Method to simulate effect of turbulator-centralizer on displacement of wellbore fluids while cementing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2025111110-A1
Application number	US-202418598517-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 7, 2024
Priority date	Sep 29, 2023
Publication date	Apr 3, 2025
Grant date	—

Abstract

Prepare a work order (WO) by: collecting user input; running an initial CFD-based cementing operation simulation, outputting a CFD result including simulated annular placement of cement with insufficient DE. Choose a section of casing; simulate mechanically coupling a turbulator to adjust displacement efficiency (DE) of cement within the annulus before casing installation; adjust turbulator mechanical properties to maximize DE; create the WO including adjusting turbulator spacing along the casing of the wellbore to one turbulator per joint; perform an additional CFD-based simulation with adjusted turbulator spacing to update and output simulated annular placement of cement and DE; determine a change in DE; adjust the WO based on a further simulation loop; and finalize the WO. Cement the wellbore by: transporting turbulators to a wellsite; installing wellbore casing spaced by turbulator spacing of the finalized WO; and pumping cement into the annulus, the cement contacting the turbulators to reduce channeling.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A wellbore servicing method comprising:
(I) preparing a turbulator parts list associated with a wellbore cementing operation in a planning phase, the turbulator parts list resulting from execution, on a processor communicatively coupled to a non-transitory memory, of operations comprising:
(a) collecting an input of a user;
(b) running an initial computational fluid dynamics (CFD)-based simulation of the cementing operation, the initial CFD-based simulation outputting a CFD result comprising a simulated annular placement of a cement within an annulus of a wellbore, the wellbore having a wellbore geometry, and a displacement efficiency (DE);
(c) based on the input of the user, determining that the simulated annular placement of the cement from the initial CFD-based simulation exhibits an insufficient DE within the annulus of the wellbore;
(d) based on the input of the user, choosing a section of a casing of the wellbore, the section comprising a length of the casing from a first point to a second point;
(e) simulating mechanically coupling a turbulator to the section of the casing of the wellbore prior to the installation of the casing within the wellbore, the turbulator configured to adjust the DE of the cement within the annulus and proximate to the section of the casing during the wellbore cementing operation;
(f) based on the input of the user, adjusting mechanical properties of the turbulator to maximize the DE of the cement within the section during the wellbore cementing operation, the mechanical properties including at least the size of the turbulator and the specifications of the turbulator;
(g) creating the turbulator parts list for a designed cementing operation that comprises adjusting a turbulator spacing along the casing of the wellbore to create an adjusted turbulator spacing, the adjusted turbulator spacing being one turbulator per joint;
(h) performing an additional CFD-based simulation of the cementing operation with the adjusted turbulator spacing, the additional CFD-based displacement simulation updating and outputting the simulated annular placement of the cement within the annulus of the wellbore and the DE;
(i) based on the additional CFD-based simulation, determining a change in the DE;
(j) based on the determined change in the DE, adjusting the turbulator parts list based on a further simulation loop; and
(k) after the further simulation loop ends, finalizing the turbulator parts list for the designed cementing operation to yield a finalized turbulator parts list comprising:
the designated mechanical properties of each turbulator,
a number of turbulators associated with the section of casing of the wellbore, and
a turbulator spacing associated with the section of the casing of the wellbore;

(II) based on the finalized turbulator parts list, performing the wellbore cementing operation comprising:
(a) transporting the number of turbulators having the designated mechanical properties to a wellsite having the wellbore penetrating a subterranean formation;
(b) installing the casing in the wellbore, wherein:
an outer surface of the casing forms the annulus,
the number of turbulators are coupled to the outer surface of the casing, and
the number of turbulators are disposed and spaced within the annulus of the section of the casing of the wellbore in accordance with the turbulator spacing of the finalized turbulator parts list; and

(c) pumping, in accordance with a pumping schedule, the cement into the annulus, wherein the cement contacts the number of turbulators during the pumping, and the number of turbulators are configured to induce turbulence within the cement to at least reduce channeling of the cement within the annulus.

2 . The wellbore servicing method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the initial CFD-based simulation or the additional CFD-based simulation further comprises performing additional operations including:
receiving, from the user, the wellbore geometry, the pump schedule, the turbulator spacing, and a turbulator geometry to be tested; storing, within the non-transitory memory, the wellbore geometry, the pump schedule, the turbulator spacing, and the turbulator geometry; estimating, using the turbulator geometry and the turbulator spacing, a swirl number, a swirl length and a corresponding boundary condition (BC) to be applied in a momentum solution, the BC represented as an equivalent casing rotation for the section of a casing where the turbulator is placed; solving prime velocities using previously generated turbulator effects; using the prime velocities, solving a pressure correction equation to obtain a pressure field; using the pressure field, correct the prime velocities; solving a fluid concentration equation representing different wellbore fluids to determine different wellbore fluid positions in a simulated annulus at a given moment in time as the simulation proceeds; updating a plurality of fluid properties to create a plurality of updated fluid properties, the plurality of updated fluid properties being based at least in part on changes in the different wellbore fluid positions indicated by the pressure field; repeating, for the duration of a time loop having a plurality of iterations, the additional operations from solving the prime velocities to updating the plurality of fluid properties,
each of the iterations of the time loop being configured to generate simulation results for a portion of the wellbore cementing operation, and
the time loop being configured to simulate an entire duration of the wellbore cementing operation by combining the simulation results for all of the iterations of the time loop into the CFD result, the CFD result being based on the different wellbore fluid positions at a final iteration of the plurality of iterations of the time loop and comprising: the simulated annular placement of the cement within the annulus of the wellbore, and the DE; and
storing the CFD result.

3 . The wellbore servicing method of claim 2 , wherein the pump schedule is iteratively adjusted by the user to enhance the DE.

4 . The wellbore servicing method of claim 1 , wherein the further simulation loop comprises a determination that (1) the determined change in the DE resulting from the additional CFD-based simulation is not an improvement over the insufficient DE from the initial CFD-based simulation, and that (2) an immediately preceding DE from an immediately preceding CFD-based simulation was not greater than the determined change in the DE,
further comprising:
further adjusting the adjusted turbulator spacing by doubling the number of turbulators per each section of the casing of the wellbore;
repeating the operations from performing the additional CFD-based simulation with the adjusted turbulator spacing to, based on the additional CFD-based simulation, determining the change in the DE; and
repeating the further simulation loop.

5 . The wellbore servicing method of claim 1 , wherein the further simulation loop comprises a determination that (1) the determined change in the DE resulting from the additional CFD-based simulation is not an improvement over the insufficient DE from the initial CFD-based simulation, and that (2) an immediately preceding DE from an immediately preceding CFD-based simulation was greater than the determined change in the DE,
further comprising halting the further simulation loop.

6 . The wellbore servicing method of claim 1 , wherein the further simulation loop comprises a determination that (1) the determined change in the DE resulting from the additional CFD-based simulation is an improvement over the insufficient DE from the initial CFD-based simulation, and that (2) an immediately preceding DE from an immediately preceding C

Assignees

• Halliburton Energy Services Inc

Inventors

• Jogdand Anoop Sheshrao
• Yerubandi K V V N Krishna Babu
• Cuello Jimenez Walmy

Classifications

• E21B33/14

  for cementing casings into boreholes · CPC title

• E21B2200/20

  Computer models or simulations, e.g. for reservoirs under production, drill bits · CPC title

• G06F30/28 Primary

  using fluid dynamics, e.g. using Navier-Stokes equations or computational fluid dynamics [CFD] · CPC title