Water-shutoff Techniques in Air or Gas Drilling t

CHARLESK. SUFALL*

ABSTRACT
Water-shutoff techniques have reached a point where
they a r e generally accepted for field usage ~f economlc
galn can be reallzed The success, both econonl~cal
and t h a t of shuttlng off permeable zones, 1s a trlbute to
the plannlng of a job and the fine work done by the
research and servlce organlzatlons. Several types of
shutoff nlaterlal a r e now readily available through the
servlce companies a s a r e the tools and techniques needed
to complete a water-shutoff job.
INTRODUCTION
Alr and g a s drllling is economically 11mlted In use to
areas where f o r m a t ~ o nwaters do not present too great
a problem. Aerated mud and the use of surfactants to
mist drlll have helped where competent fonnatlons a r e
penetrated 1 However, almost all economlc failures In
a l r or gas drllling a r e caused by f o r m a t ~ o nwaters.
A fast, lnexpenslve method of shuttlng off water has
been a major objective for many research o r g a n ~ z a t ~ o n s .
This report is Intended a s a revlew of the materials
and niechanlcs now 111 use for the purpose of shuttlng
off f o r m a t ~ o nwaters.
HISTORY
The first t ~ m ea water-bear~ngformation was penetrated with a i r or gas a s a drllling flu~d,the idea of
water shutoff arose. The old standby, cement, was first
used in the early attempts to plug the water zone. A
few jobs were successful; however, the cost Involved In
walting time made thls approach unacceptable
Gels and emulsions that had been used In selective
complet~onwork were tried with no degree of success.
Another approach was to form a sheath in a n enlarged
well bore where low-pressure zones were encountered.
Thls technique used hlgh-velocity air to erode the hole
through the water-bearing section. A length of plastic
plpe w ~ t hcup-type packers spaced to cover t h e interval
to be treated would be filled with an epoxy resin and
spotted oppos~tethe zone (see Flg. 1) The resin was
then displaced Into the enlarged hole and chemically
tlmed to set according to the temperature. Therefore,
e required. The resln
no appreciable w a ~ t l n gt ~ n ~was

'Techn~cal D r ~ l l ~ nServrce,
g
Inc M~dland,Texas
;Presented a t the sprlng meetlng of the Rocky Mountaln D ~ s t r ~ c t
D ~ v ~ s ~ofo nProduct~on.Casper. W y o A p r ~ l 1960.
'References are a t the end of the paper

expanded while setting to a s much a s five tllnes ~ t osn g lnal volume. After the resin had set up, the drlll pipe
was rotated to break a neck on the plastlc plpe. A blt
was then run to drill a hole through the plastlc plpe and
resln, thus leavlng a n impermeable sheath to exclude
the water.
T h ~ stechn~queshowed some success, but was h m ~ t e d
to low-pressure format~ons.As research capaclty was
hmited, attention was dlrected to other shutoff methods.
Research a t thls polnt was dlrected toward a lnaterlal
that could be squeezed Into the f o n n a t ~ o na t relatively
low pressures. Thls material would need a very low
v~scosityu n t ~ li t was squeezed into place. Thus placed
Into the formation ~t would set up elther on contact
w ~ t hthe water or through the chem~caltlmer.

