Casing Manufacturing Process

All oilwell tubulars including casing have to meet the requirements of the API (American Petroleum
Institute) Specification. Two basic processes are used to manufacture casing: seamless and continuous
electric weld.
Seamless Pipe
Seamless pipe is a wrought steel pipe manufactured by a seamless process. A large percentage of
tubulars and high quality pipes are manufactured in this way. In the seamless process, a billet is pierced
by a mandrel and the pierced tube is subsequently rolled and re-rolled until the finished diameters are
obtained . The process may involve a plug mill or mandrel mill rolling. In a plug mill, a heated billet is
introduced into the mill where it is held by two rollers that rotate and advance the billet into the piercer.
In a mandrel mill, the billet is held by two obliquely oriented rotating rollers and pierced by a central
plug. Next, it passes to the elongator where the desired length of the pipe is obtained. In the plug mills
the thickness of the tube is reduced by central plugs with two single grooved rollers.
In mandrel mills, sizing mills similar in design to the plug mills are used to produce a more uniform
thickness of pipe. Finally, reelers similar in design to the piercing mills are used to burnish the pipe
surfaces and to produce the final pipe dimensions and roundness.



Welded Pipe (ERW)
In the continuous electric process, pipe with one longitudinal seam is produced by electric flash or
electric resistance welding without adding extraneous metal. In the electric flash welding process, pipes
are formed from a sheet with the desired dimensions and welded by simultaneously flashing and
pressing the two ends. In the electric resistance process, pipes are manufactured from a coiled sheet
which is fed into the machine, formed and welded by" electric arc . Pipe leaving the machine is cut to
the desired length. In both the electric flash and electric arc welding processes, the casing is passed
through dies that deform it sufficiently to exceed the elastic limit, a process which raises the elastic limit
in the direction stressed and reduces it somewhat in the perpendicular direction" Bauchinger effect.
Casing is also cold-worked during manufacturing to increase its collapse resistance.

Pipe Treatment
Careful control of the treatment process results in tension and burst properties equivalent to 95,000 psi
circumferential yield. Strength can be imparted to tubular goods in several ways. Insofar as most steels
are relatively mild (0.30 % carbon), small amounts of manganese are added to them and the material is
merely normalized. When higher-strength materials are required, they are normalized and tempered.
Additional physical strength may be obtained by quenching and tempering (QT) a mild or low-strength
steel. This QT process improves fracture toughness, reduces the metal's sensitivity to notches, lowers
the brittle fracture temperature and decreases the cost of manufacturing. Thus, many of the tubulars
manufactured today are made by the low cost QT process, which has replaced many of the alloy steel
(normalized and tempered) processes. Similarly, some products, which are known as "warm worked',
may be strengthened or changed in size at a temperature below the critical temperature. This may also
change the physical properties just as cold-working does.
Dimensions and Weight of Casing and Steel Grades
All specifications of casing include outside diameter, wall thickness, drift diameter, weight and steel
grade. In recent years the API has developed standard specifications for casing, which have been
accepted internationally by the petroleum industry.
Diameters and Wall Thickness
Casing diameters range from 4.5 to 24 in . so that they can be used in different sections (depths) of the
well. Different tolerences from API Spec. 5CT , apply to the outside diameter (OD) of the casing
immediately behind the upset for a distance of approximately 5 inches.
Casing manufacturers generally try to prevent the pipe from being undersized to ensure adequate
thread run-out when machining a connection. As a result, most casing pipes are found to be within -1-
0.75 % of the tolerance and are slightly oversized.
Inside diameter (ID) is specified in terms of wall thickness and drift diameter. The maximal inside
diameter is, therefore, controlled by the combined tolerances for the outside diameter and the wall
thickness. The minimal permissible pipe wall thickness is 87.5 % of the nominal wall thickness, which in
turn has a tolerance of-12.5 %.
The minimal inside diameter is controlled by the specified drift diameter. The drift diameter refers to
the diameter of a cylindrical drift mandrel, that can pass freely through the casing with a reasonable
exerted force equivalent to the weight of the mandrel being used for the test (API Spec. 5CT). A bit of a
size smaller than the drift, diameter will pass through the pipe.
Drift testing is usually carried out before the casing leaves the mill and immediately before running it
into the well. Casing is tested throughout its entire length.
Joint Length
The lengths of pipe sections are specified by .4PI RP 5B1 (1988). in three major ranges: R1(16 to 25 ft).
R2(25 to 34 ft) and R3(over 34 ft).
Generally, casing is run in R3 lengths to reduce the number of connections in the, string, a factor that
minimizes both rig time and the likelihood of joint failure in the string during the life of the well . R3 is
also easy to handle on most rigs because it has a single joint.
Makeup Loss
When Iengths of casing are joined together to form a string or section . The overall length of the string is
less than the sum of the individual joints. The reason is that the completed string is less than the sum of
the parts is the makeup loss at the couplings.
It is clear from Fig. that the makeup loss per joint for a string made up to the powertight position is:

Pipe Weight
According to the API Bul. 5C3 , pipe weight is defined as nominal weight. plain end weight., and
threaded and coupled weight. Pipe weight is usually expressed in Ib/ft,. The API tolerances for weight
are: +6.5% and -3.5%' (API Spec. 5CT).
Nominal weight is the weight of the casing based on the theoretical weight per foot for a 20-ft length of
threaded and coupled casing joint. The nominal weight is not the exact weight of the pipe but rather it
is used for the purpose of identification of casing types.
The plain end weight is based on the, weight of the casing joint excluding the threads and couplings.
Threaded and coupled weight, on the other hand, is the average weight of the pipe joint including the
threads at both ends and coupling at one end when in the power tight position.
Steel Grade
The steel grade of the casing relates to the tensile strength of the steel from which the casing is made.
The steel grade is expressed as a code number which consists of a letter and a number, such as N-80.
The letter is arbitrarily selected to provide a unique designation for each grade of casing. The number
designates the minimal yield strength of the steel in thousands of psi. Hardness of the steel pipe is a
critical property especially when used in

(sour) environments.

Reference:
Casing Design Theory and Practice by S.S.Rahman and G.V.Chilingarian
http://nongferndaddy.net63.net/Oil%20well%20drilling/CH7%20Casing%20design.pdf