Perpustakaan Digital ITB

The implementation of hydraulic fracturing method to optimize the productivity of a well is very often encountered. This stimulation method requires equipment that are capable of withstanding extremely high pressure, considering this method involves injecting fluid at high rate to create fractures within the formation. Presented in this paper, a feasibility study of hydraulic fracturing operation using existing production string was conducted to assess the current capability of the existing tubing that has been used to produce oil and gas. The assessment begins by evaluating the remaining performance of the well’s existing tubing string, focusing on the three key parameters, namely burst pressure, collapse pressure, and axial tension strength. The value of these three parameters tends to decline over time due to the utilization of the tubing to produce fluid, especially if erosion occurs in the tubing. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to obtain the operational limits of production parameters that are allowed to be applied to maintain the tubing’s integrity to be able to be used for fracturing. The production operational parameters mentioned here are liquid production rate, sand mass rate, and tubing usage duration. These parameters play a big part in determining the erosion rate of a tubing. Comprehensive investigations unveiled that in four sample wells of TA Field, the erosion rate is very small, resulting in a great remaining performance of the tubing even though it has been used for a period of time. This leads to a hypothesis that existing production tubing string in TA Field are capable of accommodating a hydraulic fracturing operation.