SPE 135881

Innovative Design Features on PDC Bit Result in Record Run in Orenburg

Region, Russia
Laurence Mortimer, National Oilwell Varco

Copyright 2010, Society of Petroleum Engineers

This paper was prepared for presentation at the 2010 SPE Russian Oil & Gas Technical Conference and Exhibition held in Moscow, Russia, 26–28 October 2010.

This paper was selected for presentation by an SPE program committee following review of information contained in an abstract submitted by the author(s). Contents of the paper have not been
reviewed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers and are subject to correction by the author(s). The material does not necessarily reflect any position of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, its
officers, or members. Electronic reproduction, distribution, or storage of any part of this paper without the written consent of the Society of Petroleum Engineers is prohibited. Permission to
reproduce in print is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 words; illustrations may not be copied. The abstract must contain conspicuous acknowledgment of SPE copyright.

Abstract
The oil and gas fields in the Orenburg region are some of the oldest and largest in Russia. Drilling through carbonates with low
mud flow rates is common in this region along with the associated challenges that these conditions present to polycrystalline
diamond compact (PDC) drilling. This paper details how these conditions and others, were addressed as part of the design
process culminating in a novel bit design with appreciably higher penetration rates and associated cost savings.
Having encountered a series of unusual dull conditions on PDC bits run in Orenburg, a systematic design approach was
adopted in order to solve a series of specific regional issues resulting in new design features which lend themselves to other
applications worldwide.
The team established that the best practice for drilling a particular vertical section in this region was to use a bent motor due
to experiences of uncontrolled deviation close to total depth (TD). The objective was therefore not only to take into
consideration the carbonate formation and flow rate issues, but also to establish the effect of the bent housing on PDC bits in
order to improve the bit condition and overall performance.
Subsequent 3D CAD modeling and analytical studies enabled a common approach design solution for both bent housing and
carbonate type applications. These studies, together with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analyses, enabled new
innovative design features to be introduced into the bit to address hydraulics, formation and eccentric bit rotation. These new
features resulted in far superior drilling performance and dull characteristics, which ultimately led to record runs being
achieved in the region over a 1200m section of predominantly carbonate, inter-bedded formation.
The features would also prove to be transparent to the drilling contractor should they be running a bit on a straight or bent
housing motor with low or high flow rates, thus acting to enhance the existing drilling practices in the region.

Background
Many papers dedicated to PDC bit technology for drilling carbonate
rocks describe the introduction of PDC bits in applications where roller
cone bits have historically been used in order to deliver superior drilling
rates. In the Orenburg region of Russia however, PDC has long been
used for carbonate applications and hence a more application specific
design approach was required in order to obtain a further step change in
drilling performance.
Although PDC has long been used in the region, there were still
frequent occurrences of erratic drilling behaviour being reported by the
drilling contractors when drilling the demanding carbonate formation.
Associated with this erratic drilling behaviour was the inevitable impact
related damage to the PDC cutting structure and it was indeed this exact
reason which led to the application specific design approach being
adopted for the 11 5/8” carbonate section across the region.
Fig. 1 shows the location of the region between Orenburg and
Buzuluk which is renowned for its harsh carbonate environment.

Fig. 1 - Orenburg Region

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The most common reported issue from the field was the high fluctuation in weight on bit (WOB) experienced when drilling
the inter-bedded sections along with the corresponding fluctuations in torque on bit (TOB) which ultimately led to the impact
related damage to the cutting structure on the PDC bits.
This erratic drilling behaviour was initially addressed by attempting to increase the stability of the bit based on the geometry
of its cutting structure and corresponding resultant forces, but it was soon discovered that bit specific design considerations
alone, were not sufficient to resolve the problems in this region and a more in-depth application design approach was required.
This paper discusses a baseline design approach, which by use of innovative design features allowed the team to tailor the bit
design in-line with the application specific needs of the 11 5/8” section throughout the region which resulted in significant
increases in overall ROP and corresponding reductions in time and drilling costs.

