scholarly journals Effect of Mud Rheology on Cuttings’ Transport in Drilling Operations

2020 ◽  
Vol 671 ◽  
pp. 012067
Author(s):  
Abdulk. A. Khalil ◽  
M. S. Adnan
Keyword(s):  
Cuttings Transport ◽  
Drilling Operations

Experimental Investigation and Data Analytics of Annular Cutting Velocity in Inclined and Horizontal Pipes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdennour C. Seibi ◽  
Brandon Salazar ◽  
Jalel Ben Hmida ◽  
Gordon Guillory
Keyword(s):  
Data Analytics ◽  
Flow Behavior ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Dimensionless Group ◽  
Cuttings Transport ◽  
Horizontal Pipes ◽  
Cutting Velocity ◽  
Drilling Operations ◽  
Bottom Side ◽  
Pipe Joints

Abstract The lack of cutting transportation during drilling operations especially in horizontal and inclined wells can lead to large amounts of non-productive time and costly solutions. This problem has been encountered very often in the field due mostly to settlement of the cuttings at the bottom side of the hole and especially around pipe joints. Moreover, adopted rheological models are limited to 60 deg. inclination angle to predict the flow behavior of cuttings transport in directional wells. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to investigate the effect of various parameters related to the well configuration (inclined vs. horizontal), operating conditions, pipe/tool joints configurations, and flow conditions on the cutting velocity through an extensive experimental study with data analytics. The experimental approach was analyzed through film software, which allowed for the cutting velocities to be estimated. Regression models of cutting velocity with respect to each dimensionless group were formed and validated through a statistical analysis. A new empirical model for the cutting velocity was developed using multiple linear regression analyses. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to highlight the contribution of each dimensionless group on the variation of the cutting velocity. The newly proposed model for cutting velocity was tested and the calculated cutting velocity of 0.532 ft/s (.162 m/s) fell within the range of study between 0.188 ft/s (.057 m/s) and 0.690 ft/s (.210 m/s).

Experimental Investigation of Friction and Hydraulics in Circular and Non-Circular Wellbores With Oil Based Drilling Fluids

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Taghipour ◽  
Bjørnar Lund ◽  
Jan David Ytrehus
Keyword(s):  
Test Section ◽  
Drilling Fluid ◽  
Drilling Fluids ◽  
Drilling Process ◽  
Operational Parameters ◽  
Flow Loop ◽  
Cuttings Transport ◽  
Hole Cleaning ◽  
Experimental Laboratory ◽  
Drilling Operations

Borehole hydraulics, hole cleaning and mechanical friction are important factors for well planning and drilling operations. Many studies aim to exploit and optimize the effect of different operational parameters. The effect of wellbore geometry on hole cleaning and mechanical friction has so far not received much attention. This paper presents results from experimental laboratory tests where hydraulics, hole cleaning and mechanical friction have been investigated for circular and non-circular wellbore geometries with a relevant oil-based field drilling fluid (OBM). The non-circular wellbore geometry was made by adding spiral grooves to the wellbore walls in order to investigate the effects on cuttings transport and mechanical friction. The study contributes to describe the function and ability of deliberately induced non-circular geometry in wellbores as means to achieve a more efficient drilling and well construction. Improving hole cleaning will improve drilling efficiency in general, and will in particular enable longer reach for ERD wells. Reduced mechanical friction may improve the drilling process and many operations during the completion phase. The laboratory experiments were performed in an advanced flow loop setup reproducing field-relevant flow conditions. The flow loop consists of a 10 m long 4” inner diameter borehole made of concrete. A free whirling rotational string with 2” diameter provides a realistic down hole annular geometry. A field-relevant oil based drilling fluid (OBM) was circulated through the test section at different flow rates. To represent the effect of rate of penetration, synthetic drilling cuttings (quartz sand particles) were injected at different rates through the annulus in the horizontal test section. The test results show that borehole hydraulics and cutting transport properties are significantly improved in the non-circular wellbore relative to the circular wellbore. The effect of the mechanical friction is more complex, yet significantly different for the two geometries.

