Differential sticking Differential sticking is a problem that occurs when drilling a well with a greater well bore pressure
than formation pressure, as is usually the case. The drill pipe is pressed against the wellbore wall so that part of its circumference will see only reservoir pressure, while the rest will continue to be pushed by wellbore pressure. As a result the pipe becomes stuck to the wall, and can require millions of pounds of force to remove, which may prove impossible. In many cases the drilling fluid (mud) weight is simply reduced, thus relieving the pressure difference and releasing the stuck pipe string. Should this option be unavailable, as in sour gas wells, a specialty fishing company such as Weatherford is called to retrieve the stuck pipe or 'fish'. Many options exist once a fishing company is on site, oil or nitrogen may be pumped down the well, or the fish may be 'washed over' using a carbide shoe on a string of washpipe. Jarring is not usually attempted with differential sticking due to the massive amount of pressure that holds the pipe in place. Drilling fluid invasion Drilling fluid invasion is a process that occurs in a well being drilled with higher wellbore pressure than formation pressure. The liquid component of the drilling fluid (known as the mud filtrate) continues to "invade" the porous and permeable formation until the solids present in the mud, commonly bentonite, clog enough pores to form a mud cake capable of preventing further invasion. If invasion is severe enough, and reservoir pressures are unable to force the fluid and associated particles out entirely when the well starts producing, the amount of oil and gas a well can produce can be permanently reduced. This is especially true when a process called phase trapping occurs. This is when a fluid enters a formation that is below its irreducible saturation of that fluid. Once the fluid is present, it is held in place by capillary forces and usually can not be removed. Invasion also has significant implications for well logging. In many cases the "depth of investigation" of a well logging tool is only a few inches (or even less for things like sonic logs), and it is quite possible that drilling fluid has invaded beyond this depth. Therefore the readings that are taken that are influenced by formation fluids are measuring mud filtrate properties rather than formation (in situ) fluid properties.
Blowout (well drilling)
A blowout is the uncontrolled release of formation fluid from a well being drilled, typically for petroleum production. A blowout is caused when a combination of well control systems fail primarily drilling mud hydrostatics and blow-out preventers (BOPs) and formation pore pressure is greater than the wellbore pressure at depth. When such an incident occurs, formation fluids begin to flow into the wellbore and up the annulus and/or inside the drill pipe, and is commonly called a kick. If the well is not shut
in, a kick can quickly escalate into a blowout when the formation fluids reach the surface, especially when the fluid is a gas, which rapidly expands as it flows up the wellbore and accelerates to near supersonic speeds. Blowouts can cause significant damage to drilling rigs, and injuries or fatalities to rig personnel. Prior to the development of blow-out preventers, blowouts were common and -assuming they produced oil -- were referred to as oil gushers.
[edit] Formation kick
A kick can be the result of improper mud density control, an unexpected overpressured (shallow) gas pocket, or may be a result of the loss of drilling fluids to a formation called a thief zone. If the well is a development well (and not a wildcat), these thief zones should already be known to the driller and the proper loss control materials would have been used. However, unexpected fluid losses can occur if a formation is fractured somewhere in the open-hole section, causing rapid loss of hydrostatic pressure and possibly allowing flow of formation fluids into the wellbore. (See "Underground Blowout" discussion in next section.) Shallow overpressured gas pockets are generally unpredictable and usually cause the more violent kicks because of rapid gas expansion almost immediately. The primary means of detecting a kick is a relative change in the circulation rate back up to the surface into the mud pits. The drilling crew or mud engineer keeps track of the level in the mud pits, and a increase in this level would indicate that a higher pressure zone has been encountered at the bit. Conversely, a drop in this level would indicate lost circulation to a formation (which might allow influx of formation fluids from other zones if the hydrostatic head at depth is reduced from less than a full column of mud). The rate of mud returns also can be closely monitored to match the rate that it is being pumped down the drill pipe. If the rate of returns is slower than expected, it means that a certain amount of the mud is being lost to a thief zone, but this is not necessarily yet a kick (and may never become one). In the case of a higher pressure zone, an increase in mud returns would be noticed as the formation influx pushes the drilling mud toward the surface at a higher rate. The first response to detecting a kick would be to isolate the wellbore from the surface by activating the BOPs and closing in the well. Then the drilling crew would attempt to circulate in a heavier kill fluid to increase the hydrostatic pressure (sometimes with the assistance of a well control company). In the process, the influx fluids will be slowly circulated out in a controlled manner, taking care not to allow any gas to accelerate up the wellbore too quickly by controlling casing pressure with chokes on a predetermined schedule. In a simple kill, once the kill-weight mud has reached the bit the casing pressure is manipulated to keep drill pipe pressure constant (assuming a constant pumping rate); this will ensure holding a constant adequate bottomhole pressure. The casing pressure will gradually increase as the contaminant slug approaches the surface if the influx is gas, which will be expanding as it moves up the annulus and overall pressure at its depth is gradually decreasing. This effect will be minor if the influx fluid is mainly
salt water. And with an oil-based drilling fluid it can be masked in the early stages of controlling a kick because gas influx may dissolve into the oil under pressure at depth, only to come out of solution and expand rather rapidly as the influx nears the surface. Once all the contaminant has been circulated out, the casing pressure should have reached zero. Sometimes, however, companies drill underbalanced for better, faster penetration rates and thus they "drill for kicks" as it is economically sounder to take time to kill a kick than to drill overbalanced (which causes slower penetration rates). Under these circumstances, always with qualified personnel on the rig, calling in a "well control" specialist may not be necessary.
