Abstract This paper presents the design development, validation testing, and field application of a compression-set packer. It has been successfully installed in multiple-stage cementing operation for both 9 5/8-inch and 13 3/8-inch casing designs. The developed design ensures well integrity by integrating a packer and cementer into a single assembly and achieves proper zonal isolation. Additionally, the paper discusses the set-based design method and compares predicted performance to test results. A set-based design approach was used along with engineering simulation, and the final element design was test-validated as Grade V3 per ISO 14310 and API 11D1. This is the most stringent rating criterion in a liquid medium requiring the tool pressure rating to be held for 15 minutes with less than 1% pressure drop. The element was first heated to 200 Fahrenheit, then set to seal against casing ID, followed by a sequential differential pressure of 6,000 psi from below and above. Post-test inspection was conducted to assess the packer deployment, and the test results were compared against simulation predictions. The newly developed compression-set packers, designed using a set-based approach, were test-validated successfully, withstanding the required pressure rating of 6,000 psi at 200 Fahrenheit, and providing V3-rating isolation assurance. Post-test inspection confirmed that the packer deployed as predicted by engineering simulations. Field application has been highly successful, with 65 cementing jobs completed successfully in the Saudi field to date. The developed compression set packers significantly outperform traditional inflatable packers, which often exhibits deficiencies in withstanding moderate casing pressures ( 5000 psi), and act as a reliable mechanical barrier to ensure proper zonal isolation in casing-to-casing applications, mitigate sustained casing pressure (SCP), and preserve wellbore integrity. The development process of compression-set packers, as one of the most recent successful well barrier tools for cementing applications, with a critical review of the mechanics, the design method, and the test results, is the novel contribution of this paper to the existing literature.
Gar et al. (Tue,) studied this question.