Lecture 5

Lessons Learned
Minimizing Borehole Risks
The first and the most important job of Geomechanic Engineer is to
drill the well safely and economically. So all the studies of the wells
before drilling, while drilling and post drilling are to reduce and
mitigate the borehole problems. To do that, it needs the following:
Sufficient data.
Deep study.
Good monitoring.
Advanced software.
Lesson learned.
Principles of borehole instability
Before drilling, the rock strength at some depth is in equilibrium
with the in-situ rock stresses (effective overburden stress, effective
horizontal confining stresses). While a hole is being drilled,
however, the balance between the rock strength and the in-situ
stresses is disturbed. In addition, foreign fluids are introduced, and
an interaction process begins between the formation and borehole
fluids. The result is a potential hole-instability problem. Although a
vast amount of research has resulted in many borehole-stability
simulation models, all share the same shortcoming of uncertainty
in the input data needed to run the analysis. Such data include:
• Pore pressure.

• In-situ stresses.

• Rock mechanical properties.

• Formation and drilling-fluids chemistry.

 Pore pressure
Basic pore pressure estimations are based on velocity data using the
effective stress model evaluation principles and/or petrophysical data
analysis with the assumption that they are related also to effective
stress, as a consequence of mechanical compaction controlled by
vertical pressure and pressure bleed off through burial history. The
petrophysical methods do not provide complete guidance based on
effective stress model if mechanical under-compaction is not the
main mechanism of abnormal pressure generation in the geological
history of the basin in consideration. Estimations of pore pressure
have been generated for each offset well with petrophysical methods
and constrained with mud weight used to drill the well, with the
assumption that fluid influx was prevented, and fluid influx is
prevented when the borehole pressure equates the pore pressure.
Kick indicators
The alertness in determining early possible kick indicators in well
control is of the utmost importance to prevent a well control
incident. Careful observance and positive reaction to these signs
will keep the well under control and prevent the occurrence of a
well control situation. The various signs that have been recorded
as early warning indicators are not consistent in all situations. The
signs however may have to be used collectively as one indicator
may not accurately provide the warning of getting into an
underbalanced situation. Even though the series of signs may
change between wells, early warning indications can be found
from the following list.
Primary Signs
• Flow back increase
• Pit volume increase
• Flowing well with pumps off
• Improper hole fill-up on trips

Secondary signs
• Increase in drilling rate of penetration.

• Increase torque and drag.

• Decrease in shale density.

Mud property changes.

• Increase in cutting size and shape.

• Increase in trip, connection and/or background gas.

• Increase in the temperature of the return drilling mud

• Pump pressure decrease and pump stroke increase

• String weight change

i
Connection gas chart
How to control pore pressure
In order to control pore pressure, mud weight pressure should be
raised over it with sufficient over balance.
Borehole instability
Borehole instability is the undesirable condition of an open hole
interval that does not maintain its gauge size and shape and/or its
structural integrity.
The causes of borehole instability can be grouped into the following
categories:
1. Mechanical failure caused by in-situ stresses
2. Erosion caused by fluid circulation
Chemical caused by interaction of borehole fluid with the formation
Types and associated problems of borehole instability
1. Hole closure or narrowing
2. Hole enlargement or washouts
3. Fracturing
4. Collapse
1-Hole closure is a narrowing time-dependent process of borehole
instability. It sometimes is referred to as creep under the
overburden pressure, and it generally occurs in plastic-flowing
shale and salt sections. Problems associated with hole closure are:
• Increase in torque and drag
• Increase in potential pipe sticking.
• Increase in the difficulty of casings landing
2-Hole enlargements are commonly called washouts because the hole
becomes undesirably larger than intended. Hole enlargements are
generally caused by:
• Hydraulic erosion
• Mechanical abrasion caused by drill string.
• Inherently sloughing shale.
The problems associated with hole enlargement are:
• Increase in cementing difficulty.
• Increase in potential hole deviation.
• Increase in hydraulic requirements for effective hole cleaning.
• Increase in potential problems during logging operations.
3-Fracturing occurs when the wellbore drilling-fluid pressure
exceeds the formation-fracture pressure. The associated problems
are lost circulation and possible kick occurrence.

