Mechanical Evaluation of Casing in Multiple Thermal Recovery Cycles for Offshore Heavy Oil Wells

China’s offshore heavy oil resources are abundant but underutilized. Circulating steam stimulation enhances production while increasing casing failure risks in thermal recovery wells. Accurately assessing casing performance after repeated thermal cycles is crucial for ensuring wellbore integrity. Th...

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Main Authors: Yuxian He, Yongpeng Song, Shenghua Hu, Hangming Liu, Xianchi Ge
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-03-01
Series:Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/3/597
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author Yuxian He
Yongpeng Song
Shenghua Hu
Hangming Liu
Xianchi Ge
author_facet Yuxian He
Yongpeng Song
Shenghua Hu
Hangming Liu
Xianchi Ge
author_sort Yuxian He
collection DOAJ
description China’s offshore heavy oil resources are abundant but underutilized. Circulating steam stimulation enhances production while increasing casing failure risks in thermal recovery wells. Accurately assessing casing performance after repeated thermal cycles is crucial for ensuring wellbore integrity. This paper presents tensile and creep experiments on TP110H casing under cyclic temperatures. The temperature distribution within the “casing-cement sheath-stratum” system is derived using heat transfer theory. Stress and displacement equations are established based on thick-walled cylinder theory and thermo-elasticity. Thermal coupling analysis assesses casing stress in straight, inclined, and sidetrack well sections. Key factors, including steam injection pressure, in situ stress, cement modulus, and prestress, are analyzed for their effects on cumulative strain below the packer. Strain-based methods evaluate casing safety. Results show that under thermal cycling at 350 °C, after 16 cycles, the casing’s elastic modulus, yield strength, and tensile strength decrease by 15.3%, 13.1%, and 10.1%, respectively, while the creep rate increases by 16.0%. Above the packer, the casing remains safe, but the lower section may be at risk. Using low-elasticity cement, higher steam injection pressure, and prestressing can help improve casing performance. This study provides guidance on enhancing casing safety and optimizing steam stimulation parameters.
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issn 2077-1312
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publishDate 2025-03-01
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series Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
spelling doaj-art-283b69b98fde49e091cdac8216efc55d2025-08-20T01:49:04ZengMDPI AGJournal of Marine Science and Engineering2077-13122025-03-0113359710.3390/jmse13030597Mechanical Evaluation of Casing in Multiple Thermal Recovery Cycles for Offshore Heavy Oil WellsYuxian He0Yongpeng Song1Shenghua Hu2Hangming Liu3Xianchi Ge4School of Mechanical Engineering, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434023, ChinaThe Seventh Geological Brigade of Hubei Geological Bureau, Yichang 443000, ChinaThe Seventh Geological Brigade of Hubei Geological Bureau, Yichang 443000, ChinaThe Seventh Geological Brigade of Hubei Geological Bureau, Yichang 443000, ChinaSchool of Mechanical Engineering, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434023, ChinaChina’s offshore heavy oil resources are abundant but underutilized. Circulating steam stimulation enhances production while increasing casing failure risks in thermal recovery wells. Accurately assessing casing performance after repeated thermal cycles is crucial for ensuring wellbore integrity. This paper presents tensile and creep experiments on TP110H casing under cyclic temperatures. The temperature distribution within the “casing-cement sheath-stratum” system is derived using heat transfer theory. Stress and displacement equations are established based on thick-walled cylinder theory and thermo-elasticity. Thermal coupling analysis assesses casing stress in straight, inclined, and sidetrack well sections. Key factors, including steam injection pressure, in situ stress, cement modulus, and prestress, are analyzed for their effects on cumulative strain below the packer. Strain-based methods evaluate casing safety. Results show that under thermal cycling at 350 °C, after 16 cycles, the casing’s elastic modulus, yield strength, and tensile strength decrease by 15.3%, 13.1%, and 10.1%, respectively, while the creep rate increases by 16.0%. Above the packer, the casing remains safe, but the lower section may be at risk. Using low-elasticity cement, higher steam injection pressure, and prestressing can help improve casing performance. This study provides guidance on enhancing casing safety and optimizing steam stimulation parameters.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/3/597offshore heavy oilmultiple high-temperature cyclethermal stresscasing strengthcumulative strain
spellingShingle Yuxian He
Yongpeng Song
Shenghua Hu
Hangming Liu
Xianchi Ge
Mechanical Evaluation of Casing in Multiple Thermal Recovery Cycles for Offshore Heavy Oil Wells
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
offshore heavy oil
multiple high-temperature cycle
thermal stress
casing strength
cumulative strain
title Mechanical Evaluation of Casing in Multiple Thermal Recovery Cycles for Offshore Heavy Oil Wells
title_full Mechanical Evaluation of Casing in Multiple Thermal Recovery Cycles for Offshore Heavy Oil Wells
title_fullStr Mechanical Evaluation of Casing in Multiple Thermal Recovery Cycles for Offshore Heavy Oil Wells
title_full_unstemmed Mechanical Evaluation of Casing in Multiple Thermal Recovery Cycles for Offshore Heavy Oil Wells
title_short Mechanical Evaluation of Casing in Multiple Thermal Recovery Cycles for Offshore Heavy Oil Wells
title_sort mechanical evaluation of casing in multiple thermal recovery cycles for offshore heavy oil wells
topic offshore heavy oil
multiple high-temperature cycle
thermal stress
casing strength
cumulative strain
url https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/3/597
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AT yongpengsong mechanicalevaluationofcasinginmultiplethermalrecoverycyclesforoffshoreheavyoilwells
AT shenghuahu mechanicalevaluationofcasinginmultiplethermalrecoverycyclesforoffshoreheavyoilwells
AT hangmingliu mechanicalevaluationofcasinginmultiplethermalrecoverycyclesforoffshoreheavyoilwells
AT xianchige mechanicalevaluationofcasinginmultiplethermalrecoverycyclesforoffshoreheavyoilwells