Modeling and designing of well drilling system that accounts for vibrations

• US 8,504,342 B2
• Filed: 12/06/2007
• Issued: 08/06/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Exxonmobil Upstream Research Company (Exxon Mobil Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Exxonmobil Upstream Research Company (Exxon Mobil Corporation)
• Inventors: Bailey, Jeffrey R., Biediger, Erika A. O., Gupta, Vishwas
• Primary Examiner(s): Silver, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): Johnson, Cedric D
• Application Number:
  US12/517,526
• Publication Number:
  US 20100032165A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,070 Days
• Field of Search: 703/7, 703/10, 703/2, 703/1, 166/369
• US Class Current: 703/10
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 41/00 Equipment or details not covered by groups E21B15/00 - E21B40/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/00 Computer-aided design [CAD]

Abstract

A method and apparatus associated with the production of hydrocarbons is disclosed. The method, which relates to modeling of drilling equipment, includes constructing one or more design configurations for at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly (BHA) and calculating results from each of the one or more design configurations. The calculated results of the modeling may include one or more performance indices that characterize the BHA vibration performance of the design configurations for operating parameters and boundary conditions that are substantially the same or may be different. These results are then simultaneously displayed for a user to facilitate design selection. The selected BHA design configuration may then be utilized in a well construction operation and thus associated with the production of hydrocarbons.

Claims

1. A method of modeling drilling equipment comprising:

constructing two or more differing design configurations, wherein each of the design configurations represents at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly (BHA);

identifying operating parameters for the two or more differing design configurations;

selecting mathematical boundary conditions wherein the two or more differing design configurations are subjected to identical system excitation;

calculating lateral beam bending results using a computer processor accessing non-transitory computer readable media, for each of the two or more differing design configurations using a model that includes the identified operating parameters and the selected mathematical boundary conditions calculating, using the computer processor accessing non-transitory computer readable media, for each of the two or more differing design configurations using a model that includes the identified operating parameters and the selected mathematical boundary conditions, one or more performance indices that characterize a determined BHA vibration performance of the two or more differing design configurations, wherein the one or more performance indices comprise at least one of an end-point curvature index, a BHA strain energy index, an average transmitted strain energy index, a transmitted strain energy index, a root-mean-square BHA sideforce index, a root-mean-square BHA torque index, a total BHA sideforce index, a total BHA torque index, and any mathematical combination thereof;

comparing the calculated results for the two or more differing design configurations; and

displaying the calculated results of at least one of the two or more differing design configurations.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising verifying the two or more differing design configurations by graphically displaying the two or more differing design configurations on the same display.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein constructing the two or more differing design configurations comprises:

constructing two or more design layouts;

associating operating parameters and mathematical boundary conditions with the two or more design layouts; and

associating equipment parameters with each of the two or more design layouts to create the two or more differing design configurations.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein calculating the results for two or more differing design configurations comprises:

generating a mathematical lateral beam bending model for each of the two or more differing design configurations;

calculating the results of the mathematical model for specified operating parameters and identical mathematical boundary conditions;

identifying displacements, tilt angle, bending moment, and beam shear force from the results of the mathematical model; and

determining state vectors and matrices from the identified outputs of the mathematical model.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein a two-dimensional or three-dimensional finite element model is used to calculate model results, from which state vectors and matrices may be identified.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein calculating the results of each of the two or more differing design configurations comprises:

generating a lumped parameter model of each of the two or more differing design configurations, wherein the lumped parameter model has a framework of state vector responses and matrix transfer functions;

determining a mass element transfer function and a beam element transfer function; and

determining identical mathematical boundary conditions and system excitation to generate the model results.

