1.

Introduction
The wellhead is defined as the surface equipment set below the master valve. As
we can see in Fig. 1, it includes casing heads and a tubing head. Wellhead is used
as seating of BOP when the process of drilling well bore and/or well service, besides
that it can be as seating of X-mastree too,on the wells. when its ready to produce
(production wells)
2. The casing head (lowermost)
The casing head (lowermost) is threaded onto the surface casing. This can also be a
flanged connection. A casing head is a mechanical assembly used for hanging a
casing string (Fig. 2). Depending on casing programs in well drilling, several casing
heads can be installed during well construction. The casing head has a bowl that
supports the casing hanger.
The lowermost casing head to provide a means for supporting the other strings of
pipe, and sealing the annular space between the two strings of casing. It is
composed of a casing-hanger bowl to receive the casing hanger necessary to
support the next string of casing, a top flange for attaching blowout preventers
(BOPs), other intermediate casing heads or tubing heads, and a lower connection.
The lower connection may be a female or male thread or a slip-on socket for
welding. Most common is the female-threaded lower connection, although the slip-on
socket connection provides the strongest joint unless the surface casing is of such
composition that welding causes serious weakening. The male lower thread is the
weakest of the three connections because of the thin cross section necessary to
provide full opening. It is used in most cases only to prevent removing the coupling
on the surface pipe. The welded connection is most frequently used on deep wells to
give the additional strength needed to suspend heavy casing loads without
overstressing the threads on the surface pipe.
A landing base is sometimes used with the lowermost casing head to provide
additional support for extremely heavy casing strings. The landing base is a separate
unit welded to the lowermost casing head and to the surface pipe with a lower flange
or skirt to transfer part of the weight to conductor strings, pilings, or a concrete
foundation.
Sizes and Working Pressures, lowermost casing heads range in size from 7 1/16 in.
to nominal 2 1/4 in. to support casing in sizes from 4 1/2 to 16 in. (Table 3.5). Table
3.5 shows the various casing head sizes needed for common surface, intermediate,
and production string sizes, The sizes of lowermost casing heads are designated by
the nominal size of the API flanged-end connection and the nominal size of the lower
connection.



Table 1. API Casing-head and Tubing-head Flanges (in.)

* Top tubing-head flange Sized for single-tubing-string completions
** Third intermediate head can be used with 13 5/8 in. bottom flange and 11-in top flange to support 5 1/2 in. In 8 5/8 in with 11- by 7
1/16 in tubing head: 5 1/2 or 7 in. In 9 5/8 in With 11- by 7 1/16-in tubing head
Since the wellhead equipment attached above tubular materials should be full-
opening to pass full-sized down-hole tools, the bore of the tubular materials below an
equipment component determines the minimum nominal size of the flange providing
access to that tube. A wellhead component must have a minimum internal diameter
approximately YJ2 in. larger than the drift diameter of the tube over which it is used
in order to be considered full-opening. Tables 2 and 3 give the minimum nominal
flange size to give full-opening access to each standard tube size.
Table 2. Matching Tubular Goods Sizes For Use With 2,000, 3,000-psi, And
5,000-psi Flanges Or 5,000-psi Clamp- Type Connectors









Table. 3 Matching Tubular Goods Sizes For Use With 10,000-15,000-, And 20,000-psi
Flanges And 10, 000-psi Clamptype Connectors

Selection. In selecting a lowermost casing head for a particular application, the
following factors should be considered.
Design. The casing head should be designed to receive a casing hanger that will not
damage the casing string to be suspended when supporting a full-joint-strength
casing load with a pack-off pressure equal to the minimum yield of the supported
casing or the working pressure of the casing head, whichever is smaller.
Working Pressure. The minimum working pressure should be at least equal to the
anticipated formation breakdown pressure at the bottom of the surface pipe. or equal
to or greater than the internal pressure rating of the surface pipe. Maximum working
pressure should be at least equal to the formation pressure at the bottom of the next
smaller casing string.
Lock Screws. Lock screws in the casing-head flange may be used as an added
safety precaution if the annulus pressures are expected during nipple-up or if a very
light casing load is to be suspended.
Size. Nominal flange size should normally be the smallest permissible size to
provide full-opening access to the surface pipe (Tables 2 and 3) and should fit a
standard out-of-stock intermediate head or tubing head and BOP. It should have the
necessary size and type of lower connection to fit the surface pipe.
3. Casing Hanger
This casing hanger is threaded onto the top of the production casing (or uses friction
grips to hold the casing). As in the case of the production tubing, the production
casing is landed in tension so that the casing hanger actually supports the
production casing (down to the freeze point). In a similar manner, the intermediate
casing (s) are supported by their respective casing hangers (and bowls). All of these
casing head arrangements are supported by the surface casing, which is in
compression and cemented to the surface. A well completed with three casing
strings has two casing heads. The uppermost casing head supports the production
casing. The lowermost casing head sits on the surface casing (threaded to the top of
the surface casing).
A casing hanger is a device that seats in the bowl of a lowermost casing head or an
intermediate casing head to suspend the next smaller casing string securely and
provide a seal between the suspended casing and the casing head bowl.
Sizes and Sizing. The size of a casing hanger is determined by the nominal OD,
which is the same as the nominal size of the mating casing head flange. The nominal
inside diameter is the same as the nominal outside diameter of the casing it is
designed to suspend. Sizes range from nominal 7 1/6 through 21 1/4 in. to support 4
1/2- through 16-in. casing. Popular sizes are nominal 9 in. for 4 1/2- through 5 1/2-in.
casing: nominal 11 in. for 4 1/2- through 7 5/8-in. casing: nominal 13 5/8 in. for 5 1/2-
through 9 5/8-in. casing, as indicated in table 1.
Automatic (most popular type). The automatic casing hanger is a unitized
assembly composed of a set of slips and a sealing mechanism. It can be latched
around the casing and dropped through the BOPs to set and seal automatically
when the casing is slacked off to set. This type is normally used when annulus
pressures are expected during nipple-up operations.
Manual. The manual casing hanger is normally used in preference to the automatic
type only as a matter of economics when pressure is not expected in the annulus
during nipple-up. It is composed of a set of slips and a separate pack-off element.
The slips can usually be latched around the casing and dropped through the BOPs,
but the pack-off is installed after the preventers have been removed and the casing
cut off.
Slip-Weld. The slip-weld hanger usually is composed of a set of slips to support the
casing weight and a spider or ring that can be welded to the casing to seal the
hanger to the casing. The hanger usually is sealed in the head by a resilient
compression-type seal. The hanger can be dropped through the BOPs to support
casing weight, but the final seal is made by welding after the preventers have been
removed and the casing cut off. Particular care must be taken in preheating the
casing and the casing head to ensure an adequate weld. Some casing is
permanently damaged by improper welding.
Boll-Weevil. The boll-weevil casing hanger is a simple mandrel-type hanger which
screws onto the casing to be supported and seats in the casing head bowl. This type
of hanger is not recommended if there is any question about getting the casing to
bottom and obtaining the accurate spacing required.
Selection. In selecting a casing hanger, after establishing which type of hanger is
most practical, the following factors should be considered.
1. The hanger should be capable of hanging the full joint strength of the casing to be
used without sufficient reduction in diameter to obstruct full-sized down-hole tools.
2. The pack-off or primary seal should be of such construction
that well pressure. flange test pressure, or fracture pressure cannot force the pack-
off down and reduce the casing-hanger capacity.
3. The hanger should be of the proper design and size to fit the mating casinghead
bowl, and properly sized to support the casing to be used.