-sBreok

off Neck by Rolot~ngD P

Plost~cP ~ p e

Fig. 1 - Resin Displaced into the Eroded Well Bore

with a Culculated Hydrostatic Head of Water
and Allowed to Set

After the inaterial has s e t up w ~ t h ~the

n water zone
tt will be subjected to cons~derabled~fferentialpressures
once the hole IS unloaded and relleved of its h y d r o s t a t ~ c
head. Therefore, a prime c h a r a c t e r ~ s t ~fco r the set-up
n l a t e r ~ a lwould be e ~ t h e rg r e a t strength o r deep penet r a t ~ o ninto the permeable zone.
Also, the material must not be affected by contamlnants The method of mixture and ~ n j e c t ~ oshould
n
be
e a s ~ l yaccompllshed on locatlo~lw ~ t ha h m ~ t e r lamount
of special equ~pment.The s e t t ~ n gp e r ~ o dmust be easily
regulated to prevent p r e s e t t ~ n gor t o a v o ~ dcostly waitlng time. F ~ n a l l y ,the ~ n a t e r ~ awould
l
need t o be safe
enough to be handled on locat~onw ~ t hnormal safety
precaut~ons.
Two products were ~ntroducedto the field w h ~ c hcont a ~ n e dmost of the foregoing characteristics. One w a s
a water gel t h a t i s pumped in a 11qu1d form The gel
e r w ~ t htemperasets with t h e use of a chenlical t ~ n ~ and
ture. Dilution w ~ t hwater tends to accelerate ~ t setting
s
t ~ m eThe other product IS a p l a s t ~ cw h ~ c h1s also sensltlve to water. Both of these products have had wide
usage w ~ t hsome remarkable successes 2
A d ~ f f e r e n tapproach was t h e use of a liqutd and gas.
The.liqu~dwas first ~ntroduced~ n t othe permeable zone
and was followed by the g a s \ v l ~ ~ c Il ieactecl to form a n
insoluble precipitate. Thus, with t h e perlneab~lltysealed
off, water shutoff had been acconlpl~shed:3
The use of g a s alone a s a shutoff n l e d ~ u ~was
n developed a f t e r the successful a c c o ~ n p l ~ s h m e noft the l ~ q u ~ d
and gas. The g a s In t h ~ scase 1s s~licotl tetrafluor~de
which reacts with water In the f o r m a t ~ o nto form a gel
and thereby seals off t h e permeabil~ty T h ~ sfairly
recent technique has seen w ~ d eusage w ~ t ha coils~derable degree of s ~ c c e s s . ~ , ~
The most recent approach to water shutoff is a l ~ q u l d
which combines w ~ t hwater t o form a gel T h ~ sm a t e r ~ a l
has just been released t o the field and ~ t character~stics
s
a r e not ava~lable.However. ~t is known t h a t the ~ n i t i a l
field trials of the l i q u ~ dhave been highly successful 6
ECONOMICS
The p r ~ m a r y consideration f o r i n ~ t i a t t n g a watershutoff procedure 1s economics R I t~~ m e1s generally
the largest cost factor Therefore, by the use of advanced
planning much trine can be saved If geological data
~ n d ~ c a at epotentla1 a q u ~ f e ris to be penetrated and the
ava~lab~l~
oft ym a t e r ~ a l sand tools needed f o r a water
shutoff a r e known In advance, the clownt~tnefol the r t g
may be cut to 24 hours or less depending upon well
depth.
The cost of water-shutoff i n a t e r ~ a lwould depend upon
the zone ~ t s e l f .In other words, the zone deterni~nesthe
amount of shutoff m a t e r ~ a lneeded
Other costs would include a pump truck, a n ~ t r o g e n
truck, a plughead and pump-down plug, diesel or alcohol
a s a s w e e p ~ n gn ~ a t e r ~ aal , packer, and a h~gh-pressure
compressor. I t should be noted, however, t h a t on most
jobs only a portion of this equipment would be necessary. Generally, t h e total cost, ~ncludlngrlg time, would
range from $2,000 to $6,000 d e p e n d ~ n gupon depth and
formation c h a r a c t e r ~ s t ~ c s .

