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Process Engineering Term - F
FASTLINE - the end of the drilling line that is affixed to the drum or reel of the drawworks, so called because it travels with greater velocity than any other portion of the line. Compare deadline.
FIELD - A geographical area in which one or more oil or gas wells produce. A field may refer to surface area only or to underground productive formation. A single field may include several reservoirs separated either horizontally or vertically.
FIELD BUTANES - A raw mix of natural gas liquids; the product of gas processing plants in the field. Raw mix streams are sent to fractionating plants where the various components - butane, propane, hexane, and others - are separated. Some refineries are capable of using field butanes at 10 to 15 percent of charge stock.
FINGERBOARD - a rack that supports the stands of pipe being stacked in the derrick or mast. It has several steel fingerlike projections that form a series of slots into which the derrickman can place a stand of drill pipe or collars after it is pulled out of the hole and removed from the drill string.
FIRE FLOODING - a thermal recovery method in which the oil in the reservoir is ignited, the heat vaporizes lighter hydrocarbons and water pushes the warmed oil toward a producing well. Also called in situ combustion. See thermal recovery.
FISH - an object that is left in the wellbore during drilling or workover operations and that must be recovered before work can proceed. It can be anything from a piece of scrap metal to a part of the drill stem.
FISHING - the procedure of recovering lost or stuck equipment in the wellbore.
FISHING MAGNET - a powerful magnet designed to recover metallic objects lost in a well.
FISHING TOOL - a tool designed to recover equipment lost in a well.
FISHING-TOOL OPERATOR - the person (usually a service company employee) in charge of directing fishing operations.
FITTING - a small, often standardized, part (such as a coupling, valve, or gauge) installed in a larger apparatus.
FLARE - (1) To burn unwanted gas through a pipe or stack (Under conservation laws, the flaring of natural gas is illegal.) (2) The flame from a flare; the pipe or the stack itself.
FLOAT COLLAR - a special coupling device inserted one or two joints above the bottom of the casing string that contains a check valve to permit fluid to pass downward but not upward through the casing. The float collar prevents drilling mud from entering the casing while it is being lowered, allowing the casing to float during its descent and thus decreasing the load on the derrick or mast.
FLOAT SHOE - a short, heavy, cylindrical steel section with a rounded bottom that is attached to the bottom of the casing string. It contains a check valve and functions similarly to the float collar but also serves as a guide shoe for the casing.
FLOOD - 1. to drive oil from a reservoir into a well by injecting water under pressure into the reservoir formation. See waterflooding. 2. to drown out a well with water.
FLOW - a current or stream of fluid or gas.
FLOOR CREW - those workers on a drilling or workover rig who work primarily on the rig floor. See rotary helper.
FLOWING WELL -A well capable of producing oil or gas by its own energy without the aid of a mechanical pump. Normally a pump is put on the well after the pressure reduction inhibits the rate of production. FRACING - The process of pumping fluids into a productive formation at high rates of injection to hydraulically break the rock. The "fractures" which are created in the rock act as flow channels for the oil and gas to the well.
FLOW LINE - the surface pipe through which oil or gas travels from a well to processing equipment or to storage.
FLOW RATE - the speed, or velocity, of fluid or gas flow through a pipe or vessel.
FLUID INJECTION - injection of gases or liquids into a reservoir to force oil toward and into producing wells.
FLUID LOSS - the unwanted migration of the liquid part of the drilling mud or cement slurry into a formation, often minimized or prevented by the blending of additives with the mud or cement.
FORMATION FLUID - fluid (such as gas, oil, or water) that exists in a subsurface formation.
FORMATION GAS - gas initially produced from an underground reservoir.
FORMATION PRESSURE - the force exerted by fluids or gas in a formation, recorded in the hole at the level of the formation with the well shut in. Also called reservoir pressure or shut-in bottomhole pressure.
FORMATION TESTING - the gathering of pressure data and fluid samples from a formation to determine its production potential before choosing a completion method.
