Wired drill pipe (WDP) telemetry has been used in over 100 wells worldwide to create a drillstring network that provides high bandwidth communications between tools deployed in the wellbore and the surface. When applied to managed pressure drilling (MPD) and underbalanced operations (UBO), wired drill pipe offers substantial benefits. Because of its independence from fluid flow, it gives visibility to downhole conditions where never before possible, including environments where traditional telemetry methods are not supported, and time intervals where pumps are not operating. Similarly, memory-quality data can be provided real-time from measurement tools located in the bottom hole assembly (BHA) as well as at points along the drillstring. Specific case studies and lessons learned from using wired drill pipe in the underbalanced and managed pressure drilling environments are summarized, as are recent enhancements to the wired drill pipe system, and their impact on extending the operating envelope and reliability of wired drill pipe. Methods for leveraging the increased quantity and quality of real-time data to improve the drilling process are important if the highest value is to be obtained from high-speed telemetry technology. To this end a novel automated borehole pressure (BHP) control system with predictive technology has been designed. A preliminary UBO case study is used to assess the performance of this controller during different drilling events, including a drill pipe connection procedure and an unexpected gas influx. While making a connection, the controller maintains tight pressure control and may enable efficiency improvements by allowing faster trip speeds, when offered as part of an automation system. For the gas influx case, the ability of the controller to properly control the influx is shown to be dependent on low latency communications, such as that provided by WDP. This controller offers a substantial decrease in time required to control influx events as compared to manual methods and earlier controllers. A nonlinear model predictive controller and a nonlinear estimator are used in the automation study. Information available from multiple sensors arrayed in a WDP system was found to be very useful in model parameter estimation, including friction factor and annular fluid density. Proper application of WDP technology to challenges experienced in the UBO/MPD environment can yield more cost effective and successful deployment of these methods, further improving the value UBO/MPD technology can provide. Future work will included continued development of the control system to more fully capture the value of wired pipe technology.
Drill pipe capable of transmitting high-bandwidth data from downhole sensors and surface control signals back to those sensors has been developed and successfully tested. The system incorporates a high-speed data cable that runs the length of each joint and downhole tool. The cable terminates at induction coils that are installed in protecting grooves machined in the secondary torque shoulders of doubleshoulder tool joints at each end of the pipe. The coils are recessed in ferrite troughs that focus the magnetic field. The system is virtually transparent to standard rig procedures and offers robust, reliable operation.The paper provides background data on prior work relating to telemetry drill pipe and contrasts the results of these efforts with the new system. The new system has successfully demonstrated data transmission rates of up to 2,000,000 bits/sec. Current mud pulse telemetry is limited to 8 to 10 bits/sec. Electromagnetic technology provides data rates of up to 100 bits/sec, but suffers from hole depth and formation related electric impedance limitations. Full realization of system benefits requires further development of additional drill stem components with highspeed telemetry capabilities including HWDP, collars, jars and top drive subs. A top drive sub that incorporates the telemetry design has been successfully manufactured and tested and is described in the paper. Development efforts relating to other drill stem components are also detailed. The system has been tested in a laboratory environment and in test wells. Results of these tests along with plans for field-testing in actual drilling environments are presented.Telemetry drill pipe can improve well and field productivity by providing more complete, real-time logging information and reduce drilling time and costs and enhance well control by providing real-time downhole drilling data and early kick detection.
