Effect of Fluid Temperature on Rock Failure in Borehole Drilling
Publication: Journal of Engineering Mechanics
Volume 140, Issue 1
Abstract
Drilling fluids injected into geothermal, oil, and gas borehole create a temperature gradient in rock near the bottom hole. This temperature gradient is more pronounced in underbalanced drilling (UBD) with gaseous fluids because of the Joule–Thomason cooling effect at the drill bit. The effect of the temperature gradient on rock failure was investigated experimentally and interpreted by an analytical model in this study. The result indicates that the temperature gradient can significantly promote rock failure during drilling. The rate of penetration (ROP) increased by 22.4% on average as the temperature differential increased from 30 to 180°C in the Chagan Sandstone from the Tamuchage Basin, Mongolia. This explains high ROP, hole enlargement, and hole deviation in gas UBD operations. The analytical model developed in this work can be used for optimizing drill bit and fluid injection rate in geothermal, oil, and gas well drilling.
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Acknowledgments
This research was also supported in part by the China National Natural Science Foundation Founding No. 51274220, No. 51221003, and No. 51134004. The authors are grateful to Chevron USA for providing the Louisiana Board of Regents Chevron I and II Professorships in Petroleum Engineering throughout this study.
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Published In
Journal of Engineering Mechanics
Volume 140 • Issue 1 • January 2014
Pages: 82 - 90
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© 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 2, 2012
Accepted: Mar 29, 2013
Published online: Apr 3, 2013
Published in print: Jan 1, 2014
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