Sand Production (Sanding) in Development and Production Wells: Geomechanical Models for Unconsolidated Sand and Consolidated Sandstone
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Sand production in development and production wells results from interacting mechanical failure, hydraulic particle mobilization, and solids transport. This study develops an integrated geomechanical approach combining one-dimensional (1D) mechanical earth modeling with three-dimensional (3D) wellbore stress analysis. Unconsolidated sand is evaluated through hydraulic mobilization thresholds, whereas consolidated sandstone is assessed using mechanical first-yield criteria. The 3D model is from work of Al-Shaaibi et al. (2013) model with modification to incorporate corrected stress transformations, principal-stress evaluation, and Mogi–Coulomb failure analysis. Synthetic examples illustrate critical drawdown conditions and reservoir depletion effects. The proposed methodology supports sanding-risk assessment and production optimization, subject to formation-specific calibration and independent field validation.
Author: Basuki, Don
Institutions: Bandung Institute of Technology, Pertamina (Indonesia)
Language: English
Subfield: Ocean Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7224011972