LAPSE:2023.21901
Published Article
LAPSE:2023.21901
The Rule of Carrying Cuttings in Horizontal Well Drilling of Marine Natural Gas Hydrate
March 23, 2023
Abstract
Horizontal well drilling is a highly effective way to develop marine gas hydrate. During the drilling of horizontal wells in the marine gas hydrate layer, hydrate particles and cutting particles will migrate with the drilling fluid in the horizontal annulus. The gravity of cuttings is easy to deposit in the horizontal section, leading to the accumulation of cuttings. Then, a cuttings bed will be formed, which is not beneficial to bring up cuttings and results in the decrease of wellbore purification ability. Then the extended capability of the horizontal well will be restricted and the friction torque of the drilling tool will increase, which may cause blockage of the wellbore in severe cases. Therefore, this paper establishes geometric models of different hole enlargement ways: right-angle expansion, 45-degree angle expansion, and arc expanding. The critical velocity of carrying rock plates are obtained by EDEM and FLUENT coupling simulation in different hydrate abundance, different hydrate-cuttings particle sizes and different drilling fluid density. Then, the effects of hole enlargement way, particle size, hydrate abundance and drilling fluid density on rock carrying capacity are analyzed by utilizing an orthogonal test method. Simulation results show that: the critical flow velocity required for carrying cuttings increases with the increase of the particle size of the hydrate-cuttings particle when the hydrate abundance is constant. The critical flow velocity decreases with the increase of drilling fluid density, the critical flow velocity carrying cuttings decreases with the increase of hydrate abundance when the density of the drilling fluid is constant. Orthogonal test method was used to evaluate the influence of various factors on rock carrying capacity: hydrate-cuttings particle size > hole enlargement way > hydrate abundance > drilling fluid density. This study provides an early technical support for the construction parameter optimization and well safety control of horizontal well exploitation models in a marine natural gas hydrate reservoir.
Horizontal well drilling is a highly effective way to develop marine gas hydrate. During the drilling of horizontal wells in the marine gas hydrate layer, hydrate particles and cutting particles will migrate with the drilling fluid in the horizontal annulus. The gravity of cuttings is easy to deposit in the horizontal section, leading to the accumulation of cuttings. Then, a cuttings bed will be formed, which is not beneficial to bring up cuttings and results in the decrease of wellbore purification ability. Then the extended capability of the horizontal well will be restricted and the friction torque of the drilling tool will increase, which may cause blockage of the wellbore in severe cases. Therefore, this paper establishes geometric models of different hole enlargement ways: right-angle expansion, 45-degree angle expansion, and arc expanding. The critical velocity of carrying rock plates are obtained by EDEM and FLUENT coupling simulation in different hydrate abundance, different hydrate-cuttings particle sizes and different drilling fluid density. Then, the effects of hole enlargement way, particle size, hydrate abundance and drilling fluid density on rock carrying capacity are analyzed by utilizing an orthogonal test method. Simulation results show that: the critical flow velocity required for carrying cuttings increases with the increase of the particle size of the hydrate-cuttings particle when the hydrate abundance is constant. The critical flow velocity decreases with the increase of drilling fluid density, the critical flow velocity carrying cuttings decreases with the increase of hydrate abundance when the density of the drilling fluid is constant. Orthogonal test method was used to evaluate the influence of various factors on rock carrying capacity: hydrate-cuttings particle size > hole enlargement way > hydrate abundance > drilling fluid density. This study provides an early technical support for the construction parameter optimization and well safety control of horizontal well exploitation models in a marine natural gas hydrate reservoir.
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Keywords
carrying cuttings capacity, critical flow velocity, horizontal wells, marine natural gas hydrate, orthogonal test method
Subject
Suggested Citation
Wei N, Liu Y, Cui Z, Jiang L, Sun W, Xu H, Wang X, Qiu T. The Rule of Carrying Cuttings in Horizontal Well Drilling of Marine Natural Gas Hydrate. (2023). LAPSE:2023.21901
Author Affiliations
Wei N: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Liu Y: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Cui Z: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Jiang L: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Sun W: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Xu H: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Wang X: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Qiu T: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Liu Y: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Cui Z: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Jiang L: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Sun W: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Xu H: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Wang X: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Qiu T: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, China
Journal Name
Energies
Volume
13
Issue
5
Article Number
E1129
Year
2020
Publication Date
2020-03-03
ISSN
1996-1073
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PII: en13051129, Publication Type: Journal Article
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LAPSE:2023.21901
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https://doi.org/10.3390/en13051129
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