Under-Balanced Drilling Fluids

Candidate
Selection
Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Under-Balanced
Fluids
•Air (N2,
Gas)
•Mist
•Gaseated
•Foam
•Oil
•Water
•Mud
Subjects Covered
• Candidate Selection
• Flow Drilling
• Aerated
• Foam
• Air/Gas/N2
• Completions

Reasons for UB Drilling
1. Limit lost circulation
2. Improve drilling rate
3. Avoid differential
sticking
4. Protect reservoir
Other benefits are not reasons.

Results
Improve the rate of

return on investment.
(Broadened Scope)

Candidate Selection
Historical Perspective

Cable Tools
• The first
underbalanced
drillers.
• No skin damage.
• Great production.

UB History
• 1938 - California Gas Drilling.

• 1948 - Aerated, Big Lake
Texas.
• 1960 - AEC Foam, Nuclear
Holes.
• 1965 - Aerated U.S.
• 1968 - Chevron Foam,
California.
• 1986 - Aerated Canada.
• 192? - Russia, Where? What?
Underbalanced Drilling Areas
2000
Lost Circulation. Drilling Rate

Reservoir Protection
Geothermal

Number of Underbalanced Wells
in Canada
1500
1600
Total Number of Wells
1400
1200
1000
800
525
600
330
400 230
120
200 30
0
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997
Year
New Subject
Underbalance Fluids
Summary

Drilling Fluid Densities
1.2
10.8
0
1.0 75
10.4
78 11.
1
4 83
Salt Water
Saturated
8.3 .4
62 12
s
Gel a
.
y & Water
90 6
d
6
Mu
6.9 Wa
nd W
52 ter
2.0
ted
Oi
eigh
t
oo
ater
Native Cla
cF
0.5
-W ted
in W
r
ate
ubi
Fo
CL ra
am Ae
Ca Satu
Po
er C
Beg
wi rate
4
und
th d M
ds P
23
Ba
ck ud
s per
Poun
Pr Weighted Mud
es
.4 Stable Foam su
Gallon
re (Barite)
2
15
Mist
Air
.02
.3
0.002 Types
Types of
Types ofDrilling
of Drilling
DrillingFluids
Fluids and
and Their
Fluids Relative
TheirTheir
and Relative Densities
Densities
Relative
2.3
Densities
Categories of UB Drilling
• Air and gas

drilling.
Mist drilling.
• Foam drilling.
• Gaseated drilling.
• Flow drilling.
Gas Drilling
• First commercial UB
drilling was with
gas in the U.S.
(1940’s)

Gas Drilling
Common Drilling Gases
• Air.
• Natural gas.
• Nitrogen.
• Engine exhaust
(Nitrogen).
Gas Drilling,
Producing 3MM SCF/day

Western Air Drilling, 1954
First Widespread use came with

development of portable air
compressors.
Advantages of Gas
Drilling
• Increase drilling rate.

• No lost circulation*
• No differential sticking.
• Minimal reservoir
damage.
Problems with Gas
Drilling
• Water.
• Washouts, especially in
coal.
• Corrosion.
• Downhole fires with air.
• Crooked hole.
Air/Mist Drilling
• Water & detergent is added
to air (or gas) when the
hole becomes damp or
when it is too washed out to
lift the cuttings.
• Water added is normally
between 5 bbl/hr to 10
bbl/hr (0.8 m3/hr to 1.5
m3/hr). Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering
• Air and gas

drilling.
• Foam drilling.
• Gaseated
drilling.
• Flow drilling.
Foam Drilling

FOAM
Has the greatest
potential
of
any of the “Light”
fluids.

Advantages of Foam
Drilling
• Great lifting capacity.
• Controllable BHP.
damage.
Problems with Foam
Drilling
• Complex mixture-Hard
to get a proper mixture
and maintain it
properly.
• Disposal/Storage.
• Cost.
• Air and gas

drilling.
• Foam drilling.
• Flow drilling.

Gaseated Drilling
• Gaseated or aerated
drilling uses a mixture of
fluid and gas.
• Gas may generally be any
gas.
• Fluid may be from oil to
water to drilling mud.
• No binding agent is used
(foamer).
Gaseated Separator

Advantages
of Gaseated Drilling

damage.

