Experimental simulation of erosion behavior of monolayer metal screen in sandstone reservoir

Abstract The common approach for sand control in sandstone reservoir is the application of metal mesh screen (MMS). Production process and physical properties of production formation play a vital role on the service life of screen. A model was proposed to evaluate the erosion rate of commonly used screen. The simulation experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of formation properties, such as particle size and concentration of sand grains and production pressure differential, on the erosion of screen with monolayer metal wire mesh (MWM). The results show that: 1) The erosion rate of screen with monolayer MWM was increased exponentially with the flow velocity of crude oil containing sand; 2) With the increase of sand median grain size and sand content, the erosion rate increased first and then decreased. For a screen with certain accuracy, the erosion rate of monolayer MWM of screens may reach the maximum value with the change of median grain size and sand content; 3) A formula was proposed to predict the erosion rate under the effect of fluid velocity, particle size and concentration of sand. The mathematical model was verified by experimental results.