Cement

Drilling Engineering IV
Cementing
Dr Hossein Hamidi

hossein.hamidi@abdn.ac.uk

Objectives
To recognize the reasons for performing a cement job.

To be aware of the types of cement available and specify

the volumes necessary to perform a specific cement job.

To be able to list the types of additives available and say

when they might be needed.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cementing
Cement slurry

powdered cement
&
water

"set cement

Casing

Primary cementing is
the process of placing
cement in the annulus
between the casing
and the formations
exposed to the
wellbore.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cementing-reasons
The primary purposes for cementing the casing:
protect and support the casing
Plastic zones such as salt may develop a lateral load high
enough to break the casing.
External corrosion protection from salt water, bacteria and
other corrosive fluids.
Tension and buckling
To isolate production zones from other permeable zones.
Prevent the movement of fluid through the annular space
outside
Stop the movement of fluid into vugular or fractured
formations,
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement
Cement Raw Materials
Lime or calcium oxide, CaO: from limestone, chalk, shells,
shale or calcareous rock
Silica, SiO2: from sand, old bottles, clay or argillaceous rock
Alumina, Al2O3: from bauxite, recycled aluminium, clay
Iron, Fe2O3: from clay, iron ore, scrap iron and fly ash
Gypsum, CaSO4.2H2O: evaporite

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cementing
The main ingredient in almost all drilling cements is

portland cement
an artificial cement made by burning a blend of limestone & clay.

A slurry of portland cement in water is ideal for use in wells

because:
it can be pumped easily
hardens readily in an underwater environment.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement
Portland Cement Manufacture

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cementing
the major contributor to strength, especially
during the first 28 days of curing.

C2S hydrates
very slowly and
contributes
mainly to
the long term
strength

hydrates very rapidly and produces most of the heat of

hydration observed during the first few days
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cementing

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Standardization of Drilling Cements

API has defined eight standard classes and three standard types
of cement for use in wells.
The eight classes:
Class A to Class H
The three types specified are
1. ordinary "O,"
2. moderate sulfate-resistant "MSR," and
3. high sulfate-resistant "HSR."

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Standardization of Drilling Cements

STANDARD CEMENT CLASSES DESIGNATED BY API
API
Class
A
B

Depth Range
(1.5 F/100 ft)

Special Properties

Temp
F

Remarks

0 6,000

None

80-170

Cheaper than G

0 6,000

Low C3A. When

condition require
MSR and HSR types.

80-170

Easy to retard

Low C3A, High C3S.

high early strength.
Available in ordinary
and MSR and HSR
types.

80-170

0 6,000

6,000- to
10,000

Available in both
MSR and HSR types.

High
170-290

Expensive and not often used

10,000- to
14,000

Available in both
MSR and HSR types.

High
170-290

Expensive and not often used

10,000- to
16,000

Available in both
MSR and HSR types.

Extremely
high
230-390

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

HTHP wells
Not often used

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Standardization of Drilling Cements

STANDARD CEMENT CLASSES DESIGNATED BY API

API
Class

Depth Range
(1.5 F/100 ft)

0-8,000
or

Available in MSR &

HSR.

0-8,000

Available only in
moderate sulfateresistant type.

can be used
with
accelerators
and retarders
to cover a
wide range of
well depths

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

Special Properties

Temp
F
Wide
range

Remarks

Most commonly used cement

Wide
range

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Slurry characteristics and design

1. The objective is to design an economical slurry that:
Can be placed effectively with the available equipment.
the cement will achieve an adequate strength soon after being placed
in the desired location. waiting period after cementing
the cement must remain pumpable long enough to allow placement to
the desired location.
Has long term strength and integrity to protect pipe and ensure zone
isolation.
the density and length of the unset cement column results in sufficient
subsurface pressure to control the movement of pore fluid while not
causing formation fracture.

2.

Although API specifies several grades of cement, the trend since the 1970s
has been to concentrate on one or two grades of cement, notably Class G,
and achieve the desired properties by the use of additives. This is more cost
effective for the oil companies and the cement manufacturers.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Thickening Time

Thickening time is defined as the time a cement
slurry remains pumpable.
Cement slurries should be capable of being placed in the
desired position in the well bore before the setting process
increases viscosity to the point where either:
surface pumping pressures exceed pump ratings
or
the ECD of the cement slurry exceeds the formation fracture gradient.

