. .

lADC/SPE
IADCISPE 14778

Evaluation of Cementing Practices by Quantitative Radiotracer

Measurements
by W.E. Kline, Exxon Production Research Co.; E.M. Kocian, ~xxon Co. U.S.A.;and
● ●

W ,E.Smith,Exxon Production Research Co.

Copyright 1966, IAOCXSPE 19S6 Drilling Conference

This paper waa prepared for presentation at the 1986 lADC/SPE Drilling Conference held in Dallas, TX, Februa~ 10-12, 1986.

This paper was eelecmd for preeenfation by an lADC/SPE Program Committee following review of information contained in an abstract submilled by Ihe
author(a). Contents of the paper, as presented, ha~”nnot been reviewed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers or International Association of Drilling
Contractors and are subject to correction by the author(s). The material, aa presented, does not necessarif y reffect any poaifion of the IADC or SPE, its of.
fiiers, or members. Papers presented at IAOCLSPE meetings are subjecl to publication by Editorial Committees of the IADC and SPE. Permission 10
COPYis restricted 10an abstract of not more than 300 words. IIfuslrations may not be copied. The abalract should contain conspicuous acknowledgment
of where and by whom the paper is presamed. Write Publications Manager, SPE, P.O. Sox 833S36, Richa!deon, TX 76063-3636. Telex, 730969
SPEDAL.

ABSTRACT work has relied on models of various sizes.

Radioactive tracers afford greatly expanded
A radiotracer technique has been developed that opportunitiesfor measurementsin actual wellbores.
enables quantitative,foot-by-footmeasurements of
cement coverage behind casing. Based on uniform In addition,field measurements enable evaluation
tagging of the entire cement column with short half of operational and cost effectiveness. Exxon
life isotopes, this new technique enablesmeasure- Company, U.S.A., cements over 250 casing strings
ments of cement placement, mud displacement, and per year in East and Southeast Texas in which
the mixing that takes place at displacementfronts. specific mud displaceme,]t practices are used.
The method was used in a study of cementing Commonly used proceduresincludemud conditioning,
practices conducted in a series of East Texas rapid pumping, centralization,casing movement and
wells. Radiotracermeasurementswere obtainedthat the use of preflushes ?:.dvarious casing attach-
document cement coverae in wells drilled with 9-10 ments. Determiningwhich of these practices pro-
PP9 (1080-1200 kg/m3 Y mud. Variables investigated duces the greatest effect in a particularwellbore
include casing movement, casing attachments, and is of great benefit to operational planning,
wellbore deviation. especially where certain options are more con-
venient or less costly than others.
INTRODUCTION
The work presented in this paper focuses on wells
The use of tracers to monitor the position and drilled to 5000-6000ft (1500-1800m) with 9-10ppg
movement of fluids is a well established, widely (1080-1200 kg/m3) mud. The six wells discussed are
used technique. In certain applications,such as from a 10 well experimentalprogram conducted in a
pipeline studies and the analysis of chemical representative East Texas field. The focus on
reactors, tracer techniques have achieveda high lightweight mud was chosen for three reasons.
degree of sophistication. A large body of theo- First$ a large number of wells of this type are
retical and experimental work has been devoted to drilled by Exxon in East and Southeast Texas.
tracer technology. Second, it was judged that certain mud displacement
procedurescould be experimentallyaltered or even
The use of tracers for subsurfaceapplicationshas eliminatedwithout serious risk of compromisingthe
also ‘beenwidespread, but limited in sophistica- subsequentcompletion. Finally, it is in this type
tion. Fluid tracers are for the most part used for of wellbore, where cenenting success is generally
marker applications such as identifying commun- good, tnat questionsof operationalcori~enience and
icating zones, cement tops and hydraulic frac- cost effectivenessfrequentlyarise.
tures. The industry has exploited little of the
quantitativecapabilityof tracer technology. RADIOTRACERMETHODS

