Predicting connection integrity with consideration of thermo stress

In the conventional gas seal analysis of special threaded joints, the influence of temperature stress caused by the difference between formation temperature and fluid temperature in casing is often neglected. However, the influence mechanism of temperature stress is prerequisite information for accurately predicting the safe operating conditions that prevent a premium connection from being damaged. In this paper, we propose a model that includes these effects to predict the safe operating pressures and temperatures that will prevent seal failure. For the temperature stress, we propose a finite element model of thermal solid coupling. Subsequent stress changes are evaluated by a fully coupled model of thermal solid coupling to analyze the mechanical behavior of the premium connection. We predict the safe operating envelope (SOE) for premium connection failures caused by pressure and temperature perturbations after make-up. Our model predicts that radial pressure is a key factor for connection failure, especially for rapid temperature changes. If the formation temperature is high and the casing fluid temperature is low, the influence of temperature stress will increase under this working condition, resulting in an increase in the probability of failure of premium connections. Compared with conventional premium connection models, the model of thermal solid coupling predicts a smaller SOE when heating the internal casing fluid and a larger envelope when cooling the internal casing fluid. Finally, the heating rate was considered with respect to field applications. The heating rate was also considered, and slower heating/cooling rates can prevent damage to the seal integrity. Finally, the model was applied to explain several laboratory and field experiments and achieved good matches.