Casing Design

CASING DESIGN

What will be covered in this chapter

• Strength calculations for a casing string

1. The Design of casing and tubing strings

General
The basic philosophy in the design of a casing or tubing string is that nowhere yield should take place.
Detailed stress-analyses for each casing are not usually performed. A series of tables containing the
strength characteristics of available casing types are published and regularly updated by the API in
their API bulletin 5C2. An example is given in Table 1

Factors we have to take into account when designing strings are:

• collapse;
• burst;
• tension (of both pipe and couplings);
• compression.

Many other factors are also important, such as bending stresses, corrosion, damage (during
transport, making connections), fatigue, wear, buckling, chemical environment. Although these
factors must be taken into account, they are of secondary order importance.

Due to the factors mentioned above, the load- and stress conditions for a casing are highly complex,
poorly known, or unknown. It is therefore common practice to use a set of standard design rules
which are applied to a simplified casing string model. For this model a general picture of the load and
stress conditions (depth, rock type, mud weights, etc.) is sufficient.

In view of unknowns which cannot be evaluated properly, it is customary to introduce a number of

design factors. These design factors take into account:
• the probability that the assumed load and stress conditions are being surpassed;
• the reliability of the casing-material and the manufacturing process;
• uncertainties with respect to corrosion, wear and damages;
• the consequences (financially, morally, etc.) if a casing should fail
• past experience.

Design factors are in principle different from safety factors; the latter assume that load and stress
conditions are exactly known and that a specific safety-margin is being built in. In the design of a
casing or tubing one should therefore not use the term safety factor but only the term design factor.

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Table 1 PERFORMANCE PROPERTIES OF CASING

Extracted from API Bulletin 5C2, Twelfth Section April 1970
Grades K55, C75, N80 and P110 N.B. Only 9 5/8 inch O.D. casing

DIMENSIONS
Total cross-section area Weight Inside Inside Wall Metal
(sq.in) per foot diameter cross- thickness cross
(lbs) (in) section (in) section
area area
(sq.in) (sq.in)
72.760 36.00 8.921 62.502 0.352 10.258
40.00 8.835 61.308 0.395 11.452
43.50 8.755 60.201 0.435 12.559
47.00 8.681 59.188 0.472 13.572
53.50 8.535 57.216 0.545 15.544
Nominal K55 C-75 N-80 P-110
weight
lbs/ft
Minimum collapse pressure 36.00 2020
psi 40.00 2570 2980 3090
43.50 3750 3810 4430
47.00 4630 4750 5310
53.50 6380 6620 7930
Maximum burst pressure 36.00 3520
psi 40.00 3950 5390 5750
43.50 5930 6330 8700
47.00 6440 6870 9440
53.50 7430 7930 10900
Maximum allowable tensile 36.00
load
1000 lb wt. 40.00 975 975 1027
43.50 975 1027 1283
47.00 1032 1086 1358
53.50 1173 1235 1544
Maximum allowable tensile 36.00 489
load
1000 lb wt Long coupling 40.00 561 694 737
43.50 776 825 1106
47.00 852 905 1213
53.50 999 1062 1422
Maximum allowable tensile 36.00 963
load
1000 lb. wt Buttress thread 40.00 1076 1088 1145
43.50 1193 1256 1533

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47.00 1289 1357 1656

53.50 1477 1555 1897
Minimum yield strength 36.00 564
1000 psi 40.00 630 859 916
43.50 942 1005 1381
47.00 1018 1086 1493
53.50 1166 1244 1710
Mill hydrostatic test 36.00 3000
pressure
psi 40.00 3000 4900 5300
43.50 5400 5800 8000
47.00 5900 6300 8600
53.50 6800 7200 9700

2. Standard Design Rules for a Casing

Every company uses its own design rules. The most commonly used are summarized below:

Collapse
The external pressure on a casing is assumed to result from the column of mud in the casing/borehole
annulus at the time the casing will be cemented; the pressure due to cement column is usually not
taken into account.
• The internal pressure in a casing during drilling and production is 1 bar at bottom, which
corresponds with complete evacuation. (By exception, in the case of deep intermediate casings
partial evacuation may be assumed)
Burst – Surface & Intermediate Casings
• The external pressure on the casing is assumed to be the pressure caused by the column of mud
in the casing/borehole annulus at the time the casing will be cemented.
• It is assumed that the casing is fully filled with gas and that the gas pressure is determined by the
break-down pressure of the formation at the casing shoe. The pressure at surface is this
breakdown-pressure minus the static pressure of the gas column. (Again for intermediate casings
installed at great depth different assumptions may be made; the internal pressure may be based
on a gas column from the bottom of the hole, assuming complete evacuation, and taking into
account the full reservoir pressure).
Burst – Production Casings
• The external pressure on the casing is assumed to be the pressure caused by the column of mud
in the casing/borehole annulus at the time the casing will be cemented.
• It is assumed that the full closed-in tubing head gas pressure (via a leaking wellhead) is pushing
on the column of completion fluid which fills the annulus of the tubing/production casing
• In well in which it is planned to carry out hydraulic fracturing, the design of the production casing
should take this into account.
• In wells with artificial lift (gaslift, pumping) the design of the production casing should be adapted
to these conditions.

