SPE/IADC 107474

Borehole Stability (Geomechanics) Modeling and Drilling Optimization Practices

Improve Drilling Curves in Naturally Fractured ShaleA South Argentina Experience
Horacio Fontana, Chevron, and Martn Paris and Seehong Ong, Baker Atlas

Copyright 2007, SPE/IADC Middle East Drilling Technology Conference & Exhibition
This paper was prepared for presentation at the SPE/IADC Middle East Drilling Technology
Conference & Exhibition held in Cairo, Egypt, 2224 October 2007.
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Abstract
Borehole instability related problems due to massive
formation caving in micro-fractured shale resulted in
substantial non-productive times (NPT) and accounted
for as much as 25% of the total programmed drilling
time.
Geomechanics and image log analyses clearly showed
the natural/micro fractures were responsible for large
cavings. Drilling optimization strategies to mitigate
formation caving were focused on:
Reducing mud weight to decrease fluid/pore
pressure penetration in fracture planes
Use of mud additives to seal-off natural fractures
Drilling with downhole motor and stabilizers to
minimize lateral vibrations.
Average drilling time prior to implementing these
strategies was 14.75 days. The drilling time improved to
8.18 days after the implementation, an improvement of
44.5% with no occurrence of major instability events.
This paper will present a case study from an oilfield in
Southern Argentina demonstrating how the assimilation
of geomechanics modeling and drilling optimization
practices is critical to improving the drilling curves.
INTRODUCTION
The Austral Basin, located in the southern tip of
Argentina, is an area of active hydrocarbon exploration
and exploitation. Basin development comprises both
onshore and offshore acreages with some of the
reservoirs straddling into the Strait of Magellan. The
main reservoir is the Springhill sandstone formation
(Figure 1) which, despite being continuously present
along the entire basin, has variable thicknesses. This
formation overlay the Tobifera series which is a Jurassic
basement composed mainly of volcanic and volcano-
clastic rocks. The Springhill sandstone is covered by a
thick sequence of marine shales of Cretaceous age. The
lithology of this Palermo Aike shale formation is mostly
clay with a high presence of smectite and illite
components.
The fields of interest are the Cerro Norte and Campo
Molino (Figure 1). Typical wells in these fields are mostly
vertical, with their intermediate sections drilled with a 12
roller-cone bit to a depth of about 300 m. The final TD
section is drilled using either a 8 or 8 PDC or
roller-cone bit to about 1,900 m, and then cased with a 5
casing. During drilling, large cavings occurred in the
Palermo Aike formation between 1200 and 1500 m
resulting in hole enlargements equivalent to twice the bit
size. These cavings caused numerous borehole
instabililty-related problems such as pack-off, over-pull,
hard reaming, etc., and consequently increased the non-
productive times (NPT). An analysis of the drilling time
data of the 19 wells drilled over a two-year period (2003
2005) indicated that the averaged drilling time was
about 75% higher than the programmed drilling time
(Figure 2). This less-than-optimal drilling performance
has a substantial cost implication.
Because the Cerro Norte and Campo Molino fields are in
the development stage, optimizing drilling practices and
reducing NPTs are extremely critical to project success.
Numerous attempts were made to solve cavings
problems including changes in drilling fluid formulations
(shale stabilizing additive, potassium ion concentration,
API fluid loss, rheology, and mud weight) and
operational controls (rate of penetration, weight on bit,
mud flow rate, and rotational speed). None of these
efforts was able to solve the problems of borehole
instability, and drilling operations were continuously
being plagued by high NPTs.
Geomechanical study was initiated, focusing on
understanding the causal mechanisms of instabilities
2 SPE/IADC 107474
and proposing drilling strategies to mitigate borehole
cavings in the Palermo Aike shales. Post-study drilling
performance was very encouraging, and the pre- and
post- geomechanical analysis caliper logs show a drastic
improvement in hole quality after the implementation of
the results from the geomechanical study (Figure 3).
Average drilling time also improved by 44.5% with no
occurrence of major instability events. This paper will
demonstrate how the assimilation of geomechanical
modeling and drilling optimization practices is critical to
improving drilling curves.
GEOMECHANICAL MODELING
Borehole instability can generally be categorized as
mechanically and chemically induced. Chemically
induced instability caused by the interactions between
drilling fluids and shale was ruled out as the main
contributor to cavings because adding shale stabilizer
additives and changing the potassium ions concentration
in the drilling mud did not improve the hole conditions.
To discern the origin of mechanical instability, an
acoustic image log was run in the Palermo Aike
formation. The image log as shown in Figure 4 clearly
indicates that large cavings were due to natural
fractures.
The isolated fractures at 1355 meters do not show any
cavings. The hole is in-gauge as indicated by the
differential calipers and so are the fracture sets from
1394 to 1400 m. Serious cavings are noted in the heavily
fractured zones from 1451 to 1456 m. At these zones,
although the image log is affected by the poor hole
quality, some fractures were still picked for interpreting
fracture orientation. A Rose plot showing the strikes of all
fractures from the Palermo Aike formation overlays a
structural map of the Cerro Norte field in Figure 5. Faults
at the top of Springhill sandstone show good
agreements with the fracture Rose plot. Both have
preferential strikes of NNW-SSE and E-W. This
agreement suggests that the fractures at the Palermo
Aike formation are tectonically induced. No stress-
induced borehole breakouts were identified from the
image log, suggesting that either the high mud weight
used during drilling suppressed breakout formation or
the horizontal in-situ stress anisotropy is low.
Large cavings were obtained from the problematic
sections. The geometry of these cavings supports the
hypothesis that the spalling of micro-fractures is the main
instability process (Figure 6). The differential caliper (or
hole enlargement) profile with depth as shown on the
image log suggests an increasing fracturing intensity
with depth. This increase in the degree of fracturing
resulted in the formation of micro-fractures at the interval
between 1451 1456 m. With drilling-fluid infiltration and
the increase of fluid pressure in the fractures, the interval
lost its mud hydrostatic support. Additionally, the
increase of pore pressure in the fractures and the
lubricating effects of the drilling fluids reduced the
effective bulk strength of the formation1. Any mechanical
action of the drill pipe or bottom-hole assembly could
have easily caused the weakened formation to spall,
thus resulting in severe pack-offs and hole
enlargements. The presence of fluid-filled micro-
fractures was further evidenced from the high
compressive-wave transit time recorded across the
problematic shale sections (Figure 7).
DRILLING STRATEGIES TO MITIGATE
INSTABILITIES
Borehole breakouts and drilling-induced fractures are
