Utilizing Instrumented Stand Pipe for Monitoring Drilling Fluid Dynamics for Improving Automated Drilling Operations (original) (raw)

Simultaneous Continuous Monitoring of the Drilling-Fluid Friction Factor and Density

SPE Drilling & Completion, 2013

Summary This paper introduces a method to enable continuous automatic online updates of the density and frictional effects of the drilling fluid during drilling operations. The placement of differential-pressure sensors along the circulation path from the rig pump to the connection to the drillstring enables the fluid properties to be examined more thoroughly at various flow rates, pressures, and temperatures. The paper presents results from a full-scale test in which different fluids were examined. The results show that the method may give reliable data on the main drilling-fluid properties, which are important in all drilling operations, and especially in automatic modes.

Automatic Measurement of Drilling Fluid and Drill-Cuttings Properties

SPE Drilling & Completion, 2009

Summary To remotely control the drilling process, it is necessary to measure several drilling-fluid parameters automatically. This will increase objectivity of the measurements and make it possible to react to changes in real time. The current paper describes in detail the design for an integrated tool combination and the results of a full-size yard test of such a combined set of tools for measuring drilling-fluid parameters and formation properties automatically. Some of the automated tools have been tested on rigsite operations. Results from these individual tests are also presented. The automatic drilling-fluid analysis includes viscosity, fluid loss, electrical-stability (ES) measurements, and chemical properties such as pH. Full viscosity curves for the drilling fluid are measured using configurations and shear rates similar to those suggested by American Petroleum Institute (API) procedures. Because gel-formation curves and fluid-loss properties require some sort of controlled...

Automated Surface Measurements of Drilling Fluid Properties: Field Application in the Permian Basin

SPE Drilling & Completion, 2020

Summary Accurate and frequent mud checking is essential for optimum drilling operations. Careful measurement and maintenance of drilling fluid properties (density and rheology) maintain the primary well control barrier and optimize fluid hydraulics and hole-cleaning ability. However, a full mud report while drilling is provided only once or twice a day. Moreover, the measurements are mostly performed using traditional equipment. Test interpretation is subjective and might be biased and difficult to verify independently. In this paper, we present an automated mud skid unit (MSU), which performs continual drilling fluid sampling and measurements at variable temperatures. The unit provides the non-Newtonian rheological constants characterizing a yield-power law fluid as well as the real-time friction factor and critical Reynolds number using a pipe-viscometer measurement approach. Other important fluid properties such as pressurized density, oil/water ratio, and temperature are provide...

Study of Continuous Rheological Measurements in Drilling Fluids

Brazilian Journal of Chemical Engineering

Drilling an oil well involves using drilling fluids that perform cleaning and cooling functions, but that most importantly maintain the fluids of the geological formation contained by hydraulic pressure. A fundamental role in predicting the hydraulic pressure of the well consists of monitoring the fluid's rheological behavior. This paper summarizes an ongoing effort to measure, by evaluating the performance of two online viscometers, drilling fluids' rheological behavior in real time. One online method proposes a modified Couette system. The other consists of a standard pipe viscometer with default modeling. The performances of the online devices were compared with an offline method-a Couette device commonly used in oilfields as a benchmark. For Newtonian fluids, agreement between the rheological behaviors was found for all instruments, validating the methodology proposed. For non-Newtonian fluids, there were divergences, which were investigated and their probable causes determined to be the following: homogeneity, slippage effects, and interaction in the fluid/gap interfaces. A case study demonstrated that these divergences were not significant during the prediction of hydraulic pressure, meaning that the methodology proposed has the potential to improve overall drilling performance.

Pressure-While-Drilling Data Improve Reservoir Drilling Performance

SPE Drilling & Completion, 1998

Summary A new downhole annular pressure-while-drilling (PWD) tool has been applied recently to assist in drilling the reservoir section on the Statfjord field, offshore Norway. For drilling success in these high-angle wells it is critical to maintain the mud weight and equivalent circulating density (ECD) within safe operating limits defined by the formation fluid, collapse, and fracture pressures. Operating outside these limits historically has led to expensive lost circulation, differential sticking, and packoff incidents. Monitoring the actual downhole pressure in real time with a PWD tool, rather than relying on inferred pressures from predictive models, has allowed the operator to stay within and to better define these operating limits. The operator used this improved hydraulics information to avoid pressure-related hole problems, to optimize drilling practices, to test hydraulics models, and to obtain a greater understanding of the formation pressure limits.