4-Borehole collapse occurs when the drilling-fluid pressure is too low

to maintain the structural integrity of the drilled hole. The associated
problems are pipe sticking and possible loss of well.
Importance of borehole instability
Borehole instability during the drilling, logging, completion and
production of a well has become an important concern for many
operators planning horizontal and deviated wells. The use of
traditional, conservative completion techniques for vertical wells is
being challenged as operators attempt to reduce well costs and still
derive the improved productivity and reservoir access offered by
these wells.
Recent technical innovations include the use of underbalanced
drilling techniques, slim hole completions, re-entry wells with open
hole build sections, and multiple laterals from a single vertical or
horizontal wellbore. In applying these techniques, there are often
issues posed during the well planning stage where the risk of hole
collapse in the short or long term must be addressed. In many cases,
the selection of an optimal strategy to prevent or mitigate the
borehole collapse might compromise one or more of the following
other elements of the overall well design:
An optimal strategy to mitigate the borehole collapse
• The rate of penetration.
• The risk of differential sticking.
• Drill cuttings and mud disposal options.
• Hole cleaning.
• Hole size.
• Consequently the completion and stimulation options available.
• Formation damage risk.
• Stimulation requirements.
• The ability to log the hole.
Stress before drilling the well
Before drilling a well or a bore hole in the earth, the rock is in
equilibrium state which is called initial stress state. In the earth there
are 3 principal stresses that are perpendicular to each other which
are σv vertical principal stress, σh minimum horizontal principal
stress and σH maximum horizontal principal stress. These earth’s
stresses are related to a number of different variables which include
tectonic setting, structure, lithology, depth, pore pressure and
temperature.
 Stress while or after drilling the well
After or while drilling a bore hole in the rocks, it introduces a
disturbance (disequilibrium) in the initial stress field. This
disturbance causes a new set of stresses known as wellbore stresses
that act on the formation at the Well bore wall, there are 3 well bore
stresses, Radial Stress, Tangential Stress and Axial Stress.

The wellbore stresses depend on 2 different things which are the mud
weight used and the magnitude of in situ principal stresses or the far
field stresses (σv , σH and σh).
 Types of Failure due to drilling the well
When drilling the well, the rock failure occur due to 2 different
ways, the first one is due to shear failure (stress) which is caused by
2 perpendicular stresses that are different in magnitude and the
second is Tensile Failure(stress) which is caused by one stress
exceeding the tensile strength of the rock. Both of these failures can
cause wellbore instability. When a rock fails by either shear or
tensile failure, two things can happen depending on the type of
failure (shear/tensile) for example; Loss circulation can occur due
to mud losses in the cracks of the rock in weak rocks and Stuck
pipe which can occur due to pack off due to borehole collapsing or
bore hole cleaning.
Determine the failure due to drilling the well
Compressive and tensile wellbore failure is a direct result of the
stress concentration around the wellbore that results from drilling a
well into an already-stressed rock mass. In a homogeneous and
isotropic elastic material in which one principal stress acts parallel to
the wellbore axis, the effective hoop stress (σθθ) and radial stress
(σrr) at the wall of a cylindrical, vertical wellbore (overburden stress,
Sv is a principal stress acting parallel to the wellbore axis) is given by
the following equation:
σθθ = Shmin + SHmax - 2(SHmax - S hmin) cos2θ - 2P0 - ΔP – σΔT
σrr = ΔP
where θ is an angle measured from the azimuth of the maximum
horizontal stress, SHmax, Shmin is the minimum horizontal stress,
P0 is the pore pressure, ΔP is the difference between the wellbore
pressure (mud weight) and the pore pressure, and σ is ΔT
the
thermal stress induced by the cooling of the wellbore by ΔT.
The effective stress acting parallel to the wellbore axis is:
σzz = SV - 2ν(SHmax - Shmin) cos2θ – P0 – σΔT

where ν is Poisson's ratio.

Minimum and maximum compression stress around
wellbore
At the point of minimum compression around the wellbore (i.e, at θ
= 0, parallel to SHmax), Equation (1) reduces to
σθθmin = 3Shmin - SHmax - 2P0 - ΔP - σΔT
Whereas, at the point of maximum stress concentration around the
wellbore (i.e, at θ = 90°, parallel to Shmin),
σθθmax = 3SHmax - Shmin - 2P0 - ΔP - σΔT
σθθmax - σθθmin = 4 (SHmax- Shmin)
Stresses around borehole
Failure due to Stresses induced to borehole
Stress-induced wellbore breakouts form due to compressive
wellbore failure that occurs within the region of maximum
compressive stress around a wellbore. In a vertical well, the zone of
compressive failure is centred at the azimuth of minimum horizontal
far-field compression, as this is where the compressive hoop stress is
greatest.