Recognizing the potential for actual field mea- Radioactivetracers were used in this study because
surements, a project was initiated to apply garnnarays can be detected through steel casing. An
state-of-the-art tracer techniques to mud mis- appropriate tracer should have a short half-life
placement in primary cementing. Although active and emit gamna rays at energies differentthan most
research in mud displacementhas been conductedfor of the natural formation signal. The three
over 40 years, virtually all of the experimental isotopes.usedhave been iodine-131(8.1 days, 0.36
MeV), gold-198 (2.7 days, 0.41 MeV) and bromine-82
avs.
AA+
-.
 2 EVALUATIONOF CEMENTING PRACTICES BY
t
The experimental concept is to tag all of the
cement with the same tracer activity, so that
differences in measured signal representdiffer-
ences in cement coverage. A uniform tag could be
achieved by batch mixing radioactive cement.
However, batch mixing requires subsequent decon-
tamination of equipment. The in-line system shown
in Figure 1 was assembled to enable injection of
uniform tracer activity over variable flow rates.
Mounted in the line between the csmentingpumps and
tne rig floor is a magnetic flohmeter,capable of
neasuring flow to an accuracy of better than 1%.
The meter output activates a volume totalizing
integratorand an interfacecircuit, which in turn
generates a modulated pulse signal that drives a
laboratorychromatographypump. This metering pump
delivers oil to a floating piston cylinder that
forces the tracer into the cement. No residual
activity remains at the surface following
cementing.
The well is logged immediatelyafter cementingwith
a spectral gamma ray tool. Because it can dis-
criminate between gamma rays of different energies,
the spectral log can distinguish the tracer from
all the other gamma rays present. This selectivity
means that the injected radioisotope need not
overwhelm the formation signal, but rather can be
logged at activites as low as the natural back-
ground. Thus, only small amounts of tracer are
required and the tlac~r dies away after 3 to 4 half
lives. A typical tzgging level is O.lmillicurie
(mCi) per barrel of fluid (0.6 mCi/m3). In con-
trast, a single slug of 10-15 millicuries has been
typically used just to mark top-of-cement.
Separate channels of the spectral log are set to
detect gamma rays enitted by the formationbut not
the tracer. This signal provides a correlativelog
suitable for perforating.
Figure 2 shows the physical model and assumptions
used to relate the gamna ray signal to the amount
of cement behind the casing. The signal I from the
tagged cement in a horizontalplane at any d[p.h is
given by Equation 1, assuming that any by-passed
mud is located in a layer adjacent to the forma-
tion. The radius r is a superficialequivalentfor
a circular wellbore.
Outer radius
of cement
I = k eXp(- r) dr (1)
r integratedto show cumulativevolume as a function
\ ‘“-”t
Outer radius
of casing
The parameter Pcement, the gamma ray absorption
coefficientof the cement sheath, was determined
experimentally by laboratorymeasurementsin which
tagged cement was poured around sections of casing
into molds of various sizes. For a given casing
size e fractional gamma ray absorption by the
steel and the fluid inside the casing is constant,
and hence can be lumped in the constant k. Figure