Pumpability time is reduced by:

high temperatures
increasing confining pressure, particularly in range 0 - 5,000 psi
loss of water from slurry,
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Thickening Time

Consistometer
A laboratory device used to determine the thickening time of
cement slurries under simulated downhole pressure and
temperature conditions.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Thickening Time

The cylindrical slurry cup is rotated at 150 RPM.
The slurry consistency is measured by the torque exerted on
the paddle as the cup rotates.

Where:
T=the torque on the paddle in g-cm
Bc =the slurry consistency in API consistency units.
Thickening time: time required to reach a consistency of 100 Bc

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Thickening Time

In the graph below, the time required for the slurry to become
un-pumpable is the time to reach 100 units of consistency
(100 Bc)

Thickening time

Slurry becomes unpumpable before Bc = 100 is reached.

May be varied by accelerators or retarders.
Decreases with increasing temperature and pressure.
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Thickening Time

Effect of Temperature and pressure on Thickening Time

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Thickening Time

Planned Job Time < Thickening Time

At point A, the rate of thickening accelerates. Friction losses

in the annulus may increase to the point where APL + Phyd
exceeds the fracture gradient of the formation.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Thickening Time

thickening time (Tt) >>time to carry out actual operation (To)
This can be accomplished by:
choosing the class of cement that has a sufficiently long
thickening time, or
placing the appropriate additives in the slurry that will retard
the slurry chemical reaction and lengthen the thickening
time.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cement Thickening Time

The cementing operation time To (hr) is the time
required for the cement slurry to be placed in the well:
To=Tm+Td+Tp+Ts

-Rule of thumb, plan for 1 hour more

thickening time than expected job time.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Thickening Time

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Strength of set cement

A properly designed cement slurry will set after it has been
placed in its appropriate location within the well.

Cement strength:
is the strength the set cement has obtained. This usually refers to
compressive strength, but can also refer to tensile strength.

Cement having a compressive strength of 500 psi (35 bar) is

considered adequate for most well applications.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Standardization of Drilling Cements

To provide uniformity in testing, it is necessary to specify the
amount of water to be mixed with each type of cement. These
water-content ratios are referred to as the normal water
content or "API water" of the cement class.

NORMAL WATER CONTENT OF CEMENT RECOMMENDED BY API

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement additives
At present, the cement Classes G and H can be modified
easily through the use of additives to meet almost any job
specifications economically.
The cement additives available can be subdivided into these
functional groups:
(1) density control additives,
(2) thickening and setting time control additives,
(3) lost circulation additives,
(4) filtration control additives,
(5) viscosity control additives,

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement additives
The concentration of an additive is expressed as a "weight
percent (wt%)" or just "percent,"
The concentration of liquid additives sometimes is expressed
as gallons per sack of cement (gal/sack).
A sack of cement contains 94 Ibm.

The term "percent mix" is used for water content expressed as

a weight percent.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cement additives
Yield of the cement
The volume of slurry obtained per sack of cement used is called
the yield of the cement.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Density Control additives

The density of a cement slurry must be carefully controlled to
ensure that the bottom hole pressure due to the circulating
fluids during and after placement is:
greater than the formation pressure gradient
lower than the fracture gradient.
In most cases, the density of the cement slurry will be too great
for the formation fracture strength, and it will be desirable to
lower the slurry density.
Slurry density is reduced by using:
A higher water/cement ratio or
adding low-specific-gravity solids (known as extenders),
or both.
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Density Control additives

Extenders are additives that increase the volume of cement
slurry obtained per sack of cement and reduce the slurry
density. They include:
bentonite (sodium montmorillonite), most common
diatomaceous earth,
solid hydrocarbons,
expanded perlite,
pozzolan.

Extended cements permit the use of longer columns of cement

without formation breakdown.
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Density Control additives

API specifies that the water content be increased:

5.3 wt% for each weight percent of bentonite added
0.2 wt% for each weight percent of barium sulfate added.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Density Control additives

Extended cements are used where zone isolation is not at a
premium.
lead cement is usually an extended cement.
exerting less pressure on the formation, a concern where
fracture gradients are low.
being cheaper.
tail cement, placed across the reservoir section, is
usually neat cement.