[edit] Blowout
When all the controls described above fail, a blowout occurs. Blowouts are dangerous since they can eject the drill string out of the well, and the force of the escaping fluid can be strong enough to damage the drilling rig. Blowouts often ignite due to the presence of an ignition source, from sparks from rocks being ejected along with flammable fluids, or simply from heat generated by friction. (Rarely the flowing gas will contain poisonous hydrogen sulfide and the oil operator might decide to ignite the stream to convert this to less hazardous substances.) A well control company will then need to extinguish the well fire and/or cap the well, and replace the casing head and hangars. Sometimes, blowouts can be so forceful that they cannot be directly brought under control from the surface, particularly if there is so much energy in the flowing zone that it does not deplete significantly over the course of a blowout. In such cases, other wells (called relief wells) may be drilled to intersect the well or pocket, in order to allow killweight fluids to be introduced at depth. (Contrary to what might be inferred from the term, such wells generally are not used to help relieve pressure using multiple outlets from the blowout zone.) An "underground blowout" is a special situation where fluids from high pressure zones flow uncontrolled to lower pressure zones within the open-hole portion of the wellbore. Usually they come up the wellbore to shallower formations (typically near the last casing shoe) that have been fractured from the overall effect of hydrostatic mud head plus casing pressure imposed at the time of the initial kick. Underground blowouts can be very difficult to bring under control although there is no outward flow at the drill site itself. However, if left unchecked, in time the fluids may find their way to the surface elsewhere in the vicinity (possibly "cratering" the rig), or may pressurize other zones, leading to problems when drilling subsequent wells. Lost circulation Lost circulation can be one of the more serious problems that can arise during the drilling of an oil well or gas well. Circulation is said to be lost when the drilling fluid,
known commonly as "mud", flows into one or more geological formations instead of returning up the annulus.
Consequences
The consequences of lost circulation can be as little as the loss of a few dollars of drilling fluid, or as disastrous as a blowout and loss of life, so close monitoring of tanks, pits, and flow from the well, to quickly assess and control lost circulation, is taught and practiced. If the fluid in the welbore drops due to lost circulation (or any other reason), hydrostatic pressure is reduced, thus allowing a gas or fluid, which is under a higher pressure than the reduced hydrostatic pressure, to influx into the wellbore. Another consequence of lost circulation is called "dry drilling". Dry drilling occurs when fluid is completely lost from the well bore without actual drilling coming to a stop. The effects of dry drilling can be as minor as destroying a bit to as serious as major damage to the wellbore requiring a new well to be drilled. Dry drilling can also cause severed damage to the drill string, including snapping the pipe, and the drilling rig itself.
[edit] Categories
Lost circulation falls into two main categories:
""Minor Losses"" - This is where losses are between 6 and 470 barrels (1 to 75 m3), and remains within those amounts, or is ceased, within 48 hours. ""Severe losses"" - This is where losses are greater than 470 barrels (75 m3), or it takes greater than 48 hours to control or cease the lost circulation.
Total Losses may also occur, where the return of fluids is completely lost to the surface. This may fall into either the minor or severe losses categories, depending on the amount of losses and the time involved in regaining circulation.
[edit] Control
Although preferred, ceasing lost circulation completely is not always possible or required. Controlled losses allows drilling to continue while keeping the wellbore full, preventing an influx of gas or fluid into the wellbore, known as a" kick", which can lead to a blowout. A number of options are available when lost circulation occurs, depending on the severity.
Minor losses may be controlled by increasing the viscosity of the fluid with bentonite and/ or polymers, or with the addition of other additives which typically includes sawdust. Severe losses will require increasing the viscosity of the fluid with bentonite and/ or polymers and the addition of other additives which typically includes sawdust.
Total losses can be regained through conventional use of increased viscosity and additives, or through use of unconventional methods such as pumping of golf balls, tree branches, rags, additive sacks, and other items in conjunction with, or followed by, a high viscosity fluid. If total losses occur and circulation cannot be regained, several options are available, depending on the operational requirements and depth being drilled in relation to desired production geological zones. Continuing drilling while pumping drilling fluid is one option, though continued drilling while pumping water is less costly and more often used. Sometimes the cuttings from continued drilling will aid in reducing or stop losses altogether. A third option is to cement the zone where the losses occurred, and to drill through the cement and continue drilling the well. This third option is very often the most cost effective id severe losses occur, as lost circulation can sometimes not be controlled with conventional or unconventional methods.
[edit] Additives
The most common additive used to control or cease lost circulation is bentonite, in that it inherently will seal small holes or fractures. Bentonite, in higher concentrations, increases viscosity. Because a higher viscosity fluid flows more slowly, a higher viscosity is desired. Although bentonite is the most common additive used, it sometimes is not used at all, depending on the current fluid being used and the current depth of drilling in relation to desired production zones. Polymers are also sometimes used to increase the viscosity. Though these are more costly, they are more compatible with several types of fluid systems. When it comes to additives which physically plug or seal the losses, there are a great deal of them. Sawdust, flaked cellophane, crushed or ground gypsum are all used. Other common, and cheaper additives, that are used are shredded newspaper and cotton seed hulls. Cotton seed hulls are less preferred as they may cause wear to pump swabs and springs. Both of these are generally only used when either fresh or brine water is being used for the drilling fluid. When drilling in salt formations, brine water is typically used as it is more difficult to disolve more of the salt preventing the formation of "washouts". Washouts not only contribute to loss of circulation, but can jeopardize the integrity of the wellbore itself.
[edit] Additive Considerations
Several factors are considered in what additives are used:
Hole size currently being drilled. Drilling fluid in use. The additives must be compatible. Depth of the well in regards to geological stability. Depth of well in relation to the desired production zones. Plugging a production zone is not a desired outcome. Drill bit nozzles sizes. If the additive(s) will not go through the drill bit, they cannot be used.
Other drill string mechanical equipment such as a mud motor or MWD tools. If the additive(s) will not go through the drill string, they cannot be used.