different borehole failure modes generally resulting from
unfavorable stress conditions around the wellbore when
the well is drilled. These mechanical failures can be
mitigated by changing the drilling fluid gradient and/or
the wellbore trajectory. On the other hand, natural
fractures are in-situ rock failures caused by high
tectonics long before drilling the well. This implies that
natural fractures cannot be avoided while drilling. Drilling
strategies to mitigate instabilities associated with
fractures are focused at minimizing the movements of
fractures when the wellbore traverses the problematic
sections.
To this end, drilling strategies were focused on 1)
decreasing the mud weight, 2) sealing-off the natural
fractures, and 3) minimizing the lateral vibrations of drill
pipes. The first two approaches are aimed at reducing
the drilling fluid infiltration into the formation, while the
third strategy tries to minimize the mechanical actions of
the pipe to the formation wall.
Decrease Mud Weight
One of the most common practices while drilling is to
raise the mud weight when pack-offs or hole
enlargements are reported. This approach works very
well if the instability mechanisms of intact rocks are
caused by high stresses, weak formation and/or high
pore pressure. This practice can be counter-productive
in natural- or micro- fractured environments as high mud
weights tend to enhance fluid or pressure penetration.
For the Campo Molino well case, the mud weight was
increased from 1070 g/l to 1270 g/l in the caving zones.
This action resulted in more instability. As explained
earlier, when the mud weight is increased the large
hydraulic gradient can drive the drilling fluid or pressure
into the fractures causing the pore pressure to increase
at the same time (Figure 8). For cohesive-less fractured
materials, this pore pressure rise drastically reduces the
effective strength of the formation. With mechanical
actions during drilling, any slight disturbances to the
weakened fractured formation can result in pieces of
rocks, delimited by the crossing of different fracture sets,
to detach and spall into the wellbore as large cavings
(Figure 6). In addition to reducing the mud weight, using
specialty mud with zero API filtrate and high Marsh
viscosity has also successfully controlled fluid infiltration
SPE/IADC 107474
and eliminated potential pack-off problems arising from
sloughing of micro-fractured formations2.
A geomechanical model was constructed to determine
the minimum mud weight required for safe drilling. Since
no breakout was observed on image log, it was not
possible to ascertain the directions of horizontal
stresses. However, it was not relevant for the vertical
well case for mud weight determination, and any
arbitrarily horizontal stress directions can be assigned
without affecting the mud weight calculations. The far-
field stress regime for the Campo Molino field is of the
normal fault type with SV > SH > Sh. With neither
breakout development nor leak-off test (LOT) pressure
data, the geomechanical model was developed based
on certain assumptions made on the magnitudes of far-
field stresses and rock mechanical properties. Figure 9
shows one output of the model where the maximum
tangential stress (or hoop stress in a vertical case)
reaches the rock strength. This is a calibration run
implying a near-breakout development condition. The
recommended minimum mud weight required for drilling
from the geomechanical analysis is 1070 g/l for a 60-
degree breakout.
Seal Natural Fractures
Sealing capacity of the drilling fluid can be enhanced by
introducing additives into the mud system. These
additives form a protecting seal around the wellbore
which guards against fluid invasion. Depending on the
type of additives used, an internal mud cake formed
around the wellbore can also alter the rock mechanical
properties of the near-wellbore region. The internal mud
cake concept has been successfully implemented for
wellbore strengthening to mitigate lost circulations3,4.
Two additives are commonly used to seal fractures. One
is a specifically sized marble-based calcium carbonate
which is mainly used to provide bridging capability. Once
bridging has taken place, the finer mud materials and/or
polymers will be deposited on the bridge surface,
eventually generating an impermeable seal which will
prevent any passage of drilling fluid into the formation.
The other additive is a resilient, angular, dual-
composition carbon-based material. It allows tightly
packed particles under compression in pores and
fractures to expand or contract without being dislodged
or collapsed due to changes in differential pressure.
Both additives were pumped directly into the hole upon
initially entering the problematic zones.
Minimize Lateral Vibrations
One consequence of lateral vibrations is that it can
render the borehole walls in heavily fractured intervals
mechanically unstable. To minimize lateral vibrations,
the design of the bottom-hole assembly (BHA) and the
execution of drilling operations must be optimized.
Figure 10 compares the original BHA and the modified
3
BHA used to minimize lateral vibrations. Essentially, the
new BHA comprises of a new downhole motor (DHM)
and three additional stabilizers.
To assess the effect of BHA and operational parameters
on lateral vibrations, a lateral vibration map was
generated using the BHA critical-speed analyzer. Figure
11 compares the lateral vibrations tendency modeled
using both the old and new BHA. With the old BHA,
drilling with 170 revolutions per minute (RPM) and 17
tons weight on bit (WOB), (shown with a blue cross on
the map) it resulted in maximum lateral vibrations
experienced by the bottom-hole drilling assembly. New
wells in the project area were drilled with the new BHA
design and used 40 RPM and 10 ton WOB. With these
operating parameters, the lateral vibration map shows
the BHA vibration is at its minimum.
RESULTS
The implementation of the new drilling strategies in the
middle of 2005 had a dramatic impact on the drilling
performance. The hole quality improve substantially as
can be seen from the evolutions of caliper logs shown in
Figure 3, and the drilling time also improved
tremendously. Figure 12 shows the average drilling time
per well (excluding time for coring) for years 2004, 2005
and 2006. Average drilling time was reduced from 14.5
days (during 2004) to 8.18 days (during 2006),
amounting to a 44.5% improvement with no occurrence
of major cavings. The average drilling time for the most
recently drilled well in the project area was 7.49 days
(best well). This contrasts with the worst well which took
about 18.24 days to drilled (Figure 13).
CONCLUSIONS
Drilling performance when drilling through natural
and micro-fractured Palermo Aike shales can be
improved if the causal mechanism of borehole
instability is established (through geomechanical
studies) and appropriate drilling strategies
implemented to alleviate the instability.
Borehole image logs provide critical information to
the understanding and diagnostics of the origin of
borehole instability.
Minimizing drilling fluid infiltration by sealing-off
fractures with mud additives and lateral vibrations by
optimizing bottom-hole assembly and operating
parameters are keys to successful drilling in micro-
fractured shales.
Technology application, excellent teamwork and
effective communication between the operator and
service providers are essential to achieve high
drilling performance.
4 SPE/IADC 107474

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors would like to thank the managements of
Chevron and Baker Atlas for the permission to publish
this paper. Thanks are also extended to Javier Andres
Villarroel for his assistance and collaboration in
analyzing lateral vibrations.
REFERENCES
1. Last, N., Plumb, R., Karkness, R., Charlez, P., Alsen, J., and
McLean, M.: An Integrated Approach to Evaluating and
Managing Wellbore Instability in the Cusiana Field, Colombia,
South America, paper SPE 30464 presented at the SPE Annual
Technical Conference & Exhibition held in Dallas, U.S.A., 22
25 October, 1995.
2. Santarelli, F.J., Dahen, D., Baroundi, H., and Sliman, K.B.:
Mechanisms of Borehole Instability in Heavily Fractured Rock
Media, Int. J. Rock Mech. Min. Sci. & Geomech. Abstr, Vol.
29, No.5, pp 457 467, 1992.
3. Benaissa, S., Bachelot, A., and Ong, S.: Preventing Mud Losses
and Differential Sticking by Altering Stresses of Depleted
Sands, paper SPE/IADC 103816 presented at the SPE/IADC
Asia Pacific Drilling Technology Conference & Exhibition held
in Bangkok, Thailand, 13 15 November, 2006.
4. Ong, S., Lee, H. and Benaissa, S.: A Model for Wellbore
Strengthening Preventing Mud Losses Using the Theory of
Deformable Sealing, Petrotech 2007, New Delhi, India, 15
19, January, 2007.

