HRH Limited Introduction to Drilling

CONTENTS

REFERENCES

SECTION 1 PRE-DRILLING ACTIVITIES

1.1 WELL DESIGNATIONS

1.1.1 Exploration
1.1.2 Appraisal
1.1.3 Development
1.2 OIL COMPANY RELATIONSHIPS
1.3 SEISMIC PROFILING
1.4 OFFSET WELL ANALYSIS
1.5 CREATE THE DRILLING PLAN

SECTION 2 DRILLING APPARATUS

2.1 INTRODUCTION
2.2 LAND RIG
2.3 DRILLING BARGE
2.4 JACK-UP
2.5 SEMI-SUBMERSIBLE
2.5.1 General Information
2.5.2 Moving Location
2.5.3 Anchoring
2.5.4 Subsea Wellhead Equipment
2.5.5 Connecting Wellhead to Surface
2.5.6 Motion Compensator
2.6 DRILL SHIP
2.7 PRODUCTION PLATFORM
2.8 KEY PERSONNEL IN THE DRILLING PROCESS
2.8.1 Drilling Supervisor
2.8.2 Wellsite Geologist
2.8.3 Drilling Engineer
2.8.4 Toolpusher
2.8.5 Driller
2.8.6 Derrickman
2.8.7 Floormen
2.8.8 Mudlogger
2.8.9 Mud Engineer
2.8.10 MWD. LWD, Wireline Engineers
2.9 GENERAL OFFSHORE INFORMATION
2.9.1 Getting to Work
2.9.2 Accommodation
2.9.3 Rig Supplies
2.9.4 Offshore Safety Systems
2.9.5 The Offshore Environment

i
HRH Limited Introduction to Drilling

SECTION 3 GENERAL SYSTEMS FOUND ON DRILLING RIGS

3.1 LIFTING SYSTEM

3.1.1 Primary Components of the Lifting System
Drilling
Tripping
3.1.2 Secondary Components of the Lifting System
3.2 ROTATING SYSTEMS
3.2.1 The Drill String
Tricone Bits
Diamond Bits
PDC Bits
Core Bits
Hole Openers
Drill Collars
Subs
Stabilisers
Cross-Over Subs
Heavy Walled Drill Pipe (HWDP)
Drill Pipe
Reamers
3.2.2 The Kelly System
Kelly Swivel
Kelly
Rotary Kelly Bushing (RKB)
Rotary Table
3.2.3 Top Drive Drilling Systems
Connection Time
Circulation
Safety Advantages
Casing Fill Up
Tripping
3.2.4 Downhole Motors
Turbines
Principle of Operation of the Turbodrill
Positive Displacement Motors (PDM)
Principle of Operation of the PDM
3.3 CIRCULATING SYSTEM
3.3.1 Active Pit (or System)
3.3.2 Reserve Tanks
3.3.3 Mud Pumps
3.3.4 Standpipe
3.3.5 Rotary Hose
3.3.6 Goose Neck
3.3.7 Top Drive/Kelly Swivel
3.3.8 Kelly
3.3.9 Drill String
3.3.10 Annulus
3.3.11 Marine Riser
3.3.12 Bell Nipple

ii
HRH Limited Introduction to Drilling

3.3.13 Flowline
3.3.14 Header Tank
3.3.15 Shale Shakers
3.3.16 Sand Trap
3.3.17 Mud Cleaners
Desander/Desilter
Centrifuge
Degasser
3.3.18 Active System
3.4 WELL CONTROL EQUIPMENT
3.4.1 Hydrostatic Pressure Control
Hydrostatic Pressure
Pressure Variations
Swab Pressure
Surge Pressure
Effective Circulating Density (ECD)
3.4.2 Blowout Preventers
3.4.3 Types of BOP
Ram Preventers
Packer Type Preventers
3.4.4 Supplementary BOP Equipment
Inside Blowout Preventers
Kelly Cock Valve
Float Valve
3.4.5 Wellhead Connections
Kill Line
Choke Line and Choke Valve
Fill-up Line
Choke Manifold
Mud/Gas Separator (Poorboy Degasser)

SECTION 4 SETTING UP THE RIG & SPUDDING THE WELL

4.1 LAND WELLS

4.2 POSITION FIXING OFFSHORE
4.3 JACK-UP RIGS
4.4 OFFSHORE FLOATING PLATFORMS
4.4.1 Holding Position
4.4.2 The Subsea Wellhead

SECTION 5 ROUTINE DRILLING OPERATIONS

5.1 WEIGHT ON BIT

5.2 DEPTH TRACKING
5.2.1 Rate of Penetration (ROP)
5.2.2 Making Connections
Top Drive Connections
Kelly Drive Connections