Experimental Investigation of Friction and Hydraulics in Circular and Non-Circular Wellbores With Oil Based Drilling Fluids

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Taghipour ◽  
Bjørnar Lund ◽  
Jan David Ytrehus
Keyword(s):  
Test Section ◽  
Drilling Fluid ◽  
Drilling Fluids ◽  
Drilling Process ◽  
Operational Parameters ◽  
Flow Loop ◽  
Cuttings Transport ◽  
Hole Cleaning ◽  
Experimental Laboratory ◽  
Drilling Operations

Borehole hydraulics, hole cleaning and mechanical friction are important factors for well planning and drilling operations. Many studies aim to exploit and optimize the effect of different operational parameters. The effect of wellbore geometry on hole cleaning and mechanical friction has so far not received much attention. This paper presents results from experimental laboratory tests where hydraulics, hole cleaning and mechanical friction have been investigated for circular and non-circular wellbore geometries with a relevant oil-based field drilling fluid (OBM). The non-circular wellbore geometry was made by adding spiral grooves to the wellbore walls in order to investigate the effects on cuttings transport and mechanical friction. The study contributes to describe the function and ability of deliberately induced non-circular geometry in wellbores as means to achieve a more efficient drilling and well construction. Improving hole cleaning will improve drilling efficiency in general, and will in particular enable longer reach for ERD wells. Reduced mechanical friction may improve the drilling process and many operations during the completion phase. The laboratory experiments were performed in an advanced flow loop setup reproducing field-relevant flow conditions. The flow loop consists of a 10 m long 4″ inner diameter borehole made of concrete. A free whirling rotational string with 2″ diameter provides a realistic down hole annular geometry. A field-relevant oil based drilling fluid (OBM) was circulated through the test section at different flow rates. To represent the effect of rate of penetration, synthetic drilling cuttings (quartz sand particles) were injected at different rates through the annulus in the horizontal test section. The test results show that borehole hydraulics and cutting transport properties are significantly improved in the non-circular wellbore relative to the circular wellbore. The effect of the mechanical friction is more complex, yet significantly different for the two geometries.

Investigating the Jet Comminuting Process in Cuttings Transport by Coupling the CFD/DEM Method and Bonded-Particle Model

SPE Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (05) ◽  
pp. 2020-2032 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongsheng Liu ◽  
Deli Gao ◽  
Xin Li ◽  
Xing Qin ◽  
He Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Effective Means ◽  
Element Model ◽  
Secondary Development ◽  
Particle Model ◽  
Compression Tests ◽  
Cuttings Transport ◽  
Horizontal Drilling ◽  
Bonded Particle Model ◽  
Drilling Operations ◽  
New Perspective

Summary Jet comminuting technology has proved to be an effective means of solid particle pulverization, and current research attempts to introduce it for drilling work to reduce cuttings size, because smaller cuttings are easy to circulate out of the bottom, thus can effectively prevent the formation of cuttings bed, especially in horizontal drilling. In this paper, the feasibility of cuttings’ comminution by jet is studied by means of numerical simulation with secondary development. The coupling analysis methods—including the computational–fluid–dynamics/discrete–element–model (CFD/DEM) modeling for the interaction between fluid and cuttings and the particle replacement and bonding modeling for cuttings breakage—are used to characterize the jet comminuting process of cuttings. Input parameters of simulation are reliable and verified by uniaxial compression tests. Case studies presented here indicate that cuttings can be considerably accelerated by 20 to 30 m/s through the throat, which provides a good effective speed for the cuttings. After being accelerated by the fluid and crushed with the target, the vast majority of cuttings results in smaller debris. Also, increasing the inlet speed affects the crushing efficiency. The inclination of the target at near 65° shows good results. This paper proposes a new perspective to introduce the jet comminuting technique for drilling operations, and its findings could help in guiding engineering design in the future.

