4 1

UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI PETRONAS
PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
LESSON-4
PCB
Internal
4223 DRILLING HYDRAULICS SEMESTER- JANUARY 2017
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
Drilled cuttings have the tendency to fall down (slip) through the fluid
medium at a velocity referred to as the Cuttings slip velocity.
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
In the case of vertical annuli, the slip velocity is only one axial
component of slip velocity,
v s vas
In contrast. when an annulus is inclined at an angle from vertical, there
will be two components for the slip velocity.
vsa vs cos vsr vs sin

where vsa and vsr are the axial and radial components of the average slip
velocity, respectively,
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
Inclination
radial v sr
Angle() component
vsr vs sin
Axial Component Of The
Slip Velocity v sa
vsa vs cos
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
Cuttings Transport in a Vertical Hole

Consider how a vertical hole cleans
1.Fluid is moving upwards

(100 units / min) called Annular
Velocity
2.But gravity is pulling downwards

(at 5 units / min) called slip velocity
3.So cutting moves slightly slower

than the fluid
Mud rheology controls efficiency of
this
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
Cuttings Transport in a Horizontal Hole
1. Everything is the same except flow is now horizontal, but gravity is

STILL pulling downwards
2. There is no longer any fluid velocity direction to combat slip velocity
Cutting falls to bottom within 1-2 stands (maximum)
In a laminar flow environment, the mud CANNOT carry the cutting out of the
hole
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
1.In this case, the fluid velocity

is partly acting against gravity
Cuttings Transport
in a Inclined Hole
2.The cuttings still cannot be

carried out of the hole, but will
now travel further than before
Say, 3-4 stands, instead of 1-2
stands for high angle
So, a medium angle well is a more
efficient conveyor belt" than a
high angle hole
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
Factors affecting cuttings transport in directional well

drilling
Effect of mud rheology:
Mud rheology has slight to no effect on the transport of drilled cuttings
at an annular fluid velocity greater than 120 ft/min, regardless of the
wellbore angle of inclination.
At high angles from vertical > 35clear water drilling is slightly more
effective in hole cleaning as compared to a mud having a ratio of YP to PV
of 7/7 or greater.
Effect of mud weight :
An increase in mud weight slightly enhances cuttings transport as long as
there is not an accompanying increase in viscosity. The effect that mud
weight has on hole cleaning is more pronounced for high angle-wells.
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
Eccentricity
Eccentricity, When pipe is not
precisely centered (or concentric,
as shown to the left) in the
wellbore, it may be described as
partially eccentric or fully eccentric
if in contact with the wellbore wall.
Eccentricity : Eccentricity has more
effect if the fluid is viscous. As
eccentricity goes from positive
(pipe is on the lower side of the
wellbore) to negative (pipe is on
the higher side of the wellbore),
the requirement of hydraulics for
hole cleaning decreases.
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
Cuttings Size :
For high angle wellbores, larger sized cuttings are harder to transport
due to the higher lift force requirements.
At low angles of inclination, medium-sized cuttings are easier to
transport than the smallest or the largest cuttings
Rate of Penetration :
As ROP increases, the hydraulic requirement for effective cuttings
transport increases. Experiences showed that, the relation between the
increase in ROP and required critical transport fluid velocity is linear
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
Pipe Rotation :
In a vertical well, the impact that drill pipe rotation has on
hole cleaning is relatively small
For inclined wells, rotating the drill pipe can dramatically
increase the rate at which cuttings are removed from high-
angle and horizontal wells.
The mechanism for this increase is not certain but may be
related to the redistribution of flow in an eccentric annulus,
together with mechanical agitation of the cuttings bed
created by the rotating drill pipe
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR
The pipe movement itself

doesnt clean the hole
Pipe Rotation
Rotation is the key factor in hole

cleaning efficiency for high angle
holes
Active flow area is at top of hole
Pipe and cuttings lay along bottom
of hole
Mechanical agitation is required to
get cuttings into the fluid flow
Required rotary speed is dependent
upon hole size, ROP
PCB
Internal
BY . ASIF ZAMIR

4 1

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

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

4 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI PETRONAS

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

vsa vs cos vsr vs sin

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Cuttings Transport in a Vertical Hole

1.Fluid is moving upwards

2.But gravity is pulling downwards

3.So cutting moves slightly slower

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Cuttings Transport in a Horizontal Hole

1. Everything is the same except flow is now horizontal, but gravity is

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

1.In this case, the fluid velocity

2.The cuttings still cannot be

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Factors affecting cuttings transport in directional well

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

The pipe movement itself

Rotation is the key factor in hole

You might also like