• Wellbore breakouts were first identified using 4-arm magnetically -

oriented calliper logs associated with Schlumberger dip meters.
Careful analysis yields reliable stress orientations.
Clear identification of breakouts requires the use of acoustic
televiewer data: UBI, CBIL, CAST.
• 6-arm dip meter data (Baker Hughes and Halliburton) require
especially careful analysis to distinguish breakouts from tool
eccentricity, key seating, etc.
• The calliper data from 4- and 6- arm electrical image data (FMI,
STAR, or EMI) cannot be used to detect small wellbore breakouts
because of the large pad widths of these tools.
• Breakouts can sometimes be seen as out-of-focus zones on the image
data
Analysing 4-Arm Calliper Log
List of image log
Raising Mud Weight Increases Wellbore Stability
Causes of Wellbore Instability
Uncontrollable (Natural) Factors
• Naturally Fractured or Faulted
• Tectonically Stressed Formations
• High In-situ Stresses
• Mobile Formations
• Unconsolidated Formations
• Naturally Over-Pressured
• Induced Over-Pressured
Controllable Factors

• Formations Bottom Hole Pressure (Mud Density)

• Well Inclination and Azimuth

• Transient Pore Pressures

• Physico/chemical Rock-Fluid Interaction

• Drill String Vibrations

• Shale Collapse Erosion

• Shale Collapse Temperature

Naturally fractured or faulted formations
A natural fracture system in the rock can often be found near
faults. Rock near faults can be broken into large or small pieces. If
they are loose they can fall into the wellbore and jam the string in
the hole. Even if the pieces are bonded together, impacts from the
BHA due to drill string vibrations can cause the formation to fall
into the wellbore. This type of sticking is particularly unusual in
that stuck pipe can occur while drilling. Drill string vibration have
to be minimized to help stabilize these formations. Hole collapse
problems may become quite severe if weak bedding planes intersect
a wellbore at unfavourable angles.
Drilling through naturally fractured or faulted
formations
Tectonically Stressed Formations
Wellbore instability is caused when highly stressed formations are
drilled and if exists a significant difference between the near
wellbore stress and the restraining pressure provided by the
drilling fluid density. Tectonic stresses build up in areas where rock
is being compressed or stretched due movement of the earth´s
crust. The rock in these areas is being buckled by the pressure of
the moving tectonic plates. When a hole is drilled in an area of high
tectonic stresses the rock around the wellbore will collapse into the
wellbore and produce splintery cavings similar to those produced
by over-pressured shale.
In the tectonic stress case the hydrostatic pressure required to

stabilize the wellbore may be much higher than the fracture

pressure of the other exposed formations. Planning to case off these

formations as quickly as possible and maintaining adequate drilling

fluid weight can help to stabilize these formations.

Drilling through tectonically stressed formations
High in-situ stresses
Anomalously height in-situ stresses, such as may be found in the
vicinity of salt domes, near faults, or in the inner limbs of a folds may
give rise to wellbore instability. Stress concentrations may also occur
in particularly stiff rocks such as quartos sandstones or
conglomerates.
Only a few case histories have been described in the literature for
drilling problems caused by local stress concentrations, mainly
because of the difficulty in measuring or estimating such in situ
stresses.
Mobile formations
The mobile formation squeezes into the wellbore because it is being
compressed by the overburden forces. Mobile formations behave in a
plastic manner, deforming under pressure. The deformation results
in a decrease in the wellbore size, causing problems of running
BHA´s, logging tools and casing. A deformation occurs because the
mud weight is not sufficient to prevent the formation squeezing into
the wellbore. This mechanism normally occurs while drilling salt. An
appropriate drilling fluid and maintaining sufficient drilling fluid
weight are required to help stabilize these formations.
Drilling through mobile formations
Unconsolidated formations
An unconsolidated formation falls into the wellbore because it is
loosely packed with little or no bonding between particles, pebbles
or boulders. The collapse of formations is caused by removing the
supporting rock as the well is drilled. It happens in a wellbore when
little or no filter cake is present. The un-bonded formation (sand,
gravel, etc.) cannot be supported by hydrostatic overbalance as the
fluid simply flows into the formations. Sand or gravel then falls into
the hole and packs off the drill string. The effect can be a gradual
increase in drag over a number of meters, or can be sudden. This
mechanism is normally associated with shallow formation. An
adequate filter cake is required to help stabilize these formations.
Drilling through unconsolidated formations
Naturally Over-Pressured Shale Collapse
Naturally over-pressured shale is the one with a natural pore
pressure greater than the normal hydrostatic pressure gradient.
Naturally over-pressured shales are most commonly caused by
geological phenomena such as under-compaction, naturally removed
overburden and uplift. Using insufficient mud weight in these
formations will cause the hole to become unstable and collapse. This
mechanism normally occurs in prognoses rapid depositional shale
sequences. The short time hole exposure and an adequate drilling
fluid weight can help to stabilize these formations.
Drilling through a naturally over-pressured shale
Induced Over-Pressured Shale Collapse
Induced over-pressured shale collapse occurs when the shale assumes
the hydrostatic pressure of the wellbore fluids after a number of days
exposures to that pressure. When this is followed by no increase or a
reduction in hydrostatic pressure in the wellbore, the shale, which
now has a higher internal pressure than the wellbore, collapses in a
similar manner to naturally over-pressured shale. This mechanism
normally occurs in water based drilling fluids, after a reduction in
drilling fluid weight or after a long exposure time during which the
drilling fluid was unchanged.
Drilling through induced over-pressured shale
Bottom hole pressure (mud density)
Depending upon the application, either the bottom hole pressure,
the mud density or the equivalent circulating density (ECD), is
usually the most important determinant of whether an open
wellbore is stable. The supporting pressure offered by the static or
dynamic fluid pressure during either drilling, stimulating, working
over or producing of a well, will determine the stress concentration
present in the near wellbore vicinity. Because rock failure is
dependent on the effective stress the consequence for stability is
highly dependent on whether and how rapidly fluid pressure
penetrate the wellbore wall. That is not to say however, that high
mud densities or bottom hole pressures are always optimal for
avoiding instability in a given well.
Effect of mud weight on the stress in wellbore wall
Well Inclination and Azimuth