FORMATION WATER - 1. the water originally in place in a formation. 2. any water that resides in the pore spaces of a formation.
FOSSIL ENERGY - Energy derived from crude oil, natural gas, or coal.
FRAC FLUID - a fluid used in the fracturing process (for example, a method of stimulating production by opening new flow channels in the formation surrounding a production well). Under extremely high hydraulic pressure, frac fluids (such as distillate, diesel fuel, crude oil, dilute hydrochloric acid, water, or kerosene) are pumped downward through production tubing or drill pipe and forced out below a packer or between two packers. The pressure causes cracks to open in the formation, and the fluid penetrates the formation through the cracks. Sand grains, aluminum pellets, walnut shells, or similar materials (propping agents) are carried in suspension by the fluid into the cracks. When the pressure is released at the surface, the fracturing fluid returns to the well but leaves behind the propping agents to hold open the formation cracks.
FUEL TANKS - fuel storage tanks for the power generating system.
FRACTURE - a crack or crevice in a formation, either natural or induced. See hydraulic fracturing.
FRACTURE ACIDIZING - a procedure by which acid is forced into a formation under pressure high enough to cause the formation to crack. The acid acts on certain kinds of formations, usually carbonates, to increase the permeability of the formation. Also called acid fracturing.
FRACTURE PRESSURE - the pressure at which a formation will break down, or fracture.
FRACTURING FLUID - a fluid, such as water, oil, or acid, used in hydraulic fracturing. The fluid carries propping agents that hold open the formation cracks after hydraulic pressure dissipates. See acid fracturing, hydraulic fracturing, propping agents.
FREE-POINT INDICATOR - a device run on wireline into the wellbore and inside the fishing string and fish to locate the area where a fish is stuck. When the drill string is pulled and turned, the electromagnetic fields of free pipe and stuck pipe differ. The free-point indicator is able to distinguish these differences, which are registered on a metering device at the surface.
FRICTION - resistance to movement created when two surfaces are in contact. When friction is present, movement between the surfaces produces heat.
FULL-GAUGE BIT - a bit that has maintained its original diameter.
FULL-GAUGE HOLE - a wellbore drilled with a full-gauge bit. Also called a true-to-gauge hole.
FIELD - A geographical area in which one or more oil or gas wells produce. A field may refer to surface area only or to underground productive formation. A single field may include several reservoirs separated either horizontally or vertically.
FIELD BUTANES - A raw mix of natural gas liquids; the product of gas processing plants in the field. Raw mix streams are sent to fractionating plants where the various components - butane, propane, hexane, and others - are separated. Some refineries are capable of using field butanes at 10 to 15 percent of charge stock.
FINGERBOARD - a rack that supports the stands of pipe being stacked in the derrick or mast. It has several steel fingerlike projections that form a series of slots into which the derrickman can place a stand of drill pipe or collars after it is pulled out of the hole and removed from the drill string.
FIRE FLOODING - a thermal recovery method in which the oil in the reservoir is ignited, the heat vaporizes lighter hydrocarbons and water pushes the warmed oil toward a producing well. Also called in situ combustion. See thermal recovery.
FISH - an object that is left in the wellbore during drilling or workover operations and that must be recovered before work can proceed. It can be anything from a piece of scrap metal to a part of the drill stem.
FISHING - the procedure of recovering lost or stuck equipment in the wellbore.
FISHING MAGNET - a powerful magnet designed to recover metallic objects lost in a well.
FISHING TOOL - a tool designed to recover equipment lost in a well.
FISHING-TOOL OPERATOR - the person (usually a service company employee) in charge of directing fishing operations.
FITTING - a small, often standardized, part (such as a coupling, valve, or gauge) installed in a larger apparatus.
FLARE - (1) To burn unwanted gas through a pipe or stack (Under conservation laws, the flaring of natural gas is illegal.) (2) The flame from a flare; the pipe or the stack itself.
