Well Completions and Stimulation Flashcards
7 cards from real SPE practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Well Completions and Stimulation flashcards as text
What is the purpose of a frac sleeve (sliding sleeve) in a multistage fracturing completion?
Answer: To open and close ports for staged hydraulic fracturing without perforating guns
Frac sleeves are opened sequentially to allow fluid entry at each stage without requiring wireline perforating runs between stages.
What is 'fracture tortuosity' and how does it affect hydraulic fracturing?
Answer: Near-wellbore complexity causing high friction pressure and restricted proppant entry
Tortuosity refers to near-wellbore fracture complexity that creates additional friction pressure and can restrict proppant transport into the fracture.
In underbalanced perforating, what is the main advantage over overbalanced perforating?
Answer: Immediate backflow cleans perforation tunnels and reduces skin damage
Underbalanced conditions cause formation fluids to flow back through perforations immediately, cleaning crushed-zone debris and reducing damage skin.
Which completion technique is best suited to prevent sand production in a weakly consolidated formation?
Answer: Chemical consolidation with resin-coated proppant or standalone screens with gravel pack
Gravel packs, screens, or resin-coated proppant provide mechanical filtration or consolidation to prevent sand production from weak formations.
What is the role of a formation damage study prior to selecting a stimulation treatment?
Answer: To identify the type and location of damage so the correct fluid system and additives are chosen
Understanding whether damage is from scales, fines, emulsions, or wettability alteration determines which acid system or treatment fluid will be most effective.
What is the fracture closure pressure equal to in a simple, linear elastic rock model?
Answer: The minimum horizontal stress (minimum in-situ stress)
Fracture closure pressure approximates the minimum horizontal in-situ stress, which must be overcome to keep the fracture open.
In a horizontal well multistage frac completion, what is the purpose of cluster spacing optimization?
Answer: To ensure uniform fracture initiation and avoid stress shadow interference between clusters
Optimal cluster spacing balances uniform fracture initiation against stress shadow effects that can suppress fractures between closely spaced clusters.