Slide drilling control based on top drive torque and rotational distance

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11814943-B2
Application number	US-202017112639-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 4, 2020
Priority date	Dec 4, 2020
Publication date	Nov 14, 2023
Grant date	Nov 14, 2023

Abstract

Apparatus and methods for controlling slide drilling based on torque and rotational distance of a top drive connected with an upper end of a drill string. A method may comprise operating a processing device that receives torque measurements indicative of torque output by the top drive, receives rotational distance measurements indicative of rotational distance imparted by the top drive, causes the top drive to rotate the drill string while the drill string is off-bottom, determines a reference torque based on the torque measurements received while the drill string is rotated off-bottom, causes the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string based on the reference torque to perform slide drilling, determines a reference rotational distance based on the rotational distance measurements received during the slide drilling, and causes the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string based on the reference rotational distance to perform the slide drilling.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a control system for controlling rotation of a top drive configured to connect with an upper end of a drill string, wherein the control system comprises:
a torque sensor operable to facilitate torque measurements indicative of torque output by the top drive to the upper end of the drill string;
a rotation sensor operable to facilitate rotational distance measurements indicative of rotational distance imparted by the top drive to the upper end of the drill string, wherein the rotation sensor is further operable to facilitate rotational speed measurements indicative of rotational speed imparted by the top drive to the upper end of the drill string: and
a processing device comprising a processor and a memory storing computer program code, wherein the processing device is operable to:
receive the torque measurements;
receive the rotational distance measurements;
cause the top drive to rotate the drill string while the drill string is off-bottom by causing the top drive to increase the rotational speed until a predetermined rotational speed is reached and maintain the predetermined rotational speed until the processing device determines a reference torque based on the torque measurements received while the drill string is off-bottom and rotated by the top drive, wherein the reference torque is or comprises a maximum torque output by the top drive to the drill string sufficient to rotate the drill string from the top drive to a lower end of the drill string;
cause the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in opposing directions with respective first and second torques based on the reference torque to perform slide drilling operations, wherein the first and second torques are less than the reference torque;
determine a reference rotational distance based on the rotational distance measurements received during the slide drilling operations; and
cause the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in the opposing directions based on the reference rotational distance to perform the slide drilling operations.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processing device is operable to:
record the torque measurements while the drill string is off-bottom and rotated by the top drive; and
determine the reference torque based on the recorded torque measurements.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processing device is operable to cause the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in the opposing directions with the respective first and second torques based on the reference torque to perform the slide drilling operations by causing the top drive to stop each alternating rotation when the torque measurements indicate that a predetermined fraction of the reference torque is reached.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processing device is operable to cause the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in the opposing directions based on the reference torque to perform the slide drilling operations by causing the top drive to rotate:
in a first rotational direction from an initial rotational position until the torque measurements indicate that a first predetermined fraction of the reference torque is reached; and
in a second rotational direction from the initial rotational position until the torque measurements indicate that a second predetermined fraction of the reference torque is reached, wherein the first rotational direction is opposite from the second rotational direction, and wherein the first predetermined fraction of the reference torque is different than the second predetermined fraction of the reference torque.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first and second torques are different from one another.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processing device is operable to cause the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in the opposing directions based on the reference rotational distance to perform the slide drilling operations by causing the top drive to stop each alternating rotation when the rotational distance measurements indicate that a predetermined fraction of the reference rotational distance is reached.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processing device is operable to cause the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in the opposing directions based on the reference rotational distance to perform the slide drilling operations by causing the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in the opposing directions through a predetermined fraction of the reference rotational distance.

8. A method comprising:
commencing operation of a processing device operable to control rotation of a top drive configured to connect with an upper end of a drill string and to receive rotational speed measurements from a rotation sensor, wherein the rotational speed measurements are indicative of rotational speed imparted by the top drive to the upper end of the drill string, and wherein the operating processing device:
receives torque measurements indicative of torque output by the top drive to the upper end of the drill string;
receives rotational distance measurements indicative of rotational distance imparted by the top drive to the upper end of the drill string;
causes the top drive to rotate the drill string while the drill string is off-bottom by causing the top drive to increase the rotational speed until a predetermined rotational speed is reached and maintain the predetermined rotational speed until the processing device determines a reference torque based on the torque measurements received while the drill string is off-bottom and rotated by the top drive, wherein the reference torque is or comprises a maximum torque output by the top drive to the drill string sufficient to rotate the drill string from the top drive to a lower end of the drill string;
causes the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in opposing directions with respective first and second torques based on the reference torque to perform slide drilling operations, wherein the first and second torques are less than the reference torque;
determines a reference rotational distance based on the rotational distance measurements received during the slide drilling operations; and
causes the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in the opposing directions based on the reference rotational distance to perform the slide drilling operations.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the processing device:
also records the torque measurements while the drill string is off-bottom and rotated by the top drive; and
determines the reference torque based on the recorded torque measurements.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the processing device causes the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in the opposing directions with the respective first and second torques based on the reference torque to perform the slide drilling operations by causing the top drive to stop each alternating rotation when the torque measurements indicate that a predetermined fraction of the reference torque is reached.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein the processing device causes the top drive to alternatingly rotate the drill string in the opposing directions with the respective first and second torques based on the reference torque to perform the slide drilling operations by causing the top drive to rotate:
in a first rotational direction from an initial rotational position until the torque measurements indicate that a first predetermined fraction of the reference torque is reached; and
in a second rotational direction from the initial rotational position until the torque measur

Assignees

• Schlumberger Technology Corp
• Schlumberger Technoloyg Corp

Inventors

• Wicks Nathaniel
• Hildebrand Ginger

Classifications

• E21B44/04 Primary

  in response to the torque of the drive {; Measuring drilling torque (E21B44/06 takes precedence; measuring stresses in a well bore pipe E21B47/007)} · CPC title

• E21B3/022

  Top drives · CPC title