Cement Plug Research Articles

The Mechanical Cement Extractor: An Original Device for Cement Extraction in total Hip Arthroplasty Revision

A variety of instruments and techniques have been developed to facilitate cement removal in THA revisions. Many of these methods can lead to femoral fractures or uncontrolled cortical perforation, increasing bone damage. The purpose of this brief report is to present a new device that particularly facilitates the extraction of the cement plug from the femoral canal. The basic characteristic of this system is to guide different specific tools, with a high reliability, through the middle of the cement plug. In our experience, this device has always permitted femoral cement extraction without serious complications.

Advances in Cement-Plug Procedures

Operators set cement plugs for a variety of reasons: abandonment, sidetracking, lost-circulation control, or remedial work. However, as important as plug cementing can be to the overall success of a well program, the process often is performed without regard to wellbore conditions. The additional rig time and material costs quickly add up as multiple plugs are set. The industry average is approximately 2.4 attempts per kickoff. Studies have highlighted many of the problems encountered in plug cementing. Implementation of systematic, controlled procedures has established a near 100% success rate where used for establishing kickoff plugs. Recommended Plug Procedure Recent work has determined that cement plugs require the same degree of planning as primary cement jobs, plus special considerations for plug stability. A joint team of operators and a cementing service company evaluated the problems and mechanics of plug cementing. The team developed a recommended plug procedure (RPP) to alleviate problems. The procedure provides a reliable plug-setting procedure and develops a method to monitor success rates. The RPP addresses communication, temperature estimation, mud removal, slurry design, slurry volume, and plug stability. Understanding the relationships between these variables is vital to the success of spotting a balanced cement plug. Job Design Communication. To design a cement-plug job properly, communication among all personnel responsible for the job design is essential. It is important that personnel discuss options for each job so that assumptions are not made about equipment availability and/or capabilities. Sharing data from the field is also important. Detailed pre-/postjob data sheets have helped to build a database that has been instrumental in finding the causes of both successes and failures. Temperature Estimation. One of the most important design variables is placement time, which is governed by pumping rates and bottomhole circulating temperatures. In most cases, little attention is paid to plug-cementing temperatures; most laboratories use published cementing schedules. At times, temperature estimates are also adjusted upward to increase the safety factor, resulting in over-retardation. The use of computer simulation or temperature surveys for temperature predictions can help ensure that the slurry will not be over-retarded. Also, a more realistic waiting on cement (WOC) time can be estimated if compressive-strength thermal-recovery schedules are slow enough to match wellbore conditions, reaching American Petroleum Inst. bottomhole static temperature only after 24 to 36 hours have elapsed.

The interface between ionomer cement and bone in the porcine cervical spine.

The interface between bone and ionomer cement has been studied in twelve young adult pigs 1-6 months after anterior cervical discectomy, removal of adjacent end plates and grafting of the bone defect with ionomer cement. Methods used to study the interface were fluorescence microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, electron microprobe analysis and radiological investigation. The interface in all animals consisted of collagenous tissue. The amount of collagenous fibres was related to the amount of residual movement within the motion segment: animals undergoing anterior plating after reconstruction of the bone defect presented with more or less compactly organized collagenous tissue. Sequential fluorochromic marking of osteoid formation revealed a vital bone bed around the interface but no signs of direct bone apposition to the ionomer cement plug. No signs of toxicity or graft rejection were noted. Ionomer bone cement contrary to experimental and clinical experience induces the formation of a connective tissue layer of different density in the porcine cervical spine.

Ultrasonically driven tools

Ultrasonically driven tools have been employed extensively in revision hip surgery during the last 2 years at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre. In combination with hand revision instruments, the removal of cement, in particular the removal of the distal cement plug, has been made safer. One significant complication that has occurred with this device is reported and advice on its prevention offered.