Experimental Study of Hydraulics and Cuttings Transport in Circular and Non-Circular Wellbores

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Taghipour ◽  
Bjørnar Lund ◽  
Jan David Ytrehus ◽  
Pål Skalle
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Test Section ◽  
Drilling Fluid ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Flow Loop ◽  
Cuttings Transport ◽  
Hole Cleaning ◽  
Custom Made ◽  
Experimental Laboratory ◽  
Drilling Operations

Cuttings transport is one of the most important aspects to control during drilling operations, but the effect of wellbore geometry on hole cleaning is not fully understood. This paper presents results from experimental laboratory tests where hydraulics and hole cleaning have been investigated for two different wellbore geometries; circular and a non-circular, where spiral grooves have been deliberately added to the wellbore wall in order to improve cuttings transport. Improving hole cleaning will improve drilling efficiency in general, and will in particular enable longer reach for ERD wells. The experiments have been conducted as part of a research project where friction and hydraulics in non-circular wellbores for more efficient drilling and well construction is the aim. The experiments have been performed under realistic conditions. The flow loop includes a 12 meter long test section with 2″ diameter freely rotating drillstring inside a 4″ diameter wellbore made of concrete. Sand particles were injected while circulating the drilling fluid through the test section in horizontal and 30° inclined positions. The test results show that borehole hydraulics and cuttings transport can be significantly improved in a non-circular wellbore relative to a circular wellbore. Investigating the cutting transport in non-circular wellbores with available models is even more complex than for circular wellbores. Most drilling models assume circular wellbores, but in reality the situation is often different. Also, it may be possible to create non-circular wellbores on purpose, as in the present study. Such a comparative, experimental study of hole cleaning in different wellbore geometries has to our knowledge previously never been performed, and the results were obtained in a custom-made and unique experimental flow loop. The results and the experimental approach could therefore be of value for any one working with drilling.

Experimental Study of Hydraulics and Cuttings Transport in Circular and Noncircular Wellbores

2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Taghipour ◽  
Bjørnar Lund ◽  
Jan David Ytrehus ◽  
Pål Skalle ◽  
Arild Saasen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Test Section ◽  
Drilling Fluid ◽  
Flow Loop ◽  
Cuttings Transport ◽  
Hole Cleaning ◽  
Custom Made ◽  
Experimental Laboratory ◽  
Drilling Operations ◽  
Extended Reach Drilling

Cuttings transport is one of the most important aspects to control during drilling operations, but the effect of wellbore geometry on hole cleaning is not fully understood. This paper presents results from experimental laboratory tests where hydraulics and hole cleaning have been investigated for two different wellbore geometries; circular and a noncircular, where spiral grooves have been deliberately added to the wellbore wall in order to improve cuttings transport. Improving hole cleaning will improve drilling efficiency in general, and will, in particular, enable longer reach for extended reach drilling (ERD) wells. The experiments have been conducted as part of a research project, where friction and hydraulics in noncircular wellbores for more efficient drilling and well construction are the aim. The experiments have been performed under realistic conditions. The flow loop includes a 12 m long test section with 2" diameter freely rotating drillstring inside a 4" diameter wellbore made of concrete. Sand particles were injected while circulating the drilling fluid through the test section in horizontal and 30 deg inclined positions. The test results show that borehole hydraulics and cuttings transport can be significantly improved in a noncircular wellbore relative to a circular wellbore. Investigating the cutting transport in noncircular wellbores with available models is even more complex than for circular wellbores. Most drilling models assume circular wellbores, but in reality the situation is often different. Also, it may be possible to create noncircular wellbores on purpose, as in the present study. Such a comparative, experimental study of hole cleaning in different wellbore geometries has to our knowledge previously never been performed, and the results were obtained in a custom-made and unique experimental flow loop. The results and the experimental approach could therefore be of value for any one working with drilling.

Experimental and numerical study of cuttings transport in inclined drilling operations

2021 ◽  
pp. 109394
Author(s):  
Mohammad Mojammel Huque ◽  
Mohammad Azizur Rahman ◽  
Sohrab Zendehboudi ◽  
Stephen Butt ◽  
Syed Imtiaz
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Study ◽  
Cuttings Transport ◽  
Drilling Operations
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document