iii
HRH Limited Introduction to Drilling

General Connections Procedure

5.3 ROTARY SPEED AND TORQUE
5.4 DRILLING FLUID HYDRAULICS
5.4.1 Key Mud Parameters
Mud Density
Mud Viscosity
Mud Velocity
5.4.2 Different Mud Types
5.4.3 Hydraulic Optimisation
5.5 LITHOLOGY VARIATIONS
5.5.1 Rate of Penetration
5.5.2 Torque
Stick-Slip
5.5.3 Other Drilling Parameters
5.6 SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS
5.6.1 Gas in Atmosphere
Explosive Gases
Toxic Gases
5.6.2 Formation Fluid Entry into Well
Kick Detection
Mud Flow Out (of the Well)
Active and Total Pit Volume
Standpipe Pressure
5.6.3 Drilling Fluid Losses From Well (Lost Circulation)
Filtration Losses
Existing Formation Fractures
Fractures in Response to High Overbalance
Consequences of Lost Circulation
Lost Circulation Materials
5.7 ENGINEERING PROBLEMS
5.7.1 Bit Wear and Bit Failure
5.7.2 Pipe Washout
5.7.3 Formation Washout
5.7.4 Stuck Pipe
Underbalance
Overbalance
Water Swelling Clays
5.8 TRIPPING OPERATIONS
5.8.1 Tripping Out
Monitoring Pipe Displacements
Swabbing
Surging
Calculation of Pipe Displacements
Effective Pipe Outer Diameter
Detection of Influxes

SECTION 6 WIRELINE LOGGING & MWD

6.1 REASONS FOR LOGGING A WELL

iv
HRH Limited Introduction to Drilling

6.2 COMPARISON BETWEEN WIRELINE AND LWD

6.2.1 Why Use MWD/LWD?
6.2.2 Depth Tracking
6.2.3 Scope of Services

SECTION 7 CASING AND CEMENTING

7.1 PRESSURE REGIMES REQUIRING CASING

7.1.1 Progressively Increasing Pore Fluid Pressure Gradients
7.1.2 Variations in Rock Matrix Strength
7.2 THE CASING STRING
7.2.1 Casing Categories
Conductor
Surface Casing
Intermediate Casing
Oil String and Liners
7.2.2 The Casing Shoe
7.2.3 The Float
7.2.4 Casing Pipe
Standard Casing Diameters
7.2.5 Centralisers
7.2.6 Displacement and Fill
7.3 CEMENTING OPERATIONS
7.3.1 Cement
7.3.2 Types of Cementing
Primary Cementing
Squeeze Cementing
Plugging Back
7.3.3 Cement Pumps and Associated Tasks
7.3.4 Cementing Head
Uses of Plugs
7.3.5 Bumping the Plug
7.3.6 Cement Setting Time
7.4 POST CEMENTING ACTIVITIES
7.4.1 Drilling Out The Shoe
7.4.2 Leak Off Test
Formation Integrity Test

SECTION 8 DRILLING DEVIATED HOLE

8.1 REASONS FOR DRILLING DEVIATED HOLES

8.1.1 Offshore Production Wells
8.1.2 Inaccessible Locations
8.1.3 Well Control
8.1.4 Maintaining Vertical Section
8.1.5 Sidetracking
8.1.6 Fault Planes
8.1.7 Salt Cap Rocks

v
HRH Limited Introduction to Drilling

8.1.8 Production From Multiple Target Formations

8.1.9 Horizontal Drilling
8.2 DRILL STRING DESIGNS
8.2.1 Horizontal Well Drill String Design
8.3 FACTORS INFLUENCING WELL DESIGN
8.3.1 Size and Shape of Target
8.3.2 Location of Target Relative to Rigsite
8.3.3 Nature of Formations Through Which Well Must Pass to Reach Target
8.3.4 Hole Sizes
8.4 WELL PROFILE
8.4.1 Vertical Wells
8.4.2 Deviated Wells
Well Radius
Type 1 Well
Type 2 Well ("S" Well)
Type 3 Well profile
Azimuthal Correction
8.5 KICK OFF
8.6 BUILDING AND DROPPING ANGLE
8.6.1 Bent System
8.6.2 Bent Steerable System
8.6.3 Rotary Steerable System
8.6.4 Stabiliser Position
8.6.5 Adjustable Stabilisers
8.6.6 Whipstocks
8.7 SURVEYS
8.7.1 Magnetic Single-Shot
8.7.2 Magnetic Multi-shot
8.7.3 Gyroscopes
8.7.4 Wireline Steering Tool
8.7.5 Measurement While Drilling
8.8 COMPLEX WELL PATHS
8.8.1 Late Stage Production Wells
8.8.2 Extended Reach Drilling
8.8.3 Designer Wells
8.8.4 Example Well program

SECTION 9 CORING OPERATIONS

9.1 DECIDING TO CORE

9.1.1 Suggested Procedure When Coring Depth is Suspected
9.2 BHA DESIGN
9.2.1 Core Bit
9.2.2 The Core Barrel
9.2.3 Other String Components
9.3 CORE DRILLING
9.4 CORE RECOVERY
9.4.1 Fibreglass Core Sleeves
9.4.2 Unsleeved Core

vi
HRH Limited Introduction to Drilling

Measuring The Unsleeved Core

Ensuring Way-up is Preserved
Sealing the Core
Safety Note

SECTION 10 POST-DRILLING ACTIVITIES

10.1 FINAL LOGGING SUITE

10.2 PRODUCTION TEST (DST)
10.3 COMPLETION OF THE WELL
10.3 PLUGGING AND ABANDONING THE WELL
10.4.1 Plugging the Open Hole
10.4.2 Retrieving the Wellhead and Casing

vii