FLOAT COLLAR - a special coupling device inserted one or two joints above the bottom of the casing string that contains a check valve to permit fluid to pass downward but not upward through the casing. The float collar prevents drilling mud from entering the casing while it is being lowered, allowing the casing to float during its descent and thus decreasing the load on the derrick or mast.
FLOAT SHOE - a short, heavy, cylindrical steel section with a rounded bottom that is attached to the bottom of the casing string. It contains a check valve and functions similarly to the float collar but also serves as a guide shoe for the casing.
FLOOD - 1. to drive oil from a reservoir into a well by injecting water under pressure into the reservoir formation. See waterflooding. 2. to drown out a well with water.
FLOW - a current or stream of fluid or gas.
FLOOR CREW - those workers on a drilling or workover rig who work primarily on the rig floor. See rotary helper.
FLOWING WELL -A well capable of producing oil or gas by its own energy without the aid of a mechanical pump. Normally a pump is put on the well after the pressure reduction inhibits the rate of production. FRACING - The process of pumping fluids into a productive formation at high rates of injection to hydraulically break the rock. The "fractures" which are created in the rock act as flow channels for the oil and gas to the well.
FLOW LINE - the surface pipe through which oil or gas travels from a well to processing equipment or to storage.
FLOW RATE - the speed, or velocity, of fluid or gas flow through a pipe or vessel.
FLUID INJECTION - injection of gases or liquids into a reservoir to force oil toward and into producing wells.
FLUID LOSS - the unwanted migration of the liquid part of the drilling mud or cement slurry into a formation, often minimized or prevented by the blending of additives with the mud or cement.
FORMATION FLUID - fluid (such as gas, oil, or water) that exists in a subsurface formation.
FORMATION GAS - gas initially produced from an underground reservoir.
FORMATION PRESSURE - the force exerted by fluids or gas in a formation, recorded in the hole at the level of the formation with the well shut in. Also called reservoir pressure or shut-in bottomhole pressure.
FORMATION TESTING - the gathering of pressure data and fluid samples from a formation to determine its production potential before choosing a completion method.
FORMATION WATER - 1. the water originally in place in a formation. 2. any water that resides in the pore spaces of a formation.
FOSSIL ENERGY - Energy derived from crude oil, natural gas, or coal.
FRAC FLUID - a fluid used in the fracturing process (for example, a method of stimulating production by opening new flow channels in the formation surrounding a production well). Under extremely high hydraulic pressure, frac fluids (such as distillate, diesel fuel, crude oil, dilute hydrochloric acid, water, or kerosene) are pumped downward through production tubing or drill pipe and forced out below a packer or between two packers. The pressure causes cracks to open in the formation, and the fluid penetrates the formation through the cracks. Sand grains, aluminum pellets, walnut shells, or similar materials (propping agents) are carried in suspension by the fluid into the cracks. When the pressure is released at the surface, the fracturing fluid returns to the well but leaves behind the propping agents to hold open the formation cracks.
FUEL TANKS - fuel storage tanks for the power generating system.
FRACTURE - a crack or crevice in a formation, either natural or induced. See hydraulic fracturing.
FRACTURE ACIDIZING - a procedure by which acid is forced into a formation under pressure high enough to cause the formation to crack. The acid acts on certain kinds of formations, usually carbonates, to increase the permeability of the formation. Also called acid fracturing.
FRACTURE PRESSURE - the pressure at which a formation will break down, or fracture.
FRACTURING FLUID - a fluid, such as water, oil, or acid, used in hydraulic fracturing. The fluid carries propping agents that hold open the formation cracks after hydraulic pressure dissipates. See acid fracturing, hydraulic fracturing, propping agents.
FREE-POINT INDICATOR - a device run on wireline into the wellbore and inside the fishing string and fish to locate the area where a fish is stuck. When the drill string is pulled and turned, the electromagnetic fields of free pipe and stuck pipe differ. The free-point indicator is able to distinguish these differences, which are registered on a metering device at the surface.