Inclination and azimuthal orientation of a well with respect to the

principal in-situ stresses can be an important factor affecting the risk

of collapse and/or fracture breakdown occurring. This is particularly

true for estimating the fracture breakdown pressure in tectonically

stressed regions where there is strong stress anisotropy.

Effect of the well depth and the hole inclination on
wellbore stability
Transient wellbore pressures
Transient wellbore pressures, such as swab and surge effects during
drilling, may cause wellbore enlargement. Tensile spalling can occur
when the wellbore pressure across an interval is rapidly reduced by
the swabbing action of the drill string for instance. If the formation
has a sufficiently low tensile strength or is pre-fractured, the
imbalance between the pore pressures in the rock and the wellbore
can literally pull loose rock off the wall. Surge pressures can also
cause rapid pore pressures increases in the near-wellbore area
sometimes causing an immediate loss in rock strength which may
ultimately lead to collapse.
Physical/chemical fluid-rock interaction
There are many physical/chemical fluid-rock interaction phenomena
which modify the near-wellbore rock strength or stress. These
include hydration, osmotic pressures, swelling, rock softening and
strength changes, and dispersion. The significance of these effects
depend on a complex interaction of many factors including the
nature of the formation (mineralogy, stiffness, strength, pore water
composition, stress history, temperature), the presence of a filter cake
or permeability barrier is present, the properties and chemical
composition of the wellbore fluid, and the extent of any damage near
the wellbore.
Drill-string vibrations (during drilling)
Drill-string vibrations can enlarge holes in some circumstances.
Optimal bottom hole assembly (BHA) design with respect to the hole
geometry, inclination, and formations to be drilled can sometimes
eliminate this potential contribution to wellbore collapse. Some
authors claim that hole erosion may be caused due to a too high
annular circulating velocity. This may be most significant in a yielded
formation, a naturally fractured formation, or an unconsolidated or
soft, dispersive sediment. The problem may be difficult to diagnose
and fix in an inclined or horizontal well where high circulating rates
are often desirable to ensure adequate hole cleaning.
Drilling fluid temperature
Drilling fluid temperatures, and to some extent, bottom hole

producing temperatures can give rise to thermal concentration or

expansion stresses which may be detrimental to wellbore stability.

The reduced mud temperature causes a reduction in the near-

wellbore stress concentration, thus preventing the stresses in the rock

from reaching their limiting strength.

Indicators of wellbore instability
A list of the indicators of wellbore instability which are primarily
caused by wellbore collapse or convergence during the drilling,
completion or production of a well. They are classified in two groups:
direct and indirect causes. Direct symptoms of instability include
observations of over-gauge or under-gauge hole, as readily observed
from calliper logs. Caving from the wellbore wall, circulated to
surface, and hole fill after tripping confirm that spalling processes
are occurring in the wellbore. Large volumes of cuttings and/ or
cavings, in excess of the volume of rock which would have been
excavated in a gauge hole, similarly attest to hole enlargement.
Direct indicators
• Oversize hole

• Undergauge hole

• Excessive volume of cuttings

• Excessive volume of cavings

• Cavings at surface

• Hole fill after tripping

• Excess cement volume required

Indirect indicators
• High torque and drag (friction)
• Hanging up of drillstring, casing, or coiled tubing
• Increased circulating pressures
• Stuck pipe
• Excessive drillstring vibrations
• Drillstring failure
• Deviation control problems
• Inability to run logs
Any Questions
Thank you