Specialists from the North-Caucasus Federal University (NCFU) have developed and patented a novel leak-preventing compound for oil and gas wells. This innovation allows for the replacement of expensive metal pipes with more economical metal-plastic alternatives, significantly enhancing efficiency and safety.
During oil and gas extraction, downhole tubing is constantly subjected to extreme stresses, corrosive environments, and rapid temperature fluctuations. For instance, injecting hot steam to boost oil recovery or performing hydraulic fracturing can cause temperatures in the pipes to rise sharply.
These severe temperature changes often lead to traditional threaded pipe connections losing their integrity, resulting in costly leaks and a decrease in extraction efficiency, as noted by NCFU researchers.
Ivan Kovalenko, a second-year master`s student in Oil and Gas Engineering at NCFU, elaborated on the challenge: «The difficulty lies in the fact that when heated, different parts of the connections expand unevenly, which weakens the contact stresses in the threads. Existing solutions either lack sufficient reliability or complicate the construction significantly.»
The university`s scientists have proposed an ingenious solution: a threaded connection incorporating fluoroplastic seals. Kovalenko explained, «The key feature of this development is the use of fluoroplastic. This material has a unique property: when heated, it expands more than metal, automatically compensating for thermal deformations and maintaining the connection`s airtightness.»
This newly developed threaded connection makes it feasible to use less expensive metal-plastic pipes in place of traditional metal ones. This translates into substantial savings on equipment procurement and maintenance, according to the researchers.
«Our solution is unparalleled,» Kovalenko asserted. «It not only increases operational reliability but is also economically beneficial: metal-plastic pipes are cheaper, lighter, and more resistant to corrosion.» He added that the previous barrier to widespread adoption of metal-plastic pipes in oil and gas wells was the challenge of equipping their ends with metal connecting elements that possessed adequate strength and sealing capabilities.
Rigorous testing has demonstrated that the new connection can withstand pressures up to 12 MPa without any deformation or leaks. The results confirmed the absence of defects, such as leaks or cracks, in both the main metal and the detachable joints, as reported by the university`s scientists.
NCFU specialists are confident that their invention will considerably improve the reliability and economic viability of gas well operations. The development`s promising results were recognized in the 2025 digest titled «Promising Scientific and Technical Developments for the Fuel and Energy Complex» by the Russian Energy Agency of the Ministry of Energy.
Patent RU2825910C1 has been granted for this development.
