Faculty of Engineering

Petroleum Engineering Department

Drilling Engineering II
Fourth Stage

Lecture # 15
Casing Design

Pshtiwan Jaf 1
[email protected]
 Casing Design

Graphical Method for Casing Design

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Graphical Method for Casing Design
• Nowadays many oil companies use a graphical technique for solving casing design
problems. The method was first described in 1965 in a series of articles by “Goins et
al.”

• In this method a graph of pressure against depth is first constructed. It is marked such
that the top of the graph starts at zero to coincide with zero depth and zero pressure, as
shown in the figure.

• Collapse, burst and sometimes fracture gradient lines are drawn on this graph.

• Strength values of available casing grades in collapse and burst are then plotted as
vertical lines on this graph.

• Selection is made such that the casing chosen has strength properties which are higher
than the maximum existing collapse and burst pressures. 3
 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Graphical Method for Casing Design, cont.

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Collapse Line
• The collapse line is determined as follows:
➢ calculate the external load due to the mud column, H;
➢ calculate the internal load also due to the mud inside the casing, H1,
➢ calculate the collapse pressure, C, as the difference between H and H1.
𝐶 = 𝐻 − 𝐻1
• At the surface, the external and internal pressures are both zero and the value of
the collapse pressure is zero.

• At the casing shoe, the collapse pressure has its maximum value.

• On a pressure-depth graph, join the zero co-ordinates with the value of C at the
casing shoe depth to obtain the collapse line. 5
 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Collapse Line, cont.
• Collapse calculations are, in some cases, based on 100% evacuation such that the
internal pressure, H1, is taken as zero. The 100% evacuation condition can only occur
when:
A. The casing is run empty;
B. There is complete loss of fluid into a thief zone; and
C. There is complete loss of fluid due to a gas blowout which subsequently subsides, e.g.
shallow gas kick through a conductor pipe.

• Neither of these conditions should be allowed to occur in practice, and they are, in fact,
extremely rare.

• 100% evacuation is an extreme case and a 40% evacuation level is normally used. In this
case, H1 is calculated from a 60% filled casing. 6
 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Burst Line
• The burst line is determined as follows.
1. Calculate the external load due to an assumed mud column of 0.465 psi/ft. This value
is equal to the gradient of salt-saturated water
2. Calculate the internal load due to the formation pressure,
3. Calculate the burst pressure as the difference between (2) and (1).

• The formation pressure in (2) is the formation pressure that can be encountered during
the drilling of the next hole. In other words, an intermediate Casing is designed for the
maximum formation pressure that may result from a kick during drilling of the open
hole of the production string.

• In conventional casing design it is customary to assume a gas kick, thereby anticipating

the worst possible type of kick. 7
 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Burst Line, cont.
• Referring to the figure below, burst pressures at the casing shoe and at the
surface are calculated by use of the following relationship:
Burst pressure = Internal pressure - External pressure
Burst at shoe:
𝐸𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒 = 𝐶𝑆𝐷 × 𝐺𝑚
𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒 = 𝑃𝑓 − 𝑇𝐷 − 𝐶𝑆𝐷 𝐺 CSD Mud

Therefore:
Burst pressure= 𝑃𝑓 − 𝑇𝐷 − 𝐶𝑆𝐷 𝐺 − (𝐶𝑆𝐷 × 𝐺𝑚 ) Pf
Where: TD of next hole
• Pf = formation pressure, psi
• G = Gradient of formation fluid, psi/ft
• CSD = Casing set depth, ft
• TD = Total depth of next section of hole, ft
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• Gm = Mud Gradient, psi/ft
 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Burst Line, cont.
• The term (TD – CSD) × G represents the hydrostatic head of formation fluid
between TD and casing setting depth.
• Formation pressure, Pf, will lose an amount of pressure equal to (TD – CSD) G in
travelling from TD to CSD.
Burst at surface:
𝐸𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒 = 0
𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒 = 𝑃𝑓 − (𝑇𝐷 × 𝐺) CSD Mud

Therefore:
Burst pressure= 𝑃𝑓 − (𝑇𝐷 × 𝐺) Pf

TD of next hole

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Tensile Forces
• Tensile forces are determined as follows:
a) Calculate the weight of casing in air (positive value),
b) Calculate the buoyancy force (negative value),
c) Calculate the bending force in deviated wells (positive value), and
d) Calculate shock loads due to arresting casing

• Forces(a to c) exist always, whether the pipe is static or in motion, while forces in
(d) only exist when the pipe is arrested in the rotary table.