Geology – Orenburg Region

Although there are known areas which prove more difficult to drill than others, the geology is however fairly similar
throughout the region. The typical well consists of a 15 ½” top section to 300m followed by the 11 5/8” intermediate section to
1600m, finished by an 8 ½” lower section to TD. The typical 11 5/8” section, on which this paper is based, therefore represents
an interval of approximately 1300m as shown in Fig. 2. Consisting of:

• Tatar layer – Marl, shale, sand, siltstone, argillite and anhydrite

• Kazan layer – Limestone, shale and salt
• Kalinov layer - Limestone, shale and argillite
• Ufimskiy layer - Limestone, shale and anhydrite
• Irensky layer – Salt, anhydrite, limestone and dolomite
• Filipowsky layer – Limestone, anhydrite and dolomite
• Artinsky layer – Limestone and dolomite
• Sakmarsky - Limestone and dolomite

The interbedded nature so typical with carbonate formations is plain to see and overcoming the issues
associated with these interbeds was a major contributing factor to the success in this region.

11 5/8” Drilling Practice

Although the 11 5/8” section is vertical, it was often drilled on a motor with a bent housing in order to
correct for unwanted deviation, especially as you approach TD. The last 5% of the run would appear to
have been specifically chosen as part of the casing program due to its structural integrity and related rock
strength properties. The dramatic reduction in ROP encountered by all bits as they enter this last section of
dense dolomite would reflect the corresponding differential in rock strength properties.

Hydraulics

It had been reported that the hydraulic power capabilities on some of the rigs in the region could be limited
and as such any new bit design solution should take this into consideration especially when addressing the
need to cool and clean the cutting structure of the bit.

Previous bit run reports

Reports from previous 11 5/8” bits run in the region were

consistently reporting catastrophic impact related cutter damage to
the shoulder (nose to gauge) region of the bit along with subsequent
reductions in ROP and a typical example of the cutter damage is
shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 2

11 5/8” Geology

Fig. 3 - Typical cutter damage

SPE 135881 3

Requirement 1
The initial requirement was to improve the dull condition of the cutting structure as well as addressing the hydraulic issues.
The design configuration of the previous bits were very similar to other designs which had been successfully run in other parts
of the world albeit in predominantly siliciclastic applications i.e. sandstones and the like. This differential in performance
between the geology types added to the factors to be considered as part of the application-specific design approach.
The previous bits were 6 bladed designs with optimized cutting structures in terms of lateral stability, durability and
aggressiveness.
Lateral Stability: Due to the erratic drilling behavior it was initially thought that the damage may have resulted through bit
whirl or lack of lateral stability; however these bits had been designed with the highest lateral stability Index (LSI). The LSI is
derived by analyzing the bit when displaced from its rotational centerline and calculating the resultant forces of each element
of the cutting structure. The resultant forces are then converted into an index in order to gauge the likelihood of them inducing
bit whirl. A high LSI relates to a very laterally stable design and a low LSI to an unstable bit design. As mentioned previously,
similar designs had been run successfully in siliciclastic applications with no stability issues and hence it was concluded that
lateral stability was not the major issue affecting the drilling performance in Orenburg, although the bit obviously still had to
maintain a high LSI.
Durability: Durability in terms of available diamond coverage provided by the cutting structure was also high on the
previous designs as the cutter density had been maximized. Similar durability levels had again been successful in other
applications where steady state wear was an issue; however it was very apparent that in Orenburg the damage was not
necessarily related to steady state wear. Steady state wear manifests itself in wear flats across the cutters and is directly related
to diamond coverage provided by the PDC cutters and the respective work done. There was actually no sign of steady state
wear on the previous designs as the damage was clearly impact related and as such, durability in terms of steady state wear
was again not considered as a major influential factor for the new design.
Aggressiveness: The aggressiveness of the bit’s cutting structure can be directly related to the achievable ROP down hole.
The aggressiveness of a bit’s cutting structure alone is based on a series of factors including; cutting structure profile, cutter
size, cutter density, back rake etc. all of which allow the bit designer to compare the expected ROP between bit designs for a
given WOB under identical operating conditions. Whilst ROP is always an important aspect of any design, the issue in
Orenburg was impact related wear conditions and whilst this obviously affected ROP, the impact damage needed to be
resolved prior to addressing any further enhancements in aggressiveness.
Aggressiveness is often increased at the sacrifice of durability and this compromise is the key to any successful bit design.
Achieving the correct degree of compromise between ROP and durability however is often very difficult to achieve in practice.
In terms of the initial requirement there was no evidence in terms of whether or not the aggressiveness or durability of the bit
should be changed.
LSI, durability and aggressiveness as described above are all bit specific design aspects which had been optimized on the
previous designs and hence in order to improve the dull condition we needed to expand the analysis parameters to include
more application specific criteria.

