Facts and Data on Environmental Risks - Oil and Gas Drilling Operations

Author(s):  
S. Rana
2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Titus N. Ofei ◽  
Sonny Irawan ◽  
William Pao

In oil and gas drilling operations, predictions of pressure losses and cuttings concentration in the annulus are very complex due to the combination of interacting drilling parameters. Past studies have proposed many empirical correlations to estimate pressure losses and cuttings concentration. However, these developed correlations are limited to their experimental data range and setup, and hence, they cannot be applicable to all cases. CFD methods have the advantages of handling complex multiphase flow problems, as well as, an unlimited number of physical and operational conditions. The present study employs the inhomogeneous (Eulerian-Eulerian) model to simulate a two-phase solid-fluid flow and predict pressure losses and cuttings concentration in eccentric horizontal annuli as a function of varying drilling parameters: fluid velocity, diameter ratio (ratio of inner pipe diameter to outer pipe diameter), inner pipe rotation speed, and fluid type. Experimental data for pressure losses and cuttings concentration from previous literature compared very well with simulation data, confirming the validity of the current model. The study shows how reliable CFD methods can replicate the actual, yet complex oil and gas drilling operations.


Author(s):  
Oghenerume Ogolo ◽  
Akeem Arinkoola ◽  
Samuel Osisanya ◽  
Frank Egede ◽  
Ternenge Joseph Chior

AbstractIn less than a decade, there have been two global meltdowns of crude oil price and the latest was caused by the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in 2020. This is expected to have a negative impact on the global economy, especially on those countries that depend more on the revenue from sales of crude oil. One of the measures that can be taken to survive this kind of situation in the future is to reduce the unit technical cost for producing a barrel of oil by using locally available materials. This research investigated a local clay sourced from Ropp in Plateau State, Nigeria, by considering its rheological characteristics and economic implications of using it for partial to total substitution of imported bentonite clay for oil and gas drilling operations. The local clay was termed as Ropp bentonite clay (RBC). Various spud mud samples were prepared by dispersing a mixture of imported bentonite clay (IBC) and RBC (0–100%) in 350 ml of water. Certain quantity (0–1 g) of polyacrylamide cellulose was added to the mud samples before rheological and physical properties were determined using the standard API procedure. An economic model was built to determine the cost implications of using any of the mud formulations at different consumption rates. The results show that IBC–RBC blend in the right proportion could save Nigeria 12 to 36% of the cost of bentonite clay used to drill wells in the country.


2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 04020026
Author(s):  
Yang Li ◽  
Yuanfang Cheng ◽  
Chuanliang Yan ◽  
Mingyu Xue ◽  
Chengcheng Niu ◽  
...  

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