TECHNIQUES FOR DETERMINING SIZE AND SHAPE OF DRILL CUTTINGS

Abstract

In the oil and gas industry, the presence of cuttings during the well drilling stage creates a concerning problem known as erosion. The risks of catastrophic failure caused by erosion in hydraulic systems become even greater (e.g., choke line and MPD) when observing control and safety wells on drilling rigs. The geometric characteristics of the particles are important physical attributes, as they influence the wear mechanisms of the materials directly. Therefore, this work presents an analysis of the methodology used for determining the size and shape of particles. Initially, the collection of samples was obtained by Chute Riffling technique. The samples were tested using vibrating sieves for particle size analysis. The study uses computerized image analysis to determine the particle size distribution, as well as shape parameters. The application of both techniques demonstrates that the image analysis results were very similar to the sieving, even when a much smaller sub-sample is under analysis. The granulometric analysis of the diameter of the drill cuttings by the method of vibratory sieving showed a range of size ranging from 0.10 mm to 3.35 mm, and, by the image analysis, it showed a range of size going from 0.11mm to 4.2mm. The shape parameters of the majority of drill cuttings analyzed in the present work was classified as “high circularity” and “well-rounded.”