Several cons~derations can eliminate lost time. The

i d e n t ~ t yof the water zone can be cl~fficult.The top can
usually be p ~ c k e dby nottng the depth penetrated when
the well stops d u s t ~ n gThe lower portion of the permeable zone can be picked by t h e use of geological inform a t ~ o nand the change In d r i l l ~ n grates In some cases
a s ~ n a l lzone may not be noticed while drilling a t f a s t
rates and will show up a f t e r a trip or when the drilling
rate decreases S o n ~ e t ~ m ae slog may be needed to define
the permeable zone.
Some hole should be made below the water zone to
a c t a s a reservoir f o r wet cuttings and sloughing mater ~ a to
l accumulate. The hole should be cleaned a s much
a s poss~bleprior to p u l l ~ n gthe b ~ tT h ~ smay be best
accompllshed by a d d ~ n ga foaming agent to water and
~ n j e c t l n ginto t h e a l r stream The hole c l e a ~ n n galso
allows the formation t o ~ ~ r o d u c~e t fluid
s
which a t t ~ m e s
may draw down the zone's pressure, and thus allow the
shutoff nlaterial to enter the zone a t a lower pressure
The packer seat should be p ~ c k e dIn a co~ilpetentzone
a s near a s poss~bleto the permeable s e c t ~ o n
The job should be planned so a s to use a mlnlmum
amount of f l u ~ d L o a d ~ n gthe hole can charge up a zone
above the packer t h a t would bleed back into t h e well
bore d u r ~ n gd r y ~ n g - u po p e r a t ~ o n s T h ~ scould result in
lost t ~ m eIn d r y ~ n gup the hole, and could also glve a
false evaluat~on of the shutoff Several shutoffs have
been aceompl~sheduslng only d ~ e s e la s a s w e e p ~ n gf l u ~ d
and air, gas, or nitrogen a s the flush No other f l u ~ dwas
used. An inflatable-type f o r t n a t ~ o npacker 1s used to
w ~ t h s t a n dthe h ~ g hd ~ f f e r e n t ~ pressures
al
All poss~bleprecautions should be taken t o allow the
squeeze m a t e r ~ a lto enter the f o r m a t ~ o n sa t a s low a
v ~ s c o s ~ tays poss~ble A s w e e p ~ n gmaterial should be
used ahead of all water-sens~tivechem~cals
Straddle packers may be cons~dered in some cases
Each job w ~ l ldepend upon tools, m a t e r ~ a l s ,and hole
cond~tionsto be designed f o r speed and effic~entoperat~on
CASE HISTORIES
The f o l l o w ~ n gcase htstones a r e representatwe of
some of the d ~ f f e r e n tproblenls encountered These jobs
all used the s111con tetrafluonde g a s However, the technique used In a water-shutoff o p e r a t ~ o n1s In general the
same f o r other water-shutoff agents.
Well A-Peeos County. Texas
I n t h ~ swell (see Fig 2 ) , 9.56-111.castng was s e t a t
6.088 f t Gas d r t l l ~ n g was used u n t ~ l a fishing job
occurred and was unsuccessful A wlnclow was c u t In
the c a s ~ n ga t a p p r o x ~ m a t e l y5,600 f t and the old hole
was s~detrackedand d r ~ l l e dto about 5,900 f t w ~ t hmud
The hole was then unloaded and gas-dr~lledto 5,970 f t
where approximately 5 bbl of water per hour were
encountered. The hole was then blown and ~ m s t - d r ~ l l e d
to 6,466 f t in a n a t t e m p t to d r y up the zone As t h e
water ~ n f l u spersisted, a water-shutoff was planned
The well was cleaned with a f o a l n ~ n gagent and water
prior to pulllng t h e b ~ tStraddle packers of the inflatable type were then placed a t 5,950 f t and 6,088 f t to
include a n y possible water zone. Then 336 gal of diesel

Fig. 2 - A Straddle-packer Squeeze Job

(After squeeze, gas drilling continued to below
12,000 ft without a water problem.)
were pumped into the drill pipe to be used a s a sweeping agent and to inflate the packers, after which 252
Ib of silicon tetrafluoride were injected a s a shutoff
material. This amount was less than 2 lb per f t of hole
exposed; however, the water zone was only a few feet
thick.
Natural g a s was used to bring the pressure up to 725
psi maximum line pressure. A pump-down was released
and followed with a 4-bbl diesel blanket which, in turn,
was followed by water. When the drill pipe contained
18 bbl of water, the bottom-hole pressure approached
1,500 psi. As the annulus was unloaded the packers were
s e t with this differential pressure.

