Analysis of the voltage drop of a drilling rig connected to a local energy network

Abstract

The article discusses and analyzes the operation of an autonomous electrical complex of a drilling rig in an emergency mode, namely when the supply voltage drops. The concept of voltage drop is also described, a comparative characteristic of technical devices and methods of overcoming voltage drops, indicating the disadvantages and advantages, is given. Modeling of an autonomous electrical complex of a drilling rig is performed in the MATLAB Simulink software package with a description of the parameters of the main elements. The voltage drop is achieved by a sharp increase in the load power consumption, which in reality is achieved by the drilling rig head getting stuck in the hard layers of the earth’s surface. As a result, there are graphs of changes in the voltage value at the terminals of the electric motor of the drilling rig, depending on the magnitude of the load. Based on these graphs, we can conclude that with an increase in load, the autonomous system does not have its own reserves and power reserves (and according to regulatory documents, this margin is 20%) in order to overcome the voltage drop and return it to acceptable values for further uninterrupted operation. As a conclusion, we can say that today the only optimal option in terms of material costs and technical features is to connect a backup diesel generator connected in parallel to the main one and having a comparative power.

Energy storage systems for drilling rigs

“…An energy source permanently integrated into the rig circuit will allow drilling contractors to compensate for voltage dips and surges, which will reduce emergency shutdowns and downtime of drilling equipment (Chervonchenko and Frolov 2020), minimize drilling hazards, and improve the DPS operation stability.…”