, and deferwater coning. In addition, many unconsolidated sandstonereservoirs require positive sand control measures. As such,Expandable Sand Screen (ESS) tubulars have seen a re-cent surge in applicability for completing conventional andMRC wells in sand prone, troublesome formations. Today,solid expandable tubulars are being tested on a numberof wells in a pseudo mono-diameter structure. Though at-tractive, the long-term performance of these tools in thearabian reservoir environments is yet to be explored.This paper simulates the impact of reservoir produc-tion and depletion on expandable tubulars and sand screencompletions when the compacting reservoir behaves as apermeable poroelastic medium. A general poroelastic so-lution model encompassing a multitude of boundary andinitial conditions is discussed in this paper. The modelsimulates the uniaxial (Ko) testing of solid and hollow ge-omaterial cylinders (Geertsma, 2005). Thus, it helps inferabout potential problems that might influence the surviv-ability of 'expandables' and disrupt the outflow from thewell. The herein presented proof cases on reservoir andcap rocks are supported with numerical application, ex-perimental validation, and physical interpretation of thecoupled poromechanical processes that are reflected in the anisotropic, time-dependent rock responses during testing.The manuscript also demonstrates that this enhanced ap-proach to modeling visualization will ultimately ease thetractability of the pertinent physical phenomena as well assupport the model's computational credibility to engineersand experimentalists in the oil and gas industry.