3 plots signal versus annulus size as determined by
the experimentalmeasurements. The smooth curve
was calculated assuming detection in a horizontal
plane and values of Pcment and k determinedfrom
the plotted points.
\NTITATIVERADIOTRACERMFAS~~.1477~
It should be noted that the logging tool does not
provide directionalcapability. Hence, the cement
distribution obtained from the gamma ray signal
representsa 360 degree average at each depth.
FIELD MEASUREMENTRESULTS
Figures 4-6 describe the cemented annulus behind a
4,730ft (1,451 m) string of 5-1/2-in. (140mm)
casing run in a nominal 7-7/8-in. (2001MI)hole.
The primary cementing operation followed normal
field practice with no experimental variations.
Before cementing,the !?.2ppg mud was conditioned
to a yield point of 18, a plastic viscosityof 10,
and respective 10 and 30 minute gels of 2/16. The
cement was preceded by 10 bbl (1.6 m3) of water
spacer and was displaced at 5-7 bbl/min (13-19
L/s). Centralizers and cable type wall scratchers
(one each per joint through the pay) were attached
to the casing. Using a power swivel and a rotating
cementing head, the casing was simultaneously
rotated and reciprocatedthroughoutthe job.
The coverage of primary cement in this well is
summarized by Figure 4. The superficial (circular
equivalent) cement radius calculated from the
tracer log is plotted alongside the superficial
radius profile obtained from a 4-arm caliper prior
to running casing. The sane profiles are plotted
on both sides of the center line to produce a
figure that looks like a borehole.Also plotted is
the SP log, which identifies regions of sand and
shale.
Arrows are used to indicatewhere the superficial
cement radius is smaller than the corresponding
caliper radius. At these points cement does not
completely fill the annulus. Over much of the
wellbore, on the other hand, the superficialradius
of cement is greater than the caliper radius. These
enlargements reflect hole washout caused by post-
drilling operations such as drillpipe trips, casing
running, mud conditioning and cementing. From the
SP log it can be seen that the increased annular
cement volume is greatest versus washout prone
shales or shaley sands. Conversely,enlargement is
not nearly as significant at the permeable sands,
which confirms that the apparent washout volume is
not simply a measurement artifact of radioactive
filtrate leakoff.
The respective amounts of washout that occurred
before and after logging are shown in Figure 5. h
this plot the depth-by-depthmeasurementshave been
of depth. While the ci?mentand caliper volumes are
both close to gauge across the lower sands, over
the rest of the wellbore significant enlargement
took place. Interestingly, the amount of washout
that took place after logging (15% of the nominal
gauge volume) is SISgreat as the washout
that occurred lling (18% of the gauge
volume).
Figure 6 plots L . ‘,?th-by-depthdifferences
between the caliper and cement measurements. A
positive difference means that the wellbore has
been enlarged since open hole logging, and that
cement has filled the original annular volume plus
at least some of the additionalwashed out volume.
~
Coc IA-I-IQ W F KI TNF. F. M. K(lCTAN. W. F. SMTTH ?
-xk L711u “. -. ,. --..-, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . -. . . . . . . .