Extended cements require more mixing water than the

comparable neat cement.
Extended cements are generally more economical to use.
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Density Control additives

Spacer at least 0.5 ppg
heavier than mud
Lead slurry at least 0.5 ppg
heavier than the spacer
Tail slurry always heavier
than the lead slurry

Normal fracture
gradient of
1 psi/ft

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Density Control additives

Spacer
the spacer is pumped ahead of the lead cement slurry.
Are used to fully displace drilling fluid from the annulus and
condition the casing and annular surface to accept a cement
bond.
preparing the wellbore to receive cement to successfully
achieving zonal isolation.
leave the casing and formation water-wet (free of oil), and
separate drilling fluids from the cement slurry.
If even a thin layer of oil from the drilling fluid is left on the
casing and/or the formation it can prevent the cement slurry
from directly contacting each surface to form a good bond.
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Density Control additives

Bentonite -the most common additive for filler types of cement.
Bentonite will lower density and cost and give higher gel
strengths and viscosity. It will also reduce the fluid loss. These
cements are; however, more permeable and have a lower
sulphate resistance.
Nitrogen -sometimes mixed into the cement. Usually used
ahead of the slurry to reduce the hydrostatic caused by the
entire column. Used when extremely weak formations are
present.
Pozzolan-fly ash from a coal-fired boiler. Used often in the US.
Diatomaceous Earth-Has lower specific gravity than bentonite

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Density Control additives

In areas where the formation pore pressure is extremely high, it
may be necessary to increase the slurry density.
Slurry density usually is increased by using a lower water
content or adding high-specific gravity solids.
The high-specific-gravity solids commonly used to increase
slurry density include:
hematite,
ilmenite,
barite (barium sulfate),
sand.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cementing
Weight of additive per sack of cement:
Wt (lb)=Percent of additive * 94 (lb/sk)
Total Water requirement:
Vol. water (gal/sk)=Cement water requirement (gal/sk)+additive
water requirement (gal/sk)
Vol. of Slurry:
Vol (gal/sk)=Vol. Cement (gal/sk)+Vol. of additive (gal/sk)+Vol
of water (gal/sk)
Slurry yield:
Yield (ft3/sk)=Vol. of slurry (gal/sk)/7.48 (gal/ft3)

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Thickening & Setting-time control additives

It is often necessary to either accelerate, or retard the thickening
and setting time of a cement slurry.
Accelerators:
A chemical additive to reduce the thickening and time required
for the set cement (waiting-on-cement or WOC) to develop
sufficient compressive strength to enable drilling operations to
continue.
Early setting cement slurries are used to cement surface casing
strings or directional drilling plugs where waiting-on-cementing
(WOC) must be kept to a minimum.
CaCl2 (most efficient & economical), NaCl, Gypsum Calcium
Sulphate, Sodium Silicate
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Thickening & Setting-time control additives

Retarders (thinners or dispersants):
When it is necessary to cement casing or line strings set at
great depths, additives are often used in the design of the
cement slurry to retard the thickening and setting time. Usually
such retarding additives are organic compounds.
Cement thickening time is a function of temperature and neat
cement cannot be used below about 2500 m (8000 feet)
without the risk of a "flash" set (cement becomes harder
quickly).

Calcium lignosulfonate, (most commonly used)

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Thickening & Setting-time control additives

Calcium Lignosulphonate Used to Retard Pozmix Cement

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Filtration-control additives
It is desirable to limit the loss of water filtrate from the slurry to
permeable formations to:
minimize the hydration of formations containing watersensitive shales,
prevent increases in slurry viscosity during cement
placement,
prevent the formation of annular bridges, which can act as a
packer and remove hydrostatic pressure holding back
potentially dangerous high-pressure zones

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Filtration-control additives

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Filtration-control additives

The commonly used filtration-control additives include:

latex, bentonite with a dispersant, and various organic
polymers.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Filtration-control additives
Neat cement has a fluid loss > 1,000 cc in 30 minutes at 1,00
psi. A fluid loss of 150 to 400 cc is desirable for primary
cementing operations.
Fluid Loss
Surface < 500cc/30min
Intermediate < 250 cc/30min
Production < 100 cc/30min

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Lost-circulation additives
the loss of drilling fluid or cement from the well to subsurface
formations.
This condition is detected at the surface when the flow rate out
of the annulus is less than the pump rate into the well.
Lostcirculation occurs when:
extremely high permeability formations are encountered,
such as a gravel bed, oyster bed, or vugular limestone, or
a fractured formation is encountered or created because of
excessive wellbore pressure.

crushed walnut shells, wood bark, sawdust

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Viscosity control additives

Untreated cement slurries have a high effective viscosity at the
shear rates present during cement placement. It is desirable to
reduce the effective viscosity of the slurry so that
less pump horsepower will be required for cement
placement,
there will be reduction in the annular frictional pressure
gradient and, thus, a smaller chance of formation fracture,
the slurry can be placed in turbulent flow at a lower pumping
rate.
The commonly used viscosity-control additives include:
calcium lignosulfonate, sodium chloride, certain long-chain
polymers.
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSgi0XKXE
MA

