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Casing and tubing placed in well bores may suffer from damage due to corrosion or mechanical
distress. Corrosion is caused by natural electrical currents that flow in the earth, and from man-
made currents from power lines and surface equipment.
Corrosion can be reduced by cathodic protection systems but not always with perfectly
satisfaction. Corrosion inspection logs and cathodic protection evaluation logs are widely used in
areas where corrosion is known to be a problem.
Holes in tubing or casing caused by corrosion can seriously affect production rates and fluid
composition, resulting in economic loss.
Loss of metal may result in strength loss without holes in the pipe, allowing burst or collapse,
again with serious economic consequences. Bent, squashed, or oval pipe can impede or prevent
the passage of equipment or tools into and out of the wellbore. Moving parts, such as pump rods,
an cause wear that eventually will cause problems if not repaired in time.
Although most tubular goods are inspected before running into the hole, bad pipe has been found
in numerous cases after the well completion has proved unsuccessful. Damage may also occur
during testing of the well, drilling of plugs, or well stimulation. Un-cemented or poorly cemented
casing can be damaged easily with excessive pressure. The effect on production can be severe
and remediation will be assisted by an accurate diagnosis of the problem by an adequate
inspection program. So there are lots of potential problems to look for.
The logs offer precise depth correlation when recorded with gamma ray or casing collar locator
logs. The following descriptions are condensed from the 1999 Schlumberger Services Catalog.
Equivalent logging tools are available from all major ,and many smaller, service companies.
Ultrasonic imaging tools evaluate the quality of the cement and determines both internal and
external casing corrosion. A single rotating sensor emits ultrasonic pulses and measures the
resulting resonance. The USI echo strength and casing resonance are processed to produce
detailed images of cement quality and distribution that can spot channels as narrow as 1.2 in.
Alternate presentations provide images of casing thickness, internal radius, and internal
corrosion. Casing ovality, kinks, and holes can be observed on the image logs. The size of the
rotating head is chosen appropriately for the size of the tubular to be surveyed.
Typical USI composite presentation with casing cross section and internal radius measurements.
PAL log recorded to evaluate casing corrosion. Perforations are at 1145 to 1160 ft, and
perforations that have been squeeze cemented are at 1165 to 1167 and to 1190 fl.
fs
Compressed vertical
scale temperature log.
Dark diagonal line is a
constant gradient. Coolest
temperature is at large arrow, with a warm spot above it
(circled) reverting to geothermal gradient above
suspected entry point.
A cement squeeze to fill this channel is needed. The interval should be re-logged after the
squeeze to verify isolation and fill up of the annulus.
Casing inspection log over suspect area shows good casing. Ignore the cement quality indicator
on the right edge - it is just plain WRONG - see below.
Cement integrity log over suspect interval shows a bad cement job. White on cement map is a
channel and black is good cement., giving a Bond Index of only 50%. Water can easily flow up
through such a channel. The cement quality flag at the extreme right is WRONG (black is
supposed to represent good cement but the trigger level is not set correctly - you need at least 80
to 90% bond for isolation to water.
This may not be the end of the story. The integrity of the intermediate casing also needs to be
checked. Fortunately, casing and cement logs were run before the well was drilled to total depth.
Samples are shown below. Lots of corrosion both inside and outside the casing is indicated,
possibly because this was re-used casing. Kinks and dents are also evident on the casing ID map.
The cement fill up is also poor and a remedial squeeze job should have been performed before the
well was deepened. There is one anomaly on the casing that might indicate a split (see below..
There is no easy way to squeeze behind this casing now and the temperature log is too
insensitive to confirm a water leak at this depth. The salinity of the water flowing in the annulus
might provide a clue as to whether the water is coming from a deep or shallow source.
Casing profile shows corrosion an inside and outside of pipe. Map of inside diameter shows
casing is oval - dark red is large diameter, pale colour is small diameter. Casing thickness shows
possible splits (white diagonal areas with dark blobs- white is thin, black is thick). "Good" cement
flag at far right is not correct - see image below.
Cement bond and cement map show poor bond with a medium size channel and no bond to the
formation If the casing is split as indicated in the previous image, this cement could allow water
inflow between this casing string and the liner. Note that the apparent "casing splits" on the
casing log are at the same place as the missing cement. The interpretation of a casing split here is
not certain - an electromagnetic pipe evaluation tool would have been needed to confirm.