Well Control

The control of the formation pressure, either

 by ensuring that the borehole pressure is greater

than the formation pressure (known as Primary
Control)

OR
 by closing off the BOP valves at surface (known
as
Secondar y Control)

under control
is generally or simply
referred Well
to as Control.
keeping the pressures in the
well
Primar y Control
Primary control over the
well is maintained by
ensuring that the
pressure due to the
colom of mud in the
borehole is greater than
the pressure in the
formations being drilled
i.e. maintaining
 a positive differential
pressure
or
 overbalance on the Primar y Control –
formation pressures. Pressure due to mud colom exceeds Pore Pressure
(around 200-300 psi greater than the formation
pore pressure)
Secondar y Control
Secondary control is required
when primary control has
failed (e.g. an unexpectedly
high pressure formation has
been entered) and formation
fluids are flowing into the
wellbore.

The aim of secondary control

is to stop the flow of fluids
into the wellbore and
eventually allow the influx to
be circulated to surface and
safely discharged, while
preventing further influx Secondary Control
downhole. -Influx Controlled by Closing BOP's
 Primary control of the well may be lost in two ways

The formation pressure in The pressure due to the colom of mud

a zone which is penetrated is decreases for some reason, and the
higher than that predicted by the bottomhole pressures drops below the
reservoir engineers or formation pressure.
geologist.

Loss of Primary Control Loss of Primary Control

- Due to Reduction in Mudweight - Due to Reduction in fluid level in borehole
The mudweight will fall during normal operations because of the
following:

• Solids removal
- weighting solids (Barite) may also be removed by the solids
removal equipment as drilled cuttings

• Excessive dilution of the mud (due to watering-back)

- where evaporation may be significant (deep wells)

• Gas cutting of the mud

- gas seeps from the formation into the circulating mud
Gas will expand as it rises up the annulus therefore if gas
seeps from the formation into the circulating mud (known as
gas-cutting) it will reduce the density of the drilling fluid.
Reduced Height of Mud Colom
The mud colom height may be reduced because of the following:
• Tripping
-
As the drillpipe is pulled from the borehole when tripping. Therefore
the volume of pipe removed from the borehole must be replaced by an
equivalent volume of drilling fluid.

• Lost circulation

- When a fractured, or very high permeability formation is being drilled,

whole mud is lost into the formation and this reduces the height of the
mud colom in the borehole.
Losses of fluid to the formation as a result of Lost circulation can be
minimised by :
• Keep the mud in good condition
• Pull out of hole with reasonable speed
• Add lubricant additives and maintain good drilling hydraulic to prevent bit/BHA balled up
• Add chemical to prevent clay swelling in water based mud or use oil based mud drilling
into clay formation
When the drillpipe is pulled out the hole the volume of mud that must
be pumped into the hole can be calculated from the following :

Length of Pipe x Displacement of Pipe

Kick
An unscheduled entry of
formation fluids into the
wellbore, of sufficient
quantity to require shutting in
the well.
The primary indicators of a kick are as follows:

• Flow rate increase (If at constant circulating rate, Qin = Qout).

• Pit volume increase (At constant rate of flow, pits

should remain approximately.

• Flowing well with pumps shut off (If the pumps are
shut down, there should be no returns from the well).

Although these signs may not all positively identify a kick, they do
provide a warning and should be monitored carefully.
The most common secondar y indicators that an influx has
occurred are:
• Drilling break
A drilling break is an abrupt increase in the rate of penetration and should
be treated with caution. The drilling break may indicate that a higher
pressure formation has been and/or that a higher porosity formation (e.g.
due to under-compaction) has been entered.

• Gascut mud
When gas enters the mud from the formations being drilled, the mud is said
to be gascut.

• Changes in pump pressure

Formation fluids will require much lower pump pressures to circulate them
up the annulus.
Precautions Whilst Drilling
Drilling crew watch for the indicators described above . If one
of the indicators are seen then the procedure for conducting a
flow check is as follows:

1. Shut down the mud pumps

2. Set the slips to support the drillstring

3. Observe flowline and check for flow from the annulus

4. If the well is flowing, close the BOP. If the well is not flowing
resume drilling, checking for further indications of a kick.
 Initiating secondary control

If primary control over the well has been

lost, all normal drilling or tripping
operations must cease in order to
concentrate on bringing the well back
.
under primary control
Shut in Procedure
For a kick detected while drilling:
(i)Raise kelly above the rotary table until a tool joint appears
(space out)
(ii) Stop the mud pumps
(iii) Close the annular preventer
(iv) Read shut in drill pipe pressure, annulus pressure and pit
gain.

