WELLS PLUGGING &
ABANDONMENT

As Wells Plugging and Abandonment Intern at Chevron in Midland, I worked on the tooling and methods used to safely seal and retire Wells at end of life.

I helped implement a new shape-charge perforation and plugging tool, which reduced operations time by 25% and costs by 10% versus the prior method — a meaningful improvement across a Well program with many Wells to plug. During the safety review and testing of this shape charge, I discovered that the safety burst disc — meant to flood the explosives and neutralize them in case of a misfire — wasn't dissolvable. I suggested switching to a magnesium alloy that would dissolve and neutralize the explosives after a set time. The contractor tested several alloys, and a successful test was completed with no alloy debris remaining.

I also led evaluations of plugging materials and methods, which fed directly into vendor selection and quality assurance standards for the program. This second trial addressed the plugging itself rather than the perforation: the idea was to use an expanding, rubber-like material that lab testing suggested would swell to fit the bore. In field testing, though, the material simply rose in the bore and remained loosely packed rather than expanding to seal it, so the trial was discontinued.

Because the work involves explosives and chemicals both on the ground and in-Well, I conducted safety reviews around their handling and use, involving the contractor's safety teams and operations. I also researched Well-Perforation technology more broadly, producing a comprehensive analysis and proposals for further cost savings.