Motor with bent housing

It was proposed that the dull condition of the bit as shown in Fig. 3 could be related to the bent housing of the motor as the
wear on the shoulder of the bit could be contributed to the off center rotation induced by the bend. With this in mind the drill
pipe, motor, bent housing and bit were modeled together in 3D in order to replicate the off center rotation. Fig. 4 shows some
of the results and it was very interesting to see the correlation between the model and the actual dull conditions of the bit. Fig.
4a shows the bit transitioning from sliding into fully rotational mode. The green outline represents the bore hole created by the
bit whilst it rotates about its own centerline in sliding mode. The bit/motor assembly was then rotated to represent the BHA
returning to fully rotational mode and the grey components shown in Fig. 4a represent the cutting components emerging from
the pre-drilled bore hole as the assembly transitions from sliding to full rotational mode. Fig. 4b concentrates on blade 1 where
again the grey components represent the cutting structure, with the exposed grey regions highlighting the areas of the cutting
structure that are likely to be more prone to wear/damage. Note the direct correlation between the exposed areas on the model
to the wear characteristics on the bit itself as shown in the photo. Also note that none of the inner 4 cutters on blade 1 are
exposed on the 3D model, which also correlates with the dull photo.

Fig. 4a Fig. 4b
4 SPE 135881

The correlation between theory and practice whilst not categorically proving that the bent housing was the only possible cause
of the damage to the cutting structure, did provide the designer with sufficient evidence to implement changes on the new
design to mitigate the onset of impact related damage to the shoulder region of the bit.

Hydraulic design
As mentioned previously, there were reports of applications in the region where the hydraulic horsepower may be limited and
as such any new design should take this into account. Therefore a comprehensive CFD analysis was carried out in order to
optimise the cleaning and cooling of the cutting structure to accommodate both low and high flow rates. The hydraulic
efficiency is obviously a major design consideration on all bit designs although in this case it wasn’t necessarily the major
contributing factor to the cutter damage. That said, the cleaning and cooling of the diamond table of the cutters is certainly
more of an issue when drilling carbonates due to the higher temperatures involved caused by the tougher nature of the rock.
The requirement for the hydraulic design was therefore to obtain a flow regime across the bit, such that it maximized the
flow velocity whilst at the same time preventing re-circulation and backflow. Maximizing the velocity of the mud through the
waterways of the bit in this manner from the center to the periphery of the bit would maximize both the cooling of the cutters
and the evacuation of the cuttings. Achieving an idealised flow regime across the bit would also provide optimum conditions
regardless of the flow rate. It also provided a means to analyse the relationship between ROP and flow rate in terms of
establishing a rate of removal for the cuttings, allowing the designer to establish the minimum allowable flow rate for a desired
ROP.

Depth of Cut Control (DOCC)

From the studies of the dull conditions and the bent housing modeling, it became apparent for the need of DOCC at the
shoulder of the bit in order to manage the cutter forces in this region.
Depth of cut (DOC) is a measure of axial displacement per revolution of the bit and can be established from bit RPM and
ROP. Managing the DOC allows you to control the cutter forces as you are defining a pre-determined depth to which the
cutters can engage into the rock.
DOCC also provides a means to manage WOB and the respective torque response of the bit, which was another essential
requirement for the design as this in turn, affects the dynamic response of the system. Whilst DOCC provides a means to
manage the magnitude of the dynamic response it is also critical to select the correct DOC for the application in order to
optimize the mean cutter forces with the expected ROP.

