Abstract:
Compressive strength is a critical parameter for the success of chemical sand consolidation operations in oil wells. Predicting
the right compressive strength is affected by factors such as curing time, bottomhole temperature, pore volume treatment and
active clay concentration of the formation. The ability to model and optimise these factors is therefore crucial in obtaining
the desired compressive strength required to stop fines migration in hydrocarbon production without excessive reduction in
permeability. This paper studied the individual and interactive effects of curing time and temperature on the compressive
strength of an epoxy sand consolidation system. Based on the results obtained and with the aid of statistical analysis
software, a predictive compressive strength model and software were developed for predicting the compressive strength for
epoxy sand consolidation system. The results revealed significant impacts of the curing time and the temperature on the
compressive strength of the epoxy system, though the interactive effects of these two factors did not have much significant
effect on the compressive strength. The compressive strength model developed could be used as an aiding tool to explain
about 97 % of the variability in the experiment conducted. The software developed could also be useful in laboratory and
field applications for estimating compressive strength, while the predictive model could be employed as optimisation tool for
designing epoxy sand consolidation operations in the oil and gas industry.
