Abstract
Early gas kick detection is an important measure to ensure well control safety. In this paper, firstly, a new two-phase flow model was developed to accurately describe the transient annular pressure responses at the PWD tool during the gas influx. Secondly, a Dual-Measured-Points Early Gas Kick Detection Method was proposed based on the consistency and discrepancy between the pressure responses of two PWD tools. The results of case research indicated that the annular pressure increased and changed periodically with time in the initial stage of gas kick and then declined approximately linearly after the gas-liquid interface reached the PWD tool. Additionally, the proposed gas kick detection method could significantly reduce the chances of the gas kick misdiagnosis and improve the reliability of the gas kick detection. Moreover, the gas kick confirmation time (GKCT) obtained by the proposed method was 2–7 min, and the corresponding gas kick confirmation volume (GKCV) was 0.3–0.5 m3. The GKCT diminished with the increase in the formation permeability and the bottomhole pressure difference and with the decrease in the borehole size and the well depth.
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Abbreviations
- a :
-
Propagation velocity of the pressure wave, m/s
- c 0 :
-
Distribution coefficient
- d ci :
-
Inner diameter of the casing, m
- d co :
-
Outer diameter of the casing, m
- d o :
-
Borehole diameter, m
- d pi :
-
Inner diameter of the drillstring, m
- d po :
-
Outer diameter of the drillstring, m
- E s :
-
Elastic modulus of the casing, Pa
- E f :
-
Elastic modulus of the formation, Pa
- f :
-
Friction coefficient
- F f :
-
Annulus friction force item, Pa/m
- g :
-
Acceleration of gravity, m2/s
- h :
-
Reservoir thickness, m
- k :
-
Formation permeability, um2
- K l :
-
Bulk modulus of elasticity of the fluid, Pa
- M :
-
Molar mass of gas, kg/mol
- p :
-
Annular pressure, Pa
- p e :
-
Formation pressure, MPa
- p wf :
-
Bottomhole pressure, MPa
- q sg :
-
Gas kick rate, kg/(m3 s)
- q g :
-
Gas kick rate, m3/d
- r e :
-
Supply radius of gas reservoir, m
- r w :
-
Open hole radius, m
- R :
-
Universal gas constant, 8.314 J/(mol K)
- S :
-
Skin factor
- t :
-
Time, s
- T :
-
Temperature, K
- v :
-
Velocity, m/s
- v 0 :
-
Gas slippage velocity due to buoyancy, m/s
- x :
-
Spatial coordinate, m
- Z :
-
Compressibility factor of gas
- α :
-
Volume fraction
- β :
-
Turbulent coefficient
- γ g :
-
Gas relative density
- ρ :
-
Density, kg/m3
- μ g :
-
Gas viscosity, mPa s
- θ :
-
Angle of deviation, rad
- υ s :
-
Poisson ratio of the casing
- υ f :
-
Poisson ratio of the formation
- Гg → l :
-
Mass transfer rate between the gas phase and liquid phase, kg/(m3 s)
- g :
-
Gas
- l :
-
Liquid
- m :
-
Mixed fluids
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Funding
This study is funded by the Key Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51734010 and 51334003), National Natural Science Funds (No. 51374223), and National Science and Technology Major Project (No. 2016ZX05020-003).
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Yang, H., Li, J. & Liu, G. Development of a Dual-Measured-Points Early Gas Kick Detection Method based on the pressure responses of two PWD tools. Arab J Geosci 13, 776 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-020-05799-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-020-05799-5