7. The method of claim 4 further comprising determining one or more performance indices comprising a scalar quantity derived from the state vectors and matrices, so obtained for each set of mathematical boundary conditions and system excitation.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the operating parameters and the mathematical boundary conditions comprise a first modeling set of operating parameters and mathematical boundary conditions and a second modeling set of operating parameters and mathematical boundary conditions, both of the first set and second set of operating parameters and mathematical boundary conditions is used to model at least one of dynamic lateral bending and eccentric whirl.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising selecting one of the two or more differing design configurations based on the calculated results.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the calculated results comprise state variable values.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the calculated results are displayed as three dimensional responses.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the three dimensional responses are rotated based on movement of one or more virtual slider bars.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the end-point curvature index is defined by the equation:

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the BHA strain energy index is defined by the equation:

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the average transmitted strain energy index is defined by the equation:

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmitted strain energy index is defined by the equation:

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the root-mean-square BHA sideforce index is defined by the equation:

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the total BHA sideforce index is defined by the equation:

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the root-mean-square BHA torque index is defined by the equation:

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the total BHA torque index is defined by the equation:

21. The method of claim 1 wherein the root-mean-square (RMS) average of the one or more performance indices is defined by the equation:

22. The method of claim 1 wherein the maximum of the one or more performance indices is defined by the equation:

53. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

drilling at least a portion of a wellbore to a subsurface formation with drilling equipment using a bottom hole assembly design configuration based upon the calculated results; and

disposing a wellbore completion into the wellbore.

54. The method of claim 1 wherein the mathematical boundary condition has values of zero for the bit tilt angle, the moment at the bit, and the lateral displacement of the first contact above the bit, and wherein a constant magnitude lateral force is applied at the bit.

55. The method of claim 1 wherein the mathematical boundary condition has values of zero for the moment at the bit, the lateral displacement of the first contact above the bit, and the tilt angle of the first contact above the bit, and wherein a constant magnitude lateral force is applied at the bit.

59. The method of claim 53 further comprising the step of producing hydrocarbons from the subsurface formation.

60. The method of claim 55 further comprising the step of producing hydrocarbons from the subsurface formation.

23. A method of modeling drilling equipment comprising:

constructing two or more differing design configurations representing a portion of a bottom hole assembly (BHA);

identifying operating parameters and mathematical boundary conditions;

determining BHA vibration performance of the two or more design configurations using a model that includes the identified operating parameters and the identified mathematical boundary conditions, wherein each of the two or more differing design configurations is subjected to identical excitation for all operating parameters;

calculating using a computer processor accessing non-transitory computer readable media, one or more performance indices that characterize the determined BHA vibration performance of the two or more design configurations, wherein the one or more performance indices comprise at least one of an end-point curvature index, a BHA strain energy index, an average transmitted strain energy index, a transmitted strain energy index, a root-mean-square BHA sideforce index, a root-mean-square BHA torque index, a total BHA sideforce index, a total BHA torque index, and any mathematical combination thereof; and

displaying at least one of the calculated one or more performance indices of the two or more differing design configurations.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the one or more performance indices comprise at least two performance indices.

25. The method of claim 23 wherein constructing the two or more differing design configurations comprises:

constructing a design layout;

associating equipment parameters with the design layout to form the two or more differing design configurations; and

associating specific operating parameters and mathematical boundary conditions with the at least two or more differing design configurations.

26. The method of claim 23 wherein the calculated one or more performance indices are displayed as three dimensional responses.

27. The method of claim 26 wherein the three dimensional responses are rotated based on movement of one or more virtual slider bars.

28. The method of claim 23, wherein the end-point curvature index is defined by the equation:

29. The method of claim 23, wherein the BHA strain energy index is defined by the equation:

30. The method of claim 23, wherein the average transmitted strain energy index is defined by the equation:

31. The method of claim 23, wherein the transmitted strain energy index is defined by the equation:

32. The method of claim 23, wherein the root-mean-square BHA sideforce index is defined by the equation:

33. The method of claim 23, wherein the total BHA sideforce index is defined by the equation:

34. The method of claim 23, wherein the root-mean-square BHA torque index is defined by the equation:

35. The method of claim 23, wherein the total BHA torque index is defined by the equation:

36. The method of claim 23 wherein the root-mean-square (RMS) average of the one or more performance indices is defined by the equation:

