welcome to the IUPUI well-designed

process module in the reservoir

development phase of the EMP lifecycle

before beginning this course you should

have an understanding of the general

configuration of a well be familiar with

the reasons for drilling a well know

about basic geological structures and

pore pressures this module will discuss

the process involved in designing a well

at the end of this module you should be

able to describe the general

configuration of a well identify the

criteria used in selection of casing

setting depths sizes weights and grades

explain the functions and properties of

a drilling fluid describe the types of

drilling fluids used and the

circumstances in which each type is used

explain why daeviated wells are drilled

describe typical daeviated well patterns

demonstrate familiarity with the

terminology associated with daeviated

well patterns identify the constraints

in achieving the trajectory required in

a deviated well designing a well is a

complicated process and every well is

carefully planned so that it will be

safe cost efficient and productive

the drilling engineer is responsible for

designing the well based on the

following information the objective of

the well the depth and location of the

target the geological cross-section and

the pressure of the fluid in the

formation pours three important aspects

of the well that are planned during the

design process are the configuration of

the casing the steel pipe which lines

the well the drilling flute the drilling

fluid a liquid that helps keep the well

clean and prevents the well from flowing

during drilling and the direction in

which the well is drilled this module

will cover each of these three factors

in detail once the well has been

designed a drilling program is written a

drilling program gives instructions to

the various parties involved in drilling

the well on how to perform their

operations

the drilling program is used to select

the appropriate tools to drill the well

order the required capital equipment

such as casing and to schedule the

operations a typical drilling program

will contain the following information

the drilling rig to be used to drill the

well the proposed location for the

drilling rig the casing sizes

specifications and setting depths

drilling fluid specifications

directional drilling information and

well control equipment and procedures

virtually every well that is drilled

requires casing and cement casing is

steel pipe that lines the borehole after

it has been drilled the casing prevents

the hole from caving in and seals off

pressures and formations to do this job

effectively though cement has to be

placed in the annular gap between the

borehole and the casing casing comes to

the rig and 40-foot long sections called

joints

there are many different diameters and

strengths of casing available each joint

of casing has a screw threaded

connection on either end the individual

joints of casing are screwed together

each section of hole is drilled and then

the casing string is run

after this the casing string is cemented

into place

once the cement has set the next section

of hole is drilled

it is almost never possible for the

drilling contractor to begin drilling at

the surface and go all the way to the

total depth of the well in one step a

well will usually require several

strings of casing before final depth is

reached these strings are called

conductor casing surface casing

intermediate casing and production

casing as the crew drills the well

deeper the size of the hole and the size

of the casing gets smaller in diameter

each string of casing must be carefully

designed to withstand the anticipated

loads to which it will be exposed during

installation during the process of

drilling the next whole section and

during the production from the well

these loads depend on parameters such as

the types of formation to be drilled the

formation pore pressures the formation

fracture pressures and the nature of the

fluids that will be encountered in the

formations the designer must also bear

in mind the availability of different

casing types any operational problems in

running the casing string into the bore

hole and the costs of the casing

financial considerations are

particularly important since the casing

costs can take up to 30 percent of the

total cost of drilling the well the

casing strings are needed for a variety

of reasons formations near the surface

tend to crumble and cave in easily so

conductor casing prevents cave-ins

conductor casing can be as large as 36

inches almost a meter in diameter

formations near the surface may also

contain fresh water that could be

contaminated by the drilling mud so

surface casing protects freshwater zones

surface casing is relatively large say

20 inches or 500 millimeters in diameter

or even more the surface casing can be

set

hundreds to thousands of feet deep

deeper formations can sometimes be

troublesome they can collapse into the

wellbore drilling fluids can flow into

them resulting in lost circulation or

fluids can flow from them into the

wellbore once drilled they need to be

sealed off to prevent problems and

drilling the deeper portions of the well

intermediate casing seals off

troublesome zones intermediate casing is

typically about 14 inches or 350

millimeters in diameter sometimes deep

wells require more than one intermediate

casing string finally once the producing

zone is drilled production casing is run

production casing is about eight to ten

inches or 200 to 250 millimeters in

diameter the operator usually perforates

or puts holes in this casing when the

well is completed and ready to produce

oil and gas flow into the well through

the perforations sometimes liners are

run into the well instead of casing a

liner is a short string of casing used

to case the smaller open hole section

below an existing casing string in the

hole it's just like casing except that a

liner does not run all the way to the

surface

instead it's hung from the bottom of a

previously run casing or liner string

using a special piece of equipment

called a liner hanger using liners saves

money since they do not extend to the

surface drilling fluid or drilling mud

as many people call it is a vital

element of the rotary drilling process

although air gas and liquids can be used

to drill a well the most common are

liquids muds can be either water-based

muds or oil-based muds in water-based

muds clay and other additives are mixed

into the water to give the mud desirable

properties the two most important

functions of drilling fluid are to

transport cuttings from the well bore

and to prevent formation fluids from

flowing into the wellbore drilling fluid

is also used to maintain wellbore

stability and cool and lubricate the bit

the drilling fluid must be selected or

designed so that the physical and

chemical properties of the fluid allow

these functions to be fulfilled

however when selecting the fluid

consideration must also be given to the

environmental impact of using the fluid

the cost of the fluid