UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA SHAH ALAM

FACULTY OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING IN OIL AND GAS

CGE 659- PETROLEUM PRODUCTION ENGINEERING

PRODUCTION PROBLEM-SAND PROBLEM

MAY 2017

LECTURER : MADAM EFFAH YAHYA

GROUP MEMBER :
1 - AMIRUL AFIF BIN ZULKILFLI 2015826654
2- MUHAMMAD FAIZAL BIN SAHAK 2015884382
 Sand production is unwanted because it can plug wells, erode equipment, and reduce
well productivity. The cause of sand production are fluid flow and restraining forces. Fluid
flow from wells is the consequence of the wellbore pressure being smaller than that in the
reservoir. The drag force caused by the flow from large to small pressure and its tendency to
for some of the formation material to flow concurrently with the fluids. However, opposing
the fluid forces are the restraining forces that hold the formation sand in place. These consist
of natural cementation (compressive strength), friction between sand grains, fluid pressure
in the pores of the rock, and capillary forces. The compressive strength of the rock, the
primary restraint, is controlled by intergranular cementation that is a secondary geologic
process.

The consequences of sand production are accumulation downhole, accumulation in

surface equipment and erosion of downhole and collapse of the formation. Firstly, if the
production velocity in well tubulars is insufficient to transport sand to the surface, it will begin
to fill the inside of the casing. Eventually, the producing interval may be completely covered
with sand. In this case, the production rate will decline until the well becomes sanded up
and production ceases. Then, accumulation in surface equipment which sand trapped in the
separator, heater treater or production flowline. Lastly, erosion of downhole occurs if fluids
are in turbulent flow, such sand laden fluids are highly erosive. If the erosion is severe or
occurs long enough, complete failure of surface and downhole equipment may occur,
resulting in critical safety and environmental problems as well as deferred production.

There are several method to predict the sand production during the operation by using
sonic log, formation properties log and porosity log. The sonic log can be used by observing
the sonic log readings above and below the sand production. The sonic log records the time
required for sound waves to travel through the formation, usually in microseconds. The
porosity is related to formation strength and the sonic travel time. Short travel times, less
than 50 microseconds, indicate low porosity and hard, dense rock; long travel times, 95
microseconds or greater, are associated with soft, low-density, high-porosity rock. Next,
formation properties log. For a particular formation, a low-density reading indicates high
porosity. The neutron logs are primarily an indicator of porosity. Several logging companies
offer a formation properties log that uses to determine if a formation will produce formation
material at certain levels of drawdown. This calculation identifies weak and strong intervals;
the weaker ones are more prone to produce sand. The porosity of a formation can be used as
a guideline as to whether sand control is needed. If the formation porosity is greater than
30%, the probability of the need for sand control is high because of the lack of cementation.
The porosity range between 20 to 30% is where uncertainty usually exists. In natural media,
porosity is related to the degree of cementation present in a formation; thus, the basis for
this technique is understandable. Porosity information can be derived from well logs or
laboratory core analysis.

A few technique can be used to prevent the production of sand. Finite element
analysis. The most sophisticated approach to predicting sand production is the use of
geomechanical numerical models developed to analyze fluid flow through the reservoir in
relation to the formation strength. The effect of formation stress, associated with fluid flow
in the immediate region around the wellbore, is simultaneously computed with finite element
analysis. While this approach is by far the most rigorous, it requires an accurate knowledge
of the formations strength around the well in both the elastic and plastic regions where the
formation begins to fail. Multiphase flow. Predicting when multiphase fluid flow will begin
can also be an aid. Many cases can be cited where wells produced sand free until water
production began, but produced unacceptable amounts afterwards. The reason for the
increased sand production is caused by two primary phenomena: the movement of water-
wet fines and relative permeability effects. Most formation fines are water wet and, as a
consequence, immobile when a hydrocarbon phase is the sole produced fluid because
hydrocarbons occupy the majority of the pore space. However, when the water saturation is
increased to the point that water becomes mobile, the formation fines begin the move with
the wetting phase (water), which creates localized plugging in the pore throats of the porous
media.