FRICTION - resistance to movement created when two surfaces are in contact. When friction is present, movement between the surfaces produces heat.
FULL-GAUGE BIT - a bit that has maintained its original diameter.
FULL-GAUGE HOLE - a wellbore drilled with a full-gauge bit. Also called a true-to-gauge hole.
Process Engineering Term - G
GAS - “Any fluid, combustible or noncombustible, which is produced in a natural state from the earth and which maintains a gaseous or rarified state at ordinary temperature and pressure conditions”. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 30, Mineral Resources, Chap. II, Geological Survey, 221.2
GAMMA RAY LOG - a type of radioactivity well log that records natural radioactivity around the wellbore. Shales generally produce higher levels of gamma radiation and can be detected and studied with the gamma ray tool.
GAS CAP - The portion of an oil-producing reservoir occupied by free gas; in a free state above an oil zone.
GAS LOST - Avoidably lost natural gas which is flared or vented (i.e., natural gas not retained in the production system for sale or use).
GAS WELL - A well that produces natural gas which is not associated with crude oil. GEOLOGY - The science of the history of the Earth and its life as recorded in rocks.
GAS ANCHOR - a tubular, perforated device attached to the bottom of a suckerrod pump that helps to prevent gas lock. The device works on the principle that gas, being lighter than oil, rises. As well fluids enter the anchor, gas breaks out of the fluid and exits from the anchor through perforations near the top. Remaining fluids enter the pump through a mosquito bill (a tube within the anchor), which has an opening near the bottom. In this way, all or most of the gas escapes before the fluids enter the pump.
GAS CAP - a free-gas phase overlying an oil zone and occurring within the same producing formation as the oil. See reservoir.
GAS-CAP DRIVE - drive energy supplied naturally (as a reservoir is produced) by the expansion of the gas cap. In such a drive, the gas cap expands to force oil into the well and to the surface. See reservoir drive mechanism.
GAS-CUT MUD - a drilling mud that contains entrained formation gas, giving the mud a characteristically fluffy texture. Gas cut mud may cause a lowering of mud weight.
GAS DRIVE - the use of the energy that arises from the expansion of compressed gas in a reservoir to move crude oil to a wellbore. Also called depletion drive. See dissolved-gas drive, gas-cap drive, reservoir drive mechanism.
GAS INJECTION - the injection of gas into a reservoir to maintain formation pressure by gas drive and to reduce the rate of decline of the original reservoir drive. One type of gas injection uses gas that does not mix (is not miscible) with the oil. Examples of these gases include natural gas, nitrogen, and flue gas. Another type uses gas that does mix (is miscible) with the oil. The gas may be naturally miscible or become miscible under high pressure. Examples of miscible gases include propane, methane enriched with other light hydrocarbons, methane under high pressure, and carbon dioxide under pressure. Frequently, water is also injected in alternating steps with the gas.
GAS INJECTION WELL - a well into which gas is injected for the purpose of maintaining or supplementing pressure in an oil reservoir.
GASKET - any material (such as paper, cork, asbestos, stainless steel or other types of metal, or rubber) used to seal two essentially stationary surfaces.
GAS LIFT - the process of raising or lifting fluid from a well by injecting gas down the well through tubing or through the tubing-casing annulus. Injected gas aerates the fluid to make it exert less pressure than the formation does; the resulting higher formation pressure forces the fluid out of the wellbore. Gas may be injected continuously or intermittently, depending on the producing characteristics of the well and the arrangement of the gas-lift equipment.
GAS-LIFT MANDREL - a device installed in the tubing string of a gas-lift well onto which or into which a gas-lift valve is fitted. There are two common types of mandrel. In the conventional gas-lift mandrel, the gas-lift valve is installed as the tubing is placed in the well. Thus, to replace or repair the valve, the tubing string must be pulled. In the sidepocket mandrel, however, the valve is installed and removed by wireline while the mandrel is still in the well, eliminating the need to pull the tubing to repair or replace the valve.
