US 11,719,083 B2
Maintaining integrity of lower completion for multi-stage fracturing
Waheed Syed Arshad, Mississauga (CA); Agung Kuswiranto, Aberdeen (GB); and Mohammed Parvez Khan, Al Khobar (SA)
Assigned to Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA); and Baker Hughes Oilfield Operations LLC, Houston, TX (US)
Filed by Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA); and Baker Hughes Oilfield Operations LLC, Houston, TX (US)
Filed on Aug. 17, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/404,881.
Prior Publication US 2023/0057873 A1, Feb. 23, 2023
Int. Cl. E21B 43/26 (2006.01); E21B 43/14 (2006.01); E21B 47/07 (2012.01); E21B 33/122 (2006.01); E21B 33/124 (2006.01); E21B 47/00 (2012.01)
CPC E21B 43/26 (2013.01) [E21B 33/122 (2013.01); E21B 33/124 (2013.01); E21B 43/14 (2013.01); E21B 47/00 (2013.01); E21B 47/07 (2020.05); E21B 2200/20 (2020.05)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method comprising:
designing a lower completion string for a multi-stage hydraulic fracturing job for a wellbore drilled into a subterranean zone, the lower completion string comprising a plurality of stages and a plurality of packers configured to isolate each of the stages, each stage of the plurality of stages comprising a respective tubular stage assembly, each stage configured to be placed within a respective one of a plurality of frac intervals of the wellbore defined by the plurality of packers, wherein designing the lower completion string comprises, for each stage of the plurality of stages:
receiving a measured hole diameter of the respective one of the plurality of frac intervals;
performing an axial safety factor analysis of the stage, the axial safety factor analysis comprising a comparison of a yield strength in tension or compression of the respective tubular stage assembly of the stage with calculated effective axial tensile or compressive forces to which the respective tubular stage assembly of the stage would be subject when positioned in the frac interval in the wellbore during the multi-stage hydraulic fracturing job, and wherein the axial safety factor analysis uses:
a predicted anchored status of the lower completion string, wherein the predicted anchored status comprises an extent to which the respective tubular stage assembly would be predicted to elongate or contract when the lower completion string is positioned in the wellbore and the plurality of packers are set;
a distance between a first packer of the plurality of packers isolating the stage and a second packer of the plurality of packers isolating the stage; and
the measured hole diameter of the respective frac interval;
determining that the axial safety factor analysis for each stage of the plurality of stages satisfies a threshold; and
in response to the determining that the threshold is satisfied for each stage of the plurality of stages, inserting the lower completion string into the wellbore and performing the multi-stage hydraulic fracturing job.