Study on Sealing Performance of Packers for Supercritical CO2 Flooding

Lu Cui; Long Xu; Peng Wang

doi:10.6919/ICJE.202602_12(2).0001

Authors

Lu Cui
Long Xu
Peng Wang

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6919/ICJE.202602_12(2).0001

Keywords:

Packer Element; Supercritical CO2; Sealing Performance; Corrosion; Finite Element Analysis.

Abstract

During the process of supercritical CO₂ injection, the corrosion of rubber materials frequently leads to the sealing failure of packer elements. To address this issue, this study employs Hydrogenated Nitrile Butadiene Rubber (HNBR) sealing elements and conducts finite element simulations based on the Yeoh hyperelastic constitutive model. The impact on sealing performance is analyzed from four dimensions: the phase state of the corrosive medium, temperature, acid gas composition, and corrosion duration. The simulation results indicate that: Phase state and temperature primarily compromise structural integrity: Under conditions involving formation water or high temperatures (160°C), physical swelling and constrained thermal expansion induce severe stress concentrations at the element's shoulder (with increases of 80.47% and 165.81%, respectively). This phenomenon significantly increases susceptibility to bulk rupture or extrusion failure. H₂S content and service duration primarily govern the decay of contact pressure: Chemical attack by H₂S and prolonged service (8 days) lead to modulus degradation and stress relaxation. These factors result in a substantial decline in contact sealing stress (reductions of 28.26% and 62.92%, respectively), thereby significantly elevating the risk of interfacial leakage.Based on finite element analysis, this study elucidates the impact of various corrosion factors on sealing performance, providing a theoretical basis for the long-term safety evaluation of packers in supercritical CO₂ injection applications.

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