Pressure Drop in Tool Joints for the Flow of Water-Based Muds in Oil Well Drilling

Brazilian Journal of Petroleum and Gas, 2012

The characteristics of the fluid flows in tool joints were studied experimentally and theoretically in a laboratory scale. The goal of this study was to evaluate the pressure drop in accessories such as tool joints, placed along the drilling columns. The experimental fluid flow loop consisted of a 25-hp positive displacement pump, a 500-liter tank, a 3-HP mixer and a series of circular and annular pipes where the tool joints were installed. Based on the Reynolds number, the fluid flow loop was set to have dynamic similarity with respect to the real hydraulics of oil well fields. CFD simulations were implemented to aid in the design of the fluid flow loop. Pressure drop and fluid flow rate data were experimentally determined in a set of tool joints using water-based muds with non-Newtonian behavior. The CFD simulations showed a good performance on the tool joint simulations. Finally, the literature's correlations originally employed by Petrobras were used to estimate the friction factor, and new parameters for these correlations were established. The evaluation of the parameters improved the predictive capacity mostly in the laminar regime.

The Drilling Optimization Benefits of Direct Drillstring Surface Measurements–Case Studies from Field Operations

SPE/IADC Drilling Conference and Exhibition, 2015

Correct information is crucial to drilling effectiveness and well construction success, with the greatest data accuracy achieved by measurement instruments applied as close as possible to the target load. Until recently, most drilling parameters were derived from load measurements taken on supporting structures or equipment related to the drillstring-but not actually a part of the string. The remote position of these classic sensors from the desired load often resulted in unacceptable error rates.

IADC/SPE-178877-MS Automated Drilling Fluid Analysis using Advanced Particle Size Analyzers

The era of drilling fluid property analysis carried out manually by a mud engineer is rapidly disappearing. Novel measurement tools and techniques are now making it possible to carry out sophisticated drilling fluid analyses using largely automated equipment. This paper anticipates and highlights the important role that automated particle size analyzers will play in future drilling operations. A comprehensive experimental study was carried out using a new generation of particle size analyzers (PSA) to investigate their utility for automated drilling fluid analysis. The pieces of equipment that were evaluated were the Canty Microflow LPA (which uses imaging microscopy), the Mettler Toledo G400 ParticleTrack (which uses FBRM laser diffraction) and the Malvern Mastersizer and Zetasizer (which use Dynamic Light Scattering). These instruments were used in conjunction with in-house flow loops and shearing facilities to test (1) degradation of the particle size distribution (PSD) of lost circulation and wellbore strengthening materials under the influence of shear, (2) the behavior of the emulsion droplet size distribution (DSD) of invert emulsion mud systems (oil-based and synthetic-based muds). Verifying and maintaining the PSD of lost circulation/wellbore strengthening materials is of crucial importance to prevent severe mud loss events that still continue to plague the industry at a trouble cost of many billions of dollars per annum. Our PSA analyses show that the PSD's of such materials, particularly those of medium to coarser sizes, is far from stable and degrades over time, primarily due to the influence of shear. It will be shown that automated, in-line PSA equipment allows for the degradation to be monitored and managed in real-time to maintain optimum drilling performance. In addition, such equipment can be used to monitor and optimize the DSD of an invert system, which is an extremely important quantity that influences many mud performance characteristics such as rheology, emulsion stability, fluid loss behavior, osmotic membrane efficiency, etc. The work involves a comparative study of novel PSA's, ranking them by accuracy, ease of use, automation potential, real-time monitoring capability etc. It presents novel, non-intuitive data on the degradation of lost circulation/wellbore strengthening materials, thereby allowing ways to manage this degradation. It also presents, for the first time, some preliminary work on the behavior of invert mud droplet size and its impact on oil-/synthetic-based mud performance.

Online Drilling Fluid Flowmetering in Open Channels with Ultrasonic Level Sensors using Critical Depths

Proceedings of the 58th Conference on Simulation and Modelling (SIMS 58) Reykjavik, Iceland, September 25th – 27th, 2017, 2017

In drilling operations, non-Newtonian drilling fluid is continuously circulated in a closed loop. One of the ways to monitor and regulate drilling operations is by accurately measuring the flow rate of circulating drilling fluid before entering and after returning from the wellbore. The circulating fluid flows in an open channel on the return path from the wellbore. This work investigates the use of Venturi constriction to estimate the non-Newtonian fluid flow in an open channel. Based on the specific energy principle, a relation between volumetric flow rate and critical depth is developed, which is used to estimate the flow rate based on the measured critical depth. To measure a critical depth for a given flow rate, it is necessary to locate a critical depth position in the Venturi flume. In this study, the critical depth position is located using specific energy diagram (at a minimum specific energy within the Venturi constriction) and Froude Number approach (at a Froude Number equals to 1). Based on the identified critical depth, the flow conditions (subcritical, critical or supercritical) along the Venturi flume are observed. The location of the critical depth in the Venturi section is found by performing experiments at 350 [kg/min] flow rate of the fluid. Further, the developed critical depth flow model is tested for randomly varying flow rates (250-500 [kg/min]) with the identified critical depth location. The flow estimations of the model were within the acceptable limit. However, it is found that the estimates for 350 [kg/min] are comparatively more accurate, which proves that the critical depth and critical depth position depends on the flow rate and rheological properties.