A negative difference indicates that cement does Although the casing was still being moved when the
not fill the annulus. It can be seen that in some cement front passed this interval, less than three
parts of the hole cement equivalent to almost an minutes elapsed before pmping was stopped to drop
inch of radius is added, which approximately the wiper plug. It is possible that the gap in the
doubles the gauge annular volume of 0.0309 bbl/ft. cement coverage is directlyrelated to the sticking
The maximum negative radial difference is about 0.4 that caused the casing movement to be stopped. The
inches, amounting to approximately0.01 bbl/ft, or fact that it is a shale that is apparently not
one-third of the annular volume not occupied by covered by cement suggeststhat the sticking might
cement. The individual negative spikes reflect have been caused by hole fill, rather than by
volume and tracer signal reduction by casing differential pressure or fluid loss from the
collars. cement. The accumulationof fill can cause cement
to channel and not fill the annulus.
It can be concluded that the normal operational
practicesused to cement the well in Figures 4-6 Above the lower sands the well is again washed out
produced excel-lentmud displacement. The regions beyond the measured caliper. The equivalentradial
of incompletecoverage are very small compared to differences between the cement sheath and the hole
the total annular volume. Note that it is not caliper are shown in Figure 10. Like the first
possible to determine an overall fraction of mud well where both reciprocation and rotation were
displaced, a figure that is often the basis for used, the maximum difference is about one inch,
conclusions from model studies. Because of although the cumulative, washout volume is greater.
post-drilling washout, the actual hole size after The total cement filled volume is 16% greater than
cementing is not known. Compared to the only the measured caliper, which is in turn 28% greater
available volume measurement, the annular volume volume than gauge. Note that in the wells studied
given by the caliper log, the amount of mud dis- hole washout shows no correlation with casing
placed by cement was greater than 100%. movement. Formation lithologyand drilling history
seem to dominate.
VARIATIONS IN CASING MOVEI’4ENT
Also plotted in Figure 10 is the anplitudecurve
An interesting operationalquestion is whether the from a cement bond log (CBL). The only obvious
same degree of m~d displacement can be achieved features are the interface between the gel lead
when not all of the above practices are used. In slurry and the neat tail slurry at 3660 ft (1115
the well described by Figures 7 and 8 the power m), and the top of cement at 2202 ft (671 m). The
swivel and the rotating cementing head were coverage gap indicatedby the radioactivetracer is
eliminated from the cementing procedure. The not reflected by the CBL. This apparent discrepancy
casing was moved solely by reciprocation. is consistent with an interpretation of cement
channeling around a region where the casing is
Figure 7 shows that in the bottom halfof the well stuck. The presence of fill in the annulus can
there is an almost exact match between the hole provide good acoustic coupling, which in turn can
caliper and the cement coverage. This correspon- indicategood cement on a C8L.
dence is shown in more detail by the more sensitive
volume plot in Figure 8. Up to about 3,800 ft In the wells studied there is no indicationof the
(1159 m), both the caliper volume and the cement superiority of any particular mode of casing
sheath are near gauge, with little or no washout movement over another. Although eacn well shows
either before or after drilling.However, immedi- specificcharacteristicsand regions of incomplete
ately above 3,800 ft (1159 m) is a region measured cement coverage, these singularities seem to be
as gauge by the 4-arm caliper, but filled with a random and not related to the variations in casing
greater than gauge volume of cement. This movement. What the measurementsdo seem to indicate
enlargement evidentlyoccurred entirely during the is that given other favorable conditions such as
tripping, circulating and cementing operations lightweight mud in good condition and a fairly
after drilling. Further up the hole is seen uniform hole, mud displacementis already likely to
another type of washout behavior, starting at about be very complete. Under these conditions, the
3,200 ft (976 m). In this zone washout began maximum incrementaleffect of any form of movement
during drilling and continued after the caliper log is limited. The benefit of casing movement is as a
was obtained. protectionagainst unfavorablecircumstances such
as poorly conditioned mud, inadequate centrali-
Figures 9 and 10 describe the third in the series zation or hole deterioration.For example, if full
of tests in which casing movement was varied. In casing movement would have been possible while
this well drag forces caused both reciprocationand cementingthe third well, the chances would have
rotation to be ceased after the top cementing plug been greater that cement could have been placed in
was dropped. At this point the cement column was the uncoveredwashout.
about 400 ft (122 m) above the shoe. Since concern
about cement quality precluded the deliberate Operationally, the implicationis that in certain
eliminationof casing movement, this well is the situations it may not be necessary to invoke
best example of cement coverage when neither form simultaneous rotation and reciprocationto achieve
of pipe movement is used. full mud displacement,that either form of movement
alone can be sufficient. It is emphasized that
Figure 9 shows an obvious lack of cement approxi- this conclusion may not apply to wellbores
mately 100 ft (30 m) above the float collar. This different than those described here, especially
shale was apparentlyenlarged during drilling, but where mud weight is greater. The final determining
the washout volume_was_ not filled with cement. factor is consistentcementing success.

