US 12,085,554 B2
Lost circulation material evaluation
Arpita Pal Bathija, Houston, TX (US); and Ashok Santra, The Woodlands, TX (US)
Assigned to Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA)
Filed by Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA)
Filed on May 19, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/664,169.
Prior Publication US 2023/0375523 A1, Nov. 23, 2023
Int. Cl. G01N 33/28 (2006.01); E21B 21/00 (2006.01)
CPC G01N 33/2823 (2013.01) [E21B 21/003 (2013.01)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method comprising:
placing a lost circulation material in a cavity of an apparatus, wherein a volume of the cavity is adjustable, the cavity defined by an inner bore of a cylindrical wall of the apparatus, intermediate of a piston of the apparatus and a screen of the apparatus, wherein a distance between the piston and the screen is defined as the height of the cavity, and the height of the cavity is adjustable based on the piston sliding longitudinally within the inner bore away from or toward the screen;
after placing the lost circulation material in the cavity, sliding the piston longitudinally, such that the piston comes in contact with the lost circulation material residing within the cavity;
measuring an initial height of the cavity;
heating the lost circulation material residing within the cavity to a specified test temperature mimicking a downhole temperature; and
after the lost circulation material residing within the cavity has reached the specified test temperature, performing a compression test on the lost circulation material residing within the cavity, the compression test comprising:
flowing a test fluid into the cavity, such that the test fluid mixes with the lost circulation material residing within the cavity;
applying force on the piston to pressurize the test fluid residing within the cavity to a specified test pressure mimicking a downhole pressure;
after the test fluid residing within the cavity has been pressurized to the specified test pressure, releasing the force on the piston;
throughout the compression test, measuring pressure of the test fluid residing within the cavity; and
throughout the compression test, measuring the height of the cavity.