About Oil And Gas Wireline, Wireline activities play a vital role in oil and gas exploration.
They are used in good completion and intervention operations, like conveying downhole tools, fishing, and logging. First, the data collected determines the upstream operations’ efficiency. Besides, they help to replace, prolong, and enhance production in interventions and well workovers. Further, these workovers eliminate and restore all production tubing strings.
As wireline activities are so important, how does the oil and gas wireline work?
Table of Contents
- What Does Wireline Mean?
- Tell Wireline Cables From Slickline Cables
- The Application of Wireline Technology
- Conclusion
What Does Wireline Mean?
Generally speaking, wireline is the cabling technology that the oil and gas operators use to lower measurement devices and other equipment into a well for pipe recovery, reservoir evaluation, and well intervention. And slackline cables and wireline cables are vital devices during the process.
Tell Wireline Cables From Slickline Cables
Caption: Wireline
Because people are often confused by a wide range of cables, we will have a clear picture of wires used in wireline operations.
Wireline Cables
The wireline is a long, strong, thin wire or braided cable fixed on a powered reel. In nature, it is an electrical cable that lowers tools and transfers data. It comprises a single strand or multi strands, and it is used in formation evaluation activities and well intervention.
Slickline Cables
On the other hand, a slackline is a single-strand non-electric cable that you lower from the surface to the oil and gas wells. It is for placing and recovering wellbore equipment like valves, gauges, and plugs. You can use a slackline to adjust the sleeves and valves on the downhole or repair downhole tubing.
The Application of Wireline Technology
As explained about the term wireline, the technology has a wide application.
Wireline Logs
Wireline logging, also known as well logging, is the wireline application that helps measure well characteristics. Further, they are continuous downhole evaluations.
The logging equipment, or a sonde, is usually at the wireline’s bottom. The operators take measurements as they lower the wireline to the estimated depth and take it up from the well. A typical application fixes the “logging tool” on a cable installed on a drilling platform or truck. Once connected, the line will lower it into the oil wellbore or natural gas reservoir to collect and transfer data.
The wireline logging collects data via different methods. Some of these methods include acoustic wave measurements or electromagnetic measurements.
In 1920, Marcel and Conrad Schlumberger, brothers, developed a survey technique to find mineral and geological formations.
In 1927, they conducted their first survey known as “Well log” at the Pechelbronn Oil Company. The Well logs helped them to measure geological formations’ electrical resistivity in boreholes.
Marcel and Conrad discovered that resistivity is one of the fundamental properties of all material types. As a result, this resistivity property ascertains the material resistance to the electric current’s flow.
It is good to note that, naturally, sediments and rocks are electrical insulators while the fluids inside are electrical conductors. Therefore, you can estimate the hydrocarbon-bearing formations by conducting electrical surveys in a borehole. The resistivity values offer crucial data to help you assess appearances in oil and gas drilling.
Now, engineers, drillers, and geologists use wireline logs to make immediate decisions concerning all drilling operations.
All in all, wireline logs help estimate the formation pressure, resistivity, wellbore dimensions, conductivity, and sonic properties.
Workover and Interventions
Workover jobs are all remedial work needed to strengthen, reinstate or boost healthy production. Operators use a well-servicing unit to crane tools in and out of the well during the workover and intervention operations.
The operators use a single steel slackline or braided steel wireline to lower and uplift equipment. What happens is that you wrap the slackline around the drum on the truck’s back and then raise and drop it into the well by reeling the wire in and out hydraulically.
Some of the workover operations carried out on the site include plugs set-up, cleaning well, perforation via explosives, and production logging.
The wirelines operate perforating guns that drill into oil wells. That helps to link the wellbore to the reservoir, enabling the hydrocarbons to move freely into the wellbore.
Conclusion
Caption: Gas Wireline
There has been a tremendous technological advancement in logging tools development that enables the evaluation of various properties in the wellbore. That allows engineers to measure formations together with their capabilities for more exploration.
Today, you can use engineered perforating systems to operate wirelines for different applications, improving efficiency and decreasing time and rig cost.
Cloom provides high-quality cables that you can use in wireline applications. They also customize the wires to ensure your equipment’s performance exceeds all expectations.
