System and method for mitigating stick-slip

• US 9,689,250 B2
• Filed: 11/17/2014
• Issued: 06/27/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nabors Drillling Technologies USA, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Tesco Corporation US (Emerson Electric Company)
• Inventors: Badkoubeh, Amir, Strand, Alex, Greening, Douglas
• Primary Examiner(s): Harcourt, Brad
• Application Number:
  US14/543,675
• Publication Number:
  US 20160138382A1
• Time in Patent Office: 953 Days
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 3/035 with slipping or elastic transmission
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 44/00 Automatic control systems specially adapted for drilling operations, i.e. self-operating systems which function to carry out or modify a drilling operation without intervention of a human operator, e.g. computer-controlled drilling systems; Systems specially adapted for monitoring a plurality of drilling variables or conditions
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 44/04 in response to the torque of the drive ; Measuring drilling torque E21B44/06 takes precedence; measuring stresses in a well bore pipe E21B47/007

Abstract

The present disclosure is directed to systems and methods for rotating a drill string to mitigate stick-slip oscillations. An embodiment includes a method of rotating a drill string driven by a drive system using a control system. The method includes measuring torque values of the drive system with a torque sensor. The method also includes determining a frequency of stick-slip oscillations at the drive system based on the torque values using the control system. The method also includes determining an estimated instantaneous rotational speed of the drive system with the control system based on at least the frequency of stick-slip oscillations and a characteristic impedance of the drill string. The method also includes adjusting the estimated instantaneous rotational speed based on changes in the torque values to define an adjusted estimated instantaneous rotation speed with the control system. The method also includes providing an output signal representing the adjusted estimated instantaneous rotational speed to the drive system. The method also includes controlling rotation of a quill of the drive system based on the output signal.

Claims

1. A system for rotating a drill string, comprising:

a drive system configured to rotate the drill string at variable rotational speeds based on control signals received by the drive system; and

a control system configured to transmit the control signals to the drive system, wherein the control system is configured to generate the control signals based on at least a frequency of stick-slip oscillations at the drive system, a characteristic impedance of the drill string, and torque values of the drive system, wherein the control system comprises a feedback controller and a PI controller, wherein the feedback controller is configured to receive the torque values of the drive system, and the PI controller is configured to update a proportional gain and an integral gain based on at least the torque values of the drive system.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the drive system comprises a top drive configured to rotate the drill string based on the control signals.

3. The system of claim 1, comprising a torque sensor coupled to the drive system and configured to measure the torque values of the drive system.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the control system is configured to determine the frequency of stick-slip oscillations at the drive system based on output torque values of the drive system.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the control system is configured to determine a shear modulus of the drill string, a cross-sectional polar moment of inertia of the drill string, and a speed of torsional waves along the drill string for generating the control signals based on the characteristic impedance of the drill string.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the proportional gain is based on at least a shear modulus of the drill string, a cross-sectional polar moment of inertia of the drill string, and a speed of the torsional waves propagating along the drill string.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the integral gain is based on at least the frequency of stick-slip oscillations at the drive system and an effective mass moment of inertia of the drive system.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the feedback controller comprises a filter having a cut-off frequency lower than the frequency of stick-slip oscillations, wherein the filter is configured to receive the torque values of the drive system and to provide filtered torque values , and the control signals are based on the filtered torque values.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the filter comprises a torque feedback constant depending at least on the cut-off frequency of the filter and the integral gain of the PI controller.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the filter comprises an adjustment coefficient depending at least on the torque feedback constant of the filter and the proportional gain of the PI controller.

11. A control system, comprising:

an automation controller including a processor and a memory configured to supply a drive system for rotating a drill string with control signals based on at least a frequency of stick-slip oscillations at the drive system, a characteristic impedance of the drill string, and torque values of the drive system, wherein the automation controller comprises a feedback controller and a PI controller, wherein the feedback controller is configured to receive the torque values of the drive system, and the PI controller is configured to update a proportional gain and an integral gain based on at least the torque values of the drive system; and

a display visualization configured to display at least the frequency of stick-slip oscillations at the drive system, the characteristic impedance of the drill string, and the torque values of the drive system.

12. The control system of claim 11, wherein the feedback controller comprises a filter having a cut-off frequency lower than the frequency of stick-slip oscillations, wherein the filter is configured to receive the torque values of the drive system and to provide filtered torque values, and the control signals are based on the filtered torque values.

13. The control system of claim 12, wherein the filter comprises a torque feedback constant depending at least on the cut-off frequency of the filter and the integral gain of the PI controller, and an adjustment coefficient depending at least on the torque feedback constant of the filter and the proportional gain of the PI controller.