Design configuration Bit1

The studies had highlighted the need to address the dynamic impact-related damage caused to the shoulder region of the bit
and hence this was our initial goal for the Bit1 design. The design process philosophy was to keep the design changes to a
minimum in order to avoid too many possible contributing factors and hence the blade count and cutter size of the new design
remained the same as the previous bits.
Baseline design principle: Having the ability to concentrate on specific contributing factors in order to gauge the success of a
bit run is an important aspect of any design. It can be implemented at the bit level alone to cover more general application
requirements or be such that it provides a means to encompass more application-specific type requirements. With this in mind,
the design intent for the new bit design was to eventually establish a baseline design which could then be tailored to suit
specific application requirements, not only for Orenburg but also for other applications worldwide. The baseline design would
therefore be based around a minimum of key parameters controlled by key features on the bit which, when analyzed, could be
adjusted in order to improve drilling performance.
From the drilling contractors point of view, having a baseline design that could be tailored to their specific requirement is
also an obvious advantage as long as the contributing factors can be easily related to their application specific needs. Therefore
the baseline design was based around two sets of criteria; bit specific and application specific. The bit vendor would be
responsible for the bit-specific criteria, providing the latest in technological advances and features to enhance the performance
of the bit. The application-specific criteria would address how to adapt the features to optimize performance for the specific
needs of the customer.
Bit specific design changes: The following bit specific changes were therefore implemented on the new design:
Cutting structure: Although the overall durability of the cutting structure was deemed to be sufficient in terms of steady state
wear conditions, the cutting structure profile was modified to toughen the shoulder region of the bit to address the bent motor
issue.
Impact resistant cutters: Since the release of the previous bits in the region, a lot of advances have been made in terms of
cutter technology. One such development is the new range of impact resistant cutters. Impact related damage resulting in edge
chipping and dome/crescent spalling of the cutters is often the result of the interaction of the dynamic impact forces with the
inherent residual stresses within the cutter itself. The latest impact resistant cutters have addressed these issues by optimizing
materials and component geometries to reduce impact related damage. Whilst these cutters had been proven worldwide, the
design intent was still to reduce the likelihood of the onset of the impact damage through features on the bit in order to then
further benefit from the increase in toughness of the new cutters.
Lateral Stability: The LSI of the new design was in-line with the previous designs.
SPE 135881 5

Durability: The durability of the cone to nose region of the new design was very similar to the previous designs; however the
additional diamond coverage at the shoulder due to the new cutting structure profile increased the durability in this region.
Aggressiveness: The aggressiveness of the new design was kept in-line with the previous bits in order to avoid too many
unknowns in-line with the design intent.
Hydraulic Design: The hydraulic configuration of the new bit was re-designed in order to achieve the desired goals. With the
aid of CFD analysis, strategic positioning and orientation of the nozzles along with the optimized waterway profile and blade
configuration, led to an idealized hydraulic flow regime being achieved on the new design. Having an idealized flow regime
emanating from the center of the bit enabled maximum fluid velocity to be obtained, which in turn would promote efficient
cooling and cleaning of the cutters along with superior chip evacuation. Fig. 5 shows the flow regime across the bit.

Fig. 5 - CFD analysis showing the hydraulic flow regime for the bit.

Application specific features: The best drilling practices for the region had been established over the years. Hence, if bit
changes alone could prove to better the overall drilling performance for the section then this would prove to be an ideal
starting point, especially if the changes were totally transparent to the drilling operator. With this in mind, the only initial
application-specific feature of the new design was the introduction of DOCC.
Depth of Cut Control (DOCC): The DOCC was obtained by the incorporation of large pads directly behind the cutters on
each blade of the new bit design. The DOC on the new 6 bladed design was established from the average offset data from
previous runs. Establishing the correct DOC is an essential part of the design process as if it is too high you run the risk of
cutter damage and if too low you obviously impede ROP. This is where a sound understanding of the specific offset data is
essential in order to optimize performance.
Having DOCC at the shoulder of the bit meant that we could target the region of the bit that was susceptible to damage
should the bit be run on a bent housing. However the DOCC provided by the pads at the shoulder would obviously manage the
DOC of the whole cutting structure should the bit be ran on a bent housing or not and hence was totally transparent to the
drilling operator.