Water mjection continued until the bottom-hole pressure of 3,540 psi was reached and maintained. During
this period the formation apparently took the diesel a t
3,180 psi bottom-hole pressure and a slight pressure
drop occurred when the silicon tetrafluoride was injected.
The pressure then increased rather rapidly, indicating
the plugging action taking place in the permeable zone.
After the zone was apparently shut off, the drill-pipe
pressure was released, unloading almost all the water,
and the packers were unseated and pulled. A bit was
run back in and the hole was cleaned with a foaming
agent. Some silicon tetrafluoride was noticed, indicating
the zone had plugged before all the gas had been
displaced.
The hole was dry-drilled with g a s for over two weeks
without a n y further indication of water.
In this particular area the formation t h a t was gasdrilled is principally a shale t h a t is water-sensitive.
Therefore, mist drilling with chemicals presently available is almost impossible. More than 50 days were saved
by t h e continued use of g a s drilling.
This job used the bottom-hole pressure t o determine
when t h e plugging action was complete. The pressure
gradient of 0.74 psi per f t of depth will generally fracture formations with fluid. However, g a s h a s been
found to fracture a t considerably lower pressures. F o r
this particular well a gradient of 0.6 psi per f t of depth
was used; and when the formation supported the 3,540
psi bottom-hole pressure the job was complete.
Well B-Logan County, Arkansas
This well had 10%-in. casing set a t 733 ft. A 9%-in.
hole was drilled out with air, and water was hit about
1,520 ft. Another 29 f t were drilled, using a foaming
agent and water injected a t a constant rate into the a i r
line. Then when all geological data indicated that the
permeable zones had been penetrated, a water shutoff
with silicon tetrafluoride was planned to stop the 4 bbl
of water influx.
The hole was cleaned with a foaming agent and a n
inflatable packer was run to 1,503 f t and set with water
pressure. The packer was then opened to a circulating
position and the hole was unloaded.
The packer was opened below and 155 gal of diesel
were injected, followed by 320 lb of silicon tetrafluoride.
Nitrogen w a s used to complete the squeeze with a maximum bottom-hole pressure of 975 psi. Upon unloading
the hole after the packer was pulled a small amount of
water was still being produced by the permeable zone
and, therefore, the use of mist drilling was necessary.
The job was classed a s a partial water shutoff. However,
logs run on the completion of the well indicated a zone
of permeability a t 1,549 f t which could have accounted
for the small influx of water.
Well C--Haskell County, Oklahoma
This well was making about 2 bbl of water an hour
from two zones in the Hartsharn sand. The 9-in. hole
was drilled with gas a s a circulating medium and penetration rates were f a s t enough to generate sufficient
dust to keep the hole dehydrated. However, slow drilling below 3,500 f t allowed the moisture to form mud
rings that eventually formed a severe annular restric-

tlon. Logs Indicated t h a t the permeable zones were

between 960 f t and 1,050 f t and between 1,160 f t and
1,250 ft.
Slhcon tetrafluoride mas used to shut off both zones.
Inflatable-type straddle packers were set a t 1,145 f t and
1,273 f t to treat the lower zone. After the packers were
111 pos~tlon,340 gal of dlesel and 400 lb of slllcon tetrafluoride were used. Natural g a s was used to set the
packers, and was also used a s a flush A bottom-hole
pressure of 630 psi was used to shut off the lower zone.
The packers were then released and pulled up to treat
the upper zone.
Natural g a s was used to set the packers a t 953 f t and
1,081 f t Then 340 gal of dlesel and 200 lb of slllcon
tetrafluorlde were injected, followed by natural g a s f o r
a flushlng agent. The inaxlnluin bottom-hole pressure
used for the upper zone was 525 psl.
Subsequent logs indicated t h a t a considerable zone of
permeability exlsted a t a depth of 3,500 ft. Thls zone
had not been anticipated and was, therefore, not consldered for water shutoff This zone a t 3,500 f t was probably producing most of the water.
Well E--Andrews County.
- . Texas
The format1011 fractured during the squeeze of this
job and st111 a high percentage of water shutoff was
attained.
The 8%-in. hole was air-drllled from the casing point
a t 4,100 f t to 4,364 f t , where damp cuttings were noted.
At 4,912 f t the voluine 0: water enterlng the hole
approached 60 bbl per hour. A t this point the hole was
cleaned and a n inflatable packer was i u n and set a t
4,514 f t , then 300 gal of dlesel weie used a s a sweeplng
agent The silicon tetrafluorlde was diluted with nitrogen In consideration of the long sect~onof hole to be
squeezed. A nltrogen buffer followed the silicon tetrafluorlde and the buffer was, in turn, followed by air
pressure Nitrogen was again used to the maximum
pressure limlts of the equipment and the pump-down
plug was released. Water was used to complete the
treatment
A t slightly over 2,500 psi bottom-hole pressure, a
pressure drop of 500 psi was noted. This pressure drop
probably Indicates the breaking down of the formation.
After t h ~ sthe maxiinurn bottom-hole pressure attained
wlth further displacement was 2,135 psl
The packers were pulled and the hole unloaded The
water production was now measured a t 6 bbl per hour
T h ~ swas a pleasant surpnse, considering a fractured
formation.
Well D-Alberta, Canada
Large-diameter holes can present an unusual problem
of great forces with small dlfferentlal pressures. In this
well, 13%-in casing was set a t 3,720 ft. A 12%-ln. hole
was drilled out to 3,808 f t with a small influx of water
apparently entering the hole a t or near the casing shoe
Thls meant t h a t the ~ a c k e seat
r
would have to be lnslde
the caslng. As a n inflatable packer was the only type
r e a d ~ l yavailable, lt was seated In the float collar to
attaln a s much frictlon a s posslble The hole had been
cleaned