The Frank Stinchfield Award

Unilateral cemented hip hemiarthroplasty was done on 16 dogs who subsequently had revision arthroplasty and who were divided into 1 control and 3 experimental groups: The first group had cement extraction using osteotomes; the second, using a high speed burr; the third, an ultrasonic tool. Hemodynamic and transesophageal echocardiographic monitoring were done. Postmortem pulmonary specimens were examined for differences in the quantity of fat emboli. There was a significant increase in emboli with the ultrasonic tool as compared with osteotomes and high speed burr. There was no significant difference in emboli between the osteotomes and high speed burr. Fat emboli syndrome is related to mechanical compression of the femoral canal. The ultrasonic instrument was unique in its tendency to cause large embolic showers, especially during extraction of the distal cement plug. In these young dogs, minimal hemodynamic changes and no cardiac dysrhythmias occurred, which in part may be attributed to their good health. These changes may remain subclinical for patients with good cardiorespiratory reserve, or may become life threatening for those with poor reserve. By outlining the mechanisms of fat embolism in revision total hip arthroplasty, it may be possible to decrease future morbidity, especially in patients who frequently have cardiopulmonary disease.

Results of Cemented Femoral Revision Total Hip Arthroplasty Using Improved Cementing Techniques

Seventy-nine consecutive femoral component revision total hip arthroplasties done in 73 patients from 1977 to 1983 using a distal intramedullary cement plug and a cement gun delivery system were evaluated to determine if improved results were obtained with newer cementing techniques. At a minimum 10-year followup interval, only 1 patient was not available for followup and 47 hips had minimum 10-year followup radiographs. The incidence of femoral rerevision for aseptic loosening was 9.5% for those hips with minimum 10-year followup and 5.4% for the entire group. The incidence of radiographic femoral failure (defined as a revision or definite or probable loosening) was 26.1% for those hips followed for a minimum of 10 years and 16.3% for the entire group. Compared with historical controls, these results represent an improvement over those reported with the use of earlier cementing techniques.

Bacteriocidal qualities of ixodid tick (Acarina: Ixodidae) salivary cement plugs and their changes under the influence of a viral tick-borne pathogen.

The abundance of bacteriocidal compounds contained in the salivary cement plug of ixodid ticks was changed because of the reproduction of tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) in their bodies. The size of TBEV-infected Ixodes persulcatus Shulze lytic zone surrounding the cement plug enlarged to that of naive ticks, whereas Micrococcus lysodeikticus (Cohn) lytic zones induced by the cement plugs of TBEV-infected Amblyomma hebraeum Koch nymphs or Rhipicephalus appendiculatus Neumann females were reduced, compared with those produced by noninfected specimens. It is possible that an increase of lysozyme production by the primary TBEV vectors (Ixodinae) infected salivary gland cells, compared with suppression of the bacteriocidal qualities of saliva of ticks that are not TBEV vectors in nature (Amblyomminae), is an indication of the specificity of a I. persulcatus-TBEV interface.

Recent Advances In Horizontal Drilling

Abstract This paper describes recent advances in horizontal drilling technology including multibrach wells, geosteering, advanced drilling bits and motors; new short-radius tools, and small diameter drilling systems. Multibranch horizontal wells can reduce horizontal drilling costs by 20 to 30 % and the size and number of offshore platform by up to 50%. Geosteering systems utilize logging-while-drilling tools to accurately guide horizontal wells to avoide obstacles and gas water contacts and to significantly increase horizontal well productivity. Improved PDC and TSP bits and new high-power motors have potential wells. New short-radius motor systems 12 to 30 m (40 to 100 ft) radii allow 305 to 457 m (1000 to 1,500 ft) horizontal wells to be drilled more rapidly. Advantages of short-radius wells includesidetracking wells below gas caps or troublesome shales,intersecting fractures close to vertical wellboressignificantly reducing the length of the build sectionreducing drilling time and cost andallowing pumps to be placed lower in the wells New small diameter systems allow 92 mm (3 5/8 in) single and multibranch horizontal wells to be sidetracked from 114 mm (4 ?) casing Implementation of these new technologies should significantly increase the use of horizontal wellsworld wide. Multibranch Wells One of the most important developments with horizontal drilling is the increased use of multibranch wells. Figure 1 shows a Soviet (1) multibranch well with ten lateral. This well was drilled in the 1950's with nurbodrills. The laterals produced a 17-fold increase in oil production in this well. Figure 2 shows a Soviet dual branch well drilled in the Macova field in 1968. This well cast 1.23 times more than a conventional well and produced 10.5 times more useful length in the pay zone. By 1975, the Soviets had drilled over 30 multibranch and horizontal wells(2). They typically drilled vertical well just above the pay zone and then used turbodrills or electrodrills to drill five or six stand or horizontal branches 61 to 305 m (200 to 1,000 ft) into the pay zone. These multibranch wells cost 30 to 80% more han vertical wells, but produced up to 17 times more oil or gas. From 1953 to 1980, the Soviets had drilled over 30 multibranch and horizontal well2. Including:57 development36 exploratory8 relief wells10 injection wells A total 329 slant and horizontal branches were drilled in these wells with an accumulated pay-zone penetration of 175,260 m (575,000 ft.). This included 2120 sharply curved brances sidetracked from open holes (i. e. no cement plugs) with a total extension of 21,336 m (70,000 ft). Build rates up to 10 °/30 m (10 °/100 ft). Build rates up to horizontal branches were drilled with a maximum length of 640 m (2,100 ft) and a total length o 4,724 m (15,500) ft). Petro-Huun 3 used a dual branch well to drain an entire Austin Chalk lease as shown in Figures 3 and 4.

Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in the female cement plug of Ixodes persulcatus ticks (Acari, Ixodidae)

Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato was detected in one out of five cement plugs of female Ixodes persulcatus ticks. The spirochetes were found by dark field microscopy as early as 18 h after attachment of the ticks to the skin of a white mouse. The relevance of this finding is discussed in relation to the epidemiology of Lyme borreliosis.

Cemented Charnley revision arthroplasty for severe femoral osteolysis

We reviewed prospectively cemented stem revision in 106 patients with severe femoral endosteal bone lysis without infection. Bone grafts were not used in any of the patients. The minimum follow-up was three years (mean 6 years 4 months). At the last review 76.4% of the patients were free of pain and 17.9% had only mild or occasional discomfort; radiographs showed well-fixed stable stems in 101 (95.3%). An intramedullary cement plug was used at revision to improve stability in 97.7%. There was new endosteal osteolysis after revision in 17 patients; only two had severe changes. Seven hips (6.6%) required a second revision; only four of these (3.8%) were for stem loosening. Survivorship of the revised stem, using radiological evidence of stem loosening as the end point, was 95.8% at seven years. The results of stem revision arthroplasty using cement in the presence of massive endosteal cavitation are satisfactory.

FIGHTING FRACTURED FLAMINGO—LESSONS FROM RAMBLER-I, TIMOR SEA

Exploration well Rambler-1, located in the Timor Sea, presented an unusual set of engineering and evaluation problems when drilling a thick section of Flamingo Group (Jurassic–Cretaceous). The well encountered normally pressured open fractures where drilling mud was lost, and at least two mildly overpressured fractures that flowed small quantities of gassy oil into the well-bore. In these circumstances it was difficult to find the right combination of casing, mud density, cement plugs and lost circulation material to drill the well in a controlled and efficient manner.Fine grained sandstone in the Flamingo Group gave moderate mud log shows and two cased-hole RFTs recovered oil. However, cased-hole DSTs of the same intervals recovered only small volumes of filtrate. This remarkable behaviour is attributed to the RFTs recovering oil from porous cement that had been impregnated with oil from the lower of the overpressured fractures.Any future wells drilled near the axis of the Sahul Syncline are likely to encounter similar problems and awareness of the lessons learned in Rambler–1 can improve drilling and evaluation strategies.

Integration of Production Log and Oxygen Activation Techniques For Diagnosing Water Production Problems