Bit1 – Performance results

The first run of the new Bit1 design was in the Bobrovskoye field, where a new ROP record was achieved. The bit was run on
a straight motor and drilled the section to TD with an overall average ROP of 29 metres per hour which represented a 20%
increase in ROP over the previous record. Apart from the ROP record, the other notable result was the dramatic reduction in
damage across the cutting structure of the bit. This improvement in cutting structure condition was an obvious contributor to
the marked increase in ROP performance.
Although this was an excellent first run result, we hadn’t been able to compare like with like performance of the new Bit1 to
our previous bit designs as there was no previous recorded offset data for the Bobrovskoye field. However it wasn’t long until
we were able to make comparisons in the Nikolskoe and Olhovskoe fields where comparative offset data was available.
Drilling performance is affected by a series of factors over and above the bit design and hence, even though the geology is
accepted to be similar throughout the region, there are certain fields that are known to be more difficult to drill than others and
hence the average achievable ROP for the 11 5/8” section in the region can vary quite drastically from field to field. This
would appear to be the case when comparing Nikolskoe and Olhovskoe with the Bobrovskoye field.
6 SPE 135881

Nikolskoe Field – Our previous bits ran in this field were achieving 7 to 8 meters per hour average ROP over similar depths
to the Bobrovskoye field. The resulting dull condition of the cutting structure on the previous designs was also very similar to
that shown in Fig. 3. Having then run the new Bit1 design on a motor with a 1.09˚ bend angle, the improvement in condition
was again remarkable resulting in a 100% increase in ROP having achieved an average ROP of 15 metres per hour.
Olhovskoe Field – A very similar result was achieved in this field, where the bit was run on the same motor type as
Nikolskoe, resulting in an average ROP increase from 7 to 11 meters per hour.
Fig. 6 provides a visual representation of the difference in cutting structure condition between the previous designs and the
new Bit1 design.

Fig. 6 – Typical cutting structure comparison

Cutter condition on previous design Cutter condition on the new Bit1 design

Requirement 1 - conclusion
As can be seen in Fig. 6 the requirement to improve the cutting structure was certainly achieved, resulting in an increase in
overall drilling performance. It is believed that the major contributing factor to the superior condition of the cutting structure
was the incorporation of the DOCC on the face of the bit along with the use of the new impact resistant cutters. It is also
believed that the improvement in the condition of the cutting structure led to a corresponding increase in ROP. There were also
no reported issues regarding the hydraulics and hence it was believed that hydraulic compliance had been achieved, especially
considering the post run condition of the cutting structure.
The improvements were achieved on straight and bent housings and required no changes to any of the drilling parameters on
the rigs, demonstrating the transparency of the design features to the drilling operator, although the changes in ROP were all
too apparent.
The other noticeable change in the drilling performance was the reduction in fluctuation of the WOB and TOB, which was
again attributed to the DOCC. By managing TOB you also manage the torque requirements of the motor used directly above
the bit. This has the additional benefit of being able to improve the reliability/performance of the motor as well, which is
obviously another factor to consider when looking at improving overall performance.

Requirement 2
Having successfully achieved the initial requirements along with an associated increase in drilling performance, it became
apparent that further improvements could be made based on the vast improvement in the condition of the cutting structure. The
drilling contractor ultimately wants the bit design to complete the section in as short a time as possible and as long as the bit
reaches TD, they are not too concerned about the final condition of the bit. The new requirement therefore was to increase
ROP even further.
We had gained valuable offset data from the post run dull photos and drilling parameter data from the various runs of Bit1,
which provided the justification for the baseline design on which the new design would be based. To achieve the new ROP
target, however, would require an even more in-depth approach to be undertaken in terms of matching the features on the new
baseline design to the specific requirements of the region.
Increasing ROP: The aggressiveness of the bit’s cutting structure is one factor that affects ROP as discussed previously.
However the effect of the torque from the bit on the performance of the motor is obviously another bit related issue that can
influence ROP, especially when dealing with carbonate applications. As mentioned earlier, this provided another opportunity
in terms of increasing the ROP of the system.
DOCC: The DOCC provided by the large pads on the face of the bit had been proven to manage the WOB, which in turn had
SPE 135881 7

