HOUSTON, TX. (April 30, 2007) – At the annual Offshore Technology Conference in Houston today, GEODynamics Inc., Shell International E&P and QinetiQ plc jointly announced a breakthrough, game-changing perforating technology (ConneX™ Perforating) that according to David Wesson, President and CEO of GEODynamics, has the potential to dramatically increase the production capability of oil and gas wells.
The main purpose of perforating a well is to establish good flow communication between the well bore and the reservoir. In addition to being conduits for the inflow of hydrocarbons, perforations provide points of injection for water, gas, acid, proppant-laden gels for hydraulic fracture stimulations, and fluids that carry gravel used to control sand flow in weak or unconsolidated formations.
Conventional Jet Perforating
Perforating involves positioning a "gun," which contains shaped-charge explosives made specifically for oil field perforators, down the wellbore next to a productive zone. A detonator is fired and a primer cord is ignited, which in turn detonates the charges. The resulting event creates holes through the well’s casing and cement and into the target zone, thus allowing formation fluids to flow into the well bore and up to the surface.
Shaped-charge (or “jet”) perforating has been commonly employed since the early 1950s. Jet charges evolved from the WWII military bazooka and replaced less powerful bullet perforators and other technologies such as mechanical cutters and hydraulic jets.
Perforations are created in a fraction of a second. The shaped charges employ an explosive cavity effect coupled with a metal liner to maximize penetration. The charges consist of a primer, outer case, high explosive and conical liner connected to a detonating cord (Fig. 1). Once the main explosive is detonated, the liner collapses to form a high-velocity jet of fluidized metal particles that are propelled outward. The perforating event could be described as a “punching action” as opposed to blasting, burning or drilling. This punching effect is achieved by extremely high pressures stemming from impact of the initial portion of the jet traveling at approximately 30,000 ft/sec.
Fig. 1. Shaped-charge components
An undesirable side effect of perforating is damage to the formation caused by the enormous jet impact pressure, which propels steel, cement, rock and wellbore fluids into the surrounding formation. The shock effect also damages the rock, pulverizing formation grains and leaving loose debris in the newly created tunnels. Thus, perforating damage consists of a crushed zone around the tunnel and debris inside the tunnels, which individually and collectively can limit both well productivity and injectivity.
The removal of debris and damage from perforations is essential to ensure well success in all but the most prolific reservoirs. This often requires additional and sometimes costly procedures such as pumped treatments (acid stimulation, brine wash, hydraulic fracturing, etc.); use of special downhole cleaning tools (hydro-jetting, etc.); propellants (Stimgun™ technology, StimTube™ tool, etc.); static and dynamic under-balanced drilling and completion procedures; and other post-perforation debris management tools and techniques (filters, magnets, etc.).
Perforation clean-up efforts add cost and operational complexity. The procedures are often ineffective (especially in heterogeneous intervals) and as a consequence can actually reduce asset value.
Mitigating perforating-induced damage has been an important aspect of well completion research for decades. The objective is 100% clean perforation tunnels, regardless of rock quality or wellbore conditions. The elusive perfect perforation would yield 100% flow efficiency, providing greater effective inflow area and reduced flux rate – an important factor in controlling sand production and avoiding well failure. It would deliver a step change in flow performance (both productivity and injectivity) and allow all zones to contribute to the well’s productive flow characteristics, enhancing the inflow or injectivity profile and increasing ultimate reserves recovery.
ConneX™ Perforating
ConneX™ Perforating is a new generation of shaped charge resulting from the combined intensive development effort of GEODynamics, Shell International and QinetiQ. ConneX™ Perforating – a ReActive™ perforating technology – is based on a revolutionary concept created and patented by QinetiQ that is exclusively licensed to GEODynamics. The technology has been developed over the last three years through the substantial financial support of the Shell GameChanger program. Shell GameChanger provides a process to capture, nurture and mature game-changing ideas, until they are ready to be picked up in the mainstream technology development activities.
Upon detonation, this novel groundbreaking perforation solution creates a secondary reaction within the perforation tunnel. The reaction is formed by use of new liner technology, incorporating a carefully controlled combination of bimetallic liner material that is pressed under very specific conditions. The reactive properties of the charge develop high lateral pressures within the perforation tunnels, creating a self-cleaning action that results in open, debris-free holes.
The ConneX™ perforating charge is compatible with existing gun technology and traditional perforating procedures. Companies will not have to change the way they handle, ship or operate perforating equipment. Even the outer case of a ConneX™ perforating charge looks like a traditional shaped charge. With ConneX™ Perforating, GEODynamics has added new functionality to the conventional shaped charge by changing the way it is made and the way it reacts upon detonation.
As previously mentioned, the normal debris found in perforations made with traditional charges consists of pulverized formation material, explosion by-products and remnants of liner material. Some debris can be flushed from the perforation if an effective rate of flow is established. However, in low-permeability formations, in zones that will immediately be fractured, in injection wells that will not be reverse-flushed, and whenever an effective underbalance cannot be established to induce flow, the debris remains trapped in the perforation tunnel. This seriously impairs the perforations’ flow characteristics.
The ConneX™ perforating charge is extremely advantageous in such cases. The event created by the ReActive™ perforating technology results in the expulsion of debris and crushed zone material that would normally remain trapped in the perforation tunnels (Fig. 2). In the case of the Berea sandstone tests illustrated in Figure 2, the results from using ConneX™ perforating charges are dramatic:
• +44% clear tunnel depth
• +164% tunnel surface area
• +355% tunnel volume
• +35% improvement in flow performance.
Tests conducted during development positively indicate a strongly exothermic, Hume-Rothery intermetallic reaction between liner components, induced by the shock upon detonation. This secondary event occurs within the perforation tunnel in the microseconds after it is formed. The secondary event effectively “cleans” the perforation tunnel of debris and removes crushed material from the tunnel wall, leaving a near-ideal and optimized flow path.
Fig. 2. A perforation tunnel shot in a stressed Berea sandstone target using a conventional 3-3/8 in. deep penetrating HMX shaped charge (top) vs. the perforation tunnel shot in a similarly stressed Berea sandstone target using the new ConneX™ perforating technology (bottom).
The ConneX™ charge technology, proprietary explosive envelope, and custom liner design were developed over a three-year period by GEODynamics, Shell and QinetiQ engineers.
ConneX™ Perforating Summary
Flow lab tests have demonstrated that this new class of perforator has the following characteristics:
• A secondary reaction is created upon detonation
• Perforating tunnels are effectively “cleaned” and free of both debris and crushed zone
• The ConneX™ perforator does not require underbalanced conditions to clean the perf tunnel
• Positive cleaning effects generated by the ConneX™ perforating technology are relatively insensitive to rock type or quality
• Perforation tunnels created by the ConneX™ perforating charges exhibit superior flow characteristics that improve hydrocarbon recovery.
GEODynamics, Inc. designs, engineers and manufactures conventional and innovative perforating solutions that maximize well productivity for the global oil and gas industry.
GEODynamics’ main product development and manufacturing asset (located near Fort Worth, Texas) was established in June 2003 and began delivering perforating products to the market in August 2004. The company has seen rapid growth since that time and has a number of important technology developments underway.
In its first two years of operation, GEODynamics experienced a compound annual growth rate of 537 percent, and earned the number one position on the 2006 Aggie 100 list of fastest-growing companies owned and operated by Texas A&M University former students.
In July 2005, Shell Technology Ventures and Orica Mining Services became strategic investment partners in a joint venture with GEODynamics with the vision of leveraging each of the partners’ capabilities to deliver unique competitive advantage in developing, manufacturing and selling advanced perforating systems, shaped charges and related equipment.
Orica Mining Services is the world’s largest commercial explosives company and offers commercial explosives, initiating systems and advanced mining solutions to the mining, quarrying and construction industries. The global business, which has approximately 5,500 employees, runs operations in Australia, Asia, Europe, the Former Soviet Union, Africa, the Middle East, North America and Latin America.
Shell Technology Ventures invests in companies developing innovative technologies for the Oil and Gas Industry. The company funds and works with entrepreneurs to turn prototypes into field hardened novel products and services and accelerate their introduction into the industry.
Perforating is the first critical step in connecting the wellbore to the oil/gas reservoir. GEODynamics industry-leading customized perforating solutions account for the relationship between ballistics, the wellbore mechanics, and the reservoir's formation characteristics – an approach that has attracted the world's most respected producers and service companies as valued customers and partners. The Company helps maximize production from oil and gas wells by providing:
• Advanced shaped-charge technology
• Fit-for-purpose solutions, tailor-made for a well's geological composition
• Extensive QA/QC testing on all systems and components
• The most advanced engineering and testing laboratory in the industry.
GEODynamics’ gun systems and perforating solutions deliver optimal production in part because critical, shaped-charge parameters – such as optimized jet velocity profiles that maximize penetration while minimizing damage – can be selected in the context of the reservoir and completion type. Additional factors like shot density, hole size and phasing are analyzed on a foot-by-foot basis in order to achieve the maximum value from the reservoir.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Matt Bell
Vice President, Technology
GEODynamics, Inc.
Phone: 817.341.5363
Email: matt.bell@perf.com |
