Reverse The Bubble Out Through The Drillpipe
It is becoming increasingly more common to reverse the influx out through the drillpipe. When the bubble is reversed out, the pressure profiles for the drillpipe and annulus are reversed, resulting in a reduction in annulus pressure when the Wait and Weight Method is used and a constant casing pressure when the Driller's Method is used. The potential hazards of bridging the annulus or plugging the bit or drillpipe are the primary objections to utilizing the reverse circulation technique...
Killfluid Lubrication Volumetric Kill Procedure
Kill-Fluid Lubrication, also sometimes called the Volumetric Kill Procedure, is the most overlooked well control technique. Lubricating the kill fluid into the wellbore involves an understanding of only the most fundamental aspects of physics. Basically, Kill-Fluid Lubrication is a technique whereby the influx is replaced by the kill fluid while the bottomhole pressure is maintained at or above the formation pressure. The result of the proper Kill-Fluid Lubrication operation is that the influx...
Shallow Gas Kicks
Shallow gas blowouts can be catastrophic. There is not a perfect technique for handling shallow gas blowouts. There are basically two accepted methods for handling a shallow gas kick, and the difference centers around whether the gas is diverted at the sea floor or at the surface. Operators are evenly divided between the two methods and equally dedicated to their favorite. The disadvantage to diverting the gas at the sea floor, particularly when operating in deep water and controlling it via...
The Stabbing Valve
On all rigs and work-over operations there should be a valve readily accessible on the rig floor which is adapted to the tubulars. Such a valve is routinely called a stabbing valve. In the event of a kick during a trip, the stabbing valve is installed in the connection on the rig floor and closed to prevent flow through the drill string. Ordinarily, the stabbing valve is a ball valve such as illustrated in Figure 1.17. The ball valve utilized for a stabbing valve is probably the best...
The Choke Line
Many well control problems begin in the choke line or downstream of the choke line. It is unusual to find a rig without the potential for a serious problem between the blowout preventor BOP stack and the end of the flare lines. In order to appreciate how a choke line must be constructed, it is necessary to understand that, in a well control situation, solids-laden fluids can be extremely abrasive. The biggest blowout in the history of the state of Texas occurred at the Apache Key 1-11 in...
Control
Bob Cudd, Richard S. Carden, and Jerald L. Shursen gt Bj Gulf Publishing Company Houston, Texas Copyright 1994 by Gulf Publishing Company, Houston, Texas. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission of the publishers. Gulf Publishing Company Book Division P.O. Box 2608 Houston, Texas 77252-2608 10 98765432 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Advanced blowout and well control Robert...