Introduction to

Casing

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After each section of hole has been drilled a

string of casing is run to line the inside of the
wellbore. The main reasons for casing off the
open hole are:
to prevent caving of the wellbore, as if unsupported, the
hole may be liable to fall in upon itself;
to provide support for weak or fractured formations from
mud weights which may cause these zones to break down;
to isolate zones of abnormal pressure;
to seal off zones of lost circulation (i.e. thief zones where
mud or cement slurry etc enters the formation);
to provide a means of completing and producing the well
efficiently;
to provide structural support for wellheads and blow-out
prevention equipment
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Different
Casing
Strings

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Casing Programmes
Casing makes up a considerable part of the overall well cost
(<20%), so great care must be taken to design a casing
string which will satisfy the requirements of each well. eg:

Must withstand expected loadings

Availability of different casing types
Cost of material / casing-type options
Operational problems in running the casing
Be able to handle expected formation pressures
Be functional for the anticipated lifespan of the well
Be flexible enough to allow additional string to be run if
operational difficulties are unexpectedly encountered
With a view to ultimate abandonment
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Inner Casing
String

Casings have to
be cemented in
place to ensure
a competent
pressure control
system

Outer Casing
String
Cement Sheath

Cement being
injected

More about cementing later...

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Types of Casing
Well now have a look at:
Conductor Casing
Surface Casing
Intermediate Casing
Production Casing
Liner

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Conductor Casing

Conductor casing (sometimes called pipe) is the first

casing string to be run often driven into the formation
using large hydraulic jack-hammers. It ...
consequently has the largest diameter
protects seabed formations - continuous fluid circulation
will likely create large washouts through erosion
also protects surface formations which may have low
frictional strength which could easily be exceeded by the
hydrostatic pressures exerted by the drilling fluid when
drilling a deeper section of the wellbore
provides a conduit for mud returns

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Surface Casing
The main functions of surface casing are to seal
off any fresh water sands, and ...
to provide structural support for the blow-out
preventer (BOP) and wellhead equipment
In an area where abnormal pressures are
expected the setting depth is important, as the
control equipment will need to be capable of
withstanding that pressure. If the casing is set
too high there may not be sufficient formation
strength at the shoe to handle a kick when
drilling the next section
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Intermediate Casing
Intermediate, or protection casing is used to isolate any
troublesome formations which would/could cause drilling
problems in the wellbore - a few examples:
sloughing shale
lost circulation
high pressure zones

Several strings of intermediate casing may be required

depending upon the number of problems encountered, if rock
formations are stable, drilling can be undertaken for relatively
long periods of time prior to the setting of casing
The setting depth depends on a knowledge of pore pressures
and fracture gradients
During drilling operations the mud weight controls pore
pressures, but must not exceed the fracture strength of
shallower zones not cased (i.e. not protected) from the drilling
fluid
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Youll hear a lot about ..

Pore Pressure

It is .... The pressure of fluids within the pores of a

reservoir (usually hydrostatic pressure) or the pressure
exerted by a column of water from the formation's depth
to sea level
When impermeable rocks (such as shales) form as
sediments are compacted, their pore fluids cannot always
escape and must then support the total overlying rock
column, leading to anomalously high formation pressures

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Production Casing
This is usually the last string of casing to be run in the
wellbore and is either run through the pay zone
(reservoir) or set just above the pay zone (for an
open hole completion). Its main purpose is to:
isolate the production interval from other
formations such as water bearing sands, and
to protect the completion tubing (through which
the reservoir fluids will be transported to the
surface)
Production casing should be thoroughly pressure
tested. Usually the casing will be pressure tested to
around 60% of its specified burst pressure, if the
casing withstands that pressure it is expected to be
capable of withstanding higher pressures
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Liner
A liner is a short string of casing which does not extend
back to the surface. It is run back inside the previous
casing string to provide some overlap
Liners may be used either as an intermediate or
production string
The liner has the advantage of being much cheaper than a
full length casing string
If required, a tie back string can be run to extend the liner
back to the wellhead
A liner is usually less than 5,000 feet long. Overlap is
somewhere in region of 200500 feet and it is essential
that the liner overlap is gas tight
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Casing vs. Bit Size

(illustrative)

Casing
Size

~20

~133/8

~9-5/8

~7

~ 5

Bit Size
(Typical)

