Geology and Geoscience

Biography

Biography: Sayyad Zahid Qamar

Abstract

Swelling elastomers are fit-to-purpose advanced polymers that undergo an increase in volume upon interaction with water or oil. They have been successfully used in the field of oil and gas drilling and development, for varied applications targeted at production from difficult-to-access, damaged, and previously abandoned wells. Swell packers make it possible to isolate water-producing and other unwanted zones, replace or reduce cementing operations in well completion, and slim down wells for significant reduction in material and energy footprint. For effective design and development of these applications, it is necessary to evaluate the amount of swelling and its effect on material response of the elastomer under actual field conditions. Various studies have been carried out over the last ten years at Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat for performance assessment and characterization of material behavior of swelling elastomers in petroleum applications. These investigations have been carried out through experimental work, analytical modeling, and numerical (FEM) modeling and simulation. The current paper presents some results from experimental investigation of some water-swelling and oil-swelling elastomers. Test procedures either followed standards laid down by ASTM and ISO, or were developed in-house for new types of tests in close collaboration with field engineers and rubber developers. Specialized jigs and fixtures, and dedicated test facilities were designed and constructed wherever necessary. Test parameters such as salt water concentration, type of crude oil, and applicable temperature were carefully selected to emulate actual well conditions in the region. Reported results include amount of volume and thickness swelling, hardness, and tensile properties of elastomer samples before swelling, and at various swelling stages.