Effect of structural parameters on the setting performance of plug slips during hydraulic fracturing

Slip is one of the most critical components for the frac plug, which would lodge into the casing and lock the frac plug in place during the setting and anchoring process. However, fracture failure of slip significantly affects the hydraulic fracturing effects and has attracted tremendous attention. In this paper,a three-dimensional contact model is applied to explore the setting process of slip. The effects of key structural parameters such as apex angle, inclination angle, and wedge angle on the contact characteristics of slip are systematically investigated. Numerical results indicate that the maximum contact stress appears at the contact area between slip tooth and the casing’s inner wall. Besides, the maximum contact stress generally increases with the increase of apex angle and inclination angle, while decrease linearly with the rise in the wedge angle. Experimental results show that the slip teeth get blunt and appear severe plastic deformation, which arises from stress concentration. Comparison of biting area indicates that the experimental results are about 21.3% larger, which still have a reasonable agreement with the numerical results. These obtained results can guide the parametric selection of plug slip and other similar components.