GAS-LIFT VALVE - a device installed on a gas-lift mandrel, which in turn is put on the tubing string of a gas-lift well. Tubing and casing pressures cause the valve to open and close, thus allowing gas to be injected into the fluid in the tubing to cause the fluid to rise to the surface. See gas-lift mandrel.
GAS-LIFT WELL - a well in which reservoir fluids are artificially lifted by the injection of gas.
GAS LOCK - 1. a condition sometimes encountered in a pumping well when dissolved gas, released from solution during the upstroke of the plunger, appears as free gas between the valves. If the gas pressure is sufficient, the standing valve is locked shut, and no fluid enters the tubing. 2. a device fitted to the gauging hatch on a pressure tank that enables manual dipping and sampling without loss of vapor. 3. a condition that can occur when gas-cut mud is circulated by the mud pump. The gas breaks out of the mud, expands, and works against the operation of the piston and valves.
GAS WELL - a well that primarily produces gas. Legal definitions vary among the states.
GEL - a semisolid, jellylike state assumed by some colloidal dispersions at rest.
GEOLOGIST - a scientist who gathers and interprets data pertaining to the formations of the earth’s crust.
GO IN THE HOLE - to lower the drill stem, the tubing, the casing, or the sucker rods into the wellbore.
GONE TO WATER - pertaining to a well in which production of oil has decreased and production of water has increased (for example, “the well has gone to water”).
GOOSENECT - the curved connection between the rotary hose and the swivel.
GRAVEL - sand or glass beads of uniform size and roundness used in gravel packing.
GRAVEL PACKING - a method of well completion in which a slotted or perforated liner, often wire-wrapped, is placed in the well and surrounded by gravel. If open hole, the well is sometimes enlarged by underreaming at the point where the gravel is packed. The mass of gravel excludes sand from the wellbore but allows continued production.
GUIDE SHOE - 1. a short, heavy, cylindrical section of steel filled with concrete and rounded at the bottom, which is placed at the end of the casing string. It prevents the casing from snagging on irregularities in the borehole as it is lowered.
GUY LINE ANCHOR - a buried weight or anchor to which a guy line is attached.
GUY WIRE - a rope or cable used to steady a mast or pole.
GAMMA RAY LOG - a type of radioactivity well log that records natural radioactivity around the wellbore. Shales generally produce higher levels of gamma radiation and can be detected and studied with the gamma ray tool.
GAS CAP - The portion of an oil-producing reservoir occupied by free gas; in a free state above an oil zone.
GAS LOST - Avoidably lost natural gas which is flared or vented (i.e., natural gas not retained in the production system for sale or use).
GAS WELL - A well that produces natural gas which is not associated with crude oil. GEOLOGY - The science of the history of the Earth and its life as recorded in rocks.
GAS ANCHOR - a tubular, perforated device attached to the bottom of a suckerrod pump that helps to prevent gas lock. The device works on the principle that gas, being lighter than oil, rises. As well fluids enter the anchor, gas breaks out of the fluid and exits from the anchor through perforations near the top. Remaining fluids enter the pump through a mosquito bill (a tube within the anchor), which has an opening near the bottom. In this way, all or most of the gas escapes before the fluids enter the pump.
GAS CAP - a free-gas phase overlying an oil zone and occurring within the same producing formation as the oil. See reservoir.
GAS-CAP DRIVE - drive energy supplied naturally (as a reservoir is produced) by the expansion of the gas cap. In such a drive, the gas cap expands to force oil into the well and to the surface. See reservoir drive mechanism.
GAS-CUT MUD - a drilling mud that contains entrained formation gas, giving the mud a characteristically fluffy texture. Gas cut mud may cause a lowering of mud weight.
GAS DRIVE - the use of the energy that arises from the expansion of compressed gas in a reservoir to move crude oil to a wellbore. Also called depletion drive. See dissolved-gas drive, gas-cap drive, reservoir drive mechanism.
