Browsing by Subject "well control"
Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item A Robust Four-Fluid Transient Flow Simulator as an Analysis and Decision Making Tool for Dynamic Kill Operation(2013-04-24) Haghshenas, ArashThe worst scenario of drilling operation is blowout which is uncontrolled flow of formation fluid into the wellbore. Blowouts result in environmental damage with potential risk of injuries and fatalities. Although not all blowouts result in disaster, outcomes of blowouts are unknown and should be studied before starting an operation. Plans should be available to prevent blowouts or provide safe and secure ways of controlling the well before the drilling operation starts. The plan should include procedures in case of any blowout incident as a proactive measure. A few commercial softwares are available in the industry for dynamic kill and transient modeling. All models are proprietary and very complex which reduces the flexibility of the program for specific cases. The purpose of this study is to develop a pseudo transient hydraulic simulator for dynamic kill operations. The idea and concept is to consider the flow of each phase as a single phase flow. The summation of hydrostatic and frictional pressure of each phase determines the bottomhole pressure during the dynamic kill operation. The simulator should be versatile and capable of handling special cases that may encounter during blowouts. Some of the main features of the proposed dynamic kill simulator include; quick and robust simulation, fluid properties are corrected for pressure and temperature, sensitivity analysis can be performed through slide bars, and capable of handling variety of wellbore trajectories. The results from the proposed simulator were compared to the result of commercial software, OLGA ABC. The results were in agreement with each other. It is recommended to apply the simulator for operations with required kill fluid volumes of one to two wellbore volumes.Item Development and assessment of electronic manual for well control and blowout containment(Texas A&M University, 2005-11-01) Grottheim, Odd EirikDEA ?? 63, Floating Vessel Blowout Control is a blowout containment study which was completed in 1990, and it did not include discussions about operations in the water depths we currently operate in. As offshore drilling is continuously moving into deeper and deeper waters, a need to further investigate well control and blowout containment in ultradeep water has arisen. This project describes the development and assessment of an electronic cross-reference tool for well control and blowout containment, with added focus on ultradeep water operations. The approach of this manual is fully electronic, thus being able to serve the needs of the engineer/driller with greater ease in both pre-planning and in a stressful onthe- job setting. The cross-reference is a manual for the state of the art in well control and blowout containment methodology. It provides easy-to-use topical organization by categories and subcategories, and aims at providing clear links between symptoms, causes, and solutions. Clear explanations to complicated issues are provided, and confirmation of applicable blowout intervention procedures, be it conventional or unconventional, are discussed. Human error and equipment failure are the causes of blowouts, and they are bound to happen in an ultradeep water environment. Well control events are harder to detect andhandle in ultradeep water, and quick reaction time is essential. After detection and shutin, the Driller??s method is the preferred circulation method in ultradeep water, due to its responsiveness and simplicity. In case kick handling is unsuccessful, contingency plans should be in place to handle a potential blowout. If a blowout does occur, and the blowing well does not self-kill through bridging, a dynamic kill through relief well intervention is likely to be necessary, as underwater intervention is difficult in ultradeep water. With new ultradeep water drilling technologies providing potential for increased performance, alternative well control methods might be necessary. Along with these new technologies follow new unfamiliar procedures, and proper education and training is essential.Item Ultrapdeep water blowouts: COMASim dynamic kill simulator validation and best practices recommendations(Texas A&M University, 2005-02-17) Noynaert, Samuel F.The petroleum industry is in a constant state of change. Few industries have advanced as far technologically as the petroleum industry has in its relatively brief existence. The produced products in the oil and gas industry are finite. As such, the easier to find and produce hydrocarbons are exploited first. This forces the industry to enter new areas and environments to continue supplying the world's hydrocarbons. Many of these new frontiers are in what is considered ultradeep waters, 5000 feet or more of water. While all areas of the oil and gas industry have advanced their ultradeep water technology, one area has had to remain at the forefront: drilling. Unfortunately, while drilling as a whole may be advancing to keep up with these environments, some segments lag behind. Blowout control is one of these areas developed as an afterthought. This lax attitude towards blowouts does not mean they are not a major concern. A blowout can mean injury or loss of life for rig personnel, as well as large economic losses, environmental damage and damage to the oil or gas reservoir itself. Obviously, up-to-date technology and techniques for the prevention and control of ultradeep water blowouts would be an invaluable part of any oil and gas company's exploration planning and technology suite. To further the development of blowout prevention and control, COMASim Cherokee Offshore, MMS, Texas A&M Simulator) was developed. COMASim simulates the planning and execution of a dynamic kill delivered to a blowout. Through a series of over 800 simulation runs, we were able to find several key trends in both the initial conditions as well as the kill requirements. The final phase of this study included a brief review of current industry deepwater well control best practices and how the COMASim results fit in with them. Overall, this study resulted in a better understanding of ultradeep water blowouts and what takes to control them dynamically. In addition to this understanding of blowouts, COMASim's strengths and weaknesses have now been exposed in order to further develop this simulator for industry use.Item Well control procedures for extended reach wells(Texas A&M University, 2004-09-30) Gjorv, BjornThe limits of directional drilling continue to be pushed back as horizontal or near-horizontal reservoir sections are being drilled, cased, cemented and completed to tap reserves at extreme distances. Continuous development of new technology and adopting a technical-limit approach to performance delivery are key elements for the success and further development of extended-reach drilling projects. For this study a two-phase well control simulator was used to evaluate different kick scenarios that are likely to occur in extended-reach wells. An extensive simulation study covering a vide range of variables has been performed. Based on this investigation together with a literature review, well-control procedures have been developed for extended-reach wells. The most important procedures are as follows: Perform a "hard" shut-in when a kick is detected and confirmed. Record the pressures and pit gain, and start to circulate immediately using the Driller's Method. Start circulating with a high kill rate to remove the gas from the horizontal section. Slow down the kill circulation rate to 1/2 to 1/3 of normal drilling rate when the choke pressure starts to increase rapidly. The simulator has been used to validate the procedures.