Problems
with Gaseated Drilling
• Surging (causing
overpressures or
caving).
• Corrosion (not with
nitrogen).
• Hole caving.
• Air and gas

drilling.
• Foam drilling.
• Flow drilling.

Flow Drilling

Flow Drilling
Conventional Mud Used in an

Underbalanced Condition

Advantages of Flow
Drilling
• Uses regular mud
system.
• Least expensive way of
UB drilling.
• No lost returns.
• Improved ROP.
Problems with Flow
Drilling
• Limited ability to reduce
annular pressure below
“normal” reservoir
pressures.
• Drilling with a constant
well flow or potential of
well flow.
All Good Ideas
• All have problems.

• Nothing works all the
time.
• UB does not improve
production all of the time.

Candidate Selection
COMMENTS!!
Underbalanced Drilling
Benefits

• New processes involve

risk.
• Budget enough money.
• Don’t promise too much.

Have at Least One
Good Economic
Reason
or
Technical Reason

Remember the Learning
Curve !!!!

UB Drilling
Applications

UB Drilling Applications
• Drilling.
• Lost returns.
• Drilling rate.
• Differential pressure
sticking.
• Limited water.
• Reservoir protection.
Lost Returns
• Reduce the mud

density.
• Don’t add junk.

Lost Circulation
Candidates
• Permeability > 1,000 md.
• Large fractures (>100
micron opening).
• Vugular porosity.
• Overbalanced > 1,000 psi
with conventional fluids.

Increased Drilling Rate
Effect of Differential
70 Pressure
7-7/8 TRICONE BIT
30,000 lbs. WOB
60
60 RPM
DRILLING RATE (ft/hr)
50
40
AUSTIN CHALK
p
30
b
MANCOS SHALE
20
10
COLTON SANDSTONE p
p
0
0 1000 2000 3000 4000
DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE (psi)

Drilling Rate-UB
Effect of Differential
Pressure
Perfect
DRILLING RATE (ft/hr)
Cleaning
p
b
Bit
Flounder
p
p
-500 0 +500 +1000
DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE (psi)

Hard Rock & Crooked
Hole
• Air Hammer.
• Pendulum.

Differential Pressure
Sticking
DRILL PIPE
PH
FILTER CAKE
,K
Pf
PH > Pf
DRILL COLLAR

Limited Water
Desert & Semi-Arid Regions
Algeria
South Yemen
Libya
SW United States

UB Drilling Applications
(2)
• Formation damage
avoidance.
 Skin damage.
 Fluid-fluid sensitivity.
 Fluid-formation sensitivity.
 Depleted zones.

Formation Damage

Depleted Zones
• Slow drilling rate.

• Lost returns.
• Differential pressure
sticking.
• Reservoir damage.

Skin Damage
Reservoir Filter Cake

Core
Skin Damage Due to
Filter Cake and Mud Solids
10 micron
Effective pore throat
External 10u 1-3 micron
Filtrate Seal solids
10 micron pore
Internal throat
Pluggin 1 micron &
g smaller solids
Ineffective 10 micron pore

External throat
Seal for 10 micron
Small solids & some
Fines & smaller solids
Filtrate
Skin Damage
Avoidance Techniques
•UB Drilling
•Non-Invasive Mud Cake
•Ultra Clean Drill-in Fluid

Fluid
Sensitivity
1. Fluid-Formation Reaction (Shale Instability)
Instability
2.
Fluid-Fluid Reaction
(Emulsions)
Mechanism for Formation
Blocking
(Bennion, 1995)
Non
Wetting
Phase
Fines
Wetting
Phase
Case 1
Non-Wetting Non
phase in Wetting
motion- Phase
minimal fines
migration
Case 2
Wetting phase
in motion -
potential for fines Non
migration Wettin
g

Formation
Damage - Fractured Formations
Fracture Plugging

Mechanism for Formation
Blocking
(Bennion, 1995)
Fractured Formations
100 micron fracture
10 micron solids
High losses,
minimal damage
100 micron fracture

Sealed Fracture, depth 10-100 micron solids
of invasion dependent
on solids size
distribution and
overbalanced
100 micron fracture

Poor Seal, potential 10-500 micron solids
continued leak-off of
filtrate and small solids