37. The method of claim 23 wherein the maximum of the one or more performance indices is defined by the equation:

38. The method of claim 23 further comprising:

selecting at least one of the two or more design configurations based on the modeling of drilling equipment;

providing at least a portion of a selected bottom hole assembly design configuration;

drilling a wellbore to a subsurface formation with drilling equipment based on the selected bottom hole assembly design configuration;

disposing a wellbore completion into the wellbore; and

producing hydrocarbons from the subsurface formation.

56. The method of claim 23 further comprising the steps of:

drilling at least a portion of a wellbore to a subsurface formation with drilling equipment using a bottom hole assembly design configuration based upon the calculated results; and

disposing a wellbore completion into the wellbore.

57. The method of claim 23 wherein the mathematical boundary condition has values of zero for the bit tilt angle, the moment at the bit, and the lateral displacement of the first contact above the bit, and wherein a constant magnitude lateral force is applied at the bit.

58. The method of claim 23 wherein the mathematical boundary condition has values of zero for the moment at the bit, the lateral displacement of the first contact above the bit, and the tilt angle of the first contact above the bit, and wherein a constant magnitude lateral force is applied at the bit.

39. A modeling system comprising:

a computer processor;

a memory coupled to the processor; and

a set of computer readable instructions accessible by the processor, wherein the set of computer readable instructions are configured to enable a process that comprises;

constructing two or more differing design configurations, wherein each of the design configurations represents at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly (BHA);

identifying operating parameters for the two or more differing design configurations;

selecting mathematical boundary conditions wherein the two or more differing design configurations are subjected to identical system excitation;

calculating results for each of the two or more differing design configurations using a lateral beam bending model that includes the identified operating parameters and the selected mathematical boundary conditions calculating results, for each of the two or more differing design configurations, one or more performance indices that characterize a determined BHA vibration performance of the two or more differing design configurations, wherein the one or more performance indices comprise at least one of an end-point curvature index, a BHA strain energy index, an average transmitted strain energy index, a transmitted strain energy index, a root-mean-square BHA sideforce index, a root-mean-square BHA torque index, a total BHA sideforce index, a total BHA torque index, and any mathematical combination thereof;

comparing the calculated results for the two or more differing design configurations; and

displaying the calculated results of at least one of the two or more differing design configurations.

40. The modeling system of claim 39 wherein the set of computer readable instructions is further configured to:

construct at least two design layouts;

associate common operating parameters and mathematical boundary conditions with each of the at least two design layouts; and

associate equipment parameters with each of the at least two design layouts to create each of the at least two differing design configurations;

simultaneously display the at least two differing design configurations.

41. The modeling system of claim 39 wherein the set of computer readable instructions is configured to display the calculated results as three dimensional responses.

42. The modeling system of claim 41 wherein the set of computer readable instructions is configured to rotate the three dimensional responses based on movement of one or more virtual slider bars.

43. The modeling system of claim 39 wherein the end-point curvature index is defined by the equation:

44. The modeling system of claim 39 wherein the BHA strain energy index is defined by the equation:

45. The modeling system of claim 39 wherein the average transmitted strain energy index is defined by the equation:

46. The modeling system of claim 39 wherein the transmitted strain energy index is defined by the equation:

47. The modeling system of claim 39, wherein the root-mean-square BHA sideforce index is defined by the equation:

48. The modeling system of claim 39, wherein the total BHA sideforce index is defined by the equation:

49. The modeling system of claim 39, wherein the root-mean-square BHA torque index is defined by the equation:

50. The modeling system of claim 39, wherein the total BHA torque index is defined by the equation:

51. The modeling system of claim 39 wherein the root-mean-square (RMS) average of the one or more performance indices is defined by the equation:

52. The modeling system of claim 39 wherein the maximum of the one or more performance indices is defined by the equation: