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Deepwater Drilling and Completions

Well-Control Procedures
for Dual-Gradient Drilling

46

As drilling moves into deeper

waters, new technologies must be
developed for safe and successful
operations. In the mid-1990s, four
projects were begun to develop
dual-gradient-drilling (DGD) technology for use in water depths
greater than 5,000 ft. A study was
made of a major concern expressed
by all four DGD projects: how well
control differs between DGD and
conventional riser drilling.
Introduction
DGD uses a relatively small-diameter
return line to circulate drilling fluid
and cuttings from the sea floor to the
rigs surface mud system (Fig. 1). The
rigs marine riser is kept full of seawater. The top element of the blowout
preventer (BOP) stack is similar to a
rotating BOP and separates the wellbore and its contained fluids from the
seawater in the marine riser. A subseapump mud-lift system moves the
drilling fluid and drilled cuttings from
the wellbore annulus to the rigs mud
system through the return line.
By maintaining the subsea-pump
inlet pressure equal to the seawater
hydrostatic pressure at the wellhead, a
higher-density drilling fluid can be
used to maintain the same bottomhole
pressure (BHP) as that maintained
with a conventional riser and a lowerdensity fluid. The higher density mud
in the drillstring, along with keeping
the mud-lift pump inlet pressure equal
to seawater hydrostatic pressure,
results in an imbalance of pressure
inside the drillstring and in the annulus just below the seafloor. The pressure imbalance causes the mud inside
the drillpipe to free fall and U-tube out
of the drillstring unless the circulation
rate of the rig pumps is greater than
the mud free-fall rate.
By maintaining the inlet pressure at
seawater hydrostatic pressure, the
wellbore effectively has a dual-density
mud system in which the wellbore
pressure remains between the formation pore pressure and the formation
fracture pressure over a greater depth

interval than with conventional riser

drilling. As Fig. 2 shows, DGD
increases the depth drilled before the
next casing is required, eliminating as
many as three casing strings.
Conventional Risers
Problems associated with conventional riser drilling in water depth greater
than 2000 m include the following.
Deck space limitations.
Heavy deck loads.
Station-keeping problems caused
by ocean-current forces on the risers.
Cost of mud to fill riser.
Large number of casing strings
required to achieve depth objectives
prevents running large-diameter production tubing.
Although DGD can minimize many
of these problems, there are disadvantages to this unconventional system.
Only one recorded dual-gradient well
had been drilled when this paper was
written. Therefore, procedures and
equipment have limited proof of reliability and viability.
Well Control
Proper well control involves all phases
of drilling operations, from the initial
planning to completion and abandonment. The basic goal of well control is
to prevent blowouts through accurate
predictions of formation pore pressure
and fracture gradients, design and use
of equipment (BOP, kick detection
device, and casing), and proper kick
detection and killing procedures.
Kick Detection. Early detection is
imperative for the safe handling of a
gas kick. If not detected early and the
influx stopped properly, loss of well
control (blowout) may become a serious threat.
For DGD, most common kick indicators are applicable and accurate. An
increase in flow and a decrease in circulating pressure will be more accurate because pressure gauges with
greater sensitivity are installed on the
rig pumps. The U-tube effect allows
lower circulating pressures by the rig

This article, written by Technology

Editor Dennis Denney, contains highlights of paper SPE 79880, WellControl Procedures for Dual-Gradient
Drilling Compared to Conventional
Riser Drilling, by J.J. Schubert, SPE,
and H.C. Juvkam-Wold, SPE, Texas
A&M U., and J. Choe, SPE, Seoul
Natl. U., prepared for the 2003
SPE/IADC Drilling Conference,
Amsterdam, 1921 February.
For a limited time, the full-length
paper is available free to SPE members at www.spe.org/jpt. The paper
has not been peer reviewed.

pumps, making a small change in

pressure readily detectable.
When a gas kick occurs, the annular flow rate of the drilling fluid
increases by an amount equal to the
influx rate. If the subsea pumps are
set to operate on a constant inlet
pressure, the increase in flow is indicated by an increase in the subsea
pump ratea closely monitored
value. The use of very sensitive pressure gauges on the inlet and outlet of
the subsea pumps, along with accurate subsea flow meters, provides
additional kick indicators.
The U-tubing of the mud from the
drillstring, after circulation with the
rig pumps ceases, renders well flow
useless for DGD when the rig pumps
are off, unless there is some means to
prevent the U-tubing without imposing excessive hydrostatic pressure on
the weaker shallow formations. To
arrest the U-tube effect, a drillstring
valve (DSV) was designed and placed
in the drillstring to support the hydrostatic pressure of the full mud column
in the drillstring when the rig pumps
were shut off.
When no DSV is used during DGD
operations, an accurate measurement
of the volume of mud required to
replace the steel removed cannot be
made until U-tubing of the mud ceases. When the DSV is used, the volume

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of mud required to fill the hole

is equal to the volume of a cylinder with a diameter equal to the
outside diameter of the pipe
removed from the wellbore.