Before closing in the annular preventer the choke line must be

opened to prevent surging effects on the open hole formations. The
choke is then slowly closed when the annular preventer is closed.
The time taken from detecting the kick to shutting in the well
should be about 2 minutes.
Interpretation of Shut-in
Pressures

When an influx has occurred and has

subsequently been shut-in, the pressures
on the drillpipe and the annulus at surface
can be used to determine:

• The formation pore pressure

• The mudweight required to kill the well

• The type of influx

Interpretation of wellbore pressures as a U-Tube
• Kill weight mud (KWM) = SIDP/0.052/TVD + OMW

• Initial Circulating Pressure (ICP) = SPP + SIDP

• Final circulating pressure (FCP) = SPP * KWM/OWM

where,
TVD -True vertical depth
OMW -Original mud weight (Old mud weight)
SPM- Strokes per minute
SPP -Slow pump pressure
KWM- Kill Weight Mud or (New Mud Weight)
Formulas Used In Kick And Kill Procedures
Hydrostatic Pressure (psi): MW x TVD x 0.052
where: MW = Mud Density (lb/gal)
TVD = True Vertical Depth (ft)
Circulating Pressure (psi): (MW x TVD x 0.0519) + Plost
where: Pla = Annular Pressure Loss (psi)

Initial Circulating Pressure ICP (psi) : SPP + SIDP.

where: SPP = Slow pump pressure
or (sometimes called system pressure loss at kill rate) (psi)
SIDPP= Shut-in Drillpipe Pressure (psi)

Final Circulating Pressure FCP= (psi (KMW / OMW)

x SPP Kill Mud Weight (lb/gal)= MW + (SIDP / (TVD x

0.0519))
Kick Detection 42
Keep the BHP constant throughout 43
Keep the BHP constant throughout 44
1. Size of Influx:

As the volume of the

influx allowed into the
annulus increases the
height of the influx
increases and the higher
the pressure on the
annulus, Pann when the
well is eventually shut-in.
• Do not allow more
than 2 minutes of
influx
There are two risks associated with increasing annulus pressure:

(i) At some point the fracture pressure of one of the formations in

the openhole section may be exceeded.

(ii) There is the possibility that Pann will exceed the burst
capacity of the casing at surface.
2. Gas Buoyancy
Effect
2. Gas Buoyancy
Effect
 As the gas rises it will expand and, if the well is open, displace
mud from the annulus.

 If, however, the well is shut in mud cannot be displaced and so

the gas cannot expand. The gas influx will rise, due to
buoyancy, but will maintain its high pressure since it cannot
expand.

 As a result of this Pann will increase and higher pressures will

be exerted all down the wellbore (note the increase in bottom
hole pressure).

 If Pann and Pdp continue to rise simultaneously it must be

assumed that a high pressure gas bubble is rising in the
annulus.
 In this case, the pressure must be bled off from the annulus by
opening the choke. Only small volumes (1/4 - 1/2 bbl) should
be bled off at a time.

 By opening and closing the choke the gas is allowed to expand,

and the pressure should gradually fall.
Well Killing Procedures

The procedure used to kill the well depends primarily on

whether the kick occurs whilst drilling (there is a drillstring in
the well) or whilst tripping (there is no drillstring in the well).

1. Drillstring out of the Well (Volumetric Method).

2. Drillstring in the Well

There are basically two methods of killing the well when the
drillstring is at the bottom of the borehole. These are:
a. One Circulation Well Killing Method

b. Drillers Method for Killing a Well

Drillstring out of the Well (Volumetric Method).

 This method uses the expansion of the gas to maintain

bottom hole pressure greater than formation
pressure.

 Pressures are adjusted by bleeding off at the choke in small

amounts.

 This is a slow process which maintains constant bottom hole

pressure while allowing the gas bubble to migrate to
surface under the effects of buoyancy.

 Once the gas is out of the well, heavier mud must be

circulated.
The advantages of this method are:

 Since heavy mud will usually enter the annulus before the influx
reaches surface the annulus pressure will be kept low. Thus
there is less risk of fracturing the formation at the casing shoe.

 The maximum annulus pressure will only be exerted on the

wellhead for a short time

 It is easier to maintain a constant Pbh by adjusting the

choke.
b. Driller’s Method (Two Circulation Method)

In this method the influx is first of all removed with the original
mud by the driller in the first circulation . Then the well is
displaced to heavier mud during a second circulation.

The one circulation method is generally considered better than

the Drillers method since it is safer, simpler and quicker. Its main
disadvantage is the time taken to mix the heavier mud, which may
allow a gas bubble to migrate.
Calculate the kill mud density (no safety factor).
SIDP = 600 psi MW = 10.0 ppg
SICP = 900 Depth = 10,000 ft.
answer:psi

MWkill = 11.16 ppg