UB Drilling in Fractured
Reservoirs
No Invasion of
“Top” Fractures
While Underbalanced
Produced Fluid
1 Drilling Fluid 2
Fluid Gravity
Balance Displacement
or Micro
Fracture

Potential Formation Damage
Mechanism in Different Sand Reservoir
Types
Incompatibility
Incompatibility
Overbalanced
Effect of High
Adsorption
Biological
Migration
Trapping
Invasion
Chemical
Damage
Fluid-Fluid
Rock-Fluid
Solids
Phase
Fines
Damage
Mechanism
Homogenous
Sand-Clean
Homogenous
Sand-Dirty
Laminated
Sand-Clean
Laminated
Sand-Dirty
Unconsolidated
Sand
Fractured Sand
Perm-Matrix
Probable Possible
Unlikely Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering
Potential Formation Damage
Mechanism in Different Sand Reservoir
Types
Incompatibility
Incompatibility
Overbalanced
Effect of High
Adsorption
Fluid-Fluid
Rock-Fluid
Migration
Biological
Trapping
Invasion
Chemical
Damage
Solids
Phase
Fines
Damage
Mechanism
Fractured Sand
Low Perm Matrix
Homogenous
Carbonate
Fractured Carbonate
Impermeable Matrix
Fractured Carbonate
Permeable Matrix
Vugular
Carbonate
Probable Possible
Unlikely
Candidate Selection
Limitations

UB Limits
• UB is not an
enhancement technique.
• Mud column pressure is
not a seal against:
 Well kick.
 Broken or fractured
formation.
 Weak formations.
 Heaving shale.

Underbalanced
Problem
ROTATING BOPs
COMPRESSOR / N2
SOLID/LIQUID/GAS
COST
SEPARATION
CORROSION
HYDRAULIC CALCULATIONS
VIBRATIONS
CUTTINGS LIFTING
FLUID INFLUX
FIRE/ UNDERBALANCED
EXPLOSION COMPLETION
HIGH TORQUE/ S
DRAG
BOREHOLE
STABILITY
MWD TRANSMISSION
If a reservoir will
not produce
without fracturing
it is probably a
poor UB prospect.

Warning
A poor prospect can

prove failure. You must
gamble with a well that
can succeed.

The “Absolute” Rule for
UB Operations
…IT’S NOT WHAT YOU KNOW
THAT HURTS YOU.
…IT’S WHAT YOU KNOW THAT’S
NOT TRUE!

The No-Go Screen
If the following occurs within the
open hole section:
DON’T DRILL UNDERBALANCED
1. Geopressured shales
2. Steeply dipping fractured
formations
3. Thick broken coals
4. What about sands? - not
sandstone
Primary Cause of Well
Bore Collapse
• NATURAL CAUSES
Fractured or Faulted Zones
High Pore Pressure
(Geopressure)
Weak, Low Strength Rocks
High in Situ Stresses

Primary Causes of Well
Bore Collapse
 INDUCED
PROBLEMS
 Pressure Surges
 Wetted Shales

Compressive Failure
Models
Naturally fractured rock
Compressive
Yielding and
collapse
Friable Sandstone
Formation Breakdown
and Lost Circulation
Brittle Shales
Induced hydraulic
Salt fracture
Convergence
Wellbore
Swelling Shales Pressure
Natural or
Induced fractures

WELLSTAB - MEI Wellbore Stability Model
Mechanical/Chemical Stability Design
Multi-Depth Analysis
Microsoft Office Report

END

Under-Balanced Drilling Fluids

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Under-Balanced Drilling Fluids

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Candidate

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Other benefits are not reasons.

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Improve the rate of

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

• 1938 - California Gas Drilling.

Lost Circulation. Drilling Rate

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

• Air and gas

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

First Widespread use came with

• Increase drilling rate.

• Air and gas

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

• Air and gas

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

• Increase drilling rate.

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

• Air and gas

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Conventional Mud Used in an

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

• All have problems.

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

• New processes involve

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

• Reduce the mud

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE (psi)

-500 0 +500 +1000

DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE (psi)

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

• Slow drilling rate.

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Reservoir Filter Cake

Ineffective 10 micron pore

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

100 micron fracture

100 micron fracture

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering