Publications

Historically, the use of OCTG products for drilling and completion has relied on the surface treatment of connections, e.g., phosphating, copper plating, etc., which is applied as an interface to reduce the natural galling tendency of the metallic surfaces when exposed to shear contact stresses. Protection is also provided against atmospheric corrosion using storage compound, and running compound is employed as a lubricant. The deployment of advanced surface engineering has brought about the development of the “Dopeless® Technology”, a multifunctional dry coating applied in a controlled industrial environment, which eliminates the need for storage and running compounds in casing and tubing connections. Although Dopeless® was initially created to reduce the environmental impact of offshore oil and gas operations, E&P operators have also benefited from other positive results for running performance enhancement such as greater reliability, improved well operations, easier inspections and a range of health and safety benefits. The application of dope-free solutions also eliminates a series of complications arising from the use of running compound as studies and field cases have shown that it can have serious side effects including the impairment of the formation’s permeability and sand screen clogging. This paper reviews the development of Dopeless® Technology and user experiences in different field conditions as well as the latest studies related to formation damage. Running and storage thread compounds (dopes) have been used routinely during well construction and storage for both casing and tubing to lubricate, seal, and protect against thread corrosion.