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Tension
• The axial force experienced at a given point of the casing is assumed to be equal to the weight (in
air) of the casing hanging below this point.
• The casing must be able to withstand pressure testing. The allowable test pressure takes into
account the buoyancy of the casing (in mud).

Design factors
Design factors and design rules are fully dependable; a design is not acceptable if the design factors
have not been applied. Design factors which are frequently used by operators are:
• Collapse: 1.0 and 1.125
• Burst: 1.0 and 1.1
• Tension: 1.6 and 1.8
• Compression: 1.0

These design factors may look high, and in particularly those for tension. However, one should not
forget that the string is not designed only for its landed position. The string should be able to
withstand the running (or sticking and subsequent jarring) while running in.

3. Design procedure for casing strings

1. Determine the depth of the hole and in case of a deviated well also its length. Establish which
hole-diameter will be required at the final depth of the well.
2. Estimate the formation breakdown gradient and the fracture propagation pressure at the depth
(or depths if it is a deep hole) where the intermediate casing(s) will be installed
3. Establish the minimal installation depth of the intermediate casing string(s) when we can assume
that hydrocarbon bearing formations are being drilled through. Assume cases of "gaskicks" in
relation to formation breakdown pressures.
4. Make a provisional estimate of the diameters and depths of production, intermediate, surface and
conductor strings.
5. Design the strings mentioned above in the sequence: intermediate string; production string;
surface string; conductor string.

Conductor casing strings

For conductor casing strings, collapse and burst are not important and the conductor is therefore not
designed for collapse and burst. It is designed for tension and also for compression.
• The weight (submerged in the respective fluids/muds) of the surface casing, the intermediate
casing is usually landed on top of the conductor string.
• If the conductor is cemented up to surface calculations for compression are not necessary. If the
conductor is partly free-standing (or in the case of a riser), then the top-part will be in
compression until the yield value is be surpassed or until buckling of the conductor (or riser)
takes place.

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EXERCISES CASING DESIGN

Question 1
A vertical well in the Zuidwal field in the Waddenzee, The Netherlands, produces gas from the
interval 6050-6200 ft. A 9 5/8" intermediate casing string is set at a depth of 6000 ft. A 7" liner is
landed at 6200 ft; and hung-off with a packer in the 9 5/8" casing at 5900 ft. The well is completed
with a 5½” tubing, free-hanging in the 7" packer at 6000 ft.
1. Sketch the completion
2. Design the 9 5/8” production casing for collapse and burst. Make use of the following data and
the API tables in the lecture notes
Data
• The specific gravity of the mud down to 6000 ft is 1.45.
• The pressure of the gas reservoir at 6050 ft is 3146 psi (gradient 0.52 psi/ft)
• The pressure gradient for water is 0.4335 psi/ft
• The tubing/casing annulus will be filled with MgCl2 brine, relative density. 1.50.
• Design factors: collapse 1.0, burst 1.1, tension 1.6 (1.3 when pressure testing following
cementation)
• The gas has relative density to air 0.60. Use the following table giving the ratio between surface
pressure and downhole pressure in a gas
Depth (m) Gas relative density 0.60 Gas relative density 0.65
250 0.983 0.982
500 0.966 0.964
1000 0.934 0.929
1500 0.902 0.895
2000 0.872 0.862
2500 0.843 0.831
3000 0.815 0.801
3500 0.787 0.772
4000 0.761 0.744
4500 0.736 0.717
5000 0.711 0.691
5500 0.686 0.665
6000 0.663 0.642

Question 2
In a given field, hydrocarbons are found over the interval 7000' - 10000'. All reservoirs are
hydrostatically pressured (the pressure gradient in water is 0.4335 psi/ft). The bottom reservoir is a
gas reservoir occupying 9800' -10000', with GWC at 10000'. The completion details are:

Tubulars diameter depth

Stovepipe 22" driven 50'
Conductor 18 5/8" cemented to surface 250'
Surface casing 10 3/4" cemented to surface 4000'
Production casing 7" cemented 500' above hydrocarbons 10500'
Production tubing 3 ½" in packer 8000'

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Fluids Specific gravity depth

Drilling mud used 1.05 0' - 4000'
1.06 4000'-10500'
1.20 below 10500'
Completion fluid 1.05
Cement 1.65 Pozmix 0' - 4000'
1.88 Class E 4000'-10500'
1.00

1. The gas has specific gravity 0.6. A gas well is producing from this reservoir. Draw the
completion
2. Calculate collapse load for the production casing with design factor 1.0. Which 7" casing can be
used for the lowest part of the casing string (see extract from API Tables below). Design a
production casing string using C-75 grade casing.
3. Calculate burst load for the production casing with design factor 1.0. Design a casing string
satisfying the collapse and burst criteria using C-75 grade casing.
4. For this casing string calculate the tensile load with design factor 1.60. Select the casing.