CONVENTIONAL CONFIGURATION

DUAL GRADIENT CONFIGURATION

Mud pump

Drillpipe
Wellhead
and BOP

Marine riser

Mud pump
Seawater power
pump and
power line
Wellhead and

Drillpipe
seawater filled
riser
Return line

JUNE 2003

Deepwater Drilling and Completions

BOP
Shut-in Procedures. When a
Seawater driven
mud lift pump
kick is detected, the influx must
be stopped to prevent excessive
Bottomhole
Bottomhole
Drill string
assembly
assembly
casing pressure that would
valve
result in lost circulation, or
worse, escalation of the kick
Fig. 1Riser configurations for conventional and DGD systems.
into a blowout. Usually, control
is accomplished by shutting in
the well with the BOP stack. The makes construction of the
MUD
HYDROSTATIC
operation being performed at the time decline schedule more complex.
PRESSURE
Conventional
of the kick (drilling or tripping),
The design of one DSV is such
SEAFLOOR
equipment available, and other exten- that the opening pressure can be
uating circumstances will dictate the set greater than the difference
DEPTH
exact shut-in procedure used. The between the hydrostatic presoverbalanced hydrostatic pressure of sure of the mud in the drillpipe
SEA WATER
the mud in the drillstring during DGD and the seawater hydrostatic
HYDROSTATIC
PRESSURE
PORE PRESSURE
does not allow immediate shut-in of pressure at the mudline, plus an
PRESSURE
the well without inducing a formation additional margin to allow for
MUD
fracture, unless the DSV is in place to increasing the mud weight.
HYDROSTATIC
PRESSURE
prevent U-tubing. Without the DSV, Every time the kick-rate presDGD
SEAFLOOR
the mud in the drillstring is allowed to sure is measured, the DSV openU-tube into the annulus and up the ing pressure should be meaFRACTURE
return line before complete shut-in is sured. When a DSV is in use, the
DEPTH
PRESSURE
attempted. During the U-tubing initial circulating pressure is
SEA WATER
process, it is very difficult to prevent determined exactly as it is for
HYDROSTATIC
PRESSURE
additional influx of formation fluid conventional riser drilling.
PORE PRESSURE
into the wellbore.
However, the final circulating
PRESSURE
The influx is stopped and circulated pressure must take into considFig. 2Casing requirements for convenfrom the wellbore without complete eration the change in DSV opentional and DGD systems.
shut-in. The use of a DSV allows the ing pressure caused by the heavwell to be shut in immediately upon ier kill mud.
detection of the kick, and the well is
resulting from the differential preskilled in a manner more similar to Well Kill
sures between the drillstring and
conventional methods.
After a kick is identified, the influx annulus causes difficulties in many
stopped, and kill-weight mud density aspects of well control, including
Drillpipe Pressure-Decline Schedule. calculated, the influx must be removed shut-in procedures, kick-intensity
During a kill operation, the circulat- from the wellbore, and the original- determination, and construction of
ing drillpipe pressure is monitored to weight mud must be replaced by kill- pressure-decline schedule.
assure that BHP is maintained equal to weight mud. The most common,
Use of a DSV eliminates problems
or slightly greater than formation safest, and efficient kill process associated with U-tubing, but adds
pressure. This action allows sufficient involves circulation down the drill- other complications, including comBHP to prevent additional influx and string and up the annulus while main- plicated measuring of shut-in drillpipe
provides the minimum pressure taining a constant BHP equal to or pressure and preparing the drillpipe
imposed anyplace in the wellbore, slightly higher than formation pres- pressure-decline schedule. Although
lessening the chance of formation sure. This procedure allows circulation the DSV adds complications to well
fracture. To maintain the proper BHP, of the kick fluid and original-weight control for DGD, advantages (e.g.,
a drillpipe pressure-decline schedule mud from the wellbore with the kill- allowing complete shut-in on kicks
is constructed, and the pressures are weight mud without allowing addi- and prevention of U-tubing) outweigh
maintained at the correct level tional influx. This procedure also min- the complications. Even though the
throughout the kill operation.
imizes the pressure exerted through- DSV makes well control for DGD seem
For DGD with no DSV, the pressure out wellbore.
more conventional, well control for
decline from initial circulating pressure
DGD without the DSV is possible.
to the final circulating pressure is iden- Conclusions
Well control for DGD is at least as
tical to that for conventional riser There are major differences between safe as for conventional riser deepwadrilling, assuming that the circulating DGD and conventional riser drilling ter drilling. Finally, a well-control
rate is greater than free-fall rate. The systems, but problems associated with training program for DGD is essential
positive opening pressure of the DSV DGD are solvable. The U-tubing for safe and efficient operations. JPT

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