Nitrogen was used a s a sweeping fluid and a s a buffer

behind the silicon tetrafluorlde Air pressure was used
a s a squeezing medium. Annulus pressure was inaintained to keep the dlfferentlal pressure across the packer
froin becoming too great. Water and a i r pressure were
used f o r this.
A bottom-hole pressure of 2,315 psi was attained and
the shutoff was colnpleted without any d~fficulty.
I t IS interesting to note that a force of a quarter of
a m~lllonpounds was acting beneath the packer.
These case histones a r e Intended to illustrate some of
the different problems and hole conditions t h a t arise
They are not meant a s any standard, f o r each job should
be planned according to the hole conditions and tools
and materials avallable

I
I

CONCLUSIONS
Water-shutoff techniques have advanced froin ,a t n a l and-error method to an accepted procedure for alr and
g a s drilllng Varlous research organizations and service
companies have contributed greatly to modern nlaterlals
and techniques and a r e now strlving towards a inore
efficient method of water shutoff. Although water-shutoff methods a r e st111 in the prinlary stages, several
iinportant factors can now be concluded.
The less fractured or open the perineabillty, the bett e r the chance for complete water shutoff. Therefore, a
stronger type of shutoff material 1s still needed.
Squeeze pressures must be maintained a s low a s possible to avold fracturing the water-bearing forn~atioli
Inltlal results of water shutoff ~ndlcatethat better
shutoffs a r e attained from materials t h a t gel or set after
enterlng the permeable sectlon.
Flnally, and most important, the economics of shuttlng off water zones can be held to a surprising miniinuin by plannlng ahead This involves a study of the
characteristics of the f o r m a t ~ o n to be penetrated, a
knowledge of the tools and materials avallable, and
being ready to cope with the s~tuationwhen it arises.
The major cost of a water-shutoff treatment IS directly
r e l a t e d t o t h e tiine consumed, a n d p l a n n i n g i s t h e
remedy.
REFERENCES
IRandall, B V; Lunlmus, J. L ; and Vincent, R R
Combatting Wet Formation While Drllling wlth Alr or

Gas, D?-ill~n{/Cont,rnctor, Oct. (1958).

ZHower, Wayne F , McLaughlln, Charles, Ramos, Joe;
and Land, John: Water Can Be Controlled In Alr or Gas
Drllling, IVorltl 0~1,( ~ 2n parts) P a r t I; Feb. (1959),
P a r t 11, March (1959).
sGoodwin, Robert J and Teplitz, A. J: A Watershutoff Method f o r Sand-type Porosity in Air Drilling,
T,rcrlls Ant. Inst. i l f ~ ) ~ z Met.
n g E T L Q ~(Petroleltm
S.
Develop)~lemtrind Technoloqy). 216, !G3 Oct (1958).
4Sufal1, C. I(. and McGhee, Ed: Water-shutoff Treatments for Air and Gas Drlllii~g,011 Gus J., 57 [501 Dec.
7 (1959)
sBecker, Frederick L and Goodwln, Robert J: Private
colnnlunlcation.
Wrabb, H. H . P n v a t e communication.