Figure 1: Location map showing the Cerro Norte and Campo Molino fields (left) and the stratigraphic column of the project area (right).
SPE/IADC 107474 5

CAMPO MOLINO - DRILLING TIME

Time (days)
CMo-12
0
CMo-11

CMo x-1

CMo a-2

CMo-3

CMo-4
500 CMo-6

CMo-7

CMo-8
Depth (meters)

CMo-9

CMo-19

1000 CMo-14

CMo-13

CMo-20
Average drilling time CMo-17
increase 75% above CMo-21

1500
programed time CMo-22 D

CMo-24

CMo-18

2000
0,00 2,00 4,00 6,00 8,00 10,00 12,00 14,00 16,00 18,00 20,00

Figure 2: Drilling times for the 19 wells drilled in the Campo Molino field for the period from 2003 2005. Note the averaged drilling time is
about 75% higher than the programmed drilling time.

CALIPER LOGS EVOLUTION- from left to right

Figure 3: Comparisons of pre- and post-geomechanical analysis caliper logs (or hole quality). Wells CMo-5, CMo-9 and CMo-14 were drilled
with no prior geomechanical understanding, while wells CMo-18 and CMo-24 were optimally drilled with geomechanical inputs and effective
drilling strategies.
6 SPE/IADC 107474

Figure 6: Large cavings were recovered from the problematic

sections. The geometry of these cavings suggests spalling of
micro-fractures is the main instability process.

DTC GR

300
160
Compressional Transit Time, us/ft

250
140

Figure 4: Acoustic borehole image log across the Palermo Aike

200
Gamma Ray, API
120

shale formation shows increasing borehole enlargement with

depth, indicating the likelihood of increased fracturing intensity

150
with depth.
100

100
80

50
60

0
1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800

Depth, m

Figure 7: The high compressive wave transit times recorded

across the shale intervals indicate the presence of fluid-filled
micro-fractures.

Figure 5: Rose plot showing strikes of all fractures from the

Palermo Aike formation is overlayed on a structural map of the
Cerro Norte field. Preferential strikes of the fractures are NNW-
SSE and E-W.
SPE/IADC 107474 7

Figure 9: An output of the geomechanical model where the

maximum tangential stress (or hoop stress in a vertical case)
reaches the rock strength. This implies a near-breakout
development condition with a mud weight of 1070 g/l.

Figure 8: With elevated mud weight, the large hydraulic gradient

can drive the drilling fluid or pressure into the fractures causing
the pore pressure to increase at the same time. This reduces the
mud hydrostatical support and effective bulk strength of the
formation.

Figure 10: Comparison of original and modified bottom-hole

assembly used to minimize lateral vibrations. The new BHA
comprises of a new downhole motor (DHM) and three additional
stabilizers.
8 SPE/IADC 107474

Figure 11: Comparisonof the lateral vibration tendency for old and new BHA. New BHA with 40 RPM and 10 ton WOB shows minimal lateral
vibrations.

Time (days)
0

Average 2004

500
Average 2005

Average 2006
Depth (meters)

1000

1500

14,75 days

2000

8,18 days 13,74 days

2500
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18

Figure 12: Comparisons of average drilling time per well (excluding time for coring) for years 2004, 2005 and 2006. Average drilling time was
reduced from 14.5 days (during 2004) to 8.18 days (during 2006).
SPE/IADC 107474 9

CAMPO MOLINO WORST AND BEST DRILLING CURVE

time (days)
0

CMo-14 (the worst- 2005)

CMo-18 (The best - 2006)

500

PDC PROBLEMS. BALLOONING SHALES

WELBORE STABILITY PROBLEMS. TIME CIRCULATION,

Depth (meters)

REAMING, LARGE SIZE AND VOLUME OF CAVINGS OVER

SHAKERS, RESTRICTED CIRCULATION, INCREASE IN
1000 PUMP PRESSURE.

ROH BIT. WELBORE STABILITY PROBLEMS. TIME

CIRCULATION, REAMING, LARGE SIZE AND VOLUME OF
CAVINGS OVER SHAKERS, RESTRICTED CIRCULATION, SET
DOWN 1040 M, REAMING 1350/1426 A LOT OF TIME. INCRASE
DENSITY A 1280 G/L, REAMING 1425. INCREASE IN PUMP
1500
PRESSURE. LOSS OF CIRCULATION.

18,24 days
7,49 days
2000
0,00 2,00 4,00 6,00 8,00 10,00 12,00 14,00 16,00 18,00 20,00

Figure 13: Comparison of best drilling curve (7.49 days) to that of the worst well which took about 18.24 days to drill.