TOPIC: CASING DESIGN

Objectives: during and at the end of the lesson, the students should be able to;

1) Describe casings
2) functions of casing
3) Discuss Manufacture and standardization of casing
4) Describe different types of casings and their functions

Casing

Casing is defined as tubular pipe with an OD range of 4.5 to 20 in. Tubing conducts well
fluids from the formation to the wellhead. Line pipe is typically used in surface facilities to
convey gas, oil, and water in both the oil and natural-gas industries. Line pipe is sometimes
used in oil wells because it is available in larger sizes and is often needed for shallow oil well
strings.

FUNCTIONS OF CASING

Casing has several important functions during the drilling and completing of a well.

 It is used to prevent the borehole from caving in during the drilling of the well.
 to provide a means of controlling fluids encountered while drilling.
 to prevent contamination of fluids to be produced
 To protect or isolate certain formations during the course of a well.

Casing is also one of the most expensive parts of a well, around 20% of the cost of a
completed well.

Types of Casings and Their Functions

Casing is usually divided into five basic types.

Conductor Casing

Conductor pipe or drive pipe if it is hammer-driven to depth, is the first string of casing to be
used. The setting depth can vary from 10 ft to around 300 ft. The normal size range for
conductor pipe is from 16 to 36 inches (outside diameter). The conductor pipe must be large
enough to allow the other casing strings to be run through it.

Purposes of conductor pipe are to:

• prevent washouts in the near surface, normally unconsolidated formations.

 protects the subsequent casing strings from corrosion and may be used to support
some of the well load structurally

Surface Casing

The amount of surface casing used will depend on the depth of the unconsolidated
formations. Surface casing is usually set in the first competent formation. Normal size for
surface casing is between 20 inch and 13-3/8 inch (outside diameter). Since temperature,
pressure and corrosive fluids tend to increase with depth, different grades of casing will be
required to handle the different well conditions.

Purposes of surface casing are to:

• protect fresh water formations

• seal off unconsolidated formations and lost circulation zones

• provide a place to install the B.O.P.'s

• protect “build” sections on deviated wells

• provide for a sufficient “leak-off” test to be conducted

Intermediate Casing

 Intermediate casing is set after surface casing, normally to seal off a problem
formation.
 Intermediate casing is usually required in deeper wells that penetrate abnormally
pressured formations, lost circulation zones, unstable shale sections, or salt sections.
 Intermediate casing is often referred to as “protective” or “drilling” casing.
Some wells may require one or more strings of intermediate casing between the surface
casing depth and the final well [Link] size of intermediate casing, will depend on the size
of the surface casing and the grade required to withstand the subsurface conditions. Normal
sizes are between 9 5/8 and 13 3/8 inch (outside diameter).
Production Casing
Production casing is usually the last full string of pipe set in a well. These strings are run to
isolate producing formations and provide for selective production in multi-zone production
areas. The size of production casing will depend on the expected production rate, the higher
the barrel per day production rate, the larger the inside diameter of the pipe. Common sizes
are between 3 and 7 inch (outside diameter).
Liner
A liner is a string of casing that does not reach the surface. They are usually “hung” (attached
to the intermediate casing using an arrangement of packers and slips) from the base of the
intermediate casing and reach to the bottom of the hole. The major advantage of a liner is the
cost of the string is reduced, as are running and cementing times. During the course of the
well, if the liner has to be extended to the surface (making it another string of casing), the
string attaching the liner to the surface is known as a “tie-back” string.

Casing Manufacture

The tubular manufacturing process begins with placing iron ore, limestone, and coke in a
blast furnace, where they are heated. Pig iron is produced, which is rich in carbon. The
molten pig iron is then placed into a special furnace, often with scrap steel. This special
furnace uses oxygen to heat the iron and further reduce its carbon content. Carbon is the
primary alloying agent used to increase the strength of iron. Other alloying elements such as
molybdenum and chrome are often added to adjust the chemical composition of the molten
steel and to impart specific metallurgical properties. The molten metal is then made into
billets, which are essentially solid bars. The strength of the final steel depends on its chemical
composition as well as on the mechanical and thermal processes used when the billet is
formed into a casing tube.

Casing Standardization

The American Petroleum Institute (API) has developed certain standards and specifications
for oil-field related casing and tubing. One of the more common standards is weight per unit
length. There are three “weights” used:
• Nominal Weight: Based on the theoretical calculated weight per foot for a 20 ft length of
threaded and coupled casing joint.
• Plain End Weight: The weight of the joint of casing without the threads and couplings.
• Threaded and Coupled Weight: The weight of a casing joint with threads on both ends and a
coupling at one end.
The Plain End Weight, and the Threaded and Coupled Weight are calculated using API
formulas. These can be found in API Bulletin 5C3.
API standards include three length ranges, which are:
• R-1: Joint length must be within the range of 16 to 25 feet, and 95% must have lengths
greater than 18 feet
• R-2: Joint length must be within the range of 25 to 34 feet, and 95% must have lengths
greater than 28 feet

• R-3: Joint length must be over 34 feet, and 95% must have lengths greater than 36 feet.

Grade: The API grade of casing denotes the steel properties of the casing. The grade has a
letter, which designates the grade, and a number, which designates the minimum yield
strength in thousands of psi. A table of API casing grades and properties are listed below
Casing properties are defined as:
• Yield Strength: The tensile stress required to produce a total elongation of 0.5% per unit
length
• Collapse Strength: The maximum external pressure or force required to collapse the casing
joint
• Burst Strength: The maximum internal pressure required to cause a casing joint to yield