A real-time, bi-directional, drill string telemetry network has been proven reliable over the course of seventeen field trial wells, including seven wells within the U.S. The network has demonstrated simultaneous upward and downward data rates of up to 57,000 bits per second, with reliability comparable to current mud pulse telemetry technology. The network utilizes unique inductive coupling coils and armored coaxial data cables embedded within premium double-shouldered drilling tubulars to provide high bandwidth telemetry without impacting drilling operations. U.S. field trials have included multiple vertical and directional gas wells drilled to depths exceeding 14,000 feet in the Arkoma region of southeastern Oklahoma. The drilling environment has involved extremely harsh vibrational conditions, including air hammer drilling and multiple jarring events. During these trials, a leading oilfield service company has deployed a number of different downhole measurement-while -drilling (MWD) tools interfaced directly to the drill string telemetry network. This interface allows real-time surface control and interrogation of the downhole tools and transmission of high-density, low-latency drilling dynamics, formation evaluation and directional MWD data at previously impossible speeds. In a recent well, the operator elected to eliminate their usual mud pulse transmission tool, utilizing the telemetry drill string network and compatible MWD tools as the primary downhole data source. This paper builds on prior publications and provides details of the latest field trials, including, for the first time, information on the development and performance of network enabled MWD tools. A summary of the mechanical and electrical design considerations associated with tool conversion is offered. Observations regarding mud-pulse and drill string telemetry performance, including operational differences, rig time impact, added value and deployment issues are provided. Finally, this paper provides details, and value propositions, of downhole measurement and drilling applications that are enabled by the availability of a reliable telemetry drill string network. Introduction Seven years of engineering and development, funded in part by the U.S. Department of Energy, has produced the IntelliServ® network, a high-speed, bi-directional drill string telemetry system.[1] This network makes it possible to obtain large volumes of data from downhole tools and other measurement nodes along the drill string instantaneously - greatly expanding the quantity and quality of information available in ‘real-time’. The system's bi-directional architecture allows high-speed transmission of downhole data to the surface and commands from the surface to downhole devices simultaneously. Through a physical and electrical interface to the telemetry drill string, existing MWD/LWD/RSS tools can be made fully compatible with the network, allowing high band-width communication between all connected tools and a surface acquisition/control system. Drill String Network Technology Overview The drill string telemetry network comprises conventional drilling tubulars modified to incorporate a high speed, low loss data cable running the length of each joint. The cable terminates at unique, inductive coils that are installed in the pin nose and corresponding box shoulder of every connection and transmit data across each tool joint interface. Second-generation, double-shoulder connection configurations provide an ideal location for coil placement, with each coil installed in a protective groove in the secondary torque shoulder. Figure 1 illustrates a coil installed in the pin end of a drill pipe joint.
Summary Low-latency feedback, high bandwidth, and improved sensor placement are key benefits provided by wired-drillpipe (WDP) technology. Improved WDP reliability, based on more than 100 wells of field experience, enables more-aggressive application of the technology, including closed-loop control of drilling processes. Often, there is a requirement to consider multiple variables when attempting to control complex processes, such as drilling in deepwater wells. Such is the case when dynamically optimizing rate of penetration (ROP) in a pressure-critical wellbore environment. Formerly, ROP and bottomhole pressure (BHP) have been considered separate optimization and automation tasks, respectively. This study combines ROP and BHP into a single comprehensive controller for a managed-pressure-drilling (MPD) application. The controller adjusts mud-pump flow rate, choke-valve position, drillstring-rotation rate, and weight on bit simultaneously and with coordinated actions. The automated operations are guided by an objective function that includes factors relevant to both BHP stabilization and ROP maximization. A preliminary MPD case study is used to assess the performance during different drilling events, including transition into varying formations, causing an unexpected gas influx. For the unwanted-gas-influx case, the controller better stabilizes the pressure when there are low-latency communications by simultaneously adjusting ROP. With WDP and the optimizing controller, there is substantial decrease in time required to control influx events compared with earlier controllers or manual methods. The high-speed data availability affects both the pressure-control reaction time and the resulting severity of the kick. When encountering different formations, there is also noticeable benefit by allowing pressure to fluctuate within an acceptable range to optimize ROP. Combining ROP control and BHP control minimizes risk, decreases drilling costs, and reduces operator workload. Improvements in drilling performance include higher ROP, lower risk of uncontrolled kick events, and more-uniform cuttings loading. Another benefit of this combined ROP/BHP controller is that the reaction to gas influx is made more consistent and predictable relative to manual operations, reducing the demand for time-consuming remedial efforts.
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