controlled the TOB, leading to smoother drilling. By managing these parameters the dynamic wear was greatly reduced. The
method, in which the DOCC was applied, however, was changed on the new design. It became apparent from the post run
condition of the DOCC pads, that there was localized wear in the form of radial grooves across the face of the bit. These
grooves were formed because the pads did not match the borehole pattern created by the cutting structure of the bit. It was
believed that this type of wear could lead to inefficiencies in drilling performance. The method of DOCC was therefore
improved by the use of an innovative design that maximized surface bearing area whilst matching the bottom-hole profile of
the bore hole. This innovative approached meant that the DOC could be controlled to a much higher degree of accuracy and
only came into action when the required DOC was reached. It also had the added advantage of improving stability when
engaged, due to it matching the profile of the borehole.
Drilling parameter data: Analysis of the post run drilling parameter data for Bit1 had shown that the mud flow rate had
remained fairly constant throughout the runs. However, it was also evident that the ROP varied throughout the runs, although
not to the extent of the previous bits that had experienced cutter damage. Previous analyses of bits run on motors would extract
the flow rate from the drilling parameter data and apply a motor constant based on the mud flow rate in order to establish the
motor/bit RPM i.e. RPM is proportional to flow rate. Having introduced the DOCC mechanism on Bit 1, the DOC was deemed
to be fixed and hence this would infer that the ROP should also be fixed for a given bit RPM. In practice however this wasn’t
the case and hence either the DOC or RPM had to be varying. As the DOCC was deemed to be the major influential feature on
Bit1 in terms of improving the dull condition, additional analyses were carried out which established the drilling performance
based on matching the power of the motor to flow rate rather than RPM. Utilizing the motor power constant provided an
additional means of improving ROP by addressing bit/motor matching and optimizing the TOB to increase efficiency. Being
able to motor match using a baseline bit design also provided the capability for further post run optimization to be conducted
in order to further improve drilling performance.
Durability: Having addressed the dynamic wear, it was clear that there was still very little sign of steady state wear which is
actually common with carbonates due to their low abrasive nature. The durability on the new Bit2 design was therefore
reduced in order to increase the bit’s aggressiveness. The LSI however remained the same as Bit1.
Carbonates vs siliciclastics: It is common knowledge that PDC bits which perform perfectly in siliciclastics do not
necessarily perform as well in carbonate applications, even though the PDC bit design principles in essence are very similar. It
was therefore very important to understand the major differential between carbonates and siliciclastics in terms of establishing
the factors that would influence drilling performance. Following an extensive investigation, a host of key factors were
identified. These key factors not only provided sound reasoning for the major differential in drilling performance but also
provided the building blocks to achieving further potential increases in ROP.

Bit2 Baseline design

The baseline criteria were slightly different on Bit2, as we had now broadened the application-specific design features. The
bit-specific design features in terms of the cutting structure profile, cutter size and hydraulic design were kept the same as Bit1
following its successful performance. The blade count was however reduced from 6 to 5 as part of the changes made to
increase ROP.
Application specific features: The baseline application-specific features on Bit2 were now restricted to DOCC and cutter
density. The DOCC was determined based on desired ROP, rock strength and rock strength variability between interbeds,
whilst cutter density would be based purely on steady state wear requirements.
A suite of analytical tools was then established based around these application-specific features to allow the bit designer and
customer to interrogate drilling performance based on post run parameters and dull conditions. These tools not only analyze
the cutter/rock interaction at varying DOC in homogeneous rock but also account for the interbedded nature of the formation
and the positioning of the DOCC features.

Bit2 – Performance results

The following results are based on performance achieved in the South West of the region and although this part of the region is
known to be more challenging, the geology and formation tops are still in-line with that associated with the Nikolskoe and
Olhovskoe fields.
Rostashinskoe field – The 11 5/8” section in this field was similar to Nikolskoe and Olhovskoe. The bit was run on a motor
with 1.15˚ bent housing from 300 to 1650m and achieved an average ROP of 22 m/hr representing an overall average increase
over Bit1 of approximately 50% and 100% in the Nikolskoe and Olhovskoe fields respectively.
Further interrogation of the LAS data had shown that from 300m to 1455m the average ROP was 29.5 m/hr and from
1455m to 1650m the average ROP dropped considerably to 8.5 m/hr, highlighting the differential in rock strength over the
latter interval.
Sahorovskoe field – Bit2 was run on a straight motor this time from 350 to 1509m and achieved an average ROP of 24.5 m/hr
representing an overall average increase over Bit1 of approximately 60% and 120% in the Nikolskoe and Olhovskoe fields
respectively.
Bit2 was actually pulled at 1509m to run logs at which time it was discovered that there was some localised damage to the
cutting structure and although not serious it was decided to change to Bit1 in order to complete the remaining 21m to TD.
On further interrogation of the drilling parameter data it was shown that from 350m to 812m the bit had averaged 32 m/hr
8 SPE 135881