Summary Production logging (PLT) is used to diagnose a variety of production problems and for reservoir evaluation. A primary use of PLT is the identification of water entry into producing wells. If the water flow rate is low, the sensitivity of PLT does not allow adequate characterization. When this occurs, it is possible to use the recent water flow log (WFL) technique, which can locate and evaluate small water movement, both upflow and downflow, inside or outside the casing. This technique is based on the oxygen activation (OA) principle and incorporates the pulsed neutron capture (PNC) logs. One weakness of using the WFL technique is that quantification of flow rates may be difficult when water velocity tends to vary as a result of turbulence effects and changes in cross-sectional area. However, these difficulties can be overcome, and good results are possible in both open and cased hole by the combination of PLT and WFL techniques. To achieve good results, an optimal measurement program should be planned through the use of all available data: previous openhole and cased-hole logs, production data, well completion profile, etc. This paper describes the application of the PLT and OA techniques to some Italian wells in a variety of reservoir contexts. The interpretation of these logs together provided additional information helpful for planning remedial action for water shutoff. Introduction A serious problem encountered during the production life of wells is undesirable water production. The problem has economic, environmental, and managerial ramifications. The subsurface disposal of waters produced from hydrocarbon wells is onerous: increasingly restrictive new environmental regulations impose specific water treatments before produced water can be injected into a reservoir. In producing wells, high water production can cause the well to water out. Consequently, artificial lift may be necessary, which increases operating costs. Therefore, the early monitoring of water entries is essential so that the phenomenon does not become too difficult to control. Water-control techniques are becoming more sophisticated. Besides the traditional mechanical techniques (conventional bridge plug, casing patch, etc.), new through-tubing mechanical techniques (such as expansion bridge plugs and cement plugs) that require the use of coiled tubing are improving. Also, the new chemical treatments for near-wellbore shutoffs (gel, foams, and polymers) are undergoing substantial developments. Application of these new techniques requires thorough understanding of water production phenomena, so well conditions inside and outside the production casing must be carefully investigated. For this purpose, conventional PLT's (flowmeter, fluid density tool, manometer, and thermometer) are generally used to obtain the flow profile in the well. These tools cannot characterize water flow behind casing and have limited applicability in cases of low flow rate. Different methods to detect and locate water movements have been developed. The only method that gives good results is the OA technique, the most recent development of which is the WFL. The PLT and WFL can be used individually or in combination, according to the flow profile to be investigated. Table 1 summarizes the field operational guidelines for the separate or combined use of these techniques for production and water injection wells.

The results of improved cementing techniques for total hip arthroplasty in patients less than fifty years old. A ten-year follow-up study.

Thirty-six patients (forty-two hips) in whom so-called second-generation cementing techniques, such as medullary lavage, use of an intramedullary cement plug, hand-mixing of the cement, and use of a cement gun to deliver the cement in a doughy state in a retrograde fashion, had been used for a primary total hip arthroplasty were evaluated at an average of eleven years (range, ten to fifteen years) after the operation. All of the patients had been less than fifty years old at the time of the operation. Thirty-one patients were evaluated by clinical and radiographic examinations and five, by a telephone interview. Twelve components (ten acetabular components [24 per cent] and two femoral components [5 per cent]) in ten hips had been revised for aseptic loosening. An additional five acetabular components (12 per cent) and five femoral components were definitely loose according to radiographic criteria. Three of these femoral components were polished stems that were considered loose only because of the presence of a radiolucent line, 0.5, one, and two millimeters wide, at the prosthesis-cement interface in zone 1 of Gruen et al. The other two loose stems were in patients who were receiving renal dialysis. These findings demonstrate excellent fixation of the femoral component but continued problems with fixation of the acetabular component despite the use of improved cementing techniques.

An In Vitro Study Of Femoral Intramedullary Pressures During Hip Replacement Using Modern Cement Technique

Five femora (four cadaveric and one plastic) were used to measure the intramedullary pressures simultaneously at two different locations along the proximal femur during the insertion of bone cement and the femoral component using modern cement technique. The pressures were monitored by transducers located at the midpoint of each femoral stem (P1), and just beyond the tip of the femoral stem proximal to a cement plug (P2). Transient increases in intramedullary pressure were noted during the initial compaction of the bone cement using a conventional device. However, during insertion of the femoral component, the pressures at P1 and P2 increased dramatically to peak pressures exceeding 2385 mm Hg at P1 and 3710 mm Hg at P2 respectively. These pressure elevations were not sustained; eight to 10 minutes after prosthesis insertion, the pressures decreased to below baseline levels in all five femora. This probably resulted from contraction of the cement during the curing phase. Transient elevations of intramedullary pressure to levels greater than 100 times capillary pressure are produced during hip replacement using modern cement technique. The highest pressures are generated during insertion of the femoral component rather than during the cement compaction step. These findings suggest that the use of a cement compactor to improve intrusion of the cement into bone is probably unnecessary.

In situ flow testing of a cement borehole seal in welded tuff

Waste isolation at the Yucca Mountain repository site may require that penetration (boreholes, shafts, etc.) of the geological barrier be sealed to retard the migration of radionuclides to the accessible environment [1,2]. Cement is being considered as a part of multicomponent seals or plugs for the repository due to its relatively low permeability, high strength, longevity, and swelling capacity [3]. Cement or concrete has long been used as a hydrological barrier in underground mines [4] and in the oil and gas industry [5]. However, insufficient test data exists about the hydraulic performance of cement plugs under in-situ conditions. The primary objective of the present research is to determine experimentally the hydraulic conductivities of cement borehole plugs in welded tufts as affected by field installation and in-situ environment. The test results provide a data basis on the hydraulic behavior of cement seals in rock openings, which are applicable not only to the Yucca Mountain repository site, but also to other engineering practices, e.g. underground dams for seepage or flood control, sealing of abandoned oil or gas wells, and isolation of aquifers from contaminated groundwater. The present paper describes test methods, results and data analysis for the in-situ flow testing. The field results are compared with the results obtained from related experiments conducted in the laboratory.

