Adiabatic heat

Adiabatic heat is a phenomenon that can severely damage or even completely melt the wire during wellbore equalisation or WPCE pressure testing. Understanding this issue is key to preventing costly failures.

What Causes Adiabatic Heat?

🚀 Rapid Air Compression:

• When fluids enter the WPCE envelope too quickly, trapped air compresses before venting.
• This rapid compression generates extreme heat, increasing the risk of wire or cable damage.

🔥 More Air = More Heat:
• The greater the air volume in the lubricator, the higher the heat generated during compression.

How to Mitigate the Risk?

✅ Controlled Filling:

• Always fill the lubricator slowly while venting air through an open vent valve.
• Ensure full displacement of air before pressurisation.

✅ Follow Best Practices:

• Eliminate trapped air before equalisation to reduce heat potential.
• Maintain strict adherence to procedural checks to avoid wire damage.

💡 Why It Matters:

Uncontrolled adiabatic heating can compromise wellsite safety, damage expensive cable, and lead to unplanned downtime. Implementing best practices ensures a safer, more reliable intervention process.

🔧 HALO Intervention – We Get It.