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Viscosity control additives

Slurry Design: General Requirements
Rheology
Conductor / Surface - mixable and pumpable, thixotropic
for lost circulation
Intermediate PV < 150, YP < 40
Production PV < 100, YP < 20

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cementing

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Placement Techniques

Cement Casing
When the casing string is ready to be cemented, cement is
mixed with water in a special cementing unit. The cementing
unit usually is truck-mounted for land jobs and skid-mounted
for offshore operations.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Placement Techniques

The cement slurry enters a pump on the cementing unit and is
pumped to a special cementing head or plug container
screwed into the top joint of casing.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Performing a Casing Cement Job

Cement slurry is mixed at the
cement unit and pumped into
the casing via the plug
launcher (shown in red).
A bottom plug is released
from plug launcher and is
pumped ahead of the cement
slurry to avoid contamination
from the mud already filling the
casing.
Slurry moves the bottom plug
down the casing until it seats
in the float collar.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Performing a Casing Cement Job

The float collar (and often the
shoe) has check valve that
permits fluid to flow downward
but not upward.
Continued pumping breaks
membrane on the bottom plug
and opens a passage way for
the cement slurry to flow into
the shoe track.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Performing a Casing Cement Job

Slurry passes down the casing
shoe track and into the
centralised annular space
between the casing and hole.
As the last of the slurry enters
the casing, a top plug is
dropped which separates the
last of the slurry from the
displacement fluid.
Continued pumping of the
displacement fluid moves the
top plug (and cement slurry)
down until the top plug bumps
on the bottom plug.
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Performing a Casing Cement Job

When the top plug reaches the
bottom plug, the pressure
increase at the surface
signifies the end of the
displacement operation.
The casing is pressure tested
and then the surface pressure
is bled off and a check made
to see the floats are holding.
At this stage the plug launcher
is rigged down and a period of
waiting on cement
commenced.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4K8BCAZzRE
Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Placement Techniques

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cement Placement Techniques

View of plug container

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Placement Techniques

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cement Placement Techniques

The float collar can
act as a check valve to
prevent cement from
backing up into the
casing.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cement Placement Techniques

Subsurface equipment used in
casing cementing operation
includes:
guide shoe or float shoe at the
bottom of the casing,
Centralizers,
scratchers,
baskets on the outside of the
casing.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Placement Techniques

The guide shoe simply guides the casing past irregularities in
the borehole wall. Circulation is established through the open
end of the guide shoe or through side ports designed to create
more agitation as the cement slurry is circulated up the
annulus. Should the casing be resting on bottom, circulation
can be achieved more easily through side port openings in the
guide shoe.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cement Placement Techniques

Centralizers are placed on the
outside of the casing to help hold
the casing in the center of the hole.

Important in deviated wells where

the casing tends to lie on the low
side -run centralizers closely
spaced.
Run every joint through the pay
zones and every 3 joints for 100m
either side of pay.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cement Placement Techniques

Scratchers are used to help remove mudcake from the
borehole walls. Some scratchers are designed for cleaning by
reciprocating the casing, while others are designed for cleaning
by rotating the casing.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cementing
Reciprocation
Reciprocating the casing with 2-5 meter strokes while
circulating the cement in place improves the quality of a cement
job.

Rotating the casing during the cement job will also improve the
effective placement of the slurry but requires equipment that
many cementers do not have.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cementing
Turbulent Flow
In the smaller casing sizes, high displacement rates can often
induce turbulent cement flow in the annulus.

Turbulent flow creates a much greater washing action on the

wellbore than does laminar flow and greatly improves the
displacement efficiency.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cementing
Combination
Cementing benefits from centralization, with scratchers, from
reciprocation and rotation and from the mud displacement fluids
being in turbulent flow.

You should do everything you can to ensure these conditions

exist, particularly those which are easily practical centralization, scratchers, pipe reciprocation and turbulence.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

www.abdn.ac.uk

Cementing evaluation
The top of the cement can be located by making a
temperature survey of the well from 6 to 10 hours after
completing the cement displacement. When cement is present
behind the pipe, heat liberated due to the exothermic hydration
reaction will cause an increase in temperature.

Acoustic logging tools are available for evaluating the bond

between the cement and the pipe.
When the cement is not bonded acoustically to both the pipe
and the formation, a strong early sound reflection will be
received by the acoustic logging device, indicating sound travel
primarily through the casing.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Cementing evaluation
Acoustic energy travel
in cased wells.

Hossein Hamidi, PhD

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Come Here.
Go Anywhere.
Thats the difference