PERFORMANCE PROPERTIES OF 7”CASING (API)

Nominal K55 C-75 N-80 P-110
weight
lbs/ft
Minimum collapse pressure 20.00 2270
psi 23.00 3270 3770 3830
26.00 4320 5250 5410 6210
29.00 6760 7020 8510
32.00 8230 8600 10760
35.00 9710 10180 13010
38.00 10680 11390 15110
Maximum burst pressure 20.00 3740
psi 23.00 4360 5940 6340
26.00 4980 6790 7240 9960
29.00 7650 8160 11220
32.00 8490 9060 12460
35.00 9340 9960 13700
38.00 10120 10800 14850
Maximum allowable tensile 20.00
load
1000 lbs wt 23.00 632 632 666
26.00 641 641 675 844
29.00 685 721 902
32.00 761 801 1002
35.00 850 895 1118

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38.00 917 965 1207

Question 3
In the Tambaredjo field in Suriname, the reservoir is about 1000’ deep. The casing program is as
follows
• 2 joints of 14” conductor pipe driven to about 36’
• Surface hole drilled to 210’ and cased with 6 joints of 8-5/8” 24lb/ft K-55 casing
• 7-7/8” hole drilled to TD (5’ below the base of oil sand) and cased with 4½“ 9½lb/ft K55
casings, with maximum collapse pressure 3320 psi, burst pressure 438 psi and tensile load 264
1000lbs force.
Mudweight are typically 9.9 – 10ppg during surface hole drilling and 8.8 – 9.2 ppg thereafter (1ppg
= 1 pounds/US gallon = 119.8 kg/m3)
Class C construction cement is used, with density 16.48 ppg
Draw the completion. Check the design of the 4½“ casing

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SOLUTIONS TO EXERCISES. CASING DESIGN

Question 1

DEPTH FT
0

intermediate casing
details not given
1000

2000

intermediate casing
details not given
3000

4000
9 5/8" casing

5000

5900 packer
6000

reservoir
6200

Collapse
• Assume full evacuation of the 9 5/8"-7" casing/liner combination
• At the surface the pressure inside the casing is then 0 psi
• At 6000 ft the pressure due to the column of mud in the annulus is: 6000 * gradient of mud =
6000 * (1.45 * 0.4335) = 3771 psi
• The collapse gradient = 3771/6000 = 1.45 * 0.4335 = 0.629 psi/ft
Burst
• Use design rules for the production casing
• The well is completed with a 5 ½" tubing in a 7" packer at 6000 ft.
• It is assumed that the well is filled with gas in communication with the reservoir. The reservoir
pressure at 6050 ft depth = 6050 * 0.52 = 3146 psi. The top-hole/bottom-hole ratio for 0.60
s.g. gas 0:883 (see table – N.B. convert metres to feet)). Therefore gas pressure in the tubing at
surface will be 0.883 * 3146 = 2778 psi.

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 Casing Design

• If a leak occurs in the tubing, this closed-in tubing pressure of 2778 psi can exert pressure on the
brine column in the tubing/casing annulus.
• The tubing/casing annulus is filled with an inhibited MgCl2 brine, with a specific gravity 1.50
• Pressure at 6000 ft inside the annulus will thus be: 2778 + 6000*1.50*0.4335 = 2778 + 3902
psi.
• But outside the production casing, there is a mud of s.g. 1.45 which provides a counteracting
pressure 6000*1.45*0.4335 psi
• Thus burst pressure at the bottom of the production casing is 2778 + 6000*1.50*0.4335 -
6000*1.45*0.4335 = 2778 + 3902 -3771 = 2909 psi
Casing selection based on collapse and burst
• The burst pressure lies between 2909 and 2778 psi. Looking at the burst tables, the K55 9 5/8
36 lbs/ft casing has burst pressure 3520. Allowing for design factor 1.1 this reduces to 3200 psi,
which is greater than the calculated pressure range. A1l other casings have stronger burst
pressure. So, all casings meet the burst criterion.
• The collapse pressure = 0.629*depth. Choosing K55 36.00 casing, this has a collapse pressure
greater than 0.629*depth down to a depth of 2020/0.629 = 3211 ft. At this depth we have to
switch to a heavier casing K55 40.00. This is valid down to the depth 2570/0.629 = 4086. We
then cannot use K55 anymore. It is possible to switch to N-80, since K55 and N-80 are
compatible. Alternatively, we could use C-75 or N-80 over the whole well. Using a mixture of
K55 and N-80 we derive the following scheme. This is most easily seen when plotted (see
Figure).

