The Role of Potassium in Lime Muds

Walker, T.O.; Dearing, H.L.; Simpson, Jay P.

doi:10.2118/13161-ms

Cited by 13 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…The KLM system had been run successfully in other areas with BHT's exceeding 300°F [149 o C]. 5,6,8 During drilling in the Navarin basin, BHT's reached 280°F [138°C]. No mud-system stability problems were encountered during drilling at these temperatures.…”

Section: Navarin Basin Klm Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of Potassium/Lime Drilling-Fluid System in Navarin Basin Drilling

Holt¹,

Brett²,

Johnson³

et al. 1987

SPE Drilling Engineering

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This paper presents a case history of Amoco Production Co.'s use of potassium-lime mud (KLM) for drilling a series of wells in the Navarin basin. The remote location, logistical concerns, environmental regulations, and the high cost of the operation mandated that the project be carefully planned. Planning, however, was hampered because the nearest offset to any of the wells was more than 100 miles [160 km] away. This paper describes the planning, implementation, and results of the mud system used to drill the wells. It includes a matrix of tests used to define further the nature of KLM, presents the methods used to run the system while the wells were drilled, and describes the results of using the mud in the basin. Navarin basin experience suggested that KLM should be considered when clay inhibition is needed and moderate bottomhole temperatures (BHT's) are expected.

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Section: Navarin Basin Klm Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of Potassium/Lime Drilling-Fluid System in Navarin Basin Drilling

Holt¹,

Brett²,

Johnson³

et al. 1987

SPE Drilling Engineering

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“…Figure 1 shows the stress distribution around a wellbore governed by the in-situ stress, and the hydraulic effects can be expressed by the following expressions (Walker et al 1984): …”

Section: Model Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Subsurface formations are exposed to three principal compressive stresses: overburden ( v ) and two horizontal stresses ( H and h ) (Walker et al 1984). Before a well is drilled, an equilibrium stress state exists.…”

Section: Well Trajectory Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to density and salinity, the selection of salt type is also critical to wellbore stability. Despite the successful use of potassium drilling fluids to improve wellbore stability (Clark et al 1976, Walker et al 1984, Pruett 1987, Kjosnes 2003, there exist cases where potassium drilling fluids did not improve wellbore stability (Ramirez et al 2005). This means there is no single salt would maintain wellbore stability for all types of shale.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Maintaining the stability of deviated and horizontal wells: Effects of mechanical, chemical and thermal phenomena on well designs

Al-Bazali

Zhang

Chenevert

et al. 2008

Geomechanics and Geoengineering

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Wellbore instability, particularly in shale formations, is regarded as a major challenge in drilling operations. Many factors, such as rock properties, in-situ stresses, chemical interactions between shale and drilling fluids, and thermal effects, should be considered in well trajectory designs and drilling fluid formulations in order to mitigate wellbore instability-related problems. A comprehensive study of wellbore stability in shale formations that takes into account the three-dimensional earth stresses around the wellbore as well as chemical and thermal effects is presented in this work. The effects of borehole configuration (e.g. inclination and azimuth), rock properties (e.g. strength, Young's modulus, membrane efficiency and permeability), temperature and drilling fluid properties (e.g. mud density and chemical concentrations) on wellbore stability in shale formations have been investigated. Results from this study indicate that for low-permeability shales, chemical interactions between the shale and water-based fluids play an important role. Not only is the activity of the water important but the diffusion of ions is also a significant factor for saline fluids. The cooling of drilling fluids is found to be beneficial in preventing compressive failure. However, decreasing the mud temperature can be detrimental since it reduces the fracturing pressure of the formation, which can result in lost-circulation problems. The magnitude of thermal effects depends on shale properties, earth stresses and wellbore orientation and deviation. Conditions are identified when chemical and thermal effects play a significant role in determining the mud-weight window when designing drilling programmes for horizontal and deviated wells. The results presented in this paper will help in reducing the risks associated with wellbore instability and thereby lowering the overall non-productive times and drilling costs.

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“…Although the success of using potassium drilling fluids to improve wellbore stability is well-documented [18][19][20][21] , there still exits a number of unsuccessful cases [22] . This suggests no single salt can maintain wellbore stability for all types of shale.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maintaining the Stability of Deviated and Horizontal Wells: Effects of Mechanical, Chemical and Thermal Phenomena on Well Designs

Zhang¹,

Yu²,

Al-Bazali³

et al. 2006

Proceedings of International Oil &Amp; Gas Conference and Exhibition in China

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TX 75083-3836, U.S.A., fax 01-972-952-9435. AbstractWellbore instability, particularly in shale formations, is regarded as a major challenge in drilling operations. Many factors, such as rock properties, in-situ stresses, chemical interactions between shale and drilling fluids, and thermal effects, should be considered in well trajectory designs and drilling fluid formulations in order to mitigate wellbore instability related problems.A comprehensive study of wellbore stability in shale formations that takes into account the 3-dimensional earth stresses around the wellbore as well as chemical and thermal effects is presented in this work. The effects of borehole configuration (e.g. inclination and azimuth), rock properties (e.g. strength, Young's modulus, membrane efficiency and permeability), temperature, and drilling fluid properties (e.g. mud density and chemical concentrations) on wellbore stability in shale formations have been investigated.Results from this study indicate that for low permeability shales, chemical interactions between the shale and waterbased fluids play an important role. Not only is the activity of the water important but the diffusion of ions is also a significant factor for saline fluids. Cooling drilling fluids is found to be beneficial in preventing compressive failure. However, decreasing the mud temperature can be detrimental since it reduces the fracturing pressure of the formation, which can result in lost circulation problems. The magnitude of thermal effects depends on shale properties, earth stresses and wellbore orientation and deviation.Conditions are identified when chemical and thermal effects play a significant role in determining the mud-weightwindow when designing drilling programs for horizontal and deviated wells. The results presented in this paper will help in reducing the risks associated with wellbore instability and thereby lowering the overall non-productive times and drilling costs.

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The Role of Potassium in Lime Muds

Cited by 13 publications

References 3 publications

Use of Potassium/Lime Drilling-Fluid System in Navarin Basin Drilling

Use of Potassium/Lime Drilling-Fluid System in Navarin Basin Drilling

Maintaining the stability of deviated and horizontal wells: Effects of mechanical, chemical and thermal phenomena on well designs

Maintaining the Stability of Deviated and Horizontal Wells: Effects of Mechanical, Chemical and Thermal Phenomena on Well Designs

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