AA2
& EVALUATIONW CEMENTING PRACTICES BY QUANTITATIVERADIOTRACERMEASURFMFNTs
------- . . ..— .——
CASING ATTACHMENTS
In the well in Figure 11 the normal cementing
program was employed, with the exception that
“turbolizing” centralizerswere used to centralize
the casing across the bottom sands. These devices 1 A meaningful caliper is not availablebecause the
are bow type centralizers equipped with interniil
fins for fluid deflection. They are purported to
increase mud displacement,especiallywhen used in
conjunctionwith casing movement. Both reciproca-
tion and rotation were employed in this test.
Of all the wells studied, this well showed the
poorest coverage across from the bottom sands.
While it may be debatable as to whether the
turbolizers are responsible for the poorer
coverage, it is evident that no visible benefits
were realized. Given the generally excellentmud
displacementin the other tests, it would not be
expected that noticable improvementshould be seen.
Figure 11 also shows two other features of note.
Just above the bottom sands is yet another type of
washout behavior. Initialenlargement took plaCe
during drilling,but the final cement filled volume
does not indicatemuch additionalenlargement from
the subsequent circulating and cementing opera-
tions.
Near the middle of the wellbore is a zone measured
as near gauge by the four-arm caliper, but which
appears to be filled by a series of large cement
“spikes”. These spikes may represent losses to the
formation.
In the well in Figure 12 the usual cemen::~~
procedure was modified by not using
scratchers. Comparingthis well to the other wells
reveals no discernible differences in cement
coverage across from the bottom sands where
scratchersare normally located. It can also be
noted that in each of the other wells the upper
sands, where scratchers are not present, are as
well covered as the bottom sands. Given acceptable
mud properties and adequate hole circulation,these
results seen to indicatethat there is little need
for mechanical “cake” removal in order to achieve
good mud displacement.
The dominant feature of Figure 12 is the large
shale washout between sands in the upper part of
tne wellbore. This enlargement cannot be attri-
buted to scratchers, because no scratchers were
present above the bottom sands.
It can further be seen that the two top sands were
also washed out, one primarilyduring drilling and
one mostly after drilling. The sharp top-of cement
can be attributed to cement setting into these
enlargements.
DEVIATED WELL
— of combinedmovement.
Finally, the same radiotracertechn
to measure cement coverage in a deviated wellbore,
shown in Figure 13. The hole was kicked off at
2000ft (610 m) and drilled to ameasured depth of
5533 ft (1686 m). Over the cemented interval shown
in Figure 13 the deviation angle was built from 30
deg. at 3200ft (975m) to 47 deg. at bottom. Uith
... ... ...- SPF
-. - 14778
- .. . -
the exception of wall scratchers the usual
cementing procedures were used, including simul-
taneous rotation and reciprocationthroughoutthe
job.
well deviation caused measurements that were
obviously low. The dotted lines in Figure 13
represent the equivalent gauge radius. It is
evident that the entire deviated portion of the
wellbore is very badly washed out, including the
bottom sands. The planned top of cenent was 1800
ft (549 m), but coverage was achieved to only bout
3200 ft (975 m). A total of 330bbl (525m 3 ) of
cement was placed behind the annulus,compared to a
nominal gauge volume of 71 bbl (11.4 m3) from the
shoe to the cement top.
Although no caliper is available for comparison,
based on previousmeasurements it is likely that
the cement fills up most or all of the washed out
wellbore. Certainlythere are no obvious regions
of undisplaced mud. Again, the implicationis that
given lightweightmud in good condition and an open
annulus around the casing, excellent mud dis-
placementcan be achieved.
IMPLE14ENT}’\TION
OF RESULTS
Based on the results of this study a revised
cenentingprocedure was adopted in several East and
Southeast Texas fields. Specifically,the policy
of routine use of simultaneous rotation and
reciprocation in these fields was changed to more
selective use according to past history and
cementing conditions. In fields where cementing
conditions are more difficult, simultaneous
rotation and reciprocation continues to be prac-
ticed on the majorityof productionstrings.
In the field in which the radiotracermeasurements
were obtained 30 production strings had been
caented during the previous year. Twenty-twowere
rotated and reciprocated using a power swivel,
while the remaining 8 were reciprocatedonly. Of
these 30 wells subsequent cement repair was
required in but one, a well in tiich the casing was
only reciprocated. Since the study an additional
s 24 production strings have been cemented.
Twenty-threewere reciprocated while only one was
rotated and reciprocated. Eliminatingthe use of a
power swivel in 23wells has yielded a cost savings
of over $100k in this field alone.
Required cement repair in this second group of
wells has again amounted to just to one of the
wells in which the casing was reciprocated.Whether
simultaneous rotation and reciprocationcould have
eliminatedthe need for this remedial work and the
previous repair cannot be inferred from these
statistics.However, the economics are strongly in
favor of a continued policyof only selectiveuse
CONCLUSIONS
This work demonstratesthat radiotracermeasurement
of primary cement coverage over an entire wellbore
is a practical,fieldworthytechnique,which can be
perfowed in such a way as to not interfere with
MA
 ,.

<PF
“, - -
ld77R
., . -
W.
. -----
E. KLINE- E. M. KOCIAN. W. E. SMITH
. . . . . . .
5

cased-hole logging or perforating operations.

Comparison of the tagged cement to some other
measure of hole size gives a quantitativemeasure
of cement coverage,

In all of the wells considered in this study

overall cement coverage was found to be excellent.
The positive conclusion is that current mud dis-
placementtechnology is effective in lightweight
mud wells. The negativeconverse is that, at least
in this type of well, focusing on mud displacement
is not likely to be productive in addressing
cementing problems. It seems apparent that factors
other than mud displacement must be important in
causing incomplete zone isolation. If the most
important factor is, in fact, mud removal, then
further progress will depend on developing tech-
niques to remove the last few percent of mud, a
goal that will be very difficult to achieve.

It is clear that when cementing moderate depth,

lightweight mud wells optimization for cost
efficiency is possible. Which operationalprac-
tices are necessarywill vary, but in general some
flexibility should be possible.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors wish to recognize the contributionsof

all the engineeringand field personnel from Exxon
Company, U.S.A. Southeast Texas and Central
Divisions who participated in this study.
Acknowledgements are also due to the NL McCullough
Division of NL Industries, Inc. and the Dresser
Atlas Division of Dresser Industries, Inc. for
cooperation in running the experimental logs. The
authors also wish to thank Exxon Company, U.S.A.
and Exxon Production Research Company for per-
mission to publish this paper.

-“
 ,.,

St’E 14778

““’’”p~ I
I
I
I
RA;~OAAc~~VE

OIL
I
I
I
I
I
1--- ----- -.
u L
PUMP INJECTION OIL
CONTROL PUMP RESERVOIR
CIRCUIT

FIG. 1. RADIOACTIVE TRACER INJECTION SYSTEM

-.. —..._
FORMATION
,.o~276 3.s0 4.25 5.00 6.76
RADIUS (INCHES)
6.60 7s 6.tfi

FIG. 2. PHYSICAL MODEL FOR TRACER INTERPRETATION FIG. 3. RADIOACTIVE IODINE SIGNAL VS. ANNULUS SIZE
BEHIND 5-1/2 IN. CASING
 . . .

n
z
a

=
[ +

U$
‘%i-
I 1-

--
I *
..
L
8
I
G
 CONTINUED WABHO(JT
WASHOUT DURING CIRCULATING
A$TER DRILLING
ANO CEMENTING
\ /
us

DEPTH RKB

FIG. 8. CEMENT AND CALlPER VOLUME PROFILES

CEMENT RADIUS

— / CALIPG? RAOIUS

SP LOQ —

FIG. 7. CASING MOVEMENT BY FtECIPROCATION ONLY

—
BP LOQ

FIG. 9. NO CASING MOVEMENT APIER DROPPING WIPER PLUG

 t
1
t
RADIAL DIFFERENCE

.501- 1

0.00 - m

-.s0 -

:!
CBL A

L dil L-
0
mo
DEPTH RKB

FIG. 10. DIFFERENCES BEIWEEN CALIPER AND CEMENT MEASUREMENTS,

CEMENT BOND LOG AMPLITUDE CURVE

CEMENT RADIUS

SP LOG
SP LOG

FIG. 11. “TURBOLIZING” CENTRALIZERS FIG. 12. NO WALL SCRATCHERS

 J GAUGE RADIUS

TOP-OF-
CEMENT
32(MJ

CEMENT RADIUS

FIG. 13. DEVIATED WELL