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www.cumingcorp.com

100-8-A

PRODUCT INFORMATION AND TECHNICAL DATA

DISCLAIMER: This note is provided for general information only and is not an engineering specification; it should
never be used for designing or specifying materials or products. Data for any specific purpose or application must
be requested from and verified by the manufacturer.

TECHNICAL NOTE 100-8-A

PRECISION STRENGTH CRUSHABLE FOAM

ANNULAR PRESSURE BUILDUP (APB)
An offshore oil well rests on the ocean floor, often over a mile beneath the surface, and continues down through mud, soil, and
rock for thousands more feet. The wellbore is lined with steel
casing pipe. Where successive lengths of casing overlap, a
trapped annular space can be created, as shown in Figure 1. The

annulus is typically filled with gas, liquids, and solidified cement or earth. Production often causes heating and expansion
of the annular fluids, leading to increased internal pressure
called Annular Pressure Buildup, or APB, possibly endangering
the well. In extreme cases, APB can collapse the inner casing
pipe and shut off the well entirely.

HOW CRUSHABLE FOAM WORKS

FIGURE 1

C-TECH Precision Strength crushable syntactic foam is designed to protect well casing against APB by collapsing under
specific conditions of heat and pressure. When it crushes, the
foam reduces in volume, thereby increasing the free space
available inside the annulus and instantly lowering the pressure. To address different conditions in various parts of the
well, crushable foam can be supplied in several grades, each
grade having properties tailored to its own section of the annulus. Figure 2 illustrates the desired relationship between annular pressure and syntactic foam behavior.

Water
Depth
Mudline

C-TECH
Syntactic
Foam
Well
Depth

FIGURE 2
Outer
Casing
50%

Startup
Zone

Operating
Zone

Danger
Zone

Failure
Zone

40%

Inner
Casing

30%
20%

Oil

P3 = 1.10 P2

Arrangement of crushable foam inside an offshore wellbore.

After
Crush

Before
Crush

10%

P2 = Target Pressure

Typical
Casing
Pipe Joint

P1 = 0.90 P2

P1

P2

P3

Crush volume versus pressure; collapse of crushable foam

occurs within carefully defined conditions.
CONT. ON PAGE 2

WARNING: This note is an uncontrolled document and therefore cannot be assumed to be current or accurate; it should
never be used for designing or specifying materials or products. Data for any specific purpose must first be requested from
and verified by the manufacturer.

Cuming Corporation Technical Note 100-8-A

Date of last revision: July 17, 2012

INGREDIENTS OF CRUSHABLE FOAM

FORMS AVAILABLE

The basic ingredients of crushable foam are similar to those of

any syntactic foam: tiny hollow glass microspheres (average
dia. approx. 100 microns) bonded into an epoxy resin matrix.
The resulting material offers a volumetric collapse equal to
about 30% to 40% of the original volume occupied by the syntactic foam. When well conditions permit, larger hollow fiberglass macrospheres (average dia. approx. 10mm) can be added
to the syntactic system, thereby increasing the volumetric collapse to 40% to 50% of the original volume. Figure 3 gives the
approximate ranges of materials and performance data that are
typically available with C-TECH crushable foam.

All grades of crushable foam can be supplied in either of

two basic forms: (1) pre-cast half-shells for strapping and/or
bonding to the casing pipe at any location, and (2) patented
cast-on-pipe syntactic foam applied directly to joints of the
casing pipe at our factory in New Iberia, Louisiana. These alternatives are shown in Figure 4. Cuming Corporation engineers
can assist in selecting grades and forms of crushable foam,
along with accessories such as adhesives, straps, and fiberglass overwrap.
FIGURE 4

FIGURE 3

MACROSPHERE CRUSHABLE FOAM:

40% TO 50%
COLLAPSE VOLUME AT
150 - 200F

Grade

Nominal Crush

Pressure Tolerance

Grade M1

2,500 psi

+/-500 psi

Grade M2

3,500 psi

Crushable foam is supplied in pre-cast half-shells or as

cast-on-pipe.

+/-500 psi

SPECIFYING AND TESTING

Grade M3

4,500 psi

+/-500 psi

MICROSPHERE CRUSHABLE FOAM:

30% TO 40%
COLLAPSE VOLUME AT
200 - 250F

Grade

Nominal Crush

Pressure Tolerance

Grade G1

5,500 psi

+/-500 psi

Grade G2

6,500 psi

+/-500 psi

Grade G3

7,500 psi

+/-500 psi

Approximate ranges of performance of C-TECH crushable foam

materials; other grades available.

Specifying crushable foam begins with an analysis of downhole

wellbore conditions and definition of upper limits of pressure
and temperature in the annulus, along with the required amount
of volume relief. These parameters are compared to the properties of existing C-TECH materials and development steps taken
as necessary to adjust performance. Finally, testing is performed to verify behavior under design conditions.

MANUFACTURING AND
QUALITY ASSURANCE
Crushable foam is cast into shape and heat treated under carefully controlled conditions, monitored at every step by Cuming
Corporations ISO 9001 certified quality assurance procedures.
Statistical samples of syntactic foam are taken at key points in
the process and thoroughly tested in custom-built instruments
capable of duplicating exact pressure and temperature conditions in the well. The result is a reliable APB safety system that
has been proven effective in some of the worlds deepest and
hottest offshore wells. For more information, see our web site
www.cumingcorp.com.

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