24 <
26

16 <
17-1/2

12-1/4

8-3/8 <
9-7/8

~ 6

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Casing setting Depth

The initial selection is based on the pore pressures and
fracture gradients anticipated in the wellbore
pressures at which fluid will come out of the formation
and the pressures at which pumped fluid will fracture
the formation. The drilling engineers should ensure, as
far as possible, that relevant offset data has been
considered in the estimation of pore pressures and
fracture gradients, and the effect of hole angle on
offset fracture gradient data has also been considered
The total depth of the well, and hence the setting
depth of the production casing or liner, is driven by
logging, testing, and completion requirements. The
shoe must be set deep enough to give an adequate
sump for logging, perforating, and to enable testing of
the reservoir fluids
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1) Draw the mean pore

pressure gradient curve
along with the lithology,
if available
2) Draw
the mud weight
curve. The mud weight
curve should include a
200 to 400 psi trip
margin
4.2) Move
up to Point B
which determines the
initial
estimated
setting
4)
determine
initial
3)To
Draw
the predicted
depth
the
estimates
of for
casing
fracture
gradient
curve
intermediate
casing
setting
depths

4.3) Move
across
to
(actually
run
it
300400
First:
Point C which
feet
deeper)
Enter
the
mud
weight
identifies
the
4.4) Move up to Point
D mud
curve
at Point
Athe
weight
requirement
which
determines
4.5) Move
across to Point
(Total
Depth
(TD))
for
that
depth
preferred setting
E depth
to identify the mud
for the surfaceweight
casing/required at that
intermediate string depth
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4.6) Point E is the normal pressure range and

no further casing is required to withstand the
associated mud weight. However, a
structural and conductor casing are
required, and the setting depth criteria for
those strings are discussed later

Other factors may affect the

casing design programme...
if shallow gas zones are encountered whilst drilling,
operations must stop and casing must be set;
if lost circulation zones are encountered, drilling
should stop, mud returns should be checked and Lost
Circulation Material (LCM) pumped downhole before
the mud is conditioned to a more suitable rheology.
The zone will then need to be drilled before casing can
be set;
formation stability: if the formation is sensitive to
the mud weight over time, casing may have to be set
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 directional well profile: it is important to line out

the well trajectory before setting casing and attempt
to achieve a consistent survey ahead of a tangent.
Long open hole sections may require casing to reduce
the occurrence of stuck pipe, and the level of torque;
side tracking requirements as specified in the drilling
programme. For example, the 13-3/8 casing may be
set high enough to allow 9-5/8 casing to be cut and
pulled, enabling a side-track in 12-1/4 hole;
fresh water sands: i.e. have to protect drinking
water, and not contaminate it with drilling fluid;
hole cleaning, particularly if a long section of 171/2 hole is required
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 salt sections, invariably associated with a good

reservoir, should be drilled round rather than
through;
high pressure zones;
casing shoe shall, where practicable, be set in
competent formations;
uncertainty in depth estimating e.g., require a
margin related to confidence limit when setting
close to a permeable formation. Best source for
this information is offset well data or area
experience, but this should be documented
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Kick tolerance
Once the initial casing setting depths are
selected, the kick tolerance associated with those
depths should be determined. Start from TD up
to the surface to determine the kick tolerance and
preferred setting depth for each casing string.
The acceptability of kick tolerance values of less
than 100 bbls should always be justified by a
review of the type of well, capacity of rig
equipment for kick detection and
operator/drillers experience, area experience and
geology
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Design Bottom-to-Top
A design should be developed by well planning
that provides for economic production from the
pay zone consistent with safety requirements.
The pay zone should be analysed for its flow
potential and the drilling problems that will be
encountered upon reaching it. The well should be
designed from bottom-to-top. The opposite
approach can result in a well that limits the
production capacity of the pay zone

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Design of the Completion Tubing

The design of completion tubing strings must be
given consideration relative to its ability to
transport oil or gas to the surface at economical
rates. Small diameter tubing chokes the flow rate
due to high frictional pressures, therefore small
diameter tubing is to be avoided. Large diameter
strings are preferable for good flow rate. Small
completion tubing can also lead to operational
problems due to reduced radial clearances
making tool placement operations more difficult,
and workover activities more complicated. The
required completion characteristics must
therefore be taken onto account when designing
the casing string
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Further Reading
Virtual Campus/Moodle: ENM201 The Casing String
SPEs Applied Drilling Engineering (Red Book) :
Chapter 7 Casing Design
(NB This topic will be further developed during Semester 2 in the Drilling
Technology module)

The Robert Gordon University 2006