Depth range Casing grade Weight pounds/ft Effective collapse pressure psi
0 - 3211 K55 36.0 2020
3211 – 4086 K55 40.0 2570
4086 - 4913 N80 40.0 3090
4913 - 6057 N80 43.5 3810

0 Pressure
0 1000 2000 3000 4000
-1000

-2000

-3000
Depth

Collapse gradient
-4000
Casing strength
-5000

-6000

-7000

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Question 2
1.
DEPTH FT
0

50

250

4000

m
u
d
6500
top hydrocarbons
7000
cement
8000

9800 gas
10000 reservoir

10500

2. Use collapse rules for production casings:

- annulus filled with mud (neglect 0 Pressure
effect of cement) 0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000
-2000
- inside "complete evacuation" i.e.
-4000
pressure is 1 bar
Depth

-6000
Collapse load is depth * mud gradient = -8000
depth* 0.5202 = 5462 psi Collapse gradient
-10000
Casing collapse strength
So collapse load is highest at 10500' (i.e. -12000
at TD Total Depth).

Maximum collapse load is 10500* 0.5202 = 5462 psi.

Fig. 1 Casing design based on collapse strength

From API table for 7" casing, the choices are 7" C-75 29 lbs/ft, N-80 29 lbs/ft, or P-110 26

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lbs/ft. C-75 is the cheapest casing.

As the collapse load decreases to surface, 26 lbs/ft and 23 lbs/ft can be used in the upper part of
the string. See graphical design in Fig. 1

Usually the depths for changes of casing grade are taken as safe round numbers, so the actual
design could be as shown in Fig.2, with the 7" casing is made up as follows:
0- 7000' 7000' -10000' 10000' -10500'
Grade C-75 C-75 C-75
Weight lbs/ft 23 26 29

0 Pressure
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000
-2000

-4000

Depth
-6000
Fig. 2 Practical casing design based on
-8000
collapse strength Collapse gradient
-10000
Casing collapse strength
-12000

3. Burst rules state that the pressures on the production casing are:
- external pressure caused by mud
- inside pressure caused by completion fluid with full gas pressure acting on it via a leak
in the tubing.
External on production casing pressure caused by mud at depth d ft is d* (1.20*0.4335).
Full gas pressure on the annulus at surface is 3520 psi (see 5).
Inside pressure (in annulus between the tubing and the production casing) in completion fluid at
depth d ft is therefore 3520 + d* (1.05*0.4335)
At depth d, burst load is therefore = 3520 + d* (1.05- 1.20)*0.4335. This is a maximum at
surface (d = 0) and decreases to the value 2870 psi at 10000'. From API table for 7" casing, all
C-75 and N-80 casing can be used, as all allowable burst loads exceed the actual load. (See
Fig.3) The design proposed in 10 for collapse can therefore be used for burst design.
4. Tensile load rules state: maximum allowable tensile load must be greater than the weight of casing
in air (so buoyancy by mud not accounted for)
Tensile load is 0 at bottom and highest at top where the complete casing string is suspended from
the hook.
For the given casing design, weight is 500 ft * 29 lbs/ft = 14500 lbs
3000 ft * 26 lbs /ft = 78000 lbs
7000 ft * 23 lbs/ft = 161000 lbs
Total 253500 lbs
Allowing for the design factor 1.6, this gives a maximum load of 1.6*259500 = 415200 lbs. For
all 7" C-75, N-80 and P-110 casing the allowable loads exceed this load.
Conclusion

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The 7" casing is made up as follows:

0- 7000' 7000' -10000' 10000' -10500'
Grade C-75 C-75 C-75
Weight lbs/ft 23 26 29

Note: In view of other factors (e.g. the variation of internal diameter ID) it is sometimes the
custom to replace the top casing joint (in this case 23 lbs/ft) by a joint of the heaviest casing (29
lbs/ft in this case) as a check on clearance of any tools that are put in the hole. If they are too
large, they stick in the top joint, not deep in the well! The above design calculations should then
be adopted to reflect a higher burst and tensile load capacity, but this is not done as the second
joint has a 23 lbs/ft quality: for all practical purposes burst and tensile loads are the same as the
base case.

0 Pressure
0 2000 4000 6000 8000
-2000

-4000 Burst gradient

Depth

-6000 Casing burst strength

-8000

-10000

-12000

Fig.3 Burst gradient and burst casing strength

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