Survivorship Analysis of Cemented High Modulus Total Hip Arthroplasty

Ninety-four high-modulus total hip arthroplasties (THAs) were performed from 1977 to 1982 using the Computer Assist Design (CAD) and HD-2 prostheses. Eighty-six hips were followed for an average of 6.7 years. The cement gun was used throughout the study period, and distal bone or cement plug use was begun in 1979. The results of these arthroplasties were evaluated retrospectively using both survivorship analysis and observed success rates. Using a standard hip rating system, 19 hips were rated as excellent, 44 as good, 15 as fair, and 11 as poor. Failure was defined as definitely visible radiographic migration of either component, or reoperation for revision of one or both components. There was no significant difference between the HD-2 and CAD prostheses. There were five hips revised for aseptic loosening and revision was advised in an additional three hips. One hip with late sepsis required removal of both components. The five- and ten-year survivorships of the acetabular components were 97% +/- 3 and 58% +/- 17, respectively. Those of the femoral components were 93% +/- 5 and 78% +/- 13, respectively. For the components combined, the survivorship at five years was 91% +/- 6 but only 50% +/- 17 at ten years. Survivorship analysis provided a different and more realistic appraisal of the long-term results of the arthroplasties in this series than did the observed success rates. The contemporary cement techniques of the late 1970s and early 1980s may not be sufficient for the long-term survival of high-modulus THAs. Additional techniques may be necessary for improved long-term survival.

Completion and Testing of the 242°C BHST Well Dinjevac-1

Summary Well Dinjevac-1 (Di-1), located 120 km northeast of Zagreb, Croatia, was drilled in 1982 to a total depth (TD) of 5502 m. Mud logs, electrical logs, and drillstem tests (DST' s) in the Miocene section of the Pannonian basin indicated hydrocarbon saturation, extremely high temperatures, and relatively high pressures. These Miocene sediments are characterized as compact, low-permeability sandstones. In 1988, the abandoned cement plugs were drilled out and a bottomhole static temperature (BHST) of 242°C was measured. Temperature was the critical factor in the design of the completion and testing method. In spite of some minor quality-control and operational problems, five zones were tested successfully, providing all the relevant information about the reservoirs and the formation fluids. The operation incorporated a one-trip, hydraulically set, high-temperature, high-differential packer with a polished-bore receptacle and tubing-conveyed perforating guns with large, deep-penetrating charges. This paper describes the completion and testing objectives, considerations, operations, and results under probably the hottest completion conditions ever encountered.

Reservoir/Well Repair and Environmental Impact Management of Surface Discharge at Cold Lake

