STUCK PIPE

Sarwar Alam Ansari

B.Tech Petroleum Engineering (III Year)
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Al Habeeb College of Engineering and Technology
STUCK PIPE

During drilling operations, a pipe is considered stuck if it cannot

be freed from the hole without damaging the pipe, and without
exceeding the drilling rig’s maximum allowed hook load.

TYPES OF STUCK PIPE

I) DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE PIPE STICKING

Differential-pressure Pipe Sticking occurs when a portion of the

drillstring becomes embedded in a mudcake (an impermeable
film of fine solids) that forms on the wall of a permeable
formation during drilling. 2
INDICATORS OF DIFFERENTIAL STUCK PIPE
Some of the indicators of differential-pressure-stuck pipe while
drilling permeable zones or known depleted-pressure zones are:-

An increase in torque and drag

An inability to reciprocate the drill string and, in some cases, to
rotate it
Uninterrupted drilling-fluid circulation

PREVENTION OR MITIGATION OF
DIFFERENTIAL STUCK PIPE
Differential-pressure pipe sticking can be prevented or its
occurrence mitigated if some or all of the following precautions
are taken:
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Maintain the lowest continuous fluid loss adhering to the project
economic objectives.

Maintain the lowest level of drilled solids in the mud system, or,
if economical, remove all drilled solids.

Use the lowest differential pressure with allowance for swab and
surge pressures during tripping operations

Select a mud system that will yield smooth mudcake (low

coefficient of friction).

Maintain drillstring rotation at all times, if possible.

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Differential-pressure-pipe-sticking problems may not be totally
prevented. If sticking does occur, common field practices for
freeing the stuck pipe include:

 Mud-hydrostatic-pressure reduction in the annulus

 Oil spotting around the stuck portion of the drillstring
 Washing over the stuck pipe

Some of the methods used to reduce the hydrostatic pressure in

the annulus include:

 Reducing mud weight by dilution

 Reducing mud weight by gasifying with nitrogen
 Placing a packer in the hole above the stuck point
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II) MECHANICAL PIPE STICKING
The causes of mechanical pipe sticking pipe are inadequate
removal of drilled cuttings from the annulus; borehole
instabilities, such as hole caving, sloughing, or collapse; plastic
shale or salt sections squeezing (creeping); and key seating.

CAUSES OF MECHANICAL PIPE STICKING

DRILLED CUTTINGS

BOREHOLE INSTABILITY

KEY SEATING 6
DRILLED CUTTINGS
Excessive drilled-cuttings accumulation in the annular space caused
by improper cleaning of the hole can cause mechanical pipe
sticking, particularly in directional-well drilling. The settling of a
large amount of suspended cuttings to the bottom when the pump is
shut down, or the downward sliding of a stationary-formed cuttings
bed on the low side of a directional well can pack a bottomhole
assembly (BHA), which causes pipe sticking. In directional-well
drilling, a stationary cuttings bed may form on the low side of the
borehole (see Fig. 1). If this condition exists while tripping out, it is
very likely that pipe sticking will occur. This is why it is a common
field practice to circulate bottom up several times with the drill bit
off bottom to flush out any cuttings bed that may be present before
making a trip. Increases in torque/drag, and sometimes in
circulating drillpipe pressure, are indications of large accumulations
of cuttings in the annulus and of potential pipe-sticking problems.

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Fig. 1—Mechanical pipe
sticking caused by drilled
cuttings:
(a) cuttings bed during
drilling, and
(b) cuttings jamming the
drill bit during tripping out

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BOREHOLE INSTABILITY
The most troublesome borehole instability issues occur
when drilling shale. Depending on mud composition and
mud weight, shale can slough in or plastically flow
inward, which causes mechanical pipe sticking. In all
formation types, the use of a mud that is too low in weight
can lead to the collapse of the hole, which can cause
mechanical pipe sticking. Also, when drilling through salt
that exhibits plastic behavior under overburden pressure,
if mud weight is not high enough, the salt has the
tendency of flowing inward, which causes mechanical
pipe sticking. Indications of a potential pipe-sticking
problem caused by borehole instability are:

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 A rise in circulating drillpipe pressure
 An increase in torque
 No fluid return to surface

Fig. 2—Pipe
sticking caused
by wellbore
instability.

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KEY SEATING
Key seating is a major cause of mechanical pipe sticking. The
mechanics of key seating involve wearing a small hole (groove)
into the side of a full-gauge hole. This groove is caused by the
drillstring rotation with side force acting on it. Fig. 3 illustrates
pipe sticking caused by key seating. This condition is created
either in doglegs or in undetected ledges near washouts.

Fig. 3—Pipe sticking

caused by key seat.

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The lateral force that tends to push the pipe against the wall, which
causes mechanical erosion and thus creates a key seat, is given by

F1=T sinαdl --------(1)

where F1 is the lateral force, T is the tension in the drillstring just

above the key-seat area, and αdl is the abrupt change in hole angle
(commonly referred to as dogleg angle).

Generally, long bit runs can cause key seats, therefore, it is

common practice to make wiper trips. Also, the use of stiffer BHAs
tends to minimize severe dogleg occurrences. During tripping out
of hole, a key-seat pipe-sticking problem is indicated when several
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stands of pipe have been pulled out, and then, the pipe is stuck.
FREEING MECHANICALLY STUCK PIPE
Freeing mechanically stuck pipe can be undertaken in a number of
ways, depending on what caused the sticking.

For example, if cuttings accumulation or hole sloughing is the

Suspected cause, then rotating and reciprocating th e drillstring
and increasing flow rate without exceeding the maximum
allowed equivalent circulating density (ECD) is a possible
remedy for freeing the pipe

If hole narrowing as a result of plastic shale is the cause, then an

increase in mud weight may free the pipe. If hole narrowing as a
result of salt is the cause, then circulating fresh water can free the
pipe.
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If the pipe is stuck in a key-seat area, the most likely successful
solution is backing off below the key seat and going back into the
hole with an opener to drill out the key section. This will lead to a
fishing operation to retrieve the fish.
If the pipe was in motion at the time of getting stuck, then the first
attempt to free it should be in reverse to this motion.
The decision on how long to continue attempting to free stuck pipe
vs. back off, plug back, and then sidetrack is an economic issue that
generally is addressed by the operating company.

References:
Isambourg, P., Ottesen, S., Benaissa, S. et al. 1999. Down-Hole Simulation Cell for
Measurement of Lubricity and Differential Pressure Sticking. Presented at the
SPE/IADC Drilling Conference, Amsterdam, 9–11 March. SPE-52816-MS.
Santos, H. 2000. Differentially Stuck Pipe: Early Diagnostic and Solution. Presented at
the IADC/SPE Drilling Conference, New Orleans, 23-25 February. SPE-59127-MS.
Petrowiki.org 14
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