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Example
The following three grades of 13 3/8” casings are available in a company store. It is
required to run a combination string based on collapse and tension only. The
casing is run in 67 pcf mud to 6200 ft. Safety factors are 1.8 for tension and a
minimum of 0.85 for collapse.
Yield Strength
Grade Weight (Ib/ft) Collapse (psi) (Ib x 1000)
Body Couplings
K55 54.5 1130 853 636
K55 68 1950 1069 1300
L80 72 2670 1661 1693

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Solution
Collapse:
67
𝐶 𝑎𝑡 𝑐𝑎𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑒 = × 6200 = 2885 𝑝𝑠𝑖
144

• On a graph of depth against pressure draw a collapse pressure line between zero
at surface and 2885 psi at 6200 ft .

• Draw the collapse resistances of the three grades as vertical lines, as shown in
Figure below.

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Solution, cont.
Collapse: Pressure, psi
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500
0

1000
K55, 54.5 Ib/ft
2000

2500 ft
3000
Depth, ft

K55, 68 Ib/ft
4000
4200 ft
5000
L80, 72 Ib/ft
6000

6200 ft
7000

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Solution, cont.
Collapse:
• Selection based on collapse is as shown in below table.

• Note: Minimum safety factor in collapse = collapse resistance of casing divided by

collapse pressure of mud column.

• Note that the last grade was only suitable down to a depth of 5700 ft for a safety
factor of 1.

• However, since a minimum safety factor of 0.85 is to be used, this grade is

suitable down to 6200 ft with the lowest safety factor being 0.93 at TD Above
6200 ft. 14
 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Solution, cont.
Collapse:

Depth Grade & Weight Length of section Minimum SF

0 – 2500 K55, 54.5 Ib/ft 2500 0.97
2500 – 4200 K55, 68 Ib/ft 1700 1
2670
4200 – 6200 L80, 72 Ib/ft 2000 = 0.93
6200 × 0.4653

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Solution, cont.
Tension:
• Casing-carrying capacity must be checked from the bottom joint to the surface.
• Two values of yield strength are given in the table of strength properties. One
specifies the yield strength of pipe body and the other the yield strength of the
coupling. The lower of these two values is used for the calculation of the safety
factor in tension. Therefore, starting from the bottom, see table below.

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Solution, cont.
Tension:
• Since a minimum safety factor of 1.8 is to be used in tension, the K55, 54.5 lb/ft
may be used if it is designed to carry a maximum weight, W, given by:
636000
1.8 = ⇒ 𝑊 = 353333 𝐼𝑏
𝑊
• Hence, useable weight of section of 54.5 Ibm/ft = [Total weight which can be
carried)- (weight of lower casing grades)

Weight of section of K55, 54.5 Ib/ft = 353333 – 259600 = 93733 lb

And length of usable section of K55, 54.5 Ib/ft = 93733/54.5 = 1720 ft
Remaining top length = 2500 – 1720 = 780 ft
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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Solution, cont.
Tension:
• A heavy casing must be used for top 780 ft, try K55, 68 Ib/ft (i.e. next heavy
casing):

• Total weight that can be carried by the top joint of K55, 68 Ib/ft is:
= 353 333 + (780 x 68) = 406 373 Ib

• SF in tension for K 55, 68 Ib/ft at top joint: =(1069000)/(406373) = 2.6

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 Graphical Method for Casing Design
Solution, cont.
Tension:
• Hence, the final casing selection, based on collapse and tension, is as following:

Depth Grade and Weight SF in Collapse SF in Tension

0 – 780 K55, 68 Ib/ft 5.4 2.6
780 – 2500 K55, 54.5 Ib/ft 0.97 1.8
2500 – 4200 K55, 68 Ib/ft 1 4.1
4200 – 6200 L80, 72 Ib/ft 0.93 11.5

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