Summary In Dec. 1988, a 1000-m3 [6.300-bbl] surface discharge of bitumen was discovered near an abandoned oil-sands evaluation well at Cold Lake, Alta. The discharge was initiated when high pressures in the Clearwater formation breached an ineffective cement seal in the abandoned wellbore. This paper focuses on the successful reservoir repair of the well and the effective management of environmentally sensitive issues. The technical accomplishments and lessons learned in the cleanup and disposal of the surface discharge, reservoir/well repair, and evaluation of groundwater contamination are discussed. Introduction On Dec. 8, 1988, a bitumen spill (surface discharge) was discovered adjacent to the abandoned oil-sands Evaluation Well C7-13. The spill covered 1 ha [2.5 acres] of muskeg and was estimated to hold 1000 m3 [6,300 bbl] of bitumen and 2000 M3 [12,600 bbl] of water. Fig. 1 is a diagram of the spill, showing the abandoned well's surface location and the breach. Although several factors contributed to the spill, the main cause was an incomplete cement seal in the abandonment plugs of Well C7-13. Our well problems began in March 1988, when unexpectedly high bottomhole pressures (9 MPa [1,300 psi]) were encountered while coring at the base of the Clearwater formation. While maintaining well control with 2000 kg/m3 [16.7 lbm/U.S. gal] mud, Well C7-13 was abandoned from its total drilled depth to surface by placing three balanced, openhole cement plugs in the wellbore. placing three balanced, openhole cement plugs in the wellbore. Because the cement and mud had the same slurry density and the open hole could not be conditioned before cementing, we believe that at abandonment, channels or voids existed throughout the openhole cement plugs. Upon exposure to high pressures from nearby cyclic-steam-stimulation (CSS) operations, diluted drilling mud eventually was pushed from these voids and channels to form a continuous flow path to surface. The Clearwater formation fluids then flowed up the abandoned wellbore to just below the base of the surface casing, from where they fractured to the surface breach location, 100 m (330 ft) northeast of the Well C7-13 wellhead. The formation fluids intersected three major and continuous aquifers en route to surface. Fig. 2 shows the abandoned wellbore and illustrates the suspected flow path that the fluids took to surface. Note that Well C7-13 was a directionally drilled well, with its bottomhole location displaced slightly more than 50 m [165 ft) from its surface location. The nearest operating wells are more than 330 m [1,100 ft] away. Because vegetation at the site had full seasonal development, the spill is believed to have occurred after Aug. 1988. This observation correlates well with the second cycle steaming of adjacent wells from Aug. 10 to Sept. 14, 1988. Several shallow cores were taken at the spill site to determine the extent of muskeg contamination. In nearly all cases, the bitumen and the water were confined to the surface. The only significant penetration occurred at the breach location, where water and bitumen broke through to surface. This paper focuses on the successful reservoir repair of Well C7-13 and the effective management of environmentally sensitive issues. First, we give background information on CSS operations at Cold Lake, and then we discuss the repair of the abandoned Evaluation Well C7-13, the evaluation of groundwater/aquifer contamination, and the spill cleanup and waste disposal.

Application of extracorporeal shock wave lithotripter (ECSWL) in orthopaedics. III. In vitro and in vivo studies.

The present study was conducted to compare the push-out strength of the treated and control samples obtained after implantation of intramedullary rod in canine femurs with bone cement to simulate the femoral stem implantation for 2 weeks, 3 and 6 months. Contralateral femur served as control. The result showed a significant decrease in push-out interfacial strength after shock wave treatment (average 48.4% decrease compared with control, p less than 0.0001) which is similar to the in vitro results. There was no significant difference if the shock treatment was applied and left for 2 weeks or 4 weeks compared to the ones tested immediately after sacrifice. There were some soft tissue damage immediately following shock treatment in the focal area but this returned to normal in 2 weeks. Human cadaveric femoral bone experiment results showed that results are similar for both human cadaveric femoral bones and the canine bone (the dosage level was higher for the human bone than canine). The number of impacts used to extract the bone cement plug out of a human femur segment (5-cm long) decreased about 68% at 23 and 25 kV treatment power level. These preliminary studies indicate that the shock wave can be utilized to reduce the interfacial strength of the bone and bone cement although more studies are needed to assess its efficacy in terms of cost, long-term effect on patients and the exact mechanism of the loosening before this technique can be used clinically.

Applied technology in the solution of geothermal drilling problems of deep wells in La Primavera caldera (Mexico)

Abstract The drilling of deep wells in the La Primavera caldera has evidenced a highly complex and hazardous problematic situation due to considerable losses of drilling fluids. Such large losses have not occurred in any other geothermal field in the world. These losses are due mainly to the structural conditions of the geological formations which are penetrated. The technology employed in the construction of deep wells has played a very important role in the solution to these problems. Field case histories describe the effectiveness of the developments of drilling fluids and cement materials in cavernous formations with severe lost-circulation problems. A processed clay bentonite was developed whose high performance and rapid hydration characteristics allowed a reduction of up to 5 hours in the drilling fluid conditioning time. Also, useful results were obtained through the development of a granular plugging mixture which maintained sealing properties at 70 kg/cm2 under cavernous simulated conditions. This granular plugging mixture kept losses of the volume of drilling fluid under 8% with respect to the total volume. Special cement plugs with thixotropic behavior allowed the handling and placement of this slurry in the problematic zone. The CaSO4 addition to the cement slurry was optimized so that a placement time of 30 min could be obtained. Additionally, the mechanical compressive strength values of this special cement plug ranged from 50 to 100 kg/cm2.