GAS INJECTION - the injection of gas into a reservoir to maintain formation pressure by gas drive and to reduce the rate of decline of the original reservoir drive. One type of gas injection uses gas that does not mix (is not miscible) with the oil. Examples of these gases include natural gas, nitrogen, and flue gas. Another type uses gas that does mix (is miscible) with the oil. The gas may be naturally miscible or become miscible under high pressure. Examples of miscible gases include propane, methane enriched with other light hydrocarbons, methane under high pressure, and carbon dioxide under pressure. Frequently, water is also injected in alternating steps with the gas.
GAS INJECTION WELL - a well into which gas is injected for the purpose of maintaining or supplementing pressure in an oil reservoir.
GASKET - any material (such as paper, cork, asbestos, stainless steel or other types of metal, or rubber) used to seal two essentially stationary surfaces.
GAS LIFT - the process of raising or lifting fluid from a well by injecting gas down the well through tubing or through the tubing-casing annulus. Injected gas aerates the fluid to make it exert less pressure than the formation does; the resulting higher formation pressure forces the fluid out of the wellbore. Gas may be injected continuously or intermittently, depending on the producing characteristics of the well and the arrangement of the gas-lift equipment.
GAS-LIFT MANDREL - a device installed in the tubing string of a gas-lift well onto which or into which a gas-lift valve is fitted. There are two common types of mandrel. In the conventional gas-lift mandrel, the gas-lift valve is installed as the tubing is placed in the well. Thus, to replace or repair the valve, the tubing string must be pulled. In the sidepocket mandrel, however, the valve is installed and removed by wireline while the mandrel is still in the well, eliminating the need to pull the tubing to repair or replace the valve.
GAS-LIFT VALVE - a device installed on a gas-lift mandrel, which in turn is put on the tubing string of a gas-lift well. Tubing and casing pressures cause the valve to open and close, thus allowing gas to be injected into the fluid in the tubing to cause the fluid to rise to the surface. See gas-lift mandrel.
GAS-LIFT WELL - a well in which reservoir fluids are artificially lifted by the injection of gas.
GAS LOCK - 1. a condition sometimes encountered in a pumping well when dissolved gas, released from solution during the upstroke of the plunger, appears as free gas between the valves. If the gas pressure is sufficient, the standing valve is locked shut, and no fluid enters the tubing. 2. a device fitted to the gauging hatch on a pressure tank that enables manual dipping and sampling without loss of vapor. 3. a condition that can occur when gas-cut mud is circulated by the mud pump. The gas breaks out of the mud, expands, and works against the operation of the piston and valves.
GAS WELL - a well that primarily produces gas. Legal definitions vary among the states.
GEL - a semisolid, jellylike state assumed by some colloidal dispersions at rest.
GEOLOGIST - a scientist who gathers and interprets data pertaining to the formations of the earth’s crust.
GO IN THE HOLE - to lower the drill stem, the tubing, the casing, or the sucker rods into the wellbore.
GONE TO WATER - pertaining to a well in which production of oil has decreased and production of water has increased (for example, “the well has gone to water”).
GOOSENECT - the curved connection between the rotary hose and the swivel.
GRAVEL - sand or glass beads of uniform size and roundness used in gravel packing.
GRAVEL PACKING - a method of well completion in which a slotted or perforated liner, often wire-wrapped, is placed in the well and surrounded by gravel. If open hole, the well is sometimes enlarged by underreaming at the point where the gravel is packed. The mass of gravel excludes sand from the wellbore but allows continued production.
GUIDE SHOE - 1. a short, heavy, cylindrical section of steel filled with concrete and rounded at the bottom, which is placed at the end of the casing string. It prevents the casing from snagging on irregularities in the borehole as it is lowered.
GUY LINE ANCHOR - a buried weight or anchor to which a guy line is attached.
GUY WIRE - a rope or cable used to steady a mast or pole.
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