and from 812m to 1509m the average was 21 m/hr. Having changed to Bit1 for the final 21m, the average ROP dropped
dramatically again to 6 m/hr. On this particular run it would appear that the tougher dolomite section at the very end of the run
was beginning to possibly overload the cutting structure.
On both the Rostashinsko and Sahorovskoe runs it was evident to see the correlation between the significant drops in ROP
and the significant increase in rock strength over the latter interval of the section.

Garshinskoe field - This field has the reputation of being one of the most challenging in the region. Bit 1 had actually been
run in this field and hence it provided an excellent offset comparison with the new design. Although the overall interval and
formation tops were again similar to the other fields, the last 5% of the interval on this particular field had proven to be more
difficult to drill. The 11 5/8” section in this field was 320m to 1610m
When Bit1 was run, it achieved 628m from 330m to 958m on a motor with bent housing at an average ROP of 10 m/hr.
Although it maintained an almost perfect cutting structure condition, it was actually pulled due to perceived low penetration
rate. At this point in time Bit2 had not yet been released and hence a competitor bit was then run, which also achieved
similarly low expected ROP.
When Bit 2 was run in the Garshinskoe field, a motor with 1.5˚ bent housing was used. The bit drilled from 320m to 1610m
and achieved an overall average ROP of 20.3 m/hr, representing an increase of over 100% on Bit1.
Interrogation of the drilling parameter data showed that Bit2 had actually achieved an average ROP of 24 m/hr over the same
interval as Bit1. On entering the tougher dolomite section, the ROP decreased in-line with the other fields, where it averaged 8
m/hr over the last 82m.

Bit2 – Post run analysis

Our post run analysis on the Bit2 baseline design was based on the matching the key application-specific design features on
the bit to the post run data in order to establish performance criteria for the run. If the post run analysis had been based solely
on the initial 95% of the runs, then it could have been argued that there was scope for possible increase in ROP by addressing
the DOC. However the performance over the last 5% of the interval would contradict this, as by increasing the DOC over the
latter interval could severely compromise the condition of the cutting structure.
It was therefore concluded that the Bit2 design had indeed been optimised for the current regional requirements. Achieving
this through two bit design iterations shows the importance of understanding the initial requirements and the available offset
data when establishing the initial configuration of the baseline design.
The relatively short section of the tougher dolomite at the end of the 11 5/8” interval in Orenburg meant that it was always
going to be a one bit run requirement. However in other carbonate applications worldwide, it is often the case that the
formation will comprise of numerous interbeds, consisting of rock types with very high differences in compressive strength
occurring at regular intervals throughout the same size section and multiple bit runs are therefore required to complete the
section. In such applications the baseline design and post run evaluation approach described in this paper would obviously play
an even more critical role in optimising performance.

Conclusions
Systematically matching the innovative features on the bit to the specific drilling practices and geology in the region resulted
in up to 120% increase in ROP being achieved in the Orenburg region. The baseline design process was pivotal in achieving
this vast improvement in drilling performance as it provided the capability to match the baseline bit-specific features to the
application-specific requirements. Optimizing the DOCC, hydraulic configuration and cutting structure profile to suit the
specific drilling practices in the region, combined with the latest cutter technology, resulted in a drastic improvement in cutting
structure condition on the initial baseline design. Further performance improvement was then obtained by tailoring the cutter
density, DOCC mechanism and DOC to meet the demanding needs of the carbonate formation in the region. The post run
review capability then proved essential in finally achieving overall optimization by providing a means to interrogate post run
performance based on a suite of analytical tools.
Overall, having a bit design based around sound engineering features that can be easily tailored to meet the specific needs of
the customer, allowed